Life Itself

Kathie Debenham (American, born 1951)

We Are Family (excerpt) (2005)

Video, duration: 2:43; choreography by Kathie Debenham and Pat Debenham; dancers: Kathie Debenham, Kelby Debenham Ellis, Pat Debenham, Jesse Ellis, Avery Kate Hasler, Josh Hasler, Noah Hasler, Whitney Hasler Debenham, Clarke Schaumann, Marney Debenham Schaumann

Used with permission

By Kathie Debenham

Dancing is the loftiest, the most moving, the most beautiful of the arts, because it is no mere translation or abstraction from life; it is life itself.  - Havelock Ellis

As fellow students of the late Dee Winterton in the 1970s at BYU, my husband Pat and I believed dance could change the world. Dee inspired us to see the essential nature of dance as a most human experience, one that could connect, uplift, inspire, enlighten, enliven and even heal. We both fully embraced the philosophy that dance is life itself in our 40+ years careers in dance. This love of dance also permeated our family as our three daughters expanded our dance of life. 
In 2005, we were honored with a grant from the UVU Ragan Theater to present an evening of our individual and collective work in a concert we titled Debenham Dance. Pat and I knew we wanted to include We Five, a dance we had created with our three daughters to celebrate the love of dance and life we shared as a family. That idea then expanded into a suite of dances, We Are Family, that included our daughters, sons-in-law and (then) two grandchildren. It was a joy to work together once again in the studio creating the work; the environment and process were of course familiar to our daughters but totally new territory for our sons-in-laws, one of whom is now a clinical social worker, another a systems management guru, and the third an accountant and banker! This video made for documentation purposes captures their full and complete investment in moving expressively, expansively, confidently and joyfully as they shared the stage with the dancing Debenhams. What a gift to have had the opportunity to create and perform what to me was indeed “life itself.” Now days, years, and many lively grandchildren later, we continue to celebrate family with dance parties and disco lights and playlists curated by the clinical social worker. Life itself is very good.