Feminal

A bell tolls.
Papers flutter through the air.
A woman shape-shifts before our eyes.

The knee-jerk accuser softens, the rigid zealot is brought to her knees, the repentant daughter becomes a callous force of nature. She is on the brink of transformation into her own definition of a villain.

Then – A Girl in red, on a narrow white floor, dancing a dance, exposing herself to the stubborn feminine cliches that appear at every turn. Her voice rises to please, to protest, to pacify. Although it may seem that this Girl is the one in the spotlight, there is no mistaking the risk for all those who sit in the dark and observe.

Experience Feminal – a fiercely vulnerable double-bill of dance-theatre and intrigue.

“The two pieces sit well together, contrasting and overlapping. “Initial Dissent” is dark, suppressed. “A Girl” seems bright with highlights of supposed optimism. Both scratch the surface of outside appearance exploring issues buried beneath.” – Clare O’Brien

“…strikes a riveting balance of the physical and emotional. Audiences familiar with [Hoback’s] work already know her long, angular Pina Bausch frame and limbs, and the way they carve space. This frame is animated with vivid interiority and an actor’s mind for point of view.” – Outer Voice, Clay Steakley

Enactor Productions (EP) creates performances and workshops that use movement to process life experiences and embody transformation. Breaking free from her conservative religious upbringing and strict ballet training, director Becca Hoback explores identity and the emotional body through contemporary dance.

In addition to creating self-choreographed dance-theater solos, Hoback has worked with choreographers Ana Maria Lucaciu, Ben Green, Roy Assaf, Ariel Freedman, and Chen-Wei Lee to curate EP’s solo repertory. With a passion for promoting physical awareness, empathy, and empowerment, EP facilitates community workshops for movers of all abilities and choreography workshops for dancers.

The solo work EP has curated has been programmed locally in Nashville and internationally at festivals + residencies in Europe and the Middle East. EP creates long-lasting connections with creative communities while on tour by partnering with theaters and festivals to engage the local dance community, thus hosting collaborative re-creation processes and performance opportunities.

Hoback received the writer’s choice for “Best Movement Artist” in the Nashville Scene’s 2022 “Best of Nashville” awards. In 2020, she received a Tennessee Arts Commission Individual Artist Fellowship for her solo work. She also received the audience award at SOLOCOREOGRAFICO Torino 2022 for her solo performance of Rendering.