Interview with Mike D Chicago on his time performing at Jacob’s Pillow
 
Can you share what Jacob’s pillow is and what brought you there?

We were invited as a collective ensemble with M.A.D.D. Rhythms as guest performing artists during the venue’s Explore Festival at the end of June.

Jacob's Pillow is an outdoor arts venue in Massachusetts. The outdoor auditorium is very monumental and has a lot of history behind it. Everything about the venue gravitates towards nature: it’s in the mountains, with trees swinging from side to side behind us as we were performing. The venue seats more than 1,000 people. Beyond the performance venue, there’s smaller wooden studios.
 

Jacob’s Pillow is a 220 acre national historic landmark, and has been described as “the dance center of the nation” by The New York Times. How did it feel to perform there?

It felt like a farm for dancers. It was literally birthing ballet, tap, contemporary, and so many dancers and studios all over the place. It was an incredibly creative space.
 

How did you get involved and hear about the Jacob’s Pillow?

I was lucky enough to be with my partners that I already danced with, M.A.D.D. Rhythms and IO Deli. IO Deli is an African dance crew, and M.A.D.D. Rhythms is a tap ensemble. We always do shows together. The name of this show was called “A Mad Mixtape”, choreographed and directed by Donnetta "Lil Bit" Jackson, who is also a crew member of mine and one of our leaders in Creation Chicago. 
 

Walk us through what the performance was like.

The piece was a collaboration of Tap, African dance and Chicago Footwork, and we were jumping in and out of choreography as well as supporting each other within the show. We don't really leave the stage, even if this is not our time to do choreography, so when we’re not dancing, we’re just lifting each other up in love and energy as the show goes on. It's a 40 minute piece. 

The whole inspiration behind the piece was a mixtape; also known as a mixture of songs that you like and create so that you can share, right? There was R&B and Hip Hop intermixed. I choreographed some of the Chicago Footwork portions of this show as well.
 

What was the audience like for this performance?

The audience was probably one of our best audiences that we have ever had. They were so engaged and tapped into the energy that was given. At the end of the day, this is an offering. We're not really putting on a show, so to speak. We are just being who we are in dance with each other and offering that up to the universe. And the audience just so happened to be in the seats being a part of that, and they were very tapped in and receptive of the energy that was curated.

We also had a portion of the show where we did crowd participation. Me and my partner Bril acted as hosts and picked specific sing along songs for the crowd to sing and dance to. And everybody got up and just was so engaged. It turned into a party. From the back of the mountains to the front of the stage, everybody was just enjoying that particular moment. It was amazing to see everyone enjoying themselves within this experience.
 

What was your preparation for this like?

The preparation was very spiritual and mental. Physical preparation is also always a thing of mine, because I'm a little older than everybody in the group, so I try to take care of myself. But mentally, just being in that space, I was more embracing the energy, the atmosphere, being around nature. The sounds and smells of the trees, the air being so clean, it's one of those moments where you're grateful for being in space. 

So that kind of prepared me for the stage. I kind of treat every performance like my last. But I've never experienced dancing outside, like this. I’ve danced in many festivals, but this was so different. The trees were swinging from side to side. I felt like we were one with nature, from the wind to the sun to the trees to the animals to whatever was going on in that space. 
 

What did you learn and take away from the experience?

The biggest take away for me would be family and community. They had an after party and it was on the one of the decks of the theaters. They set up a DJ booth and we literally just danced the whole night away. I noticed that nobody had their phones out. Everybody literally was just dancing and vibing with each other. The after party had venue crew members, cast members from different companies, everybody intermingling. 

Normally, it's like, okay, we are professional, we do the job, and then after, that's it. Instead with this performance, we actually got to experience just who everyone is as people. That is something that I want to continue to do with other shows, even if it's just getting to know someone, - the person who runs the lights, who runs the smoke. Just getting to know people for who they are.