Meet Lucy Vurusic Riner of RE|dance group in Northwest Side

Today we’d like to introduce you to Lucy Vurusic Riner.

Lucy, please share your story with us. 
Michael and I have been best friends and dance partners for over 25 years. In 2009, we decided to take our artistic partnership to a new level by forming RE|dance group. Below is a bit of our history and our artistic mission:

“Creative partners Lucy Riner and Michael Estanich established RE|dance group in 2009 as a means to explore long distance collaborations.” We are dedicated to the presentation of dance theatre works that examine the many facets of personal, intimate human relationships. We ground our artistic philosophy in creative exchange, seeking to expand our voices as contemporary artists. We (along with a growing number of collaborators) enjoy an open process where all ideas are shared, investigated, and then crafted into dances that embody a heightened physical experience rich with emotional content and dramatic imagery. Our work reflects a rigorous inquiry into the body’s capability for expression through motion and movement — from the subtle to the immense.

Though we call Chicago homebase for RE|dance group, the partnership rests on a unique long distance collaboration. Estanich lives in Stevens Point, WI, while Riner is a Chicago based independent artist. We became fascinated with the idea of creating work in a new way — generating movement material while we were together and developing characters or deepening our personal understanding of ideas while we are apart. Through conversation and dialogue we establish physical memories that enrich our dancing and the relationships created in the works.”

Michael and I danced together for many years before he left Chicago to pursue is graduate studies. When he landed a position in Stevens Point, WI, about 3.5 hours away, we thought we could get back to making work as partners. We still perform our seminal work, “Abbot & Viv,” across the country and that first duet speaks to our relationship and deciding to form RE|dance group. Ten years later, we are a company of 9 dancers and we continue to make work that we feel speaks to the experiences of our audiences. We have presented our work in major cities in the United States such as San Francisco, Los Angeles, Detroit, New York City and Minneapolis and also were grateful to perform “Abbot & Viv” in Seoul and Incheon, South Korea. I feel so fortunate to work with a group of artists that share in our mission and love the art of dance and theatre as much as Michael and I do.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
After years of working for and with other people, it seemed natural for Michael and me to branch off on our own. I don’t know that I would ever call it a smooth road but we what we did have experienced. We had worked for other companies, been on other boards and helped on both the fundraising and managing ends of several different organizations. So, when we decided to finally work for ourselves, that part felt natural.

But as is the case forming any arts, not for profit, the struggle continues as we look for funding and audience support for our work. The Chicago dance community is bursting with new dance artists and companies each year but the support we receive to produce and present our work continues to dwindle. I feel fortunate that as a born and raised Chicagoan I have so many connections to the community at large. I have danced, choreographed and taught in this community for 30 thirty years and that has afforded me a network of people that I can count on in times of need. This has helped sustain us even in our most difficult times. We continue to try to find new ways to build our audiences and share our work with the people of Chicago but I imagine that that will always be a struggle.

I think what will hold us together for the next decade is the mutual love and respect that Michael and I have for each other. He is my best friend and my confidant. Like any couple in any type of relationship, we disagree and duke things out when necessary. But ultimately, I know we will end up right back where we started because this is what feeds our souls.

Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about RE|dance group – what should we know?
RE|dance group is a not for profit dance company that is based in Chicago and has been making dance theatre work about the human condition for almost ten years. Michael and I started the company in an effort to develop our duet partnership, one that is still strong and that allows us to speak about and perform our duets at a number of festivals, conferences and conventions both nationally and internationally. Our company of 9 dancers is a group of dance professionals that believe in developing meaningful work that delves into experiences with memory, love, loss, hope and the other social issues of our time.

I have always been proud of the people we have chosen to call our dance family and our commitment to each other in the work we create. There is a level of trust and love that gets us as a group and I feel most proud of creating that environment for the people that I work with each week. There are a lot of dance companies whose mission statements consider the human connection, condition, and spirit; and over the last few years, as our country becomes more polarized we see more of a need to find people we can feel united with. But what sets RE|dance group apart is that we don’t just make dances that reference who we are as humans. We want our audiences to see themselves in the work that we make. To have a visceral response to the chapters, vignettes, and sections within each of our works that speak to something they specifically can latch on to and understand. This is important to us when developing our work and in talking to our audience members after the fact. We want people to leave and feel affected by what they have seen.

Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
The success that RE|dance group has had in sustaining ourselves over the last ten years comes from a resiliency to stay in the work even when we are unsure of what the future holds. Michael and I have always been passionate about the way in which we develop and present our work and we know that ultimately, it’s so important for us to continue on this path for our own artistic vitality and well-being. We are have always been honest with each other and that translates into the work we make for others. We believe in what we are sharing with our audiences and we believe in supporting each other. We are committed to sharing our work with others because we know that it can help people understand and appreciate each other in a deeper way.

Contact Info:

• Address: RE|dance group
  5621 N. Virginia
  Chicago, IL 60659
• Website: www.redancegroup.org
• Phone: 773-416-0834
• Email: info@redancegroup.org
• Instagram: @redancegroup
• Facebook: RE|dance group
• Twitter: @redancegrouper

Image Credit:
William Frederking, Benjamin Smith, Matthew Gregory Hollis

Getting in touch: VoyageChicago is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.