Defending accessibility

Elizabeth Schwyzer: Part of your company's mission is to make modern dance acceptable to a wide audience -- a controversial concept in the arts. Tell me what it means to you.

David Parsons: I don't have a problem with accessibility. We have enough serious dance companies on the planet.

To tell you the truth, I can't do anything else. It's who I am. I really love connecting with an audience. Part of that is being accessible to them, being able to communicate. We often use pop music; we like really connecting with today's scene.

People really give me sh!t for the accessibility thing, and I stand by who I am. You have to do that. The reality is: We're working.

Santa Barbara Independent interview with David Parsons of Parsons Dance.

It's sad, isn't it, that an artist would have to defend his desire to connect with his audience?

Here are some related posts on accessibility, being a people person, and performance vs. connection.

Photo: Lois Greenfield