Q&A With Joy Bollinger

Choreographer Joy Bollinger Honors Martha Graham’s Work in Lamentation Variations

Joy Bollinger, artistic director and resident choreographer for Bruce Wood Dance, is one of three guest choreographers whose original work will be featured in Lamentation Variations as part of International Woman, TBT’s mixed repertoire production and its first to feature works created exclusively by female choreographers.

Lamentation Variations was conceived in 2007 to commemorate the tragedy of 9/11 and was inspired by Martha Graham’s iconic solo from January 1930 titled Lamentation, which explores grief in motion. The Lamentation Variations ensemble challenges choreographers to create their own unique interpretation of Graham’s Lamentation under specific conditions, such as scheduling only 10 hours of rehearsal, utilizing music in the public domain or silence, outfitting dancers in basic costumes and using simple lighting design.

Bollinger shares her inspiration and creative process for Lamentation Variations, and what audiences have to look forward to when experiencing her work.

TBT: What has Martha Graham’s work meant to you as a dancer and choreographer?

Bollinger: Martha Graham’s work carves out a shining example of what it means to be unapologetic with your craft. She forged into new territory with certainty and commitment that emboldens choreographers still to this day.

TBT: How do you interpret Graham’s Lamentation? What does it convey to you personally?

Bollinger: Graham’s Lamentation aches with immense depth displaying how grief confines and overtakes a person. Ticking as if lost in time at moments and then giving way to shape, contortion, and tension, the work serves to share a truly visceral response to a heart torn open.

TBT: How are you using this interpretation to inspire your own original choreography?

Bollinger: I find that shape and line create emotional context no matter how abstract. Allowing the movement to create waves of pain, I balance outcry with unbridled vulnerability. I find, like Graham, that a gesture of any size can be significant.

TBT: Can you describe your creative process for developing choreography for this project? Were there any challenges or breakthroughs?

Bollinger: The main challenge was learning a new set of dancers and feeling free in the space to create with vigor and abandon, all within the 10-hour window.

TBT: How do you balance honoring Martha Graham’s legacy while infusing your unique voice into Lamentation Variations?

Bollinger: Martha Graham spoke her truth through movement. To dive into the project with complete authenticity to my experiences and expression is the most Graham-honoring thing I can do.

TBT: What do you hope audiences experience from your choreography?

Bollinger: I hope the audience experiences sensation and feeling. Lines, pathways and shapes are great, but all work to create a human experience.

TBT: How do you think your contribution to Lamentation Variations fits into the broader evolution of contemporary dance?

Bollinger: Martha Graham led the way for modern dance. Her existence and the essence of her work continues to provide a platform for others to forge ahead in the ever-changing landscape of this art form. Because she created, we create.

One of the most highly regarded choreographers in North Texas, Bollinger received a B.F.A. in ballet at Texas Christian University and trained at the Fort Worth School of Ballet. She was a veteran performer of the Fort Worth-based Bruce Wood Dance Company from 2002-2007, where she performed in over 50 of Wood’s ballets. She was a founding member of Bruce Wood Dance Dallas in 2010 and has led the company since 2018. Bollinger has been commissioned by the Dallas Museum of Art, Texas Christian University, Dallas Black Dance Theatre, and Southern Methodist University, and her work has been performed across the United States.