Saint Louis Dance Theatre is closing its Love Languages season with a piece called *Kiss*, and honestly, I am already clearing my calendar. Stephanie Martinez, named one of Dance Magazine's "25 to Watch" in 2022, has created more than 70 works for companies like the Joffrey Ballet and Ballet Hispánico. That kind of resume tells me she knows how to make bodies speak. And when the Idaho Statesman calls her work "enthralling twists in music and movement," I pay attention. This isn't just another contemporary dance show. This is a conversation about connection, about letting your body say what words can't.
Here is what I love for you, queen. If you have ever felt like your doubts live louder than your desires, this is your invitation to let movement take the mic. Martinez founded PARA.MAR Dance Theatre in 2020, right when the world needed permission to feel again. She brings that same energy to *Kiss*, a work that asks you to lean into the messy, beautiful, sometimes awkward business of loving yourself and others. You do not need to be a dancer to get it. You just need to be someone who has ever wanted to scream, cry, or laugh with your whole body. That is all of us.
If a reader asked me whether this is worth their time, I would say yes, and I would say it fast. Tickets are for May 29-31, 2026, at COCA's Catherine B. Berges Theatre. That gives you plenty of time to plan a solo date, a girls' night, or a "let's try something different" evening. Wear something that makes you feel divine. Let the music hit you where you live. And when those "enthralling twists" land, let yourself feel every single one. No overthinking allowed.
Here is your takeaway: doubt is just a story your brain tells you. *Kiss* is a story your body already knows. Go let movement remind you.
