Dance Legend Carolyn Carlson Sets Off on New Tour

American dancer and choreographer Carolyn Carlson has been lighting up stages around the world for decades. Currently the director of a choreography center in northern France, she's now setting off on a new national tour at nearly 70 years old.

Published

3 months ago

Categories

Arts & Society

Topics

Arts & Culture, Europe

People

Carolyn Carlson

Places

France

Transcript

SCRIPT: UPSOT She's a legend of contemporary dance….defying gravity, as well as the passing of time. UPSOT At nearly 70 years old, Carolyn Carlson is about to give one of her last masterclasses as dance director here in Roubaix, northern France. SOUNDBITE 1, Carolyn Carlson, Dancer and Choreographer (English, 15 sec): "I'm a choreographer who loves to work with people, share and exchange, with ideas. I get all the ideas and then I put the work together. But I like to share with them. So my work becomes everyone's work." One of the stars of the Paris Opéra in the 1970s, Carlson helped modernise contemporary dance in France. From there, the native Californian went on to do important work in Venice and Stockholm, and has directed some of the biggest names in the business. UPSOT Since last summer, she's been on tour around France with a new show. It may all seem like a lot to take on at her time in life, but Carlson -- an avowed Buddhist -- believes age is all in your head. UPSOT: "If I'd have been told when I was younger that I'd be doing a tour at 69, I'd have said, Impossible!" SOUNDBITE 2, Carolyn Carlson, Dancer and Choreographer (English, 26 sec): "The spirit never grows old. I must say, it even grows younger. First of all I'm a choreograph. I know how to work. I mean, you see I don't lift legs. I don't lift my legs to the sky. And anyway I'm a hand person. I love hands, because hands communicate. You see in all the rituals in the world, you have your hands, you pray, and it's this. You're not gonna lift your legs to the ceiling." UPSOT percussion When Carlson is asked to describe herself, she says she's above all a tireless traveller. And that's exactly what she wants to put into practice as she prepares to set off on another national tour. SHOTLIST ROUBAIX, France, 20 Feb 2013 SOURCE: AFPTV -GVs dance masterclass -SOUNDBITE -GVs leading dance class -GVs in office -SOUNDBITE -CU drummer -GVs rehearsals for "Synchronicity" show