A dance performance and public forum this week will address how changes in women`s roles during the last three decades have affected men.
The combination of art and public discussion is the brainchild of Jan Erkert, founder of Jan Erkert & Dancers and a professor of dance at Columbia College.
Erkert choreographed ”Portrait of Five Men,” the dance presentation, and has organized a discussion after the performance that will focus on how the women`s movement has affected men.
Erkert said she decided to put on the program after doing a similar project last year that focused on women.
”The whole time I was working on that project, I kept thinking about men, about what happened with them as women moved through these profound changes during the last three decades. Women, because we are only 50 percent of the formula, can only change so much. Until men change and form new alliances and new ways to interact, it inhibits our growth.
”It is time for us to start looking at these issues that involve both
(sexes) in a new way,” Erkert said. ”Having gone through the feminist movement in the late 1960s, I feel it`s time to get rid of our anger and start looking for ways to heal some of the hurt.”
Erkert said her piece looks at ways men have been damaged by assuming power, such as being emotionally repressed or forced to bear the financial burdens of their families.
”I wanted to look at it from the perspective of trying to bridge some gaps,” Erkert said. ”I`m also interested in how much ridicule strong men have taken since the feminist movement took hold. Men are now often portrayed in our society as fools for being macho or strong. By the same token, women are trying to become `little men.` We need to begin to appreciate our innate abilities.”
Discussion after the dance performance will be led by Al Gini, Loyola University professor of philosophy; Claudia Dancing, a psychotherapist and Jim Wolf, a storyteller and social worker. The panel will discuss gender issues at home, in relationships and at work.
”I hope we will be able to entice the crowd into a forum about how these issues of gender roles have affected them,” Erkert said.
The performance is 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Dance Center of Columbia College, 4730 N. Sheridan Rd. Admission is $3; proceeds go to Deborah`s Place, a shelter for homeless women. Call 312-271-7928.
