Susan Lucier needed little convincing to take part in GroundWorks Dance Theater’s 10th Annual It Takes Two Benefit. In fact, as a seasoned actor who has performed in New York, Cleveland and Nantucket, she jumped at the chance.
Plus, she loves to dance.
“Dance is not prominent in my background, but I enjoy it, and as an actor and director, I’m familiar and comfortable with performing,” says Lucier, who last year directed a short play series called Mere Mortals and worked on the independent film Julie with writer/director Jeff Barry.
Lucier joins her husband, Jeff, as an It Takes Two Celebrity Dancer (he performed with the Class of 2011), and will pair up with GroundWorks’ Artistic Director David Shimotakahara during the April 28 event at the Cleveland Museum of Art.
“I’m curious to see where the music and the story will take us physically,” she says about working with Shimotakahara. “I know this is true, really, in any creative process, and I’m sure it applies to dance — when the choreographer has an idea, then something changes, or the dancers are inspired by something that takes them in a new direction. I’m looking forward to seeing how the final piece comes together.”
Lucier has supported a number of arts organizations, including the Cleveland Shakespeare Festival, where she served on the Advisory Board; Nantucket’s Seaside Shakespeare, where she was a founding member; and the Theatre Workshop of Nantucket, where she was recently elected Board President. She has also been involved with the Cleveland chapters of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and the American Diabetes Association.
Her participation in It Takes Two is a natural evolution of her longtime support of GroundWorks and reflects her enduring love of the event.
“It’s super fun—one of the best benefits in Cleveland,” she says. “Watching people get outside their comfort zone and open themselves up to the whole process, I find it amazing to watch. People are having fun and laughing and just enjoying themselves—both the performers and the audience.”