The killer waves caught most of Southeast Asia off-guard in December 2004, the result of a 9.2 magnitude earthquake in the Indian Ocean. The storm killed more than 31,000 Sri Lankans and displaced another half-million people.
The 33-year-old choreographer from Midvale, who three years ago launched her New York-based M.E.L.D. Danceworks company, had taught dance in these same villages before the tsunami. It was then that Legatt had fallen in love with Sri Lanka's gorgeous coast, its delicious rice curries, fresh fish, prawns and lentil stew, and the friendly locals. All this charm in a country that had endured an ongoing civil conflict among different ethnicities for some 25 years.
Her trips to Sri Lanka have inspired her to take action. Legatt wants to use dance to bring people together, and is currently working with Sri Lankan nonprofit agencies and writing proposals to fund more dance projects there.
"I want to use dance as a tool to bring different groups together to share creativity in a neutral environment," she said. "Dancing can be used as a springboard to talk about the similarities as well as the differences between us."
Her vision came to life last month through a grant from the U.S. Cultural Envoy Program, which sponsored her monthlong trip to Mumbai, India, where she choreographed work with the local Terence Lewis Contemporary Dance Company. Sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, performing or visual artists who are envoys serve as educators, in a program aimed at strengthening ties between America and other countries.
Mumbai, also dubbed "Bollywood," is India's movie and entertainment capital and home to some of the country's most talented performers. Legatt used local dancers of various faiths, mainly Hindu, but also Buddhist, Christian, Jain, Muslim and Zoroastrian, and pushed them to their limits in her debut piece "Light Traces." The dancers used hand-held lights to help incorporate their beliefs into their movements.
"They learned a great deal about themselves and each other," Legatt said. "This choreographic model can be used with any kind of diverse population as a tool in fostering greater understanding, tolerance and respect for difference."
Now she's back in New York City, working to draw attention to her dance company and her mission to bring dance to troubled parts of the world. The Utah-trained dancer, who earned an MFA from the University of Utah and used to teach dance classes at Brigham Young University, faces an obstacle familiar to most artists: fundraising. To make a living to pay her expenses, Legatt does data-entry office work from her apartment.
Her spare time goes to finding money to continue her mission to bring dance to troubled parts of the world. "She's not the typical scatterbrained artist," said Rebecca Jennejohn, a dancer and choreographer who works with Legatt. "She's very grounded and manages to work, dance and put time into the projects she's working on."
For information about Legatt's company, M.E.L.D Danceworks, visit www.melddanceworks.org.
cmayorga@sltrib.com
