Full Season Packages Now Available
February 12, 2025
Currently in her 13th and final season dancing with TBT, Principal Dancer Alexandra F. Light is a dynamic artist and choreographer whose work is deeply rooted in research, artistic exploration, and a profound respect for dance history. As she takes on the challenge of interpreting and contributing to Lamentation Variations, one of the featured works in TBT’s upcoming mixed repertoire production International Woman, Alexandra draws inspiration from Martha Graham’s pioneering vision, weaving together themes of grief, resilience, and artistic expression. With a background enriched by both contemporary and classical influences, Alexandra’s creative process is both intuitive and intentional, aiming to honor Graham’s legacy while forging new artistic ground.
Light: While this is my first time performing a Graham work, I’ve admired her since childhood, from her iconic imagery to the trail she blazed. During lockdown, taking Graham classes online with the company dancers was a bright spot in an otherwise dark time. I am thrilled to perform the last complete work of Graham’s lifetime, Maple Leaf Rag, under Masha Maddux (a previous principal of the Graham company) simultaneously during this final season for me and my Lamentation Variations creation process. The Graham classes and rehearsals bring an extra layer of depth and inspiration.
Light: I really resonate with Graham’s idea of costuming representing the body pushing through lament, the cloth as skin, and knew I wanted to explore that. I kept returning to themes of the artist’s journey and the bodily experience of tragedy and grief. I found strong connections to violence against female bodies and bodies facing prejudice, particularly through the work of artist Ana Mendieta. The more I researched, the more I saw links between Graham and Mendieta. Graham was deeply inspired by visual arts, and I wanted to honor that connection. My interpretation pays tribute to Lamentation’s legacy and how art helps process grief and prejudice.
Light: I take huge inspiration from Graham’s original ideas, recreating them in my own way. There are many motifs of the heart and the body in response to sadness and the feeling of wanting to push out and away from your physical form. I intertwine these with visual art references, and my costume draws directly from Graham—not just her Lamentation design but her overall approach to costuming.
Light: Selecting the soundscape was a challenge because I wanted it to be just as meaningful as the choreography. At Jacob’s Pillow’s inaugural ChoreoTech Lab, I was introduced to using biometrics in performance. Inspired by that, I recorded my heartbeat while watching Lamentation—which is exactly what you hear in the first part of my piece. I also collaborated with Sophia Subbayya Vastek, who researched composer Lili Boulanger, one of the most accomplished early 20th-century composers, whose life was cut short. Vastek recorded Boulanger’s Prélude en Ré (1912), which we combined with my heartbeat to create something deeply meaningful.
Light: Research was such a big part of my approach that I felt prepared to let intuition guide my choreography. Once I had a first draft of steps, it felt like a Graham-ification of my own style. I deeply admire Graham technique and respect it immensely, but I would never claim to be an expert. I wanted to make sure I wasn’t trying to replicate Graham technique but rather let her influence, iconography, and intention inform my own process in an organic way.
Light: I hope they have their most honest reaction to this ongoing legacy. Graham was very aware of and appreciated a wide variety of responses to her work. I hope part of the reaction is an appreciation for the dance, art, and social history embedded in it. I love the “Rorschach inkblot” effect of art—everyone will take something different from it, and that’s what makes it powerful.
Light: I’m honored to be part of this project. I think my contribution fits into the evolution of contemporary dance by being another voice, another experience, another message in making impactful work. My aim is to be a very intentional drop in the ocean of experience that helps contemporary dance and the larger arts community grow in a meaningful way.
Through her unique interpretation of Lamentation Variations, Alexandra offers a fresh perspective on the enduring power of movement and storytelling in dance. As audiences engage with her choreography, Alexandra hopes to evoke personal reflection and an appreciation for the evolving nature of contemporary dance, one that continues to challenge, inspire, and transform.
See the “Light Variation” and other works at International Woman, running Feb. 21-23, 2025, at Bass Performance Hall in Fort Worth and Feb. 28 – March 1, 2025 at Wylie Theater in Dallas. Tickets may be purchased online or by calling the box office at 877.828.9200 Option 1.
