Improvisation jam

On the last week of term before Christmas all three years of dance students and the tutors came together to perform an improvisation jam, which was really fun! It allowed us to come together with other students I had not moved with before, and just experiment and explore with contact and relationships while moving. This was particularly fun and interesting as there was no expectations or criteria, we were just able to play around with movement without taking it too seriously or being graded etc.

We started by all moving individually in the space, as the sore gradually built up layers. We experimented with levels, direction, quality of movement, and then relationships and contact. Different types of music were also introduced to the score, which changed the levels of energy and atmosphere in the space. I found that I responded differently to different music, and sometimes my movement and mood completely contrasted depending on the music and energy of other movers.

Elements of the score I responded well to:

• Considering all parts of the space, such as the walls, and even the far edges of the space not just the middle. This was also useful for moments of pausing and/or witnessing.
• Brushing down others in the space. This could then lead to rolling, a change of level, following the person that brushed, or just an acknowledgement of another dancer that we may not have moved with before.
• All starting and finishing in the space together, which made me feel more comfortable and ready to move.

Overall this was a fun way to end the term, and just move how we wanted after a very tiring week during performance week :)   

The challenges of using speach during 'Walking piece'

I found it challenging at first to incorporate the use of speech within performance, as I have not done this before, so I had to work on my use of projection and letting go of fear of talking in front of an audience.


During one section we had to take it in turns to say a word from this list in order, while using a stomping action, jumping on the window ledge, and getting faster..

SPRIGHTLY
TIGHTLY
SLIGHTLY
NIGHTLY
SIGHTLY
BRIGHTLY
RIGHTLY
POLITELY

In another section we had to make out way around the corner, while brushing each other down and taking it in turns to say a tongue twister, then pass it on to another person in the group who then had to repeat it as fast and as clear as possible..

'SHE SIFTED THISTLES WITH HER THISTLE SIFTER'
'PLAIN BUN, PLUM BUN, BUN WITHOUT PLUM'
'RED LORRY, YELLOW LORRY'
'WHICH WRIST WATCHES ARE SWISS WRIST WATCHES'
'SIX SLEEK SWANS SWAM SWIFTLY SOUTHWARDS'
'ELLEVEN BENEVOLENT ELEPHANTS'

In another section we had to describe objects while moving in a turn table motion on different levels as part of the loops, and during the second time of doing so we had 'evolving walk' short moments- mine was a jump reaching back to touch my toes. Some of the objects were...

Cake
Car
Apple
Lift
Grass
Door
Hair straighteners
Socks
Table
Paper
etc..

A few Images of the rehearsal process

The 'here and there' section

coming down from the lift

'over the rooftops' walking on the walls

turn tables section

'sprightly' section

Brushing down, and tongue twisters

'here and there' section

the lift

Things to remember during performance

• Invite being seen
• keep seeing active in the room
• Each performance is an experience- keep learning no matter how small
• Get what I need from each performance, and don't settle for any less
• clear voice
• Taking time to do each section clearly and fully- not rushing
• laugh at my own serious intentions, even when those intentions are serious
• Be myself throughout- not trying to put on an act for the audience
• Enjoy each performance, and challenge myself throughout!

Final score.. Loop 2

Here is a score of the second loop performed as part of 'Walking piece'.

Final score.. Loop 1

Here is a score of the first loop we perform as part of  'Walking piece'.

Improvisation in collaboration with musisians

During our technique improvisation class we were given the opportunity to collaborate with music students, who would perform and work along side us during the session. This was a first time experience for me which was very exciting! During the session we were put into groups containing both dancers and musicians and carried out a series of tasks together, where dancers would improvise movement in response to the live sounds, and the musicians would create scores and improvise rhythms in response to the movement using instruments, voice and clapping.

I found that using the live music created a whole new atmosphere in the room and therefore a new way of moving and experimenting with rhythms, which I really enjoyed.

The last part of the session involved all of us in a circle around the room and holding an improvisation jam. The musicians could play their instruments/sing/clap at changing rhythms while the dancers came in and out of the space moving as we wanted. The movement and atmosphere was really alive, and the relationship between movement and music was an interesting idea that I could go on to explore in more depth.

'Retain the capacity to laugh at your own serious intentions, even while those intentions remain serious.'

