MN ORIGINAL

Dancemaker, choreographer, and storyteller Emily Johnson combines personal stories and powerful movement in her latest work The Thank-you Bar, which debuted in Minneapolis at the University of Minnesota's Northrop Auditorium. Johnson believes that anything can be dance: Our physical responses to the world is where dance begins. Johnson's philosophy about movement can be seen in her previous work Heat and Life, (2004) which was commissioned by the Walker Art Center to engage the controversial topic of global warming. Johnson's own intimate style of storytelling can be seen in The Thank-You Bar as she examines her Native American heritage using stories from her childhood in Alaska, original music by Blackfish and dramatic lighting to draw the audience into her world.

This segment aired as part of mn original show #224.