Join me in a dance among the stars!
AN INVITATION FROM JEANNE ROBINSON
(SEE THE JANUARY 2007 UPDATE BELOW)
I'd like your help in making a thirty-year dream of dance in zero gravity come true.
If you've read THE STARDANCE TRILOGY that Spider and I wrote, or the Hugo and Nebula Award winning novella that began them, then the concept of free fall dance is one you've already encountered. The idea even attracted the attention of NASA--and I nearly got to be the first to actually dance in space.
I've been dancing and teaching dance all my life. I was founder and artistic director of Nova Dance Theatre, a professional contemporary dance company, in Halifax, Nova Scotia from 1980-87, and choreographed over 30 original works for performance. When NASA became aware of "Stardance," and my dance background that led to it, I was shortlisted for a seat on the Space Shuttle, as part of NASA's Civilian In Space Program. I was to be the first zero gravity dancer.
But, the program was cancelled when the first civilian chosen for the program was killed in the Challenger Tragedy. Now, twenty years later, I'm being given a second chance to choreograph dance in space...on film.
Stardance: the film Recent progress in computer generated graphics has, at last, made it feasible for me to pursue on film my visions of choreography unhindered by gravity. So I've written a script, and I'm now in the early stages of producing "Stardance," a short film that will finally bring dance together with the majesty and grandeur of outer space. The Production Team I've assembled a very powerful core production team. Director/co-producer/co-writer Michael Lennick and his associate Michel Plaxton created the groundbreaking 13-part documentary series ROCKET SCIENCE for Discovery Channel. Michael's technical background includes designing the visual effects for such projects as David Cronenberg's Videodrome and the TV series War of the Worlds. Also on the team are Hugo-winning visual effects designer Ron Miller who has inherited Chesley Bonestell's mantle as the greatest living painter of space themes, and veteran graphics designer/writer, sage and muse Jack Senett. Line producer Lynn Fuhr brings her wealth of production experience to the team. Latest to come on board is acclaimed TV and film score composer James Raymond, son of David Crosby who has toured often with Crosby, Stills and Nash. |
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The Underlying Philosophy Although over 99% of the universe is a zero-gravity environment, our species seems to have a neurotic dependence on the surface of large planets. We're stuck in the mud. A dance to free our bodies from the pull of gravity, to celebrate life off the planets, may free us to accept and appreciate the unearthly beauty, meditative stillness, and physical comfort that can be found in space. The Stardance film proposes that there is more to space travel than orbital mechanics, payloads and turbopumps. There is also zero-gravity art. It can be a powerful key to spiritual transcendence, and the kind of accelerated human evolution Spider and I have talked about at length in our novels. |
Opening Night at Robert A. Heinlein's Centennial Robert A. Heinlein, the Grand master of science fiction, was always a fierce champion of future arts, and especially the arts in space. In his novel, THE CAT WHO WALKS THROUGH WALLS, there's a "low-gee" ballerina with the same unusual name as our daughter. Spider's new collaboration with Robert, VARIABLE STAR, a story of star travel based on an outline he created in 1955, will be part of the celebrations for Robert's Centennial in Kansas City, Missouri on July 7, 2007. I’ll be bringing a PowerPoint presentation on the progress of the Stardance Project. (See second update below for details.) |
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Join The Stardance Project If you're interested in advancing the idea of dance and the arts in space, we'd like your help in making this film possible. A private patron, John Barnstead, Professor of Russian Studies at Dalhousie University, provided the seed money that let me assemble my team of specialists, and now we need to take it to the next level. We urgently need donations to help us achieve orbit. None of us is going to get rich from this--it's a labour of love--but the reality is that we have to raise six figures to cover production costs, so please give generously. All donors will be placed on a Roster Of Honorary Stardancers on this page, and you'll get screen credit, as well. Spider and I will be contacting each of you personally to thank you, and generations of future zero gee dancers will be thanking you as well for being amongst the very earliest patrons of this new art form. Your support means the world to us--and more! Time is important. The project is moving along rapidly and that kind of momentum mustn't be lost. I don't want to miss the chance to dance in space again. If you'd like to become involved in furthering The Stardance Project, make a donation today: online, by credit card, through PayPal, or by cheque. Let's dance among the stars together. Thank you, |
