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Water Locale
Kaimana Beach, Pacific Ocean
The Choreographers
Kelly Wadlegger, Laura Reichardt, Becky McGarvey, Gwen Arbough
Audience Site
Kaimana Beach area
History of site and related water issues
The beautiful south shore of Oahu is a heavily populated tourist area and reef area which gets damaged by uneducated persons snorkeling, swimming, diving on and over the reef, stepping on it. Issues include pollution left on beach, plastic bags that go into water and strangle sea life, cigarette butts that get washed out to sea and eaten by fish, small pieces of plastic that get ingested by fish.
The Music
Local musicians- Jake Shimabukuro and Jack Johnson
The Performance
Opening circle ritual choreography that takes place on the beach, and then dancing along the whole beach interacting with beachgoers, participation from people pre-taught who are on the beach, and then like a flash mob, all begin to do environmental dance and end in the water collectively in a circle.
Report from choreographer Kelly Wadlegger: “Three of us did a very butoh-esque performance and embodied the Hawaiian sea life trapped in the nets, lines and plastic bags that get washed up. We were literally trapped and rolling in the shore break, then we became untangled and the focus was about collecting the trash and properly disposing. Then we were ‘free’ of the garbage and walked into the audience until we disappeared under the water… It is paradise, but not for long if people are not aware of the plastic problem and how it affects our oceans.”
Directions to site of the performance
New Otani Hotel/ Kaimana beach is right opposite Kapiolani park in Honolulu at the far end before you go up towards Diamond Head