I know exactly what you mean
Danspace Project
New York, NY
May 2022
I KNOW EXACTLY WHAT YOU MEAN PLAYFULLY EXPLORES THE ROLES OF STORYTELLING AND LYING IN RECOVERING CULTURAL MEMORY, ESTABLISHING KINSHIP AMONGST BLACK FOLKS, AND PROCESSING PERSONAL GRIEF.
Three Black femme dancers sit in a row on steps wearing orange and black costumes. Behind them are projections of layered blue text.
A Black femme with dark cornrows is on her knees hinging herself backwards.
Three Black femmes are dancing with one arm and leg raised. They in a building with high ceilings and balconies.
A Black femme sits on the ground. Her knees are bent, arms extended by her sides, and her face is gazing towards the ceiling.
Three Black femmes stand around a long piece of white paper being printed. They are speaking into microphones.
Three Black femmes are dancing with their arms lifted above their heads. They are smiling and having a good time.
Three Black femmes dance with their knees bent, feet wide, and hips swayed out to one side.
Two Black femmes speak into microphones as another dancer poses with her tongue out.
Devised in collaboration with performers Selah V. Hampton and Symara Sarai, this evening-length dance calls on nostalgic Black music and personal narratives to draw the audience into the work. It evolves from research into novelist Toni Morrison’s themes of “rememory” and “remembering,” and playwright Suzan-Lori Parks’ call to Black Americans to “make” history, when much of it has gone lost or unrecorded. The work addresses the fissures in personal and collective memory that a traumatic event creates and how when we don’t remember, we fabricate to make sense out of what we do. I know exactly what you mean is a space for collaborators and audiences to experience the healing and protective power of storytelling and the ways lying can often help us make sense of an essential truth.
Choreography/direction by Ogemdi Ude in collaboration with performers
Selah V. Hampton and Symara Sarai
Lighting Design by Carol Mullins
Projection/Interactive Media Design by Jon DeGaetano and
Matthew Deinhart
Sound Design by DJTONYMONKEY aka Antonio Brown
Administrative Support from Gabby Carmichael
Special thanks to Rochelle Jamila Wilbun and Kadie Henderson
Photos by Ian Douglas
Footage by lex moh
Funding & Support
I know exactly what you mean was commissioned and premiered at Danspace Project. It was made possible in part with support from Dance/NYC’s Disability Dance Artistry Residency Program, the Center for Performance Research Artist in Residence program, and the St. Anthony Educational Foundation.