Someone Dancing, Drowning
Someone is drowning 500 feet off the shore of Pepe’s beach in Marbella, Spain. Their little arms flail as they attempt to keep their head above water. From the cabanas by the beach cafe, the drowning person could be mistaken for an interpretive dancer. An art critic sunbathing on a deckchair watches the person twirl in the foam and finds it beautiful.
If you look closely at the person mid-spin, you’ll notice that they do not pay attention to rhythm at all. Their kicks are off-beat and their arms are too loose. A choreographer watches, toes touching the water’s edge, and begins to perform the routine he’s been working on, hoping that the dancer would mimic it and in turn, harmonize to our innate human movement.
Saltwater burns the inside of the dancer’s throat, infecting their lungs as a crowd begins to gather by the shoreline. The ear-stretched smiles growing on their faces as they realize the serendipity of such an unordinary spectacle.
Pleading cries for more erupt:
“¡Gira más amplio!”
“¡Prueba los molinetes a continuación!”
The dancer soon gives into the ocean’s gravitational pull bringing the performance to an end. The crowd falls quiet, extending their necks in hope to find the dancer behind a swollen wave. Two minutes pass and the dancer does not arise. Moved by the impossible act, the crowd claps in unison and beg for an encore.
Leena Barqawi
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