Heather Harrington
- Position
- Adjunct professor of Modern Dance and Theory at Kean University, USA
Heather Harrington received her BA in psychology from Boston University and her MFA from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Harrington danced with the Doris Humphrey Repertory Company, Martha Graham Ensemble, Pearl Lang Dance Theatre, and Bella Lewitzky Dance Company. She ran her own modern dance company, Heather Harrington Dance Company, in New York City, performing nationally and internationally. Being drawn to movement in the public space has inspired her to create site-specific work, from creating a piece on the steps of Federal Hall Memorial in Wall Street to staging a gun violence protest in Newark, NJ. In 2016, she embarked on a long-distance collaboration with Lebanese dancer, professor, and choreographer Nadra Assaf examining the female body in their respective countries. Her artistic and scholarly collaboration with Assaf has led to performances and conferences in Sweden, Beirut, Malta, San Diego, CA, and Geneva, New York. Her scholarship has been published by Dancer Citizen, Research in Dance Education, Nordic Journal of Dance, Journal of Dance Education, Beauty Demands, and Dance Education in Practice.
For more information about Heather Harrington, please visit her at:
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7396-5642
Seminar Two Digital Provocation Abstract: Unraveling Embodied Terrains Through Virtual Reality
In this digital provocation, Assaf and Harrington address their work and highlight the manner in which they communicate and perform together while existing thousands of miles apart.
On January 14th 2016, Assaf (Lebanon) and Harrington (USA) embarked on a collaboration that led to the exchange of 35,500 written words centered around a woman’s body and how it is treated in society. They searched their bodies for memories, excavated them, and brought them to life. They were able to witness and reframe these memories into a new, shared movement language. Their collaborative movement created empathy, bonding, and understanding on a deeper level than their written correspondences. Through their use of research and virtual connection Assaf and Harrington have continued to create work that speaks against the violence that hauntingly remains embodied in female bodies across the globe.