Telepathic Maps: A Study in Ongoingness

Abstract

“Telepathic Maps: a study in ongoingness” is the written thesis prepared as research and reflection of the dance performance of “telepathic maps” in January 2021, a requirement for the M.F.A. at the University of Maryland. The process of creating and writing about the dance was undertaken during the CoVid-19 pandemic. Using my own personal experience as a triathlete and dancer, I posit that endurance, usually associated with athletics, can behave differently when explored through the dynamics of dance. The collaborative process and performance of “telepathic maps” are put in conversation, demonstrating how endurance provided multiple entry points to manifest the physical and artistic research. Though the original performance was cancelled due to the pandemic, the writing process revealed answers about the performative nature of endurance; that even with a finish line, the step beyond it is more meaningful than the perceived endpoint. An accessible structure was created, allowing the dance to surpass notions of performance as product and therefore representing the inherent ongoingness of my artistic and pedagogical practice.