Julia Winkels , CLA 2010
On Language, Violence and the Body: Interdisciplinary Explorations
Major
Dance, Cultural Studies and Comparative Literature
Mentor
Carl Flink : Theatre Arts & Dance
Brief Bio
I'm a sophomore dance major who likes polaroid pictures, bike rides, and vegan food.
Future Plans
I want to be a performance artist or maybe a rock star.
Why Research?
I'm interested in dancing across boundaries, making it an interdisciplinary art. Dance should be important and real in people's lives - it should be real and urgent; it should make a difference. This research is the first step in making my own art.
What Did I Get from Research?
I found out a lot about collaboration and the creative process - my partner is a theorist who doesn't have any performance expirience, and I'm a dancer with a very small theoretical background. We had to find a middle ground that enabled us to organically translate a story across mediums, and that process has taught me a lot.
How Did I Start?
My partner in the project is a graduate student in the CSCL department, and I'm a dancer - we go to talking one night at Hard Times, and thought it would be cool to collaborate; he has an interest in theatre/dance, and I am interested in theoretical stuff. I found Carl because he's my director in the dance department, and shares much of my personal belief about the inseperable nature of the mind and body.
My Advice for Another Student:
Be creative. Look for connections you didn't think existed and see what where they can take you. Don't be afraid and don't force anything - good material comes organically.
Research Summary
Our research is based on Franz Kafka's short story "In the Penal Colony." Basically, we are exploring torture and the tortured body; we're interested in, among other things, memory, BDSM, the body, the voice, and the role of the audience.