I really like this as I find I can take movement too seriously and worry that I may not be doing it right etc, so by thinking of being able to laugh at my serious intentions has encouraged me to try new ways of moving and not worry about how it may look, and to just give it a go even if it does not work or makes me feel a little out of my comfort zone. I think this is a very valuable thing to remember when creating contemporary dance.

question to explore while improvisng

'What if all of my 100 trillion cells at once choose to surrender the pattern of facing a single direction?'


I found this idea engaging, as it is refeing to the connection between mind and body, and Matthias' interest in neuroscience, by introducing the idea of the cells in the body and how they connect to our mind and our movement. This required a lot of thought while moving, as trying not to have your cells facing the same way at all seems impossible. However, this encouraged a lot of new material and I found so many new dynamics and depths to my moving. I found that by not trying to face the same way encouraged me to use many more contrasting levels, speeds, amounts of space, and details in my movement.



       

Matthias Sperling

As part of my research on Matthias, before working with him I had a look on his website which gave me an insight to his background and previous and current works, in particular his solo 'Riff' was interesting to watch and get a feel for his style of moving..

http://www.matthias-sperling.com/

Performance project!

As a second year student we must take part in a module called Performance project. I am now part of a company called Influx, and our choreographer is Matthias Sperling. So far we have had one meeting with Matthias where we carried out several improvisational tasks. One of which I found I really connected with and enjoyed was building up movement by moving from areas of the body that 'light up'. So we moved from parts of the body that were of interest or held particular tension or energy. We also moved around the idea of all the cells in the body. I found that this encouraged me to feel light and bring the space into my moving, which influenced so many new ways of moving! Matthias also encouraged us to not take ourselves too seriously and I found this also encouraged the light movement, and not to think to much into what I was doing, just to enjoy dancing improvisationaly. Another task we did involved moving this way focusing on the cells etc but traveling from one side of the room to the other without the audience realising this was our intention. This still seems like an almost impossible task but after a few attempts we found moving slower and without outwardly focusing on the finishing point, we were able to move across the space without being too obvious about it. I really enjoyed the day with Matthias and look forward to our intensive rehearsal week :)     

Experiential anatomy class- The organs

A real sheep's live was brought into class, and we were able to look up close and touch it to get an understanding of the texture, colour, shape, and weight of a liver.

Found that moving with the awareness of the organs was something new, as usual the focus is on muscles, bone, joints, and tissues. I almost found it quite restrictive as the organs are internal and fixed within the body, so i found trying to move with this knowledge hard than focusing on the joints for example. However it was a new experience an focus and therefore i found new ways of moving.

Experiential anatomy class- The skull

During class we used partner work to feel for ourselves while referring to diagrams of the skull, to identify the shape, creases, lumps, tissues, and bone structure.

A few things I learnt about the skull I did not know before..

. It weighs just under a stone- being the heaviest of the body
. The 'soft spot' on a baby's head compresses as it is born
. Found the skull was not smooth and there was a lot more dips and lumps than I originally thought



   

Workshop with Lucia Walker

After taking part in a one off workshop with Lucia Walker, I left the session feeling supple, light, and aware of connections between skull and tail, and joints, muscles and bones.

Started gently and were encouraged to feel grounded- which I definitely benefited from as I was feeling tired and achy, so this preparation enabled me to wake up my body physically and mentaly.

Use of partner graphics- identifying the spine and all the individual vertebrae from skull to tail. i was left feeling:
. At ease
. Spongy
. Loose
. Swift
. Supple in the joints, bones, and muscles
. Smooth
I felt this then affected my movement and I danced with more ease and flow. Found that keeping the eyes closed also encouraged me to hold on to that connection and feel the changes internally.

'uses of improvisation'

1. As a source of original material

2. As training in perception

3. To develop a piece

4. As a performance mode in itself

Tufnell & Crickmay (1990) Body, Space, Image. London Dance Books.

I find this extract a useful way to consider the different possibilities and outcomes using improvisation has as part of experimenting with movement and choreography.

What do we understand about process?

I would describe my process as a dance artist as consant and continuous developing, and never ending learning, as well as

• Letting go of end gaining.
• Evaluation
• observation
• whitnessing

First week back moving..

