Originally the purpose of this blog was to share tools learned from the Dance Exchange. This was a means for me, not only to offer them to other facilitators or creators who may be interested in such methods, but also a means of archival and and personal process.
It's been two years since my period of research with the Dance Exchange, and I feel an update of where I'm at in terms of integrating their work into my own is long overdue. This is not a list of the only work I'm involved in, but rather just those projects that specifically integrate ideas and tools from the Dance Exchange.
The Critical Response Artist Series
Was a great success! For 10 months I ran this series at the memelab, presenting approximately 10 artists from varied disciplines (fashion design, sculpture, photography, dance, theatre, music and digital media) to approximately over 100 different participants.
The evening was offered as a cross over between a community workshop, and informal presentation series. Artists were offered an opportunity to try out new work in front of an audience who work shopped how to give feedback in a supportive way by using Liz Lerman's Critical Response Process.
I'm currently looking into possibilties for starting up this series again, in a larger space. If you're an artist interested in receiving feedback and sharing your work in this kind of environment I would be eager to hear from you.
The Tools - Community Workshops on Dance Creation
- Co-Artist In Residence (with Sara Coffin), Sunshine Coast Dance Society,
September 2008
Sara and I not only offered a week long dance creation intensive for adults, we also created two new works, and put on a full evening performance in a week. Whew!
- Smithers, International Teen Exchange Project, March 2009
I will be working in Smithers in March, facilitating teen and adult intensives with Miriam Colvin. This is part of a larger project linking teens working with the Dance Exchange in DC, as well as facilitators and teens in Israel, South Africa, and India.
- International Dance Day, Teen [be]longing[s] Intensive, April 2009
Exploring ideas of being, belonging, and having belongings, this workshop will also be linked to the Dance Exchange's International Teen Exchachange Project.
The Tools and Personal Creative Process
- Performance/Creation
"fragments and other leftovers" is a solo that began in the Dance Exchange studios that was then performed at 12MM, Dancing on the Edge, and as part of the Sunshine Coast Dance Residency. As my first real solo work, using the tools was both challenging and extremely refreshing.
- Movement Research
Dance Lab, February 2009
I worked with multidisciplinary artist Andrew Milne on ideas exploring and integrating creative process and tools across disciplines. This research may develop into a new work for 2010.
If you are interested in either the Critical Response Artist Series, or in movement/creation workshops in Vancouver please contact me here: lauraliann@yahoo.ca
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Taking the Meaning Out – Putting it Back In.
How do you avoid the ‘acting it out’ syndrome? I.e: You are working with creating movement from text and feel limited by your first impulses that have you embodying the story. Movement becomes more interesting when it is about making a shape without any meaning attached to it. The meaning is more authentic and believable – and the shape more interesting if the shape comes first and the meaning evolves out of that.
In our work with ‘ambivalence’ this is exactly what we did using parameters. The final product perhaps resembling, or having nothing at all to do with the source.
In fact, most of the tools accomplish ‘taking the meaning out’ quite successfully.
Scripting:
Your phrase: ‘punched in the stomach’
Do the action. Script what you just did: i.e: Forcefull shove, two body parts collide, fall back.
Then create a new movement according to the script.
Parameters:
Your word: Ambivalence.
Create a movement.
Have someone else physically describe what you just did.
Find the opposites.
Choose three, do and improvisation using those as your sources.
Postcarding (this is my own term, I think Liz would call it Detailing)
Phrase: ‘A sink full of dirty dishes’
See the image (postcard)
Put the wall paper pattern in your arms.
Be the bubbles.
Be the soap dish.
Etc.
Or
Create a phrase by vascilating between the person standing at the sink washing dishes, and movements from details in the postcard image.
New tool: Acting it out?
Allow your self to act out the prompt, and then take the meaning out.
Ex: Prompt: She tried the shoe on in disgust.
Do: You are trying a shoe on in disgust.
