Are there any particular streams of consciousness or dance influences that Pilobolus has drawn inspiration from over time?
RB: In 1969 we saw a performance by Alwin Nikolai, whose fundamental interest in evocative image-making was immediately appealing and gave us an early sense of how broadly dance could be interpreted. Then, several years thereafter, we were both encouraged and befriended by Nikolai and his partner, Murray Louis. That sense of warmth, welcome, and professional generosity was a model for how one should act in our little world and we have tried to keep the faith. DC: What happens when one of the ‘limbs ‘ breaks away — i.e. somebody leaves –is there a kind of ‘bodily grieving’ process as the organism re-adjusts? RB: Max Weber talks about the “routinization of charisma”. As we see it, this has to do with establishing structures that will allow fundamental values to be transmitted through time. We hope that our fundamental values — collaboration, community, creativity — are imminent in our work methods and that they will be sustainable. To put a finer point on this, we, as children of the
