Liminal Lobby

Liminal Lobby asks you to consider those that have occupied the spaces in Goodhart Theater over the last hundred years. Liminal spaces are not spaces to rush into or leave quickly. We welcome you to move slowly and stay with us for awhile. Liminal space is the uncertain transition between where you’ve been and where you are going. We invite you to stand on the precipice of something new and not quite defined yet.

Bethany Formica is choreographing in unconventional ways in and around Goodhart Theater with Collaborators/Dancers, Liv Arp, Abyssinia Braud, Zora DallmaNn, Ali Fowler, Maddy Doud Galli, Kuankaun Hu, Sophonisba M Jarka-Sellers, Clara-Marie Mascarenhas, Piper Rolfes, and Meenakshi Thirumurti.

Pre-show performances occur in the benham Lobby as you enter the Bryn Mawr College spring Dance Concert.

Friday April 26 & Saturday April 27, 2024, Doors open @7:05pm

process Photos: Bethany formica

Research/Explorations & Studies: Several of our studies didn’t make it into this performance largely due to inaccessibility issues. the light was significantly different at the time we rehearsed the piece veras when we performed the work. all of this is part of our experiment. all explorations helped inform what was created with this particular group of people at this particular time.

Liv & Ali created a duet in and around staircase landings, playing with sound, the use of natural light, and the use of multiple levels.

Evoking a ghost like presence, Abyssinia explored the use of light through the windows of the doors that open into the lobby.

Zora & Clara-Marie played with the opposite staircase railings, Landings, natural light,and use of sound in unique ways.

Piper’s Study gave us a sense of scale and just how large theses wooden and metal doors actually are in the main lobby.

Kuankuan played in the constrained space between the rafters and the staircase in the balcony. I added a hand held light source to draw attention to the texture and shadows of this particular space. Accoustics were very different due to the carpeting on the floor.

Maddy & Kuankuan collaborated in the balcony, using the restricted and textured space. We discovered the rafter are actually covered in metal and the accoustics are different because of the carpeting. we learned about potential audience point of view.

Sophy used the landing of one of the staircases. She was inspired by the shape of the archways, creating a beautiful frame to view her movement study.

Clara-Marie played in the stairwell between the lobby and the balcony of Goodhart. We begin to learn more about the acoustics and the ironwork in this building.

Meenakshi played in the lobby drawing our attention to the unique acoustics by using her feet on the stone flooring. It also drew our attention to the unique heating ducts.

Ali created a study in an archway in the lobby as we watched from the staircase. we considered how the audience may watch the piece from anoter point of view.

brief history & architectural detail:

The land on which Bryn Mawr College stands is part of the ancestral homeland & territory of the Lenape people. Goodhart theater was built in 1928 and is still the only Gothic revival college theater in the united states.

overall building Design: Arthur Ingersoll Meigs of Mellor, Meigs & Howe

towers, friezes, gables, Doorknobs & ornate ironwork design: Samuel Yellin

photos: Bethany formica

special THANKS: conrad Bender, Marcia Bender, Madeline cantor, Tammy Carrasco, Aubrey Donisch, Lela aisha Jones, kat larson, Justin McDaniel, Amy Radbill, rachel Miller sharp, india thorne

costume desgin: Jillian warner

for Hiroshi Iwasaki

Bethany FormicaBryn Mawr College