Maya Deren, October 24th

Presented by Tristan and Ashley

     From the age of four to eighteen years old, I have been a dancer: primarily ballet, but also modern, hip-hop, contemporary, tap, and broadway. The movement of the tiny ballerina in my jewelry box twirling around inspired me to pursue this art. Key word: movement. This act of movement which once entranced me is depicted in Maya Deren's filmography. Bodies fly, move and twirl in transfixing slow motion, dancing in and around one another. I admire Maya Deren because she was a keen dancer who knew the paradox of film; it is a ritual that sets you free. I was on a Maya Deren kick this summer and now it is showing zero sign of slowing down. I had never seen The Very Eye of the Night. I enjoyed it in all of its hallucinatory splendor as Deren created a filmic atmosphere which explored bodies in space, literally. The dancers were the stars in a constellation ballet performance. Because the film is negative, the dancers appeared almost ghostly in a way. The visuals were simply hypnotizing and the clever usage of costume design morphed a few of the dancers into looking as though they were missing a limb (the black and white pants) or the black scarf wrapped around the female's body as if entire sections were gone as the blended in with the background. Ultimately, Maya Deren stands for everything I am interested in-- the surrealism, the movement, the sexuality, the dance, the refusal of boundaries.