Never Retallack  | Entertainment Editor

Can you tell me your name and your position here at Western?

Cynthia Gutierrez-Garner, and I’m an associate professor of Dance here in the Theater and Dance Program.

Can you tell me a little bit about your dance background?

I was born and raised in Phoenix, Arizona, so my initial dance training was in Ballet Folklorico which is Mexican folk dance. So that really established for me a sense of not only a deeper understanding of my cultural background as a Mexican American, but also in a sense that dance can create a real experience of community. It was a real family experience; it had a major impact on me. Once I got to a studio I started studying the typical things: ballet, jazz, tap. It wasn’t really until in college getting my undergrad that I studied modern dance.

Why do you think dance is important?

I think dance is important because it allows the participant —  whether they’re just doing it for fun, or whether they’re pursuing it more professionally — the connection of the mind, body and spirit. Dance really is a vehicle for more exploration, for emotional expression, creative expression and just using your imagination. Connection to other humans makes my life so rich, and dance allows that to happen. Dance can also be used as a form of social justice and is more than just entertainment. It also opens other doors of opportunity, dance will never be a waste of a degree, do what you love and make it count.

Are you working on anything else outside of Western right now?

Yeah, so I have a company based in Eugene. It’s called Company Movimiento, and we had our debut concert last summer. We have a show coming up Oct. 18 and 19 at the Oregon Contemporary Theater, and it is called LatinX Voices, and it is work centered around themes of cultural identity and social justice issues. Some of the pieces are responses to headlines, things that are happening in the world right now, and others are more personal things from my own life. It will include both modern and jazz dance, and I have a cast of about 16, and some of them are current (Western) students, and some of them are (Western) alumni and some are professional dancers in Eugene. 

Why do you direct?

As a person of color you are always aware if you are the only person of color in a room, and as an artist that becomes even more highlighted because there is privilege in art and privilege in dance if you are able to take classes and continue training, and I was always the only one that looked like me in the room. And there wasn’t a problem with that, but I always wondered, why isn’t there more diversity? It’s 2019 and it’s still a problem, so producing for me also feels like I’m doing my part to contribute to that representation, because it’s bigger than me.

If you have any questions for Professor Gutierrez-Garner, her phone number is (503) 838-9513, her email is garnerc@wou.edu and her office is located in OPE room 210.

Contact the author at Howlentertainment@wou.edu 

Photo courtesy of  V. Paul Virtucio (Head Shot)

Photo courtesy of Jennifer James- Long (group shot)