Hiking the Horizontal

"Lerman's concise text inspires and equips the reader with a host of new perspectives from which to tackle the making of artworks. Lerman's ideas are novel, deep, and challenging and, as such, require time to take in, analyze, and potentially adopt."—Lisa Jo Sagolla, BackStage magazine

"[R]eaders will be excited to evaluate and evolve their own practices. Anyone interested in making or teaching dance, regardless of where the dance takes place, who is dancing, or what it is about, will agree that this book matters."—Karen Schupp, Journal of Dance Education

"The strengths of this book lie in its broad reach and in Lerman's capacity to share nuanced learning in conversational language. She investigates numerous processes central to making, working, and living in various professional and personal communities. 'Hiking' with wisdom and humility across the horizon of these years, she manages, nonetheless, to dig deeply. Highly recommended."—S.E. Friedler, Choice

"Hiking the Horizontal constructs a portrait of a compelling artist whose convictions are at the core of her creative engagement in dance—a choreographer whose activism is personal."—Rita Felciano, Dance Chronicle

"Hiking the Horizontal is a necessary addition to the libraries of dance aficionados and artists. But it also has much to offer to the broader dialogue on the arts. Lerman is thoughtful, insightful and gentle in her approach, and her message carries deep value."—Peter DeVries, Dance International

"Lerman is that rare artist who has pioneered new pathways into the human spirit, and who is blessed with the facility of not just creating her art but of explaining it as well. Hiking the Horizontal is a combination of explanation and inquiry, couched in a narrative that is contagious with sensitivity, grace, and wisdom."—Dr. Lawrence A. Hoffman, rabbi, Friedman Professor of Liturgy, Worship and Ritual

"Liz Lerman defies categorization, mixing ideas and practices we are taught to keep separate. She catapults herself into art and politics, science and spirituality, community-based and high art contexts. This generous book will give heart to artists who both respect tradition and seek their own path."—Jan Cohen Cruz, director, Imagining America: Artists and Scholars in Public Life

"When Liz speaks a word it is more than a word. The word becomes a world. When Liz speaks a sentence, a whole/holy history unfurls. She invites us to see, sense, feel and breathe. When Liz speaks her wordslisten."—Jawole Willa Jo Zollar, Founding Artistic Director and Visioning Partner, Urban Bush Women

"Liz teaches us that artists and citizens can dance a new world into existence through questions. Creating across the horizontal is both the destination and the journey, and the essential tools of Hiking will help us make it 'there', together."—Vijay Gupta, Violinist, Founder of Street Symphony

"...a book full of inspiring and provocative wisdom from one of America's most influential choreographers. Through her journey, we tap into our own creativity by considering what it means to 'turn discomfort into inquiry', 'rattle around in other people's universes' and much more."—Pamela Tatge, Executive and Artistic Director, Jacob's Pillow