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We're Finished!!

2/4/2021

I cannot believe I am saying this...but "Embodying Emily", a dance film is FINISHED! So many hours of editing with the most patient cinematographer went into the final stages. And by golly we finished it! So what does this mean? It means several different things.

First, I'll be submitting the film into film festivals and competitions across the US and internationally. There are many different rules per film festival so I'll be weeding through the details and figuring out the ends and outs for the next few months. Then, pending film festival submissions, I'll be premiering the film to the public both as a virtual gallery piece and as an educational platform (contact me if you want a viewing of "Embodying Emily" with a feedback session in your school or classroom!). I can't wait for these next steps to materialize!

This has been a lovely journey of hard work, dedication, and the best experiences with some pretty incredible artists. I cannot wait to do this again (yup, this is happening again...stay tuned!!). And I cannot wait to continue sharing dance with you!

To stay updated on my dance and performance shenanigans, contact me to be added to my mailing list or follow me on Instagram! I love sharing my experiences of dance with you.

Stay safe, stay healthy, and keep dancing...

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What is "Embodying Emily?"

“Embodying Emily” is a dance film inspired by the poems and letters written by Emily Dickinson, particularly during the period of 1858-1865. This work is a creative imagining of a moment of self-reflection and illumination by Dickinson. The choreography in particular seeks to examine and to embody the intersection of several of Emily's extraordinary life experiences, including her dynamic emotional states, her heightened intellect, her creative productivity, and her purported mental illness.

Dickinson encapsulated into poems a period of immense personal suffering - a time she referred to in her letters to few as “the terror” - that carried her into a life of near-total isolation. Although she was incredibly productive as a writer during this eight-year period, her sister-in-law Susan H. G. Dickinson concluded that Emily "was never willing to face the world" through the publication of her poems because of the vulnerability and exposure such a publication would require. Perhaps this vulnerability is best described in Emily's own words, 'This is my letter to the world, That never wrote to me.... sweet countrymen, Judge tenderly of me!"

Ellie de Waal

Ellie de Waal is a dancer and chroeographer primarily based in Virginia and NYC. Her works have been adjudicated and selected for several festivals including the Richmond Dance Festival in 2016. Her skill set as a choreographer has been sought out by universities, studios, and companies for both concert dance and musical productions, including "Beauty and the Beast" and "Shrek the Musical". She also choreographed an opera “Still More/More Still” in collaboration with composer Anna Heflin and coloratura soprano Melissa McCann as part of a song cycle reawakening. She was a primary choreographer in concorDance Contemporary for two major projects and has presented choreography in 12 shows put on by the Harrisonburg Dance Cooperative, where she continues to present work.

Embodying Emily

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We're Finished!!

Ellie de Waal

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