About the Project

Ethan Schweitzer-Gaslin presents a dance honoring Udall’s Cove in Queens, NY. The work is conceived as a gesture of gratitude to a local waterway that offers peace, reflection, and daily connection to community life.

Water and Place

I wanted to create this dance primarily as a thank you to a place right in my backyard that has brought me a lot of peace and joy. A thank you to the water that reminds me to pause and breathe a little deeper every time I see it from the train window passing by as I begin and end my day. This area is a unique example of an important and thriving salt marsh ecosystem that remains in need of further restoration. Old pilings, memories of docks and fishing, and the presence of diverse wildlife all speak to how water has sustained and shaped this community, while sea level prediction maps gesture toward changing futures.

Community & Collaboration

This piece honors the ancestral land of Udall’s Cove and recognizes community-led conservation. Creation and stewardship were supported by collaborators from the Udall’s Cove Preservation Committee, centering local efforts to protect and restore this marsh that cleans water and supports life.

Reflection

The choreography responds to the rhythms of water as a force that connects, cycles, and changes. It functions as both a thank you and a quiet call to sustain these waterways for future generations.

Connect

For inquiries and collaboration:

• @schweitzergaslin@gmail.com