Co-artistic directors of Company29, Bella Diaz and Keaton Hentoff Killian, inspire us to create and engage with ourselves, one another, and life itself. Acclaimed and accomplished performers in their own right, their collaboration has sparked a newfound delight and curiosity, ultimately leading to the formation of Company29. Their upcoming show, Natural Causes, explores how a group of people can occupy the same space yet experience it in vastly different ways. Using the premise of a walk through the woods, the performance leans into the darkness of the unknown while embracing the levity and whimsy of the world. In Natural Causes, Keaton and Bella are joined by Sierra Rhoades Nicholls and Kevin Flanagan (of Full Out Formula). The intersection of individual and shared experience—as performing artists and as humans in the world—seems to serve as the jumping-off point for much of the company’s work.

“What we’re really working for as we build this company is trying to find our own language," they explain. "We have the influences and history of what we have done in the past, but we want to create our own language and speak it with other people and other bodies.” There is something profoundly connective in this pursuit. It springs from a desire to perfectly articulate and share our experiences with others, communicating in a deeply personal way. As modern dance pioneer Isadora Duncan once said, “If I could say it… I wouldn't have to dance it.” The more fluent we become in our language of choice, the more fully we are able to express and connect.

Keaton and Bella are certainly fluent in a multitude of physical languages. With lifetimes of experience in dance, physical theater, circus, and acrobatics, they are virtuosic in their movement. I was struck by their commitment to the enjoyment of the process—to ongoing discovery and invention. An underlying curiosity seems ever-present in their work. When I asked about their future goals, their primary commitment was simply to keep the work fun and exciting. “One step at a time, one project at a time," they said, "so that we don't brutalize ourselves in pursuit of the show.”

Most of us working in the circus arts count ourselves lucky to love our jobs. Company29 adds a layer of tenderness and wisdom to that sentiment, reminding us to care for ourselves and our partners just as much as we care for the work we love.  To keep up with them, follow @company__29 on Instagram.  Keep an eye out for an August preview of Natural Causes at Circus Academy in NYC.