Dance and the Body of Christ:
St. Michael’s Warriors Dance Company
By
Erin Maguire
Special to the CS&T
The Body of Christ could use some exercise.
Last July, I had the opportunity to travel to New York with my friend
Marian, to see the St. Michael’s Warriors Dance Company, which
was founded by Diana Torba in 2003.
The company attempts to portray truth through movement, which inspired
me to think about the Body of Christ — and how much it is necessary
for all of us to dance together.
The ride to New York was beautiful and scenic — the sun was low
behind the clouds, and the towering mountains were covered with dense
greenery against the dramatic sky.
We traveled past hiking trails and through Bear Mountain State Park;
we listened to worship music and talked; we prayed the rosary. When
we reached the second joyful mystery, the visitation, our friend Liz
called.
Her voice brought smiles and laughter. What amazing timing — that
we were able to share joy with our friend during the mystery of the
visitation, when John leaped in Elizabeth’s womb at the presence
of Jesus.
Liz’s call reminded me of my community of Catholic friends —
and how distance and long stretches of time without seeing one another
cannot deter a friendship built on Christ.
After the ride, Marian and I arrived at the Capuchin Youth and Family
Ministries complex in Garrison, N. Y., to watch the dance performance.
Before the show, we took a workshop lesson with the team. We began with
a prayer in thanksgiving, and followed some deep-breathing exercises
to find peace. Breathe in: Jesus. Breathe out: Christ.
Torba, the troupe’s artistic director, told us the company had
been founded as a response to “secular sickness.” The dancers
who make up the company were sick of a secular dance scene that emphasizes
self-gratification. They didn’t like the degrading music, the
scandalous costumes and suggestive dance moves that they see in most
modern dance. Their Web site, www.saintmichaelswarriors.org, states:
“Turning on its head the modern dance culture of the vulgar and
the violent, St. Michael’s Warriors spearheads a renewal, to jolt
the MTV-generation back to God.”
On Saturday, July 23, at a World Youth Day fund-raiser performance,
Torba and her four sister dancers, in modest dress, blared the lyrics
of Christian songs as they used the gifts of their bodies to glorify
God.
A mix of hip-hop, Modern, African and other dance genres, Torba’s
choreography is refreshing and original. She and one fellow dancer,
Mara Torres, studied dance at Barnard College. The company has performed
at churches and clubs, both religious and secular.
Before each show, the five young women stand with feet apart, clench
their fists in the air and recite a prayer to St. Michael the Archangel:
“St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle.”
The eclectic style of their dance; the friendly and compassionate way
the women treated us during our lesson, and the fact that the show was
a fund-raiser for World Youth Day underscored for me the diversity,
unity and familiarity of the Body of Christ.
Torba’s choreography is a blend of beautiful and thought-provoking
steps. There is a message behind every movement — and a diversity
of movement that matches the diversity of the members of the Body of
Christ, as well as the diversity of the trials and jubilations we encounter.
There is unity in the movements as well — an attempt to point
to one truth.
I could relate to the expressions on the dancers’ faces: There
was pain when they stumbled in the darkness, and there was joy when
they leaped in the light.
Most of all, it was obvious that the dancers support each other through
their connection on the dance floor, and through their smiles and encouragement
off the dance floor. The company is based in holy friendship, and a
community with a purpose: to dance in jubilation about the one truth
— this is the Body of Christ, to which we are all called to be
members.
At World Youth Day, Catholics around the world came together in celebration
of life and love — a celebration that included singing and dancing.
It was a festival of people rejoicing in the truth. Those who attended,
and those of us who were unable to go, all need to practice for the
big dance show. To ensure that the Body of Christ will be at its peak
for that performance, daily practice is required. Everyone has a role
to play — a signature move, and the one with the smallest part
is the most important to the show.
Even though WYD is over, the Holy Spirit is still alive in young people,
and must be kept active. The Body of Christ is community. We cannot
learn to dance without missteps, nor without friends to coach us, to
encourage us and to pick us up when we fall.
Talk to friends, or even strangers, to start living as part of the Body
of Christ today. Don’t be afraid — ask them to dance.
St. Michael’s Warriors Dance Co. performances will be held May
7 at St. Columba Church in Hopewell Junction, N.Y., and May 20th, Armed
Forces Day, at the USO theater in Brooklyn.
To learn about other performance dates, contact St. Michael’s
Warriors Dance Company at www.saintmichaelswarriors.org or call (347)
675-2392.
Erin Maguire was the 2003 recipient of The Catholic Standard and
Times journalism scholarship. She studies at DeSales University in Center
Valley, Pa.