• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • HOME
  • NEWS+OPINIONS
    • NEWS TO US
    • COLUMNS
      • APPARENT HORIZON
      • DEAR READER
      • Close
    • LONGFORM FEATURES
    • OPINIONS
    • EDITORIAL
    • Close
  • ARTS+ENTERTAINMENT
    • FILM
    • MUSIC
    • COMEDY
    • PERFORMING ARTS
    • VISUAL ARTS
    • Close
  • DINING+DRINKING
    • EATS
    • SIPS
    • Close
  • LIFESTYLE
    • CANNABIS
      • TALKING JOINTS MEMO
      • Close
    • WELLNESS
    • GTFO
    • Close
  • STUFF TO DO
  • TICKETS
  • ABOUT US
    • 5 DOUBLE-U’S
    • MASTHEAD
    • DISTRIBUTION
    • ADVERTISE
    • SUBMISSIONS
    • PRIVACY POLICY
    • Close
  • BECOME A MEMBER

Dig Bos

The Dig - Boston's Only Newspaper

READ CURRENT STREET ISSUE

DIG Year End 2020

ALL-AMERICAN REJECTS: REJECT DANCE THEATRE’S LATEST FUSES THREE VISIONS INTO ONE INTERCONNECTED WHOLE

Written by SPENCER SHANNON Posted March 19, 2015 Filed Under: A+E, Performing Arts

AR_REJECTWEB_728

For Stephen Ursprung, one of three artistic directors of the young contemporary dance company Reject Dance Theatre, a career in the arts was something he sort of fell into.

 

An economics and Italian studies double major at Brown University, Ursprung found himself at a crossroads when he completed his bachelor’s in 2010, only to graduate in the midst of a financial collapse that crippled the US. After years of his regarding it as a passionate (but peripheral) hobby, dance suddenly opened up as a viable career path.

 

“I kind of used the rejection as a way to decide to just to go for investing in my own artistic expression,” Ursprung says. “I was like, I may as well do this while I’m young and just throw myself into that type of setting while I still have the body and the energy to do it!”

 

Reject Dance Theatre was also the product of serendipitous chance. Ursprung enrolled at Smith College’s MFA Dance program in a class of five that included fellow students (and future co-directors) Stephanie Simpson and Rebecca Hite Teicheira. The trio later learned that they were the top three picks for the program, even though they’d been rejected by every other program to which they’d applied.

 

“We banded together as a group of rejects,” Ursprung says with a smile. “[The name] came out of a joke, but it’s memorable, and we definitely do things that are quirky and fun. For most audiences, it’s something a little outside of preconceived notions of what dance might be, especially people who aren’t into contemporary modern dance, and are more exposed to commercial dance. We all kind of came from that. We’ve rejected things along the way, as well as being rejected.”

 

One of the company’s core values is accessibility. Ursprung believes that the dance world, while full of creative and brilliant minds, can be insular in a way that shuts many potential audiences out. He hopes to use his training in both commercial and avant-garde forms to break down the perceived barrier between “high art” and “low art” in order to attract audiences of all backgrounds and experience levels.

 

“Our work tends to be more inviting, I would say, than most post-postmodern dance you see in the world,” Ursprung says. “I say that as a blanket statement and not as a dig at anyone else in the field. We try to make our work fun and inviting, definitely not off-putting. But at the same time we’re kind of weird.”

 

All are apt descriptions for the company’s latest project, The Territory Suites. Reject’s first evening-length performance, Suites combines separate pieces from all three directors into one interconnected whole, drawing on conventions of theatrical storytelling and inspired by ideas of what it means to occupy a space.

 

“[Simpson’s piece] is a sort of internalized psychological approach to territory and space. And then Rebecca’s piece is so grotesque and animalistic. I would say my approach is pedestrian and human. By framing everything with my work, it sort of contextualizes all of that as part of the human experience,” Ursprung explains. “Instead of having a piece that’s wild and animalistic, having a separate piece that’s intense and emotional and internalized, by having my work scattered throughout the larger narrative arc it tied it all together as one cohesive experience, the life experience.”

