Boston Ballet

Earlier this week, a friend in WHOI's Communications Department emailed me to ask if I was back from the Arctic. "I want to hear all about the trip," he wrote, "but first I want to interest you in something fun." 

The Boston Ballet has commissioned an artwork about humanity's relationship to the ocean. The piece, which incorporates dance, video, and live music, is choreographed by Nanine Linning. In preparation for the performance, which opens on April 6, the Boston Ballet has undertaken an exploration of how humans interact with the ocean and partnered with WHOI to provide a scientific perspective. There's also a documentary being made about the creative process behind Linning's piece, including interactions with scientists. As some of you may know, I studied ballet all through childhood and was introduced to West African dance in college. I even taught dance classes when I lived in Germany and during grad school in Oregon. My friend in Communications knew this and invited me to participate in the discussions. 

Roundtable participants in WHOI's AVAST facility. L to R: 
Mikko Nissinen, Larry Pratt, Kirstin Meyer-Kaiser (me), Ana 
Michel, Sarah Das, Nanine Linning, Adam Subhas. Photo by 
Ken Kostel. 

On Thursday, I was asked to give an interview for the documentary. The director had extremely insightful questions, not just about my science, but also about the connection between science and art. This is something I've begun to explore in more depth recently, so I was glad to engage in the discussion. To me, science and the arts are orthogonal - not independent but complementary ways of experiencing and understanding the world. 

On Friday, I participated in a roundtable discussion with choreographer Nanine Linning and the Ballet's Artistic Director, Mikko Nissinen. The conversation focused on the creative process - how artists and scientists approach their creative work. In essence, science is creating knowledge; learning things that have never been learned before. Artists similarly create things that never existed before. Both disciplines together can communicate, advise, inform, and move audiences to action. 

It was an absolute honor to meet Nanine and Mikko, work with the film crew, and participate in such a unique and impactful work. 

Boston Ballet's new program featuring Nanine's choreography opens on April 6.