72 Steps on Nashville Public Television

Free Digital Performance TUESDAY AUGUST 18!

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Inspired by Tennessee’s vital role in the ratification of the 19th Amendment, Nashville Ballet will share a digital presentation of Gina Patterson’s 72 Steps on Tuesday, August 18 — the exact date the Tennessee legislature ratified the bill granting women the right to vote 100 years earlier! Originally commissioned by the League of Women Voters of Nashville in 2018, this opportunity to stream the ballet for free is made possible by the League's generous sponsorship. 

GET YOUR FREE VIRTUAL TICKET HERE!

Before You Watch

Enhance your viewing experience by learning more about the ballet before you see it. Hear from the League of Women Voters of Nashville to learn about their decision to commission the work in 2018 and why they chose to sponsor next week's viewing.

The digital performance of 72 Steps is made possible through the generous sponsorship of the League of Women Voters of Nashville. 72 Steps was originally commissioned in 2018 by the League of Women Voters and their Perfect 36 Supporters.

 

Program Notes

IMG 0496The 72 step climb to the Tennessee State Capitol to await the decision of the mirrored 72 year fight for women’s right to vote (twice the 36 states needed to ratify) struck me in the research of how to tell such a weighted and timely story. Jordan created a powerful score to reveal its emotional core and voices of our past, present, and future, punctuating the universal and current relevance of this work. Weaving timelessness with historic details, and the eight chaotic days leading up to the surprising final vote, I was inspired by the letter an educated Febb Ensminger Burn wrote to her son that influenced his change of vote to favor ratification of the 19th Amendment. 

While honoring all the women who paved the road to the polls; 72 Steps endeavors to engage young people on the topic of inequality and illuminate women’s long and continuing march towards parity. It challenges audiences to contemplate their own beliefs around women’s voting rights and how this extends to broader conversations of equality, whether relating to gender or other discriminations. I hope this ballet will inspire viewers to think about their rights when the time comes to go to the polls, and how they might use their own voices to make a difference in everyday life. Through empathic dialogue, perhaps we can come to understand we are all human first. 

72 Steps in the Press

IMG 2042At the Polls: NB2 Dancers talking about the right to vote: CLICK HERE

 

Nashville Public Radio article on collaboration with composer Jordan Brooke Hamlin: CLICK HERE

The Dancers' Experience

Skyler

IMG 2035Working with Gina Patterson on “72 Steps” proved to be the most rewarding process in my career thus far. Gina challenged us to bring our humanity to the table and access our authentic vulnerability for the sake of the work. I will think back to this experience for the rest of my life. She pulled something out of my dancing that I hadn’t known existed.

Gina's work environment created a safe space for us to push for these aspects and not hold back for fear of judgment or rejection. Gina saw beyond the emptiness of physicality and challenged us to move with purpose and direct intention in order to properly embody the story. We as dancers were inspired by her commitment and were motived to meet the demands of everything she brought to the table. It was a true privilege to dance in a piece that portrayed such an important aspect of our history and I’m incredibly grateful that Gina was the one who choreographed it. Being young in my career, it feels like such a gift that I had this opportunity and now I can use it moving forward to improve and grow as a dancer, artist, and person.

Manuela

IMG 2005Being a part of the process of 72 steps, seeing it grow, and become what it is today was truly a great experience. Working on this project allowed me to become not only a better dancer, but helped me grow personally as well.

This piece grew very organically, utilizing movements emerging from the dancers, allowing us to look within ourselves for what the topics of the piece meant to us. This way the movements of the piece were authentic and raw, encompassing our true feelings towards the work. I learned a lot from this way of working, allowing me to approach other pieces in a more deliberate and meaningful ways as well. I am also grateful to have grown much closer to my peers through this process because of the deep and connected way we worked together. I feel stronger, empowered and less scared to use my voice, which was, and is still a challenge for me. I had the opportunity to fully comprehend the importance of vulnerability, letting go of the desire to appear a certain way as I dance, but to approach each movement with a focus on the thought behind it.