 

As Ursprung has learned, life experiences can’t always be neatly tied up, and the path can be winding. But this openness to exploration is one of the reasons why he came to Boston to build his company.

 

“I felt like there was a need for new voices to come into the space and contextualize what’s going on, and add a lot of diversity. Boston is a conservative city in terms of its audience base, so I was excited about the opportunity to come in and do something that’s a little bit different than traditional modern dance,” he says. “The idea of just presenting yourself and being yourself and thinking deeply about that made a lot of sense.”

 

REJECT DANCE THEATRE PRESENTS: THE TERRITORY SUITES. THE DANCE COMPLEX, 536 MASS AVE., CAMBRIDGE. MARCH 20-21. 8PM/$25. TO PURCHASE TICKETS, VISIT REJECTDANCETHATRE.COM

SPENCER SHANNON
More from author
  • SPENCER SHANNON
    https://digboston.com/author/spencer-shannon/
    BLACK DIALOGUE: INTELLIGENT MISCHIEF AND THE SUMMER OF RADICAL IMAGINATION
  • SPENCER SHANNON
    https://digboston.com/author/spencer-shannon/
    DEVIL’S ADVOCATE
  • SPENCER SHANNON
    https://digboston.com/author/spencer-shannon/
    THE SUBMISSION: ZEITGEIST STAGE'S SPRING CLOSER MEDIATES ON BIG ISSUES
  • SPENCER SHANNON
    https://digboston.com/author/spencer-shannon/
    MOTHERS AND SONS: TEARS AND TRUTHS IN SPEAKEASY STAGE COMPANY'S LATEST

Filed Under: A+E, Performing Arts Tagged With: accessibility, brown university, MFA, rebecca hite teicheira, reject dance theatre, smith college, stephanie simpson, stephen ursprung, territory suites, the dance complex

WHAT’S NEW

MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. HONORED, SPEAKERS ADDRESS RACISM

MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. HONORED, SPEAKERS ADDRESS RACISM

FORMER MASS GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATE PREDICTED VIOLENCE BEFORE ASSAULT ON CAPITOL

FORMER MASS GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATE PREDICTED VIOLENCE BEFORE ASSAULT ON CAPITOL

PRISON HORRORS BY THE NUMBERS

PRISON HORRORS BY THE NUMBERS

Harry Brill. Photo courtesy of Gary Zabel.

RADICAL AND RELEVANT: THE LIFE OF HARRY BRILL

Aerial View Parkman Bandstand at Boston Common. CC BY-SA 4.0 2017 by AbhiSuryawanshi.

NO HONEYMOON FOR BIDEN: 1/20 PROTEST ON BOSTON COMMON, 4 PM

IT'S HARDER THAN EVER TO FIND A BATHROOM IN BOSTON. WHAT'S THE CITY DOING ABOUT IT?

IT’S HARDER THAN EVER TO FIND A BATHROOM IN BOSTON. WHAT’S THE CITY DOING ABOUT IT?

Primary Sidebar

HEMPIRE FREEDOM PACK 25% OFF

FEATURED EVENT

Most Popular

  • APPOINTED SOMERVILLE OFFICIAL SPURS OUTRAGE WITH TWEETS FROM DC MOB SCENE by MARC LEVY
  • Aerial View Parkman Bandstand at Boston Common. CC BY-SA 4.0 2017 by AbhiSuryawanshi. NO HONEYMOON FOR BIDEN: 1/20 PROTEST ON BOSTON COMMON, 4 PM by MATTHEW ANDREWS
  • VIDEO: COP WHO BRAGGED THAT HE HIT PROTESTERS SHOWS HOW BAD APPLES THRIVE IN BOSTON by CHRIS FARAONE
  • STATE LOOKS TO SPEND $75K TO PREVENT FUTURE STORROWINGS by DAN ATKINSON
  • IT’S HARDER THAN EVER TO FIND A BATHROOM IN BOSTON. WHAT’S THE CITY DOING ABOUT IT? by ZACK HUFFMAN