Then , hold the shape but change your expression. Change where you’re looking. Then try the shape again, still feel like you’re ‘acting it out’? Change one more thing, a leg, an arm, a finger, whatever. If you need to, even take a detail from the room and place it in your spine.
Now you have a movement free from imposed meaning and ready to take on something else.
In our work with ‘ambivalence’ this is exactly what we did using parameters. The final product perhaps resembling, or having nothing at all to do with the source.
In fact, most of the tools accomplish ‘taking the meaning out’ quite successfully.
Scripting:
Your phrase: ‘punched in the stomach’
Do the action. Script what you just did: i.e: Forcefull shove, two body parts collide, fall back.
Then create a new movement according to the script.
Parameters:
Your word: Ambivalence.
Create a movement.
Have someone else physically describe what you just did.
Find the opposites.
Choose three, do and improvisation using those as your sources.
Postcarding (this is my own term, I think Liz would call it Detailing)
Phrase: ‘A sink full of dirty dishes’
See the image (postcard)
Put the wall paper pattern in your arms.
Be the bubbles.
Be the soap dish.
Etc.
Or
Create a phrase by vascilating between the person standing at the sink washing dishes, and movements from details in the postcard image.
New tool: Acting it out?
Allow your self to act out the prompt, and then take the meaning out.
Ex: Prompt: She tried the shoe on in disgust.
Do: You are trying a shoe on in disgust.
Then , hold the shape but change your expression. Change where you’re looking. Then try the shape again, still feel like you’re ‘acting it out’? Change one more thing, a leg, an arm, a finger, whatever. If you need to, even take a detail from the room and place it in your spine.
Now you have a movement free from imposed meaning and ready to take on something else.
Limits Give You Somewhere to Go (haven’t I been here before?)
Having Liz Lerman in the room is always exciting. It’s like turning up your listening anttena so high you even take notes on the static. Everything is interesting and discussing the material the day before seamlessly links to a new area of discovery.
To illustrate that limits give you somewhere to go, we did a quick Detail exercise.
Detailing:
See something in the room you haven’t noticed before.
Put it in your hand.
Put it in your spine.
Shape it with one arm, one leg, and your head.
Trace it in the air.
Trace it on the body.
Trace it on the body somewhere else.
Put it on the floor, or on a wall.
We then took this idea and made it into an Equivalents exercise by using the three column writing from the day before. We placed the writing on the floor and were free to move around capturing words or phrases in movement. Working with self imposed limits – choosing one word, one limb, tracing in space, amount of time for movement, etc. Provided easy to follow direction.
In our work the day before someone pointed out they really enjoyed adding the ‘physical descriptors’ to the story because she was able to pick out details from the wall paper she never would have thought of.
This is an important skill that is always available to you – trick yourself into seeing something you don’t always see. By tricking yourself, you may find new meaning. Look outside, look around the room, go back to the phrase. Let your imagination wander, look for new details. Every image has wallpaper.
To illustrate that limits give you somewhere to go, we did a quick Detail exercise.
Detailing:
See something in the room you haven’t noticed before.
Put it in your hand.
Put it in your spine.
Shape it with one arm, one leg, and your head.
Trace it in the air.
Trace it on the body.
Trace it on the body somewhere else.
Put it on the floor, or on a wall.
We then took this idea and made it into an Equivalents exercise by using the three column writing from the day before. We placed the writing on the floor and were free to move around capturing words or phrases in movement. Working with self imposed limits – choosing one word, one limb, tracing in space, amount of time for movement, etc. Provided easy to follow direction.
In our work the day before someone pointed out they really enjoyed adding the ‘physical descriptors’ to the story because she was able to pick out details from the wall paper she never would have thought of.
This is an important skill that is always available to you – trick yourself into seeing something you don’t always see. By tricking yourself, you may find new meaning. Look outside, look around the room, go back to the phrase. Let your imagination wander, look for new details. Every image has wallpaper.
