Beth Corning loves the questions life brings up. Exploring them fuels her creativity. Her newest work -- "Are We There Yet?" -- was prompted by one of those milestones in life.
"I think those of us in our 50s, particularly, are suddenly faced with what is ultimately the inevitable but nevertheless always-surprising moment when we are making decisions for our parents. To me that is very monumental and earth-shaking, life-shaking, because I'm my parents' kid -- a kid," she says.
But Corning is also a parent. Is she more adult now that she's making decisions for her mother⢠She set out to explore when it is we think we are adults and what adult means anyhow.
Corningworks will present the premiere of "Are We There Yet?" Thursday through Sunday at the Hazlett Theater, North Side.
"I think I don't ever answer questions as much as explore them," Corning says. "For me, it seems the word "adult" is often thrown around in childish situations and by the person acting the most childish -- as if that's a bad thing."
The choreographer began her exploration with reading books and on the Internet. Not surprisingly, she found different cultures define adulthood differently. The Jewish bar mitzvah and bat mitzvah services are for boys and girls at 13. Legal adulthood begins at 14 to 21 in most countries.
Books and the law were only the start. She began getting phone calls from people, friends and friends of friends, who heard what she was up to and had something to say. She worked with the Children's Museum of Pittsburgh, setting up a video camera for people to say what they thought. She visited retirement communities.
A boy said he'd be an adult when he had a beard and a wife. A girl said you're an adult when you pay taxes. A senior said it's when you realize life's not a dress rehearsal.
When it came time to actually make the new piece, Corning and her fellow performers worked collaboratively. "Are We There Yet?" is the sixth production of Corning's "The Glue Factory," for which she hand picks mature dancers as colleagues.
In making her new piece of dance theater, Corning thought of the things people had said and interpreted them through dance, with not a lot of text.
"The question of adulthood versus maturity became a big one for me," says Corning. "Is being adult being mature⢠That's questionable. For me, adulthood is imposed, maturity is earned."
Yet, that perspective is only part of the picture, an element in a fluid definition.
"I strive for metaphor because I think that opens these productions up for people. I want my imagination provoked when I'm an audience member," she says. "Metaphors are personally interpreted."
Additional Information:'Are We There Yet?'
Presented by: Corningworks
When: 8 p.m. Thursday-Saturday, 1 p.m. Sunday
Admission: $25, $20 for students and seniors; Sunday pay what you can
Where: New Hazlett Theater, North Side
Details: 412-320-4610 or www.showclix.com