During my first week back in the new term I have taken part in a few classes, and found it easy to get back into, and am still discovering new ways of moving and witnessing. In one particular class we started with a hands on improvisation in partners where we changed roles several times as one person moved and the directed and followed using a light touch with their hands. The roles of having eyes closed also changed several times, to gain new perspectives of moving with our partner. I found it easier to move with eyes closed as I found the use of my other senses a lot more and therefore used more sensitive movements and found a deeper discovery into areas of my body moving. Another task we carried out was where we had to get into small groups with our eyes closed and try and move in unison. This encouraged the use of hearing and sound into our movement. I found this particularly interesting as I do not usually notice other dancers around me using these senses. From witnessing this I noticed the larger the group the more in unison they became, and even if they were not in unison there was a clear strong connection between the dancers at all times. This would be a useful task to carry out before choreographing in a group as the dancers became much more sensitive of each other and the space around them .

Beginning of year two

After a short break from my blog during the summer, I am going to continue writing about my developments and progress as a dance artist, as I begin my seond year studying Dance at university. Previously I discussed developments and changes in my body and moving I had experianced as part of my first year on the course. This had been developed into a Body Story which is shown mainly on this blog.

This year I aim to carry on sharing my experiances as a mover and my bodies developments, as well as write about my movement explorations and improvisations during class and rehearsals, and reflect on ho these are contributing to my development as a dance artist.

This year I am also taking part in a performance project as part of the course, invloving being part of a choreograohers company and performaing to a live audience, after an intensive rehearsal process. I understand that this experiance is a very valuable one which will have a huge impact on my development and ability as a performer and maker, therefore I will be using this blog to write about my experiances as part of the company, including my whitnessing as part of the process.

I aim to include writen reflections and journal entries, pictures, and video evidence of this.

Body story ideas

Here is a photo of an idea I am exploring for my body story. As I have previously discussed, I am focusing on the alignment of the body, and how back pain can be caused by dancing without  correct alignment, and awareness of skull to tail connection. I have been encouraged to do this as part of the course during studio practice classes and can already notice changes in my body and my dancing as we approach the end of term two. I no longer suffer with lower back pain and have overall better balance and posture. I am going to continue exploring and improving this, and I feel creating the body story will enable me to keep track of my progress and be able to look back and see my improvements, and how I can develop further.

Siobhan Davies archive scrapbook

Below is the link for the scrapbook I made on the Siobhan Davies archive website, during the library worshop. It is mainly a collection of images and videos of her work I particularly enjoyed and was interested in.

I chose to put on the video of Plain Song because i was intrigued by the way it was made for television and how this would differ from a piece made for a more traditional theatre setting.
I also chose the images because I particularly liked the formations of the dancers presented, and was interested in the different costumes worn.

http://www.siobhandaviesreplay.com/lightbox.php?removefromlightbox=9

'Move It' dance festival

On the weekend, me and a few of my peers went to the 'Move It' dance festival in London where we took part in a variety of dance classes, one of which was Graham technique. There was a strong focus on breath and contraction an release based techniques, as well as the focus on lines, during floor based and traveling phrases and  exercises. I found this very interesting and feel the techniques I learnt could be applied to my studio practice  development, as they contribute to good alignment and flow while dancing.

Duet rehearsal video

Here is a video of me and my partner rehearsing and playing with a few ideas, which we have now developed.
Just a few questions..

• Does the use of music compliment the piece?
• Is there enough use of space?
• Can you make any suggestions for further development?

Duet working progress sharing

My partner and I showed some movement material we have created as ideas for our duet. We showed the whole class and our tutor, and received feedback. The main points were...

• Go further with the exploration of rhythms made when walking, running, and stillness- music?
• Still see each other in the space, create more relationship.
• More power when running.
• make the transactions clearer, and more experimenting with changing pathways to see when we cross.
• Our movement was clear and strong.
• The idea was clear, although needs more exploration.
• The was we entered and exited the audience during the piece reflected the idea of continuous pathways.

We are now going to explore the use of music/sound, more changing pathways, and the rhythms of the body.