Saturday, August 9, 2008
A Fabled Shout
Again, these exercises were led by Peter Dimuro in the Mixed Abilities Institute - July 13 - 18th 2008.
A New Approach to Walk & Talk
Walk & Talk is an excellent tool for developing interesting text. Because you’re walking, your approach to creating a story is different. Also, in large groups, it’s freeing to be surrounded by voices all working at the same task. Similar to a free writing exercise, the tool asks you to freely speak, and tell a story (following a prompt) within a certain time limit – either one pass through the room, two or three, or just half way.
Prompt: Describe a time when you wanted to shout or whisper.
1 Pass through the room: tell the story.
1 Pass through the room: describe the image of the story. (Physical descriptors of the place or room).
2 Passes through the room: physically describe one item from the story.
1 Pass through the room: describe the anatomical experience of the event. (Anatomical physical descriptions: what was your breath, were you sweating? What was your throat doing?)
1 Pass through the room, tell the story again.
1Pass through the room, if you wish, tell your story to a partner.
Discoveries: the physical descriptions exploded the story. Suddenly, in order to include the juicy details that interested me, I had to forgo entire aspects of the story, putting aside it’s narrative arc, allowing it to become prose like.
One result:
The sun is shining.
Her voice continues and my thoughts ram unrepentedly against the inside of my skull.
The words come out shoved. Squeezing them through clenched teeth.
I want to smile. The chalk on the grass hits some leaves and misses others.
I wonder what the rules are to those children’s games.
I have ended the conversation, but the tension in my chest continues to build.
Slowly my surroundings come back into focus.
We then went further and incorporated the stories into Three Column Writing.
Column 1: Personal Story
Column 2: List of Physical Descriptors (environment and anatomical).
Column 3: Favorite Fairytale
Discoveries: Trying to write a fairytale in five minutes is difficult. Entire story parts are omitted and many things are made up as memory falters.
Purpose: Personal stories can deal with vulnerability and conflict with discomfort. The physical descriptors and fairytale give you a way out. The goal is to access the story images – you don’t necessarily want to bring your vulnerability to the stage.
Next task:
Make a list of physical Descriptors from the fairy tale.
Find relations between the fairytale and the personal story.
Column writing could be used as a way to organize movement. How? Various ideas: movement could be created from aspects of text from each column, collected movement from rehearsals could be identified as movement that comes from a personal improvisation, physical tasks, and outside sources – and even organized as such by using three column writing as a Structure.
Discovery: Whatever tools you apply to writing could also be applied to movement and vice versa.
Another interesting take on Walk & Talk (explored in a workshop with Open Circle Theatre) was:
Practice Pass – walking and talking.
Pass 1: Tell a story of a time you shouted or whispered.
4 Passes: Tell the same story with more detail.
1 Pass: Tell the same story with edits.
½ Pass: tell the most important details.
1 Pass: Tell the same story as a fable or fairytale.
That night we combined Walk & Talk with 1 to 10. The first person would make a shape and start their story. The next would add on, overlapping their story and relating their shape. The next would add on as the first story was fading. The next… ect.
Discovery: The fable idea – while particular to something Open Circle was exploring, added interesting elements to the story telling, of how it was told: 3rd person? How is was begun, and how it ended.
A New Approach to Walk & Talk
Walk & Talk is an excellent tool for developing interesting text. Because you’re walking, your approach to creating a story is different. Also, in large groups, it’s freeing to be surrounded by voices all working at the same task. Similar to a free writing exercise, the tool asks you to freely speak, and tell a story (following a prompt) within a certain time limit – either one pass through the room, two or three, or just half way.
Prompt: Describe a time when you wanted to shout or whisper.
1 Pass through the room: tell the story.
1 Pass through the room: describe the image of the story. (Physical descriptors of the place or room).
2 Passes through the room: physically describe one item from the story.
1 Pass through the room: describe the anatomical experience of the event. (Anatomical physical descriptions: what was your breath, were you sweating? What was your throat doing?)
