Big Action Performance Ensemble (Big APE) does more than just turn on the lights and dance before an audience sitting in the dark — they aim to create a sensory and often social experience for all involved. Sometimes they serve wine and bake cookies for their audience. They may ask the audience to pick up trash, or demand their help in a time of need. Tiffany Rhynard, artistic director of this Vermont-based group describes more of their “big actions”…

What sets Big APE’s work apart from that of other dance/performance companies?

Big APE is not a conventional dance company. We approach performance from many angles — through movement, voice, character, and technology. We are an eclectic ensemble of performers focusing on experimental movement, social issues, and provocative theatricality. The work plays the edge between entertainment and intellectual engagement and invites the audience to enter the work, both physically and psychologically.

On your website, you say that Big APE “questions the standard conventions of dance and awakens audiences to a blend of performance that responds to both the brutality and bliss of living.” Why is it important to do so?

As the artistic director, I feel it is my job, and my calling, to hold up a mirror to the world I experience and observe what’s around me. I am responding to what I see — which is a wide spectrum of people, relationships, and events that range from the tragic to the beautiful. I came to the field of contemporary dance from a visual arts background, so for me the representation of pure movement has never felt completely satisfactory; I crave accessibility to other art forms. I work with elements such as text, song, props, digital technology/video, and all forms of dance. I enjoy working in this very malleable state, where everything is at my fingertips and anything is possible (if it serves the work). These modalities compliment, inform, shape, and ultimately become one with the movement/dancing — it is all an exploration of movement filtered through layers of observations about the nuances and curiosities of human behavior.

Does a performance in Vermont “feel” any different to you, as a performer, than a performance in NYC?

It doesn’t feel that drastically different. Most modern dance audiences are cut from the same cloth; it’s a mix of friends and family of the performers and those familiar with contemporary dance. It is one of my goals to broaden this narrow population and encourage a more diverse demographic to attend concerts. We performed “Disposable Goods” in back to back weekend performances in Vermont and New York City. They felt exactly the same. Everyone wanted to eat cookies and everyone helped pick up trash.

What do you hope your audiences bring to a Big APE performance? What do you hope they take away from the performance?

I hope that they bring an open mind and allow themselves to be vulnerable and absorb the complexities that our productions evoke/provoke. I hope they take away a new perspective on old habits of thinking, a heightened sense of awareness about their actions and preferences, and above all, respect for the art form.

Who or what are your biggest influences?

Who: David Lynch, Frida Kahlua, Dairakudakan, Pina Bausch, Exene Cervenka, Robert Wilson, Dr. Martin Luther King, and my family.

What: the local and international news, music that has a steady beat, the commonalities of daily life, any and all subcultures, and a fervent desire to highlight the far reaching corners of society’s subconscious.

What has been your greatest success to date?

Making work that feels honest on a regular basis.

What motivated you to become a member of Fractured Atlas? How do you use your Fractured Atlas membership?

A fellow choreographer told me about the organization. The fact that I had just started Big APE and did not have 501(c)3 status prompted me to join. My Fractured Atlas fiscal sponsorship allows Big APE to receive tax-deductible donations. FA also serves as a valuable resource keeping me informed about funding possibilities and allows me to stay connected to other contemporary artists.

Please finish the following sentence: “A world without art is…”

A world without art is a world without a soul.

Is there any advice that you would give to a dancer at the start of their career?

If you want to do this work, you will find a way to keep doing it because your passion will drive you through the difficulties and inevitable challenges. Remember that opportunities do not come knocking on their own, stay the course and be persistent. And if your heart is NOT in it, stop now, and find something you else to do that feeds your soul.

What’s next on your professional horizon?

Big APE will begin rehearsals for our latest project, Everyone Can Dance (ECD), starting in the beginning of August. ECD is a community-based performance project that celebrates the contagious allure of movement and the dynamic capabilities of the human body. The project aims to energize dance communities in Vermont and inspire new audiences to engage with dance as a form of communication and expression, sparking an enriching exchange about the power of dance in our culture. ECD will incorporate roughly 75 community participants in three Vermont cities — Burlington, Montpelier, and Middlebury — where Big APE will also be in residency four weeks prior to the final performance. In tandem with the final production, Big APE will present a series of Flash Mob “preview” performances in public spaces in each target community (”Flash Mob” defined: a large group of people who assemble in a public place, perform for a brief period of time, and then quickly disperse).

How can we experience and learn more about Big APE’s work?

Visit our website, vimeo page, find us on Facebook, but better yet, come see a live performance!