Return to Transcripts main page

American Morning

Above & Beyond

Aired March 12, 2003 - 09:47   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: The best way to describe what you're about to see is dancing meeting mountain climbing. They call it Project Bandaloop. The sky's the limit literally for this unusual and innovative dance troupe. They perform while soaring in some cases 2,500 feet above Yosemite National Park, or dangling themselves from tall buildings.
Amelia Rudolf is the group's founder and artistic director, and I talked with her recently about their gravity-defying experience.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: And Amelia Rudolf joins us from San Francisco.

Good to see you and congratulations!

AMELIA RUDOLF: Thank you.

ZAHN: I can't believe you guys do what you do. You tackle the Space Needle in Seattle. You tackle a 3,000-foot cliff in Yosemite. Describe to us how you would characterize what you do and why you pick the venues you do.

RUDOLF: I guess I would characterize what we do as being dance. We are a dance company. I am a dancer and a choreographer. I also happen to be a mountain climber and a rock climber. And I basically have been combining the two forms for a little over a decade now using the physicality of movement and the physicality of grand spaces, both architectural spaces and natural spaces to transform what we call a dance floor.

ZAHN: That's quite a dance floor. I tell you it is terrifying for those of us who don't have the agility you have to watch this. There's great beauty in it. But how much danger is there in what you do?

RUDOLF: Well, there is probably more danger in getting in your car in the morning because you can't manage the safety in the same way we can. Of course, what we are doing is very serious. And I take it extremely seriously. But to that end, by recognizing that gravity is a never-ending force, I take every precaution possible and manage the risks by redundancy in our rigging systems, redundancy in our checking systems. For example, a dancer will check herself and then she will check her partner, and then the rigger will come by and do the third check. And by doing things like that, and assuming that human error happens, we are able to really manage the risks that we are dealing with.

ZAHN: We are watching you off of the sheer face of El Capitan, and it is just arresting. Describe to us what you are feeling when you are suspended like that?

RUDOLF: Well, you know, I think for one thing we all have a dream of floating, and flying and soaring. And that's really what that feels like. My dancers and I were able to sort of live that dream in a way. Because when you jump off the wall when you're dancing on a cliff, for example, the loft, which is sort of the time you spend away from the wall feels like flying. It's incredible, exhilarating, a little hard to describe.

ZAHN: Well, your troop certainly makes a 40-year-old look good. Is it true that the majority of the members of your dance troupe are over the age of 40?

RUDOLF: Well, not quite a majority but right now we have a range in the company from 23 to 43. And the 43-year-old definitely keeps the 23-year-old on his toes. But, yeah, I have been working with, for example, Heather Baer (ph), Kimmy Ward, Suzanne Galo (ph), three of the women in the company for over a decade, the entire time. And they are incredibly fit and ready to go and very good at what we do. So I, of course, continue to work with them. But I have hired on, you know, new people, Rachel Linken (ph), Mark Stuver (ph). You are probably seeing these people in the footage. And most recent Pertin (ph) Letio Estello (ph) I just hired is 23 years old.

ZAHN: Well, it is just spectacular to watch. Final question for you, I know you talk about all the redundancy in your safety procedures, but what is more terrifying - looking down from the top of a skyscraper or looking at out over a cliff in Yosemite?

RUDOLF: It's funny you asked that. I actually find - it sort of depends. You know, if you are 2500 feet off of the ground, the first time you repel down into a space like that your body is telling you, you know - is asking you, is this okay? But somehow the beauty of nature, which is, you know, a lot of the work is about celebrating the beauty of natural spaces and the spirit of the mountains. But also - so, you know, that sort of holds you in safe arms, for me at least. Whereas being on a building sometimes, looking down at the cars, you know, going by down below, it's a little bit for some reason more unnerving to me at times. But you get accustomed to it like anything. You know, something that was once extraordinary can become almost ordinary if you do it long enough. And then we're able to really focus on the dance and the choreography and the beauty of what we are doing.

ZAHN: Have any of your performers ever gotten hurt?

RUDOLF: We have never had any accidents per se, you know, stubbed toes and a slight bumped head once, but really no accidents. And that's really due - I have Steve Schneider a famous climber, my head rigger Thomas Cavanaugh taking care of us, Peter Mayfield doing risk management. We have people who are really thoughtful about what we are doing. And I, too, am very careful about what we do. And it matters. You know, once you take care then you are able to do these things.

ZAHN: Well, there is great beauty in what you do. You guys are wonderful last week and wonderful performers. Thanks for spending a little time with us this morning.

