Korhan Basaran Contemporary Dance Workshops, 28-31 January 2012, Ankara

February 2, 2012

Korhan Basaran at METU, Ankara.

Korhan Basaran At the modern dance club at METU.

All about dance!

“Suspend” and “drop” said Korhan over and over. “Feel your body. You are an individual on the stage; explore yourself. It is all about your movement,” he said to one of the dancers. At the frigid end of January in the Turkish capital of Ankara, Korhan returned to the town where he had studied to give workshops. Many of his techniques he had learned under American dance legend Merce Cunningham.

With support from the US Embassy, Korhan took a break from his busy schedule in New York to run workshops at Middle East Technical University and Ankara University. At the modern dance club at METU, he spoke about his experiences as a young dancer in NYC and led several hours of rehearsals and practice in movement.

Two days later he went to visit the modern dance students of Ankara University. The workshops there attracted dancers from beyond the University too. Everyone explored new modes of self-expression through movement. Live music – piano and drums – kept the beat while lithe dancers moved in time and space.

Since he went to New York in 2008, he has created and performed several works, including "Elegy," "Seeking Beauty,” "Nonetheless,” "K's Search for L,” and "The Second Elegy." They have been staged at prestigious venues such as the Cunningham Studio, the Baryshnikov Center, Baruch Performing Arts Center, the Beacon Theater, STEPS on Broadway, and Peridance. Last June, the New York Times gave a favorable review to his piece "I am Korhan, This is My Dance." He is on the faculty of STEPS and Peridance and teaches as a guest at DNA. He is also the artistic director of his own company “Korhan Basaran and Dancers.”