Artist Date – Another Round

An Artist Date | July 22, 2023

To re-introduce Julia Cameron’s artist dates into my life, I’m embarking on a bi-monthly blog reflection on such self-assigned “play.” I hope to inspire you, my readers, to replenish your inner wells, too!

This week, I watched the perfect film to commence my Artist Dates: a Danish film called Another Round, directed by Thomas Vinterberg (2020). It’s about awakening from stagnation. I was very moved, and I couldn’t help but reflect on my own life.

The premise? Four childhood friends, now middle-aged teachers, are celebrating Nikoloj’s 40^th birthday. After Martin breaks down in tears due to his loveless marriage and uninspired career, the friends discuss Norwegian psychiatrist Finn Skårderud’s theory that humans are born with a blood alcohol level that is 0.05 per cent too low. In a beautiful moment in Nikoloj’s office the next day, they listen to Schubert’s Fantasie in f Moll, D 940 (and get chills!), and are convinced they need to give the theory a try. To bring confidence and joy back into their lives, they begin drinking after breakfast and throughout the day, to keep their blood alcohol level at 0.5%.

Are they transformed? Yes! Everyone’s teaching becomes inspired, Martin finds joy and connection in his marriage and children, and Peter starts dating again. Yet, this movie does not blindly endorse alcohol consumption: Nikolaj’s wife moves out, and Tommy, who becomes terribly awakened to the emptiness in his life, slips into alcoholism even after his friends decide to end the experiment.

Watch the movie! If for nothing else, for the ending. Martin used to take jazz ballet lessons when he was younger. His friends prod him to show some of his moves, but he declines every time, until the end. And oh boy does he dance! The way the drunk friends “dance” while they teach. You can’t take your eyes off them. Their students can’t either.

For me, my meager dancing with alcohol has never brought me any kind of awakening. But this scene at the end reminded me that learning to dance has.

My essay “Finding Tango in Turkey” tackles this very awakening (Chautauqua Literary Journal, Nov 2021). Just as the friends at the end of the film remain awake even while sober, the joy and confidence tango has given me on the dance floor has transferred to other aspects of my life.

“Once you experience the miracle of being able to intimately connect with even a stranger, that feeling is in your body for life, and you can’t wait to experience it again and again. Ricardo Vidort believed that ‘tango is a choice of a moment for all your life.’”

I’m grateful to have found such a vehicle (one that doesn’t risk alcoholism!), and proud that I worked so hard for years to learn this very difficult dance. I took lessons in Turkish when I began dancing in Ankara, continued in Spanish when I lived in Barcelona, and finally (thank God!) in English when I moved to Seattle, Washington. If you are interested in more of this story, you can download and read my essay here.

Watching Another Round inspired me to reflect on what other activities have and can awaken joy and confidence in me.

What activity has awakened you?