RUDOLF: My pleasure.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired March 12, 2003 - 09:47   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: The best way to describe what you're about to see is dancing meeting mountain climbing. They call it Project Bandaloop. The sky's the limit literally for this unusual and innovative dance troupe. They perform while soaring in some cases 2,500 feet above Yosemite National Park, or dangling themselves from tall buildings.
Amelia Rudolf is the group's founder and artistic director, and I talked with her recently about their gravity-defying experience.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: And Amelia Rudolf joins us from San Francisco.

Good to see you and congratulations!

AMELIA RUDOLF: Thank you.

ZAHN: I can't believe you guys do what you do. You tackle the Space Needle in Seattle. You tackle a 3,000-foot cliff in Yosemite. Describe to us how you would characterize what you do and why you pick the venues you do.

RUDOLF: I guess I would characterize what we do as being dance. We are a dance company. I am a dancer and a choreographer. I also happen to be a mountain climber and a rock climber. And I basically have been combining the two forms for a little over a decade now using the physicality of movement and the physicality of grand spaces, both architectural spaces and natural spaces to transform what we call a dance floor.

ZAHN: That's quite a dance floor. I tell you it is terrifying for those of us who don't have the agility you have to watch this. There's great beauty in it. But how much danger is there in what you do?

RUDOLF: Well, there is probably more danger in getting in your car in the morning because you can't manage the safety in the same way we can. Of course, what we are doing is very serious. And I take it extremely seriously. But to that end, by recognizing that gravity is a never-ending force, I take every precaution possible and manage the risks by redundancy in our rigging systems, redundancy in our checking systems. For example, a dancer will check herself and then she will check her partner, and then the rigger will come by and do the third check. And by doing things like that, and assuming that human error happens, we are able to really manage the risks that we are dealing with.

ZAHN: We are watching you off of the sheer face of El Capitan, and it is just arresting. Describe to us what you are feeling when you are suspended like that?

RUDOLF: Well, you know, I think for one thing we all have a dream of floating, and flying and soaring. And that's really what that feels like. My dancers and I were able to sort of live that dream in a way. Because when you jump off the wall when you're dancing on a cliff, for example, the loft, which is sort of the time you spend away from the wall feels like flying. It's incredible, exhilarating, a little hard to describe.

ZAHN: Well, your troop certainly makes a 40-year-old look good. Is it true that the majority of the members of your dance troupe are over the age of 40?

RUDOLF: Well, not quite a majority but right now we have a range in the company from 23 to 43. And the 43-year-old definitely keeps the 23-year-old on his toes. But, yeah, I have been working with, for example, Heather Baer (ph), Kimmy Ward, Suzanne Galo (ph), three of the women in the company for over a decade, the entire time. And they are incredibly fit and ready to go and very good at what we do. So I, of course, continue to work with them. But I have hired on, you know, new people, Rachel Linken (ph), Mark Stuver (ph). You are probably seeing these people in the footage. And most recent Pertin (ph) Letio Estello (ph) I just hired is 23 years old.

ZAHN: Well, it is just spectacular to watch. Final question for you, I know you talk about all the redundancy in your safety procedures, but what is more terrifying - looking down from the top of a skyscraper or looking at out over a cliff in Yosemite?

RUDOLF: It's funny you asked that. I actually find - it sort of depends. You know, if you are 2500 feet off of the ground, the first time you repel down into a space like that your body is telling you, you know - is asking you, is this okay? But somehow the beauty of nature, which is, you know, a lot of the work is about celebrating the beauty of natural spaces and the spirit of the mountains. But also - so, you know, that sort of holds you in safe arms, for me at least. Whereas being on a building sometimes, looking down at the cars, you know, going by down below, it's a little bit for some reason more unnerving to me at times. But you get accustomed to it like anything. You know, something that was once extraordinary can become almost ordinary if you do it long enough. And then we're able to really focus on the dance and the choreography and the beauty of what we are doing.

ZAHN: Have any of your performers ever gotten hurt?

RUDOLF: We have never had any accidents per se, you know, stubbed toes and a slight bumped head once, but really no accidents. And that's really due - I have Steve Schneider a famous climber, my head rigger Thomas Cavanaugh taking care of us, Peter Mayfield doing risk management. We have people who are really thoughtful about what we are doing. And I, too, am very careful about what we do. And it matters. You know, once you take care then you are able to do these things.

ZAHN: Well, there is great beauty in what you do. You guys are wonderful last week and wonderful performers. Thanks for spending a little time with us this morning.

RUDOLF: My pleasure.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com