Verified by An Open Book
Leslie Andrea Williams discusses how she channels a character through dance.
By Abigail Fagan published March 5, 2019 - last reviewed on May 6, 2019
Leslie Andrea Williams is a contemporary dancer who secured a position at Martha Graham Dance Company soon after graduating from The Juilliard School. At age 25, she's one of the company's youngest dancers and relishes exploring different characters, both fierce and gentle, young and old, deeply relatable and entirely unfamiliar.
Q: How do you channel a character?
I've always been interested in people's backgrounds, what makes them tick, and the different experiences that make them who they are. As I grow older, and understand the people in my life on a deeper level, it bleeds over into my understanding of the characters in dance. One role I've performed in the Graham company is the "Woman in White" from the ballet Diversion of Angels. In this piece, I have a partner whom I've loved for many years. We're a mature couple that represents the steadfastness of love, as opposed to the red couple that has passionate, fiery love, or the yellow couple that has a calmer love. To dance this character, I imagine my grandparents, who have been together for 50 years. They sit next to each other at dinner and you can just feel the connection between them—a sense of "I know you more than anyone else." I won't know what that's like until I've had someone in my life for that long, but I can see it and I can feel it.
As a dancer, it's important to be as honest, vulnerable, and open with your movement as possible. So, I always wear my emotions on my sleeve. When I communicate with people in my own life, I want to be as honest as I can and say what I really feel. The same goes for romantic relationships; I try to be completely transparent right off the bat. I used to think it was bad to be open because people might take advantage of you or use what they learn against you. Now I realize it's OK, and in my current relationship, I let my partner know who I am up front. He's receptive to that, and it helps me better understand who he is and how his energy and personality mesh with mine.