1 Pass through the room, tell the story again.
1Pass through the room, if you wish, tell your story to a partner.
Discoveries: the physical descriptions exploded the story. Suddenly, in order to include the juicy details that interested me, I had to forgo entire aspects of the story, putting aside it’s narrative arc, allowing it to become prose like.
One result:
The sun is shining.
Her voice continues and my thoughts ram unrepentedly against the inside of my skull.
The words come out shoved. Squeezing them through clenched teeth.
I want to smile. The chalk on the grass hits some leaves and misses others.
I wonder what the rules are to those children’s games.
I have ended the conversation, but the tension in my chest continues to build.
Slowly my surroundings come back into focus.
We then went further and incorporated the stories into Three Column Writing.
Column 1: Personal Story
Column 2: List of Physical Descriptors (environment and anatomical).
Column 3: Favorite Fairytale
Discoveries: Trying to write a fairytale in five minutes is difficult. Entire story parts are omitted and many things are made up as memory falters.
Purpose: Personal stories can deal with vulnerability and conflict with discomfort. The physical descriptors and fairytale give you a way out. The goal is to access the story images – you don’t necessarily want to bring your vulnerability to the stage.
Next task:
Make a list of physical Descriptors from the fairy tale.
Find relations between the fairytale and the personal story.
Column writing could be used as a way to organize movement. How? Various ideas: movement could be created from aspects of text from each column, collected movement from rehearsals could be identified as movement that comes from a personal improvisation, physical tasks, and outside sources – and even organized as such by using three column writing as a Structure.
Discovery: Whatever tools you apply to writing could also be applied to movement and vice versa.
Another interesting take on Walk & Talk (explored in a workshop with Open Circle Theatre) was:
Practice Pass – walking and talking.
Pass 1: Tell a story of a time you shouted or whispered.
4 Passes: Tell the same story with more detail.
1 Pass: Tell the same story with edits.
½ Pass: tell the most important details.
1 Pass: Tell the same story as a fable or fairytale.
That night we combined Walk & Talk with 1 to 10. The first person would make a shape and start their story. The next would add on, overlapping their story and relating their shape. The next would add on as the first story was fading. The next… ect.
Discovery: The fable idea – while particular to something Open Circle was exploring, added interesting elements to the story telling, of how it was told: 3rd person? How is was begun, and how it ended.
Improvisations From Equivilents to Parameters
This exercise was led by Peter Dimuro as part of the Mixed Abilities Institute.
Starting with the word ambivalence we used Equivilents, Parameters, and added Structure to create an improvisation.
In a circle, everyone creates one movement for the word ambivilance with a clear beginning, middle and end.
We partner up, and witness, noting what we observe . Simmilar to a paramerters exercise, we write down what we see in descriptive terms free from judgement: folding elbows, slow, soft, crouching, covering, wiping…
As a duet, we then choose three ‘physical descriptors’ of ambivilance that we want to explore. My partner and I choose soft, wiping, and sinking.
We then improvise our first duet by using these three items as parameters, and adding a start and end position.
Later we added a floor pattern, the option of three moments of stillness, and the decision to focus on one parameter only at any one time. We did this because we found the parameter of soft automatically influenced those of wiping and sinking. We wanted to add the option of energized, violent or sharp wiping or sinking (anything without soft).
New possibilities for further exploration: I realized the parameters could be taken even further. You could create an opposites list from the ‘physical descriptors’ and combine those with the first list. This would create the element of contrast (we unintentionally did this by focusing on one parameter at a time free from the influence of the other two.) You could also repeat the physical descriptors exercise with the first improvisation to find a greater variance of movement. Ex: we noticed that a lot of the ‘wiping’ was occurring through touching. The next step would be to explore wiping without touching.
Starting with the word ambivalence we used Equivilents, Parameters, and added Structure to create an improvisation.
In a circle, everyone creates one movement for the word ambivilance with a clear beginning, middle and end.