You can make donations through PayPal
or by credit card:
Or simply mail a cheque in any currency (made out to "THE STARDANCE PROJECT") to:
The Stardance Project
RR#1, Site I-42
Bowen Island, BC V0N 1G0
CANADA
The Images:
Art Direction - Jeanne Robinson
Photography - Greg McKinnon
Image Creation - Ron Miller
Stardancer - Kathleen McDonagh
Costume design - Ines Ortner
Roster of Supporters:Founding Angel: Dakini Angel (awesome contributor): Honorary Starseeders (substantial contributors): |
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Honorary Stardancers: |
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STARDANCE PROJECT UPDATE: Launch Rescheduled With the arrival of a new year, it’s time to update you on the Stardance Project. A premiere at the Heinlein Centennial is no longer an option. We are currently re-evaluating how to achieve the dream of a realistic depiction of zero-gravity dance using the latest digital and artistic tools. Although we are on the cusp of a new era of space tourism, it's still hard to convince the space business community of the need for art to sustain their business model. We have been in discussion with the Heinlein Trust as well as others, but we still haven't found a major funding partner to help us make the vision of the Stardance a reality. The good news is that thanks to the people who share our vision and have contributed to the Stardance Project, we will be putting together a short proof of concept demo this spring which will hopefully give us something concrete to proudly show when someone asks us what we are all about. If the stars and the muses align, we hope to show our concept demo at the Heinlein Centennial. In the meantime we are deeply grateful for your support and faith in us. We are working daily trying to make this vision of ours a reality. It's all there in our hearts and minds. All we need to do is find the financing needed to capture it on film. Know anyone with half a million dollars and good taste? That’s what it will cost—minimum. CGI is expensive…and required in every frame. In the coming months we will regularly update you on our ongoing fundraising and production adventures, so please stay tuned. Naturally, we welcome your feedback. Without the generous support of all of the Honorary Stardancers listed above, we would not have made it this far. With the help of future contributors who also share our dream, we will bring this unique vision to the world. My heartfelt thanks to you all. May we all continue to imagine and co-create our visions of a world we know to be possible. Here's to Stardancing in 2007! SECOND UPDATE: Kansas City here we come! In a matter of days Spider and I will be on our way to Kansas City to join in a celebration of Robert A. Heinlein's life and work at his Centennial. <http://www.heinleincentennial.com> I've been invited to make a presentation about the Stardance Project during the Gala event on 7/7/07, Robert's 100 th birthday. I've been creating a PowerPoint presentation with the help of a talented friend, Steph Herman, which I'll use to accompany my progress report. It will incorporate new images by the great space artist Ron Miller, and original music by composer James Raymond (keyboardist for CSN&Y). After I get home from Kansas City I'll post the whole 2-minute presentation including the new images and music here on the site. My strong ongoing thanks to all Honorary Stardancers whose contributions to date have taken us this far; your support is appreciated more than I can say. May we all continue to imagine and co-create our visions of a world we know to be possible. THIRD UPDATE: Here is the speech I gave at Robert’s Hundredth Birthday Party in Kansas City, Missouri on 7/7/07. It got me, and our Stardancer, Kathleen McDonagh, a once-in-a-lifetime trip to go weightless on a Zero Gravity Corporation parabolic flight http://www.gozerog.com/index.htm, compliments of company Founder and CEO, Dr. Peter Diamandis. I’ll keep you up to date on our zero-gee flight plans as they unfold. OCTOBER 21, 2007 UPDATE: Jeanne Robinson and her co-producer James Sposto have launched a new website to promote the Stardance project as a large-format IMAX feature film. www.stardancemovie.com DECEMBER 23, 2007 UPDATE: Jeanne has started a blog to record her impressions and experiences in microgravity this weekend during her December 30th flight with Zero-Gravity Corporation. Read her up-to-the minute entries at http://stardancemovie.blogspot.com/
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