Dance in Ecuador

Rachel Helten Start Date: Oct 12, 2016 - End Date: Apr 11, 2017
  • Quito, Pichincha, Ecuador

My Travel Story

by: Rachel Helten Start Date: Oct 12, 2016 - End Date: Apr 11, 2017
Hello beautiful family and friends!

I've been given the wonderful opportunity to intern for six weeks with a cultural organization striving to maintain traditional dance of Ecuador and the Andes region. I also will be helping by using dance and the arts as methods of providing therapy and education to youth and adults with disabilities. Additionally, I will be blessed with the opportunity to take spanish classes and explore the amazing nature and culture that surround Quito. 

Also while I'm there I will be investigating the value of non-verbal communication and the healing properties of movement. I will be creating a multi-media work and live performance piece.  I have always been fascinated by the messages we communicate to each other beyond words. I am not well versed in the Spanish language thusly I will quickly need to heighten my sensitivity for non-verbal communication. I would like to investigate these stories of those I interact with and challenge how much information can be understood without the use of speech. This exploration will come in the form of film, written words and a performance piece. In the film I would like to create a compilation of others movements, gestures and dances we unknowingly and knowingly create everyday. The written component of my exploration will be in the form of journal entries, self-reflection, and poetry. The performance element will be presented in the film as well as hopefully performed for a live audience. I feel we are all quite intuitive beings and depending on the intention of the performer many profound messages can be expressed beyond words. I would like to share my own stories that live within my psyche and express them to on-lookers. I will then record the feedback I receive from the audience and see if I was able to clearly convey my message and investigate what other insights were discovered about the work. 

Let me know if you're able to help fund this wonderful opportunity! 
  • Quito, Pichincha, Ecuador