Dance transcends place, time, language and the limits we put on culture and communication. It is received as movement inspired by the fluidity of the natural world, inspired by science, forged by emotions and by the mix of experiences and memories each artist holds. These are essential contributors to the creation of art as I am reminded by E L Doctorow who wrote that “In a democracy a work of art can be brought into being by nothing more than a private excitement in the mind of the artist, a word or two, something he sees in the street, a musical phrase…”

A.I.M by Kyle Abraham: Cassette Vol. 1 using body language and the language of the body that causes ripples in the air will move us. Movement is scientifically recognized as changing the space around us as we will experience. Although we won’t see this “human aerodynamic wake” –  “experiments with a human subject reveal a large recirculation zone behind the torso and flow between the legs.” The science came late to me yet the changes felt when I watch dance, the changes in my own breathing as I react to the dancers’ movements and the propelling emotions confirm my participation in that wake and recirculation.

The dance – encouraged by love and by a host of other influences – is also vital cultural work as noted by cellist Yo Yo Ma in his essay Behind the Cello. There he speaks of “necessary edges” saying that “The hard sciences are probing one far end of the bandwidth, searching for the origins of the universe or the secrets of the genome. People in the arts are probing the other far end of the bandwidth.”

For all these reasons and so much more, I welcome the opportunity to be transformed Kyle Abraham’s Cassette Vol. 1.

Sheril Antonio is an Arts Professor in the Department of Art and Public Policy, and the Senior Associate Dean for Strategic Initiatives at NYU.