Charlotte Telfer-Wan, Dance Artist

Charlotte Telfer-Wan

Artistic Statement

Photo from Dance Spring 2017 Mainstage, Women Marching 

Dancers are both artists and athletes. It is intriguing the way these two seemingly disparate topics interact through dance. I appreciate the value of having expertise in both areas to compliment each other; art as an act to relate subject matter to an audience, and athleticism to embody the subject in a variety of ways.

My work demonstrates extreme and artistic physicality, used to commemorate the potential of human kinetics. I study both dance and kinesiology and am interested in the way these subjects interact. The human body has the ability to function in many forms, responding to stimuli in physical and emotional complexities. My choreography is focused on dynamic movement that reflects personal research of individual artistry and physicality through the evolution of the work. I work with dancers to build choreography that has surfaced through their natural movement. We study strength and efficiency in expansive movement while interpreting of an image or idea. In Kronos, my most recently performed piece, I experiment with time as a malleable, rather than linear phenomenon; I manipulate time, discovering with dynamic movement how to stretch moments and escape others. When I created this piece time was blocking my artistic efforts and I was inspired by it. Through sustained expansive patterns, stressful muscular tension, and release, I stretch time, demonstrating that it is a medium that can be manipulated and reimagined.

Photo by Darby Mitchell

I am learning that dancing uncovers incredible potential for individual movement. The mechanics of a simple walk can change dramatically with different bone structure and musculature. To me, being a dance artist is to open the door to the array of possibilities that exist in the bodies I work with. In doing this, I find knowledge, curiosity, and opportunity for dance as my research and my practice.





Biography

Charlotte Telfer-Wan is a dance artist subsiding in Vancouver, BC. She is in her 4th year working towards a BFA in Contemporary Dance and Minor in Kinesiology at Simon Fraser University. She is versed in multiple contemporary and modern techniques, recently finding interest in Release Technique and Gaga. In Charlotte’s choreography she pushes physical strength and variation, using this to express relationships between movement and internal cognition. In addition to her work as a dance artist Charlotte studies dance physiology, nutrition, and sport injuries. With her interest in movement and research in sport science she continues to develop an individual style of movement with efficiency, athleticism, and enjoyment for dance. Most recently Charlotte has presented work in Meraki (2019) and Ascension (2017) at SFU and in Pre Show (2018). She also took a role in producing and directing Ascension in 2018 and student choreography showcases in 2016 and 2015.