Mushrooms, and the Art of the Dance
The Hop kicks off its new season
Like mushrooms? The Hopkins Center for the Arts is dedicating an entire week in tribute to the fungus, including lessons on how to dance like one.
Did you know that Dartmouth has a farm? (Nor did I.) Dancer and choreographer John Heginbotham (director of the Dartmouth Dance Ensemble and a lecturer in the college's theater department), will be conducting Dance Like a Mushroom, a free dance workshop at the Dartmouth Organic Farm on September 14 at 11:00 a.m. where, yes, he will teach participants at this family-friendly event how to move like a mushroom. Tour of the farm included.
Dance Heginbotham (DH) is a New York-based contemporary dance company committed to supporting, producing and performing the work of choreographer John Heginbotham. With an emphasis on collaboration, DH enriches national and international communities with its unique blend of inventive, thoughtful and rigorous dance theater works.
Founded in 2011, DH established itself as one of the most adventurous and exciting new companies on the contemporary dance scene, and is celebrated for its vibrant athleticism, humor, and theatricality, as well as its commitment to collaboration.
On September 15 at 4:00 pm at Loew Auditorium is a back-by-demand showing of the film Fantastic Fungi:
“. . . Louie Schwartzberg's consciousness-shifting film is about much more than penicillin, rotting sandwiches in the fridge and your college roommate's illicit hallucinogens. Renowned scientists and mycologists like Paul Stamets and bestselling authors Michael Pollan, Eugenia Bone, Andrew Weil and others reveal the beauty and intelligence of the fungi kingdom—which may be the key to healing and saving our planet.”
Which brings us to three site-specific performances on successive evenings (September 17, 18, 19 at 6:45 p.m.) of the punny—say it out loud—You Look Like a Fun Guy by Hopkins Center Resident Artists Dance Heginbotham, set outdoors on Dartmouth’s golf course. A musical score is fused with “the forest’s ambient sounds.”
You Look Like A Fun Guy follows the life cycle of fungi: from the delicate emergence of spores and the rhythmic pulsations of mycelial networks to the majestic rise of the mushroom's fruiting body and the graceful dance of decay and renewal.
Two other related events: A Sustainability Walk in Pine Park which “. . . will be about an hour walking at an easy to moderate pace. Please bring sturdy shoes, bug protection and a water bottle. Pre-registration is recommended.” (September 17 and 19 at 5:00 pm.)
And Dinner and Dance Heginbotham on September 18 at 5:15 p.m. at the Hanover Inn. John Heginbotham will be joining diners and sharing insights into the work. Round-trip bus transportation from the Hanover Inn to the performance of You Look Like a Fun Guy is included for dinner guests. This event is for members only. The menu? Definitely “mushroom-forward.”
Note: Some events are free, some are free with registration required, some are ticketed. More information is available here, scroll to the bottom to see links to related events.
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And in case you are wondering . . . Susan B. Apel shuttered a lifelong career as a law professor to continue an interest (since kindergarten) in writing. Her freelance business, The Next Word, includes literary and feature writing; her work has appeared in a variety of lit mags and other publications including Art New England, The Woven Tale Press, The Arts Fuse, and Persimmon Tree. She connects with her neighbors through Artful, her blog about arts and culture in the Upper Valley. She’s in love with the written word.