Nottdance festival 2011

We saw Wendy Houstoun's '50 acts' at nottdance festival. It was a physical theare performance involving:

• 'Manifestos
• Apologies and errors
• Random acts
• Small dances and big ideas
• Ghostly appearances
• Invisibility
• Stupidity
• Inexplicable feats and unexpected turns
• Eco soliloquies
• Techno idiocy'

I really enjoyed the use of movement, speach, acting, and use of props.

lea Anderson talk

We went to DMU for a talk with lea Anderson. She explained to us some of the inspirations/ideas for her choreography. In particular she talked about the use of film, and how things such as the camera focuses, scene changes, and movements influenced her choreography and use of setting, lighting, and music.
I found this interesting as i never would have thought to use these aspects of film as a stimulus for choreography.

Improvisation score

Here is a score I created during an improvisation class, also showing the rules we had to follow. We carried the task out in groups of about 10 people, and we could enter and exit the space during the task.

Duet reahearsals

This week during rehearsal time with my partner and the chance to speak to a tutor about our ideas, we have a much clearer idea of what we would like to show in our duet and how to do so. We have now decided to focus on the idea of accumulation and pathways, as well as sticking to the original idea of chance, and no fixed point of focus in space. We have been improvising with movement, in particular walking, running, crawling, rolling, stillness, galloping, jumping, and short motifs. We are now also interested in incorporating the use of symbols within our piece to represent these types of movement. We also improvised trying to use sound with our movement such as clapping and stamping. We now need to decide if we are going to use music or not, and this week we are going to see if this would work, and keep improvising around our ideas in preparation for a sharing of our work so far on Friday.

Duet choreography task motif

This is the short motif we created during the choreography class using the large pieces of paper as a score. As you can see the movement refects what we had drawn on the paper. We performed this wit the audience in a semi circle around us, and the score behind us.

Aspects to remember during jumps

• Articulation through the feet
• Not jumping with the chest
• Falling pelvis
• Continuous through pleas and jumping
• being able to see the toes when in first position
• Back and shoulders flat and soft
• Soft landing
• Seeing the space, not staring out to one point

Body Story reflections and ideas

After focusing particularly on features such as flat shoulder blades, head to tail connection, length in the spine, floating skull, pelvis falling, and many others I have found that focusing on these has really improved my posture, alignment, and overall balance and control when dancing. This has had a positive  effect on my spine. I have found since doing this I have not suffered with any lower back pain, which  had done during the previous couple of years on and off during periods of time when I was doing a lot of dancing, e.g exams and auditions. This my have been due to over arching, sticking my pelvis out and leading with the chest, which i thought created good posture. I therefore feel as if I have been taught to  correct the way I was moving before which has now had a positive effect on my back.. which means I can now dance with more ease, flow, and show a real connection between the skull and tail bone.    

Duet choreography task

The duet choreography lesson we had with Florence Peake involved taping a very big piece of paper to the floor, then one person improvising on it creaing shapes and patterns. the other person would then draw around them and draw shapes and ptterns they could ee being created from the dancing as they were doing it.
This then created a score which was colourful, and you could tell by looking back at it what kind of movement had been carried out. We then stuck it on the wall and created a motif as a duet from the score.
I really enjoyed this way of choreographing, as when we came to create the motif I found it easy to keep looking back at the score and improvise as I was looking at it, as it was on the wall next to us instead of on a smaller piece of paper in my journal. I also found that because it was bigger I could see clearer patterns.

Here are some photos of the process, and the scores.

Duet chance task photos

First duet rehearsal.. chance task

During our rehearsal we designed a chance task to carry out.

• We created 3 piles of paper, one had a number on it representing five short motifs we had created, one had a speed/dynamic, and the other had a place in the space.
• We then picked out at random one from each pile and performed the motifs how this had been arranged.

We found that we then wanted to develop the motifs further and try and include contact, travel and repetition within them, leaving us with a few short sequences that could possibly be used in our duet!

Duet mind map ideas

First duet rehearsal

My partner and I had our first rehearsal and began by making a mind map on possible ideas and themes we would like to explore within the process of creating our duet. (Shown above) Here are a few ideas we are considering so far..

• Cunningham's chance theory - No fixed point of focus in space, and moments of contact and complimenting/contrasting movement through chance. - audience in the round?
• Possible use of an object. - chair or piece of material?
• Use of sound through the body and space to create rhythms, use of music, and silence.