We partner up, and witness, noting what we observe . Simmilar to a paramerters exercise, we write down what we see in descriptive terms free from judgement: folding elbows, slow, soft, crouching, covering, wiping…
As a duet, we then choose three ‘physical descriptors’ of ambivilance that we want to explore. My partner and I choose soft, wiping, and sinking.
We then improvise our first duet by using these three items as parameters, and adding a start and end position.
Later we added a floor pattern, the option of three moments of stillness, and the decision to focus on one parameter only at any one time. We did this because we found the parameter of soft automatically influenced those of wiping and sinking. We wanted to add the option of energized, violent or sharp wiping or sinking (anything without soft).
New possibilities for further exploration: I realized the parameters could be taken even further. You could create an opposites list from the ‘physical descriptors’ and combine those with the first list. This would create the element of contrast (we unintentionally did this by focusing on one parameter at a time free from the influence of the other two.) You could also repeat the physical descriptors exercise with the first improvisation to find a greater variance of movement. Ex: we noticed that a lot of the ‘wiping’ was occurring through touching. The next step would be to explore wiping without touching.
Catching Up
I recently returned from another stint down in DC with the Dance Exchange. This time I was participating in an institute for mixed abilities, and a crafting institute geared towards professional dancers. The next few posts will discuss new discoveries.
First days. Whatever you are, own it. “I own my vagueness.” If the exercise has the potential of being boring, make it interesting. If you’re hesitating recognize it. What is governing your choices? What is governing your habits?
First days. Whatever you are, own it. “I own my vagueness.” If the exercise has the potential of being boring, make it interesting. If you’re hesitating recognize it. What is governing your choices? What is governing your habits?
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
New Hoizons... One Year Later
I'm back! Back at the Dance Exchange, having returned to freshen up on skills, and revisit old places with new perspectives.
Conversations on movement, on experience and resistance. Do dancers experience resistance? YES!!! I think I (and perhaps many, many people can relate) resist most strongly the things that I feel most strongly about. Excluding chocolate of course.
The Dance Exchange is not a place where you come to learn how to dance. Yes, many people who take workshops or even perform with the Dance Exchange may have limited dance experience, but no one at the Dance Exchange will instruct them on what they should or shouldn't be doing. The dance is already there. You are shown how to find it.
It's not about a certain way of moving, the dance is about you moving in a way that suits you. The art is not about trying to be something you're not, but rather being honest to who you are in movement. Uncontrived, perhaps awkward, yet always beautiful, movement that comes from an honest place is ultimately human. And, I think, being able to create that, organize it, repeat it, and place it on the stage for everyone else to experience is the ultimate act of artistry.
Conversations on movement, on experience and resistance. Do dancers experience resistance? YES!!! I think I (and perhaps many, many people can relate) resist most strongly the things that I feel most strongly about. Excluding chocolate of course.
The Dance Exchange is not a place where you come to learn how to dance. Yes, many people who take workshops or even perform with the Dance Exchange may have limited dance experience, but no one at the Dance Exchange will instruct them on what they should or shouldn't be doing. The dance is already there. You are shown how to find it.
It's not about a certain way of moving, the dance is about you moving in a way that suits you. The art is not about trying to be something you're not, but rather being honest to who you are in movement. Uncontrived, perhaps awkward, yet always beautiful, movement that comes from an honest place is ultimately human. And, I think, being able to create that, organize it, repeat it, and place it on the stage for everyone else to experience is the ultimate act of artistry.
Sunday, February 17, 2008
Dance, Artist?
I began a new workshop today and encountered an experience I did not expect. I introduced myself as a dance artist (in a workshop composed of dancers and actors), and had my identity called into question. They questioned not that I identify as a dancer, or as an artist, but that the identity I choose encompasses both these ideas equally, as opposed to 'dancer' or 'contemporary dancer' or 'interpretor... whatever. Caught off guard, not realizing that I stood alone in how I chose to identify myself, raised a slew of questions about how we perceive dance apropos other art forms, and how we identify within the realm of dance.
