Vermont filmmaker Lukas Huffman’s film The Quarry Project was six years in the making, capturing dance performances that took place on the waters of one of the oldest, deepest granite quarries in the country, in Websterville, Vermont. This exquisite performance film captures this once-in-a-lifetime dance event, led by director and choreographer Hannah Dennison.
Filmmaker Lukas Huffman and director/choreographer Hannah Dennison answered questions about the film via email with Vermont Public's Eric Ford. This interview has been lightly copy edited.
Eric Ford: How did the performances come to life? Why did you decide to stage them in the quarry?
Hannah Dennison: I am a site-specific choreographer, meaning that the location is what draws me initially. I spend time there, talk with people, get a sense of the history and the connections the site offers. When in the site, ideas for the dance and the music start to arise. Most of my previous projects have been located in place of work: Woolen Mill, Bakery, the Industrial Waterfront, Neighborhoods and their small businesses, Bus Barns repair shop, Quarry. I appreciate the relationship between the labor and the dance in part because they are both labor intensive and also because they require very specialized skills.
When I decided to try to make a piece in the Wells-Lamson, it took over a year to get permission. Lots of initial roadblocks until I reached the key person at the corporation. Bob Pope, COO of Rock of Ages, helped me to connect with Patrick Perus, then the CEO of Polycor, the owner of the quarry. Each summer (2017, 2018, 2019, even 2020, then 2021 and 2022) we worked on the waters of the quarry to fashion and finesse the performance concept. We had extraordinary help with the technical end for floating stages that could move about with some control.
Eric Ford: Why did you want to document the performances and then how did you connect with Lukas to make the film?
Hannah Dennison: Lukas and I met in 2011 when I was searching for a filmmaker for Dear Pina, the dance/theatre tribute to German choreographer Pina Bausch. One of the dancers introduced him to me, saying he had been a professional snowboarder. I knew the dance was in good hands with someone who had had his own life-of-the-body experience. We continued to work in the years hence and are good partners. He has helped me to embrace film as a key component to this ephemeral art form. The films are mostly the trace left behind, the evidence that the dance happened. Yet, because I give Lukas free rein in editing, the film is often a dance of its own, presenting the material in a slightly different angle, thus giving extended life to the in-person experience.
Eric Ford: What was it like filming the performance?
Lukas Huffman: It was such a beautiful experience, as far as film shoots go. We filmed two performances at the beginning of the August run and then two performances at the end of the August run. For the first few days of filming we were on a boat. It was a dress rehearsal, so the audience knew there was going to be a film crew out in the water. This allowed us to get some close up shots. Those are the shots of hands, feet, water on the rafts. Then the other days of filming were from various long angles around the quarry. In my years of making dance performance films, I've learned you always want some wide shots that clearly show the choreography and you want some close shots that show textures of the work and bring you closer to the dancers. One of the things that is special about making a film of a dance performance, is that you can bring the audience closer to the dancers and it adds a level of intimacy that may not be available during the performance.
Eric Ford: What were some challenges that you faced making the film?
Lukas Huffman: The number one technical challenge was trying to match the lighting across all of our footage. We filmed outside in Vermont across four days in the summer, so you can guess that all four days provided different lighting situations. I wanted to make sure that the lighting was so drastically different from shot to shot that the audience would notice and be pulled out of the viewing experience. It was just a matter of spending hours with a colorist to adjust the colors of each shot and give the impression that what you are watching is a continuous moment.
Eric Ford: What do you hope audiences take away from the performance and the film?
Hannah Dennison: For the performances, we had three response books where audiences could write after seeing the work. Across the board, the most common response was how transported people felt being in the quarry, seeing the dance unfold, hearing the music and the echoes. Those who were familiar with the quarry spoke of how they now saw it in a different and favorable light. It was a moment for everyone to suspend their usual beliefs and allow for the magic in performance to occur, changing them in ways that rippled over time.
Eric Ford: What are some other projects you are working on?
Lukas Huffman: This fall I am producing a tour of short, fiction films all made in Vermont. It's titled "Family Matters." The program features four very different styled films (from horror to comedy) that all deal with the theme of family. One of the films is my newest short, fiction film. They are all very Vermont-y in the locations and characters. Producing my own screenings is something that I first experienced with Hannah when touring "The Quarry" around the state. It was gratifying to film films to a community and share the work in a very personal environment. The Family Matters program will be screening in theaters from Putney to St. Johnsbury between Sept. 28 and Oct. 27.
The Quarry Project premieres on Vermont Public's main TV channel 8 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 12 and is available now on demand.