Studio practice

Today we worked with the image of our arms as sails while holding positions and doing short sequences. This was done my imagining the way the arms are connected to the sternum from the thumb, and just above the shoulder baled from the little finger when in an extended second position, creating an open flat upper body. I found that imagining the flatness of the sails enabled me to hold a strong position without over extending. I will definitely use this image again when holding arm positions to make sure they don't over extend causing an arched spine, which will reflect on my overall alignment, which I am paying particular attention to during my practice.

Studio practice

Today during studio practice I felt as though I had a really successful lesson that I connected with. I found I was able to take on board feedback when in partners, and I could notice the changes in the way I was moving. I worked on keeping flow and control throughout, not over extending, making sure my skull was free when rising and rolling down, and also my ongoing focus of skull to tail connection, use of breath, and keeping the pelvis falling.
I particularly noticed my flow throughout a sequence had improved, and that by breathing while moving I felt warmer and more supple in the joints and muscles.

Duet beginnings

We have been given an assignment to choreograph a duet sketch.. I will keeping track of my choreographic process here on my blog.

To start thinking about duets I have thought of other duets unrelated to dance that will encourage me to consider different relationships and their significance to each other, to see if this could be a stimulus for a dance duet.

• love and hate
• light and dark
• knife and fork
• brother and sister
• bread and butter
• man and woman
• thunder and lightening
• black and white
• left and right
• Tom and jerry
• Bucket and spade

I have been considering how some of these cannot have one without the other, how some are opposites, and some are just associated with each other.

Please comment if you can think of any more that I may find relevant to my exploration of duets :)

Skinner releasing technique.. class four

This class enabled me to reflect upon all the previous skinner releasing technique classes..

Images I really connected with during improvisation were:

• Melting- allowed suppleness and release in the joints, soft and fluid movement. Felt like melting in honey so I could move slower but will full exploration in all body parts.
• Head strings- made me feel taller, more upright, and feeling length in the neck, spine, and a floating skull. This also allowed easier breathing.
• Gossamer string- between the hands, enables soft movement, almost cautious, became really engaged in the delicacy of the image.

Ideas that I would use in movement practice and my body story:

• Spaces in the spine
• melting into the cushion
• head strings
• supple joints
• skull to tail connection
• fluidity
• floating skull
• use of breath
• continuous movement in sequences

Getting to know a place

We were given a task to sit in a place of choice for 15 minutes and carry out these instructions..

'Sit quietly in a chosen place, with paper and pen to hand
throw open your attention.. see what comes
as you sit
make a list of sensory impressions.. sounds.. sensations in your body.. colours
whatever call attention to itself'

What I found interesting from carrying out this task in my bedroom with the windows open, is that it is never silent. Sounds constantly fill the air, even if I could not hear noises from the environment I could hear noises from my body such as breathing and my thinking. The idea that there is never silence made me think about how this is the same as movement, and that the environment is always moving and changing, even if not visible, our body's are never completely still due to breathing again, and other natural movements. This really interested me and could be a stimulus for a piece of choreography, the fact that we never stop moving even if we are trying to be still, and how movement and sound are never ending.

Breathing exercise

Continuing my focus on the use of breathe to improve my flow and balance when dancing, I read a useful breathing exercise which I intend to do regularly to keep myself ware of my breathing.
It begins with 'Sit in a comfortable position. Invite breath into your body. Focus attention on your lungs. imagine their shape as they take in air, and notice too the change to your ribs.' It later instructs, 'send breath to the centre of your pelvis.' and 'Notice how movements ignite your awareness.'
I found this really helped me imagine the flow of breath around my body, and I then held a constant flow of breathe throughout the sequence I was practicing in the studio. I think that a breathing exercise at the beginning of each studio practice class and before any rehearsals will really enable me to be aware, and keep control of my breathing while dancing. 

Cheryl Pallant (2006) 'The creative body: Source of a new form' Contact Improvisation:On introduction to vitalizing dance. McFarland&Company, Inc: Jefferson, North carolina and London.

