Water for Elephants
I recently interviewed two Tony nominees, Shana Carroll and Jesse Robb. These two dynamic creators choreographed the hit Broadway show Water For Elephants.
The topic? Teamwork and TRUST! During this show, we are entertained by dazzling feats most of us saw as children visiting the Circus. As adults, some of us have enjoyed the brilliant Cirque de Soleil shows. Whether we’re children clutching a sticky cloud of cotton candy or adults enjoying a dry merlot during intermission…people are flying across the stage! We oooh. We ahhh.
We talk about trust on teams in business, but I chuckled as I mentally compared this to a team of Circus performers: Assuring Lisa that you’ll email her that Powerpoint by 5:00 pm? Great. Catching someone flying in the air; or being the foundational footing for a tower of people? WHOA. In truth I’d never thought of these distinctions before.
My podcast, Seeking Synergy with Rosemary Bova explores the synergies that show up when people have open minds and dialogue about interesting topics. Making this podcast (available wherever you listen to your podcasts) truly opened my mind. It brought me back to my studies at the Gestalt Institute of Cleveland. During my studies, I learned the importance of listening to my own body. I also learned that using the fine art of metaphor can be helpful to clients. The metaphor captures what’s going on. Your body never lies to you–a message that was underlined during my conversation with my new choreography friends!
My guests’ use of metaphors helped me see and retain what they were saying. They used the phrase “trickle down” when describing how they wanted the Company (aka employed people) to understand their desires. Trickle down is not a rain storm but rather something that lands gently on people. It allows employees to learn and grow at their own pace. This requires appreciation for the different ways we all learn.
“Rippling out” implies spreading out horizontally, allowing each person to share their understanding of what is needed in the choreography. This builds trust in those partnering with another but also radiates out to the dancers. Trust intensifies.
Both Shana and Jesse talk about their collaboration being an “arranged marriage”. Shana worked on the show since 2019. Jesse was brought in later. They had to make it work. Together they knew their collaborative stance would send messages to the dancers and acrobats. They were focused on the prize … a Tony nomination for Best Musical of 2024. We’ll learn the results in June. (They’ve got my vote!)