Dance 'artist' for me encompasses everything that my realm of profession involves, be it taking class, rehearsing, teaching, choreographing, filling out applications, brainstorming ideas over coffee, or writing blog postings from home. For me, it also distinguishes my relationship to dance as different from the one I had as a dance student, or even emerging professional. The term also differentiates my artistic profession from other dance forms (pole dancing and commercial gigs come to mind) while also remaining open enough not to limit me to a particular approach to dance, or otherwise limit my role in the dance community.
Dance 'artist' for me encompasses everything that my realm of profession involves, be it taking class, rehearsing, teaching, choreographing, filling out applications, brainstorming ideas over coffee, or writing blog postings from home. For me, it also distinguishes my relationship to dance as different from the one I had as a dance student, or even emerging professional. The term also differentiates my artistic profession from other dance forms (pole dancing and commercial gigs come to mind) while also remaining open enough not to limit me to a particular approach to dance, or otherwise limit my role in the dance community.
Saturday, November 3, 2007
Puting the tools to use..."Drift Walks"
My experiences with the Dance Exchange have begun to inform how I interact and work within the dance community here in Vancouver. And I had the opportunity to introduce some of the 'tools' in rehearsal the other day.
I'm involved in a process called "Drift-Walks," with Julie Lebel, artistic director of Ensemble Independent and current artist in residence at the Dance Centre. The process has been focused on tracking our experiences while engaging with the natural environment, and then experimenting with movement, to draw out moments that stood out to us on our walks. We direct our attention and sensations in a specific way, helping us to find the physicality within the experience of walking outdoors alone. "By looking at physical forms, small and large, listening to sounds, touching the material world, our mind creates associations that can be creatively documented along the participants' journey." - Julie Lebel
The 'Drift-Walks' and our associated creative explorations in the studio began to raise a few questions for me. What are the different components of an 'experience'? In this case, the experience of observing some aspect of your surroundings, (although the question could be framed much larger as well.) What components are we using when we translate this moment of heightened attention into movement?
Having been working towards a better understanding of the Critical Response Process, I began to refer back to how observations are discussed as part of the process. In observing someone else's work and forming opinions about that work, it's important to note the array of possibilities for observing something, and that the type of observation is entirely dependent on individual experience or world view. In other words there is a huge variety of possible observations for one work, and the more people you have, the more types of observation you will come across. In particular, a guideline of the Critical Response Process is that it is important to notice the meaning that other people find when responding to someone else's work, and how that expands your own perception of what you are responding to.
I started relating this to Equivalents. And thought that I could use it as an example to notate the different ways that movement can be created from one word/ one 'experience'. An 'Equivalent' is the direct translation of a word into a movement. The tool is usually used to find interesting phrases of movement from text or phrases where each word has it's movement equivalent with a clear beginning, middle, and end. What's interesting and became very useful for us, is the variety of ways that one word can be translated into a movement. For example the Dance Exchange often uses the phrase "I came into the world..." As I led rehearsal we used "I" as an example. We could do this exercise with numerous people numerous times, and the results would be numerous and varied? Why? Because how we observe, how we translate, the types of impulses we have and how we listen to them vary from person to person. It makes us individual. (One reason why I find the work and methods of the dance exchange so interesting, is because it honors the individual!) It's interesting to note that first impulse is always useful, but can sometimes also result from pattern. (If repeating this exercise several times over, the next step may be to notice your patterns.) In order to notice patterns you need to know/ be able to identify with what you are doing. The same goes for if you know what you are doing, and you are familiar with the other possibilities, you can figure out what you're not doing. For example: "I" can result in a movement relating to the way the word looks ("I" or "eye"), how it sounds, it's literal meaning, its personal meaning (for example, if referring to myself, how I see myself that day, at that time might affect the movement that results),the rhythm of the word, the literal meaning and an associated action (for example "eye" could be a pointing at the eye, or the entire body mimicking the opening and closing of the eye, or the act of seeing, seeing something for the first time... etc.) Innumerable associations are possible.