Skinner releasing technique.. class three

In this session we did a lot of partner work, and work using the hands in order to help our partner soften in certain areas. On exercise I particularly found usefull was one where we had to find the lowest point in our partners ribs/ the floating rib, and using our hands lift the whole rib cage from this point outwards and upwards. This encouraged spaces and length in the vertebrae and ribs. I could feel this in my body and felt taller and longer when my partner let go. We then encouraged a free neck and skull and brushed the shoulders downward and outwards. This left my upper body feeling long and lengthened, and ready to dance.
During the improvisation tasks, one image I connected with was one where we had to imagine we were dancing in water currents under the surface of water. I found this made me dance fluidly and softly in the body as a whole, although sometimes finding moments of detail, mainly in the hands and feet. Therefore I would definitely use this image again when improvising.

Skinner releasing technique.. class two

In this session we carried out several tasks again to make us more aware of the joints, bones, and tissues in the body. I was left feeling supple and relaxed. We focused on the use of the breath, which I found really useful as I could perform the sequences and not feel out of breath at the end, and I found I could balance easier.
Again, I found the session very useful in making me more aware of these things, and how I could incorporate them in other dance classes. In particular I have been trying to bring the use of breath into my studio practice lessons, which I have found is helping me find more flow and deeper exploration into movement, mainly in swinging and dropping in and out of the floor. Hopefully I will be able to always do this while dancing, without really thinking about it.

Review of Bird Song by Siobhan Davies

The piece ‘Bird Song’ choreographed by Siobhan Davies challenges the tradition of ballet in so many ways and displays very different movement, music, costume, and staging to traditional theatre.

One of the ways in which the performance challenges traditional ballet conventions is by performing in bare feet and wearing loose trousers and tops, instead of Pointe shoes and a tutu. The performance is also set as an in the round theatre style and the square of performance space is on the same level as the audience, creating a relationship between them as they are so near to each other. Whereas, traditional ballet would have been performed on a proscenium arch staging with the audience sat all facing the front to create a separation and enable the audience to view the performance almost as a film.

The use of music also displays big differences from traditional ballet. The music is screechy and sounds almost mechanical, and is not pleasant to listen to. It constantly pauses and has no specific timing. This is completely different to the classical music used in traditional ballet that would be chosen first so the dance could be set to it after.  There is no central point of focus, and the whole space was used by all the dancers at one time, so there are no corps de ballet or principal characters that are framed by the other dancers and there is no hierarchy of dancers, as there is in traditional ballet.

The traditional themes explored in ballet would be fairy tale narratives, Greek mythology, and love stories through the use of gesture and mime. However Bird Song has no narrative and displays movement with no specific theme or meaning communication which allows the audience to figure out their own conclusions of the movement, if any at all, and enables them to appreciate the performance as they wish.  

I watched this performance on the Siobhan Davies Archive..     http://www.siobhandaviesreplay.com/index.php 

Danish Dance Theatre performance review

On the 26^th of January I went to Warwick Arts Centre to see the Danish Dance Theatre, led by artistic director Tim Rushton. This was their first performance in the UK to celebrate their 30 year anniversary. It has been described as ‘Classical beauty of ballet combined with the power of contemporary dance’. I really agree with this statement as the technique performed was balletic, although there were gripping emotions and narratives being explored.

The performance was split into three sections, Enigma, CaDance, and Kridt. Here are my observations and thought of the three pieces.

ENIGMA

Enigma, meaning riddle or puzzle was an engaging piece, and I particularly enjoyed the use of space and the variety of ensembles throughout. There was a mixture of solos, trios, and group ensembles which led to different focuses on stage, so i was never just looking at one point of the stage for very long. The duets complimented each other and the use of cannon, unison, stillness, and levels made the piece interesting because of the constant variety. I also really enjoyed the contact work. The males would support the females during lifts and jumps; there were moments where the females would lead and then the males, which again created different focuses constantly. There were also different entrances and exits going on throughout so there would always be a different number of dancers on stage at one time, making it interesting to watch because you didn’t know who would appear on stage next, and what would be coming next in the movement. However, there was one female dancer who began the piece as a solo and remained on stage throughout the whole piece.

