“People keep asking me, ‘when are you going to do that one with the grass?’” says Starr Foster. “It’s definitely our most requested dance.”
Foster’s troupe, Starr Foster Dance, will be bringing back “the one with the grass,” also known as “In Rest and Sleep,” for five performances starting Nov. 30 at Firehouse Theatre. She premiered the piece at the Basement in 2020. “We did nine shows there and they all sold out,” she says. “People kept coming back.”
Foster is a little cagey about how exactly grass fits into the performance, but will acknowledge that there is a set for the piece that involves two approximately 8-foot long sections of grass that represent both a landing point and a connection with the Earth.
There is also an element of audience participation but she won’t describe that aspect in detail either. “The audience sets the stage; it’s something that creates a connection to the work,” she says.
“But no one needs to worry,” she laughs. “It’s not the kind of audience participation where we drag anybody up on stage.”
The production will be the second Foster’s company has presented at the Firehouse as one of the theater’s resident companies. “One of the things I love about the Firehouse is that it’s very intimate,” Foster says. “And this work needs to be done in an intimate space.”
Also on the program with “In Rest and Sleep” will be “Proof” and “Swallow,” two works that are technically premieres but that may seem familiar to those who follow the company closely.
One section of “Proof” was performed as part of the “Spitting Image II” show back in April and, like all of the pieces in that show, was inspired by a photograph. “Proof” specifically used a picture taken by Jay Paul.
“With ‘Proof,’ I definitely wanted to expand on it,” Foster says. “I felt like I had more to say.”
The first two sections of “Swallow” were performed as part of the 19th annual Mid-Atlantic Choreographers Showcase in July. “The title comes from [the phrase] swallow your pride,” says Foster. “It’s really about putting yourself aside to focus on others and how there’s sometimes resistance that comes with that.”
She says that even though parts of the pieces may be familiar, the dancers will be different. “The cool thing about dance is that, even if the choreography stays the same, it is a very different experience when you change the dancers,” Foster says. “And it’s pretty cool to see how the dancers respond to each other.”
Foster says she’s excited to see whether “In Rest and Sleep” will have the impact it did when it first premiered.
“When we did it at the Basement, at the end of every performance, the lights came up and the audience didn’t move,” she remembers. “After the first performance, I thought, ‘oh gosh.’ But then the dancers came out and everyone stood up and clapped.”
“A review at the time said everybody was just mesmerized,” she continues. “It’s a very, very human work and that’s one of the reasons people really connect with it.”
Starr Foster Dance’s “In Rest and Sleep” runs at the Firehouse Theatre, 1609 West Broad Street, from Nov. 30 through Dec. 3. Tickets and information available at https://www.starrfosterdance.org/.
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