INTERVIEW WITH LAUREN EDSON OF LED (BOISE, ID)
We are thrilled to present Kid Lightning and to welcome LED from Boise, ID to Missoula!
So, we put LED’s Artistic Director, Lauren Edson, in the hot-seat and asked about her creative process, life as a Western US choreographer, and touring her work. Here’s a window into the company, the show, and the artist!:
Us: We’re so intrigued by the visuals and themes of Kid Lightning. What inspired you to set the show in a 1970s stylized world?
Lauren Edson: From a visual standpoint, there was this eye candy that we were excited to embrace in a production design.
But we also felt like there were parallels in certain aspects of culture that felt like they were cyclical to what we're experiencing today. We used some audio that is from the 1970s, and while we're living in 2024, there are things resonate, and never disappear.
The zeitgeist of game shows and talent shows and how they existed in the 70s and they exist in abundance today. Just thinking of the timeless nature of that, it felt like a really fun playground to jump off in. And then also just the musical inspiration. I mean, there's so much that came from sonically and the sort of groove and color of, you know, the disco era!
Us: This is not the first show for you and your collaborator, Andrew Stensaas (LED Creative Director & Composer). What is your creative process like? How do you go about developing a new concept?
Lauren Edson: We've been doing this since 2013, and I think what first sparked our excitement and working together was that it kind of unlocked different pieces of us creatively. Coming from such a dance-centric field, I felt like having his input was such a breath of fresh air. So often, when I would go down a rabbit hole in contemporary dance, Andrew would say, well, why are we doing this exactly? Does this actually support the narrative?
Us: How has Kid Lightning evolved and changed as you toured it throughout the years?
Lauren Edson: There are only a couple of members that have shifted since we created the work in 2022. But it does change. I think that that's what's really exciting for the performers: we've really tried to embrace that none of this is fixed. There is, of course, you know, scaffolding within the piece. But there's so much that requires them to listen and to be present and to make choices in real time. And I think we joke that it's like, oh, this is 4.0, Lightning 4.0. It's like every time you get to return after some time away, you discover so much more and the connection gets deeper.
Us: You mentioned some of your dancers are based in Portland. So how do you how do you go about a process with dancers from different places?
Lauren Edson: So for each project that we take on, I just assemble a group of artists. Very few are actually based here in Boise now: really just two of our artists are based in Boise. But I bring in artists for an eight to ten week residency period, essentially, where we're deep in creation.
They are from all over the country and come from different backgrounds. And I've been connected to many of them throughout the years, whether it's working together in a company or at a festival or in a workshop.
So there's such there's deep history there. And I really love bringing in people that I've worked with for a long time and then also bringing in people who are brand new to the process. I find that alchemy is really special for everyone. It keeps stirring things up in a really positive way. And we all know it demands that we connect genuinely.
Us: Similar to BBD, you are based in a small community in the West. How does this experience influence LED and the art you create?
Lauren Edson: Well, I've been thinking about this. I think I'm now just becoming conscious of it. But there's a spirit of freedom and this sort of Western pioneering idea that I do think feels like it's [LED’s] rooted in that to some degree.
There's almost like a duty and a service to doing it in this [Boise] community because it's not dense in the ways that cities like New York or L.A. or San Francisco or Portland or Seattle are. Boise is so isolated geographically… We're very much out here on our own. And it does feel like the place that we're in reflects the art that we make in the company that we are growing to be.
Kid Lightning is presented as part of our 2024|2025 season at the Westside Theater, October 18 & 19, 2024.