CADANCE

CaDance, a five male only piece was also an engaging piece. There were two live drummers on stage playing the music, which involved a variety of drums and layers of rhythms, which made the piece instantly interesting as there was not just dance happening on the stage and the performance as a whole could be appreciated. The piece represents a game, where convicts in a prison yard are strutting and posing, challenging each other. The drum sticks represent how their bodies can perform minor, bone dry movements and then in a split second they can attack. This could be shown by the short, almost twitching repetitive movements which would then break out into jumps and travelling floor work. The piece started with two dancers on stage and then progressed into the five dancers at the end, who danced mainly in a line across the front of the stage. The strong aggression and competition was shown by facial expression and the very weighted movement. I really enjoyed this piece as the strong movement combined with the timing of the fast strong beat of the music really made me engage with the characters and I felt like I wanted to get up on stage and dance with them.

KRIDT

Kridt, which translates as ‘chalk’, represents a man on the verge of death remembering his life. This was my favourite piece of the three because of the strong, emotional narrative being represented and I felt so engaged throughout the whole piece. I really liked the beginning of the dance as there was a chalk board running across the back of the stage, and one of the dancers travelled across the stage writing in large letters along the whole board, which set the scene. The board was incorporated within the whole dance, and dancers would draw on it, outlining other dancer’s positions and then travelling across the stage rubbing out all the chalk and starting again. This was really interesting as there was always something being done with the chalk board throughout, at the back of the stage which lead to different focuses constantly. There was one clear main character, which was male and danced mainly centre stage throughout, and was being manipulated by other dancers through contact. Towards the end danced in a spotlight, centre stage with the other dancers framing him and he was them lifted by them all to the ceiling and sand started pouring down on to him in a long line from above. This was a representation of death and was really interesting as I have never seen sand being used as part of a dance piece. There was strong classical music throughout, and the piece ended with the main character lying on the floor surrounded by the other dancers looking at him, which created a climax and ended the performance strongly.

I really liked the way the movement was clear and held elements of ballet technique, but the relationships between the dancers, the use of bare feet, music, and narrative had a very contemporary feel to it. It was unpredictable and edgy which I also really loved about the piece.  

Alexander technique

I took part in an Alexander technique class with Lucia Walker. The aim of the class was to notice and try and correct habits were had got into concerning mainly sitting down. We were asked to sit on the floor how we would normally and then notice how our body naturally wanted to sit. I found I was quite slouched, with my head poking forwards and legs crossed. As I was noticing the position I was in I found I was actually quite uncomfortable and not able to breathe deeply.
Lucia then directed us with a hands on approach into and upright sitting position which was actually more comfortable and I was encouraged to feel the spaces in between the vertebra in my back. I found that they felt clearer and longer, which then improved my flow of breath.
I found this session very interesting as I know notice not only in dance but in everyday life how I could be improving my alignment and posture without much effort, yet feel a lot less strain on my back, knees, ankles, and other areas of my body. I am now aware of the bad habits I hold while sitting, walking and standing and am now keen to work on this using the Alexander technique principles to improve, as this can also be applied to my development in dance.

Improvisation task with a a chair: we carried out a task in the studio where we had to travel from one end to the other in pairs, while incorporating the use of a chair. It was interesting to include an object within dance, and we found we moved in new ways because of the focus on the chair. However I felt at first it was quite a stop\start process as we would often stop and feel stuck when getting into an awkward position with the chair. After several attempts we then found we could move more fluidly across the space with the chair and moved through the awkward moments, and it was a fun task!

Cecelia Macfarlane workshop

Some words I picked up from Cecelia's beliefs in dance during the class..

• Empowerment
• Passion- From within, that cannot be taught , it comes from the individual.
• Inclusion
• Translate- Individuals interpretation of movement.
• Facilitate- To suit every individual.
• creativity- Everyone has their own creativity, and it can be Incorporated in all dancing.

We were asked to improvise for a set amount of time with different types of music and guidance from Cecelia, and then ask our self the question 'What stops/bocks you and why?'

• People in the way/ not enough space.
• Thinking about my movement too much and not doing.
• Not always having a high level of confidence when I feel I cannot go any further with the movement.

We then answered the question 'Were there any surprises within your movement'

• Found moments of release and fluidity more than usual.
• I managed to travel around the whole space, even though i was not directly focusing on the idea of travel.

Another idea we questioned and focused on throughout the class was 'What makes you different, and what do you celebrate about your dancing?'

