Welcome Suite
"[A] flat-out comedic masterpiece....The text is screwball-smart, and the zany movement, created by Garner in the collaboration with the dancers, couldn't be more delicious." -Michael Upchurch of the Seattle Times
“…it was Hannah Garner’s work Welcome Suite that truly won me over. The unabashedly quirky piece kept us guessing right from the beginning as it ricochetted between physical gaffs, existential ponderings, and genuine connection. And of course a lot of gorgeous dancing…here’s hoping they come back to Seattle.” -Kaitlin McCarthy, Seattle Dances
Created as a commission for Whim W’Him Seattle Contemporary Dance.
The creation of Welcome Suite began with a few pieces of writing orbiting themes of yearning for connection, the contradictory nature of desire, and the navigation of uncertainty. In the studio, relatable human moments collided with virtuosic and expressive movement; we found moments of solace in addition to moments of humor, failure, impossibility, questioning, and messiness. I am excited by how the body can hold all of these truths and how these ideas can be expanded and warped into something wild and mundane simultaneously.
In Welcome Suite dance trios bleed into monologues bleed into tender touches bleed into wacky and whimsical games the dancers play to make sense of this world they are building. Let’s imagine the room is as much a container for this world as this world is a support holding up the walls, holding up the ceiling. Let’s imagine that, even if it doesn’t seem like it, there is a lot going on. That while we are doing this, the sun is shining somewhere. There’s always a sun somewhere.
I am endlessly grateful to these dancers for their imagination and willingness to go berserk.
Special thanks to Jane Cracovaner for her invaluable contributions to this process and to Alexa for traveling across the country to support my creative endeavors.
“They’re innovative and emerging new voices,” says Whim W’Him artistic director Olivier Wevers. “This program is always invigorating because it showcases some of the freshest voices in choreography.” And while Wevers is tight-lipped about specifics, he has this to say about Garner’s piece: “It pushes the boundary of what contemporary dance is and can be, blurring the lines between concert dance and theater/performance art. It will challenge viewers to question what they are seeing and continues to challenge them with queries and thought-provoking situations.” - Seattle Mag
Choreographed, written, and directed by Hannah Garner
Performed by Michael Arellano, Jacob Beasley, Jane Cracovaner, Nell Josephine, Andrew McShea, Kyle Sangil
Understudy: Kaylan Gardner
Costumes: Hannah Garner
Lighting designer: Michael Mazzola
Location: Erickson Theater, Seattle, WA
Music: Day by Day by the Four Freshmen, Amor Ti Vieta performed by Enrico Caruso, Ozaki by Sean McVerry, Sure on this Shining Night composed by Morten Lauridsen and performed by Conspirare
Premiere: premiere on September 8, 2023
Length: approx 25 minutes
Photos: Allina Yang