life - breath - soul
OLIVIA HASKELL
Dancer & Choreographer in Soul
Company Liaison
Olivia Haskell is a fourth year student working to complete her B.F.A in Dance Performance and Choreography and her B.A. in Psychology. She spends her summers teaching and choreographing in her hometown on Cape Cod, Massachusetts. During her time at Elon University, she has performed in various mainstage productions including work by Andrea Miller, Matt Pardo, Abigail Corrigan, and Victoria Bond. She is excited to continue dancing through her last year at Elon.
A Note from the Artist:
My Past: I have had an interest in the interpersonal relationships of my life since I was a little girl. This fascination with the relationship between myself and others began when I started feeling like an outsider to my family and friends. I started contemplating the many interactions, moments, and exchanges that I would encounter and investigating how to improve upon my interpersonal actions and reactions. Close to 20 years later, I am still analyzing the various connections made between friends, family, peers, grocery store tellers, baristas, etc. My intrigue with the way people think, feel, and behave led me to fall in love with psychology which has since been incorporated into my movement and choreographic work.
My Present: Most of my movement creations come from my interpretations of my experiences. This could consist of one instant, one moment in time, or span the course of my 22 years of living. Knowledge gained about the psyche helps me understand life from a broader or new perspective which in turn inspires me to create.
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When I create, I find inspiration from the knowledge I have gained. I find inspiration from my understanding of a new relationship, my acceptance of a lost one, or a breakthrough in myself. I draw from my experiences with others and from the growth within myself. My creation process usually stems from a movement exploration followed by attention to spatial patterns and formations of the dancers that serve to represent the literal relationships among people. My movement and work can be described as subtle but with intention and calm but purposeful. Additionally, my work emphasizes a visceral exploration of the body.
My Future: I want to make work that is more than me and that is bigger than me and my thoughts. In future works I want to explore dynamics and power of movement on a larger scale that covers something profound or some phenomena. I want to make something meaningful to the world that incorporates versatility, strength and sensitivity to all humans.