BRITTANY A. NETTLES
On Stage Works
Aphrodite (work in progess)
Smoke and Mirrors (2019)
Aphrodite renders the struggle of walking through the world in a feminine body, with all its anxieties born of heteronormativity and misogyny, and translates them into a choreopoem.
Premiere: Kelly Strayhorn Alloy Studios, PearlArts' Charrette Program
Dancer: Brittany Nettles
Voiceover: Selene Phillips
Costume Design: Brittany Nettles
Smoke and Mirrors, my second onstage work, gave me the chance to push my boundaries. This piece is about the "show" we put on everyday for other people, and what happens when the audience is yourself.
Premiere: Point Park University Student Choreography Project
Music: Iron Man by El Michels Affair, Baby Let me Take You (In my Arms) by the Detroit Emeralds, and Smoke Gets in Your Eyes by Thelonious Monk
Dancers: Cecilia Benitez, Jennifer Rivera, Maxine Warren (understudy Nicola Molea)
Costume Design: Brittany Nettles
Red-Handed (2019)
Red-Handed was my first true concert dance piece. With this work I wanted to explore the imagery and symbolism behind our hands. Although our hands can do many things, I wanted to focus on how our hands can be so loving and beautiful, yet with a different intention can be extremely hurtful.
Premiere: Point Park University Dance Club Student Showcase
Music: Mulatu by Mulatu Astatke, Take Five by the Dave Brubeck Quartert
Dancers: Alena Aron, Claire Calloway, Rebecca Garcia, Ashlynn Woelbling
Concept Videos
Shadow Race (2020)
Created by myself and fellow dancer Nicola Molea, Shadow Race was first imagined as a work for the stage. Due to the medical crisis of COVID-19, the production was cancelled and we quickly turned it around into a concept video. This was a chance for the overlooked to be on stage, to become empowered and to lift each other up.
Poem: "Shadow Race" by Shel Silverstein
Music: Unsquare Dance by Dave Brubeck, Terracentric by Rodrigo y Gabriela
Videographer: Thomas Schmelzer
Dancers: Alena Aron, Kennedy Binner, Makenzie Farleo, Lacy LeMere, Hannah Martin, Nicola Molea, Brittany Nettles, Katie Ostiguy, Ashlynn Woelbling
Storytime Series:
My Whipple Surgery and No Rhyme or Reason are part on an ongoing series called "Storytime". These videos are made in an effort to more fully communicate the intense emotions behind their stories. Thank you so much to Miranda and Alena for allowing me to help you share such beautiful parts of yourself.
My Whipple Surgery (2019)
Music: I Surrender, Dear by Thelonius Monk
Videography: Thomas Schmelzer
Dancer/Story: Alena Aron
No Rhyme or Reason (2018)
Music: Early in the Morning by Alexis Korner's Blues Incorporated
Dancer/Story: Miranda Schry