• Prepared to alternate between dynamics.
• Hold flow throughout, and do not stop and start movement constantly.
• Finding endless possibilities of movement on the floor.
• Considering stillness within my movement.

I really enjoyed this workshop, as it made me realise how much I am learning on this course and how I have developed so far. My focus and exploration has widened and I feel more confident during improvisation tasks. I am less afraid to try out new ideas, even if they do not always work. I am also starting to celebrate the way my body moves and my individuality as a dance artist.

Skinner releasing technique.. class one

I took part in a skinner releasing technique class with Florence Peake. I left the class feeling uplifted, relaxed, and aware of all bones, joints, muscles, and tissues within my body. We focused on the use of breath while dancing, and I discovered I tend to hold my breathe as I dance because I am concentrating and trying to keep a good alignment, while also trying to hold positions. However I found that during this class the intake and release of breathe regularly and during certain types of movement can actually improve the flow of my dancing, and improve my balance.
We did several tasks, all focusing on suppleness and the idea of giving in to the shift of weight. We also did timed improvisation tasks focusing on being loose within the hips, and then being loose within the arms, while again improving the flow of breath throughout.
One principle of skinner releasing technique which we also discussed was how the imagination can improve memory of movement. Joan Skinner believed that imagining is just as good as doing for movement memory. I find this particularly interesting as I find that remembering dance sequences a challenge, so I am going to work on this using this technique of imagining the movement.
Another principle of skinner releasing technique is that mind and body work together while dancing at all times. I did in fact feel that by the end of this class my mind and body were working together while dancing the short sequences we learnt.
I enjoyed this session, and know I will be using these principles during studio practice and other sessions in order to keep improving!

Review of a second year performance.. Eden Dance Company

In December I watched a performance by Eden dance Company, performed by the second year dance students. It included three sections called ‘Installation’, ‘silent walk’, and ‘lady Herbert’s garden’. The aim of the project was to explore the response from the dancers to their environment.

The first section, Installation, was performed in the dance studio. The whole space was used and there were three large plastic see through sheets placed around the space. These made a rustling noise when the dancers came into contact with them which added an interesting element to the sounds in the space. I particularly liked the use of these sheets as they were an unusual prop to include within a dance piece, but the dancers made really interesting use of them and they really engaged me throughout. The dancers also leaned against the walls, and incorporated them within their movement during some moments, which again encouraged the audience to discover all parts of the space.

When we arrived in the space they encouraged us to walk around the space also and take in the surroundings with the dancers before sitting down, and they were already in character and moving. They were walking and exploring the whole space by looking around at every detail and object in the space, including in the audience space, the ceiling, the floor and every wall and corner of the studio. This made me intrigued as to what they were exploring and enabled me to also engage in my surroundings as part of the audience. I really liked how this made me feel part of the performance and part of the space, not just an audience member watching from the side, which therefore helped me understand the piece fully.

The use of costume in this section complimented the natural, environmental feel being created. The dancers wore soft earthy colours such as brown, light pink and green. They wore flowing dresses over leggings and tee shirts which flowed and rippled as they moved, creating a sense of nature moving freely.

There was use of soft, slow music which complimented the soft dynamic of the piece. There was a strong focus on the hands and arms as the dancers all moved in unique ways covering the whole space. They moved in a variety of ways, and every dancer had their own motifs and focus. They included walking, running, sliding and rolling across the floor, leading with the hands and feet, as well as in contact with each other and the props.

The next section in the piece was the silent walk to the gardens. The dancers wore long furry coats and wellies which attracted the attention of the general public while walking through Coventry. This was particularly interesting as we could see how this caused a reaction in many people, and I was able to recognise different people’s reactions to their environment, which was the aim of the piece. The walk led us through both old and modern streets, which again enabled us to take in our surroundings.

This led us to the final section in Lady Herbert’s garden. We watched the performance from a bridge so we could watch from above and have a larger view of the area. I enjoyed watching the piece from a different angle as it enabled me to engage with a new type of environment which i have not experienced as part of a dance performance before, which really interested me, as i could view the performance from different angles and positions.  The dancers continued to explore their surroundings and also came into contact with nature. The dancers then all gathered into one area on grass and all started moving fluidly and in time with one another in silence which was very engaging. The soft dynamic again was very soothing and natural which reflected the environment we were in.