Talia DeLeo

knock on wood (2024) contemplates acts of fate and superstition, making sense of how such a small, superstitious measure can lead to our biggest hopes becoming real.

Dancers: Selorna Ackuayi, Erin Aslami, Lili Biglari, Katherine Byunn-Rieder, Talia DeLeo, Kate Guerin, Laura Vejar

Music: “Made To Be Wanting – Piano Version” by Job Roggeveen

Message from Talia:

i’ve always been obsessed with the idea of fate and fateful acts. the thought that the smallest decisions or actions can lead to some of our biggest dreams and desires becoming real is equally as fascinating as it is daunting. although knocking on wood is a bit of a random action, after doing some research I learned that it has been an act of manifestation for centuries, earnestly hoping that fate will be on one’s side. what happens after we knock on wood can simply be seen as happenstance, but perhaps the act itself is not the only thing that drives fate. I wanted “knock on wood” to portray how it is our revered faith in the act, in ourselves, and in our wishes that leads to their realization. 

this piece was a fun challenge for me, as it was choreographed for two performance spaces with limited wings – a black box type theater, and an outdoor festival stage. one of my goals for this dance was to include all my dancers on stage moving for the entirety of the piece, as I didn’t want them to be standing still off to the side where they would typically move into the wings. I had hoped for the composition to remain organized and clean, and not feel haphazard with too much movement happening the whole piece. we also had the privilege of having live musicians for the Harvard ArtsFirst Festival – our sheet music was provided to us by Job Roggeveen, the composer of the wonderful music used for the piece entitled “Made To Be Wanting”. I got in touch with Job through an instagram message, and he generously created the sheet music for the orchestra to use while we performed live at the festival. I am so grateful for the many collaborations that happened through this piece that really attest to our show’s theme of serendipity – I love watching this piece back and hope that it provided audiences with a sense of lightness and hope in their ambitions.