Annie-B Parson on Choreography as a Way of Life

To Annie-B Parson, choreography isn’t confined to the studio and the stage; rather, practically everything around us abounds with movement that’s worth paying attention to. In her new, aptly titled book, The Choreography of Everyday Life, an inventive, observant, and witty ode to her relationship with dance and movement over the course of her lifetime, she delves into exactly that belief. 

Across the past 30-plus years with Big Dance Theater, which she co-founded in 1991, her work has amounted to more than 20 choreographed and co-created works. As a whole, her inventive oeuvre extends in seemingly infinite directions: opera, pop music, television, movies, ballet, marching bands, symphonies. A frequent and close collaborator with the legendary David Byrne, Parson has choreographed two of his world tours, and most recently, his highly acclaimed Broadway hit American Utopia. The eclecticness of Parson’s body of work is rivaled only by that of her choreographic style, which finds inspiration in everything from traditional ballet, to Russian folk dances, to pedestrians on the sidewalk. A meticulous attentiveness and a whimsical ingenuity are the hallmarks of everything she does.

On this episode, Parson speaks with Andrew about how the pandemic has altered our understanding of the ways our bodies relate to one another, why she considers TikTok a new kind of folk dance, and choreography as a means of controlling and testing time.

Special thanks to our Season 6 sponsor, L’ÉCOLE, School of Jewelry Arts.

Show notes:

• Annie-B Parson
• [05:19] The Choreography of Everyday Life
• [36:15] Big Dance Theater Company
• [29:27] Paul Lazar
• [09:30] Previous books
• [49:37] The Mood Room
• [55:15] American Utopia
• [55:20] Here Lies Love
• [55:51] Everything That Happens Will Happen Today