READ CURRENT MEMBER EDITION

DIG Member 1.9 – 11/26/20

READ CURRENT STREET ISSUE

DIG Year End 2020

Footer

digbos

RADICAL AND RELEVANT: THE LIFE OF HARRY BRILL http RADICAL AND RELEVANT: THE LIFE OF HARRY BRILL https://digboston.com/radical-and-relevant-the-life-of-harry-brill/ #obituary #organizer #radical #sociologist #democracy #politics @UMassBoston @BklynCollege411 @UCBerkeley #Boston #Massachusetts #NewYorkCity #Berkeley #California
NO HONEYMOON FOR BIDEN: 1/20 #PROTEST ON BOSTON CO NO HONEYMOON FOR BIDEN: 1/20 #PROTEST ON BOSTON COMMON, 4 PM https://digboston.com/no-honeymoon-for-biden-1-20-protest-on-boston-common-4-pm/ #opinion #progressive #left #action #inauguration #Boston #Massachusetts
Light and sweet and hoppy, we’re loving this lat Light and sweet and hoppy, we’re loving this latest incarnation of a #beer that’s been in the making for months. https://digboston.com/video-jacks-abby-x-boston-celtics-pride-and-parquet-hoppy-lager-unboxing-tasting/ #fun #video #review #Boston #Massachusetts
Jostling for position and influence are the disadv Jostling for position and influence are the disadvantaged candidates, existing industry participants, and municipalities … https://digboston.com/the-road-to-home-delivery-pt-5-dogs-in-the-fight-identifying-the-players/ #cannabis #politics #analysis #Massachusetts
The candidates will be interviewed about the upcom The candidates will be interviewed about the upcoming race. https://digboston.com/wu-and-campbell-to-speak-at-mayoral-candidate-webinar/ #politics #mayor #campaign #Boston #Massachusetts
Participants took to the streets in the hope of sw Participants took to the streets in the hope of swaying the Biden administration. https://digboston.com/on-national-day-of-action-protesters-call-for-eviction-moratorium/ #housing #justice #protest #national #Boston #Massachusetts
“They refuse to respond to this humanitarian cri “They refuse to respond to this humanitarian crisis where people really need them. We’re just ignoring this problem and it’s getting worse and worse.” https://digboston.com/its-harder-than-ever-to-find-a-bathroom-in-boston-whats-the-city-doing-about-it/ #politics #unhoused #homeless #bathroom #public #health #Boston #Massachusetts
Environmental #justice and #climate change advocat Environmental #justice and #climate change advocates are pushing for its passage. https://digboston.com/baker-urged-to-sign-game-changing-climate-bill/ #environment #globalwarming #legislation #politics #Massachusetts
In short, it’s amazing. For details, check the # In short, it’s amazing. For details, check the #video … https://digboston.com/video-night-shifts-tea-party-is-subtle-love-for-people-who-hate-most-hard-teas/ #review #fun #beer @NightShiftBeer
HOW TO DEFEAT THE HARD RIGHT: Some thoughts on the HOW TO DEFEAT THE HARD RIGHT: Some thoughts on the Capitol attack and building a more democratic nation. The latest from DigBoston's @jasonpramas. https://digboston.com/how-to-defeat-the-hard-right/ #democracy #politics #Capitol #US #America #attack #Biden #Trump #grassroots #movement #analysis #strategy #MAGA
Load More... Follow on Instagram
Social Buttons

DigBoston facebook DigBoston Twitter DigBoston Instagram

Masthead

About

Submissions

Advertise

Privacy Policy

Customer Service

Distribution

About Us

DigBoston is a one-stop nexus for everything worth doing or knowing in the Boston area. It's an alt-weekly, it's a website, it's an e-mail blast, it's a twitter account, it's that cool party that you were at last night ... hey, you're reading it, so it's gotta be good. For advertising inquiries: [email protected] To reach Editorial: [email protected] For internship opportunities: [email protected]