The next step was relating this work to our efforts to capture movement inspired by our "Drift-Walks." I had everyone choose one experience from their walk which stood out to them. We then did a prompt writing exercise - dividing a paper into three columns and starting with "I see...," then "I feel...," then "I observe, taste, question, notice, smell, or hear...". I did this in order to try to capture every aspect of our experience of observing something in detail/ interacting with it in such a way that it's memory had a lasting impact, and possibly to discover something new about what we were observing. I then added across the bottom a row, where for each column we attempted to identify how we were arriving at our observations. For example: I see the rough texture of the log, and bright green moss - I am standing outside looking at the surface of the log. Where as "I feel the pull of the hills and valleys of the bark, perhaps "I am placing myself on the surface of the log," or I feel it's weight in my pelvis and it's texture on my skin, "I am placing the log in me..." Again this exercise I thought might be a way to pull out images that were concrete enough to explore at length in the studio and to also figure out patterns - what are we doing, what are we not doing....?
In any case, it was what I thought, was an extremely successful rehearsal that resulted in rich material (shown last Tuesday as part of our open showing), and many thanks to Julie for allowing me to introduce the Liz Lerman tools into that part of the process.
Sunday, October 21, 2007
An Attempt At Structure
It worked! I finally have been able to upload this video. "Pause" (working title) performed at EDAM, for a MACHiNENOiSY's fundraiser performance showing of works in progress, September 30th, 2007, Vancouver. I apologize, the focus of the camera is at times quite frustrating. Approximate length: 9 minutes. Dancer: me. Text and sound arrangement: me. Music: Nannou, by Aphex Twin.
I've been wanting to discuss Dance Exchange ideas around 'structure' for a long time, and I think I can use the process of creating this piece as a means to do so. I was easily able to create movement for this work using some of the Dance Exchange tools, (see previous post) but I was left with a great deal of material and little sense of where to take it. I knew it was leading somewhere, but that somewhere was away from the poem - the place where the dance began.
Talking about structure with Liz Lerman. 'Structure' can be a means to craft material you already have or to generate more material. However, it is different from a choreographic assignment in that it acts as a container, forming the overall arc or development of the work. For example, imposing the idea of a logical beginning, middle, end, and arranging the material to fit into those boxes is imposing a structure. But it's more complicated then that. Structure is framing even larger. For example, perhaps you insert announcements between each section to define them, and this creates a through line. How do you decide what is beginning, middle, or end; where is the meaning? How can you categorize what you've done? Take every inquiry seriously, as nothing is too small to notice. Once choosing a structure it can be an in road to discovering more about the work, or it can send you back to the generating room.
There are formal structures and many dancers are familiar with them:
The MASH structure: little stories that have a through line connecting to a bigger story
The Palindrome: ABCDCBA
Chance: arbitrary selection and arrangement of material. Example: numbering sections and picking a number out of the phone book to put them together.
Narrative
Theme & Variation
Accumulation
ABA
Imposing a structure can make it easier to access different material, or difficult material. Structure, and ideas about structure are forever in the world around us, we just have to be curious about it and willing to play. With Liz we did an exercise where she asked us a series of questions about structure. Societal structures, structured experiences, learned structures, organizational structures, and environmental structures. We created movements based on these responses. For example the structured steps of how to drive a car. The structure of how someone organizes their ideas before writing a paper. The structure of a day. The structure of a week. How you organized your room as a child. The structure of an ecological system. Etc, etc... We then annotated our movement in small groups, and noted something that surprised us. We then took it a step further and asked if there were structures within our responses. I think we did this simply to broaden our idea of structure, to underline that sources and ideas about structure are everywhere, and you can always add or subtract meaning from something, you just need to be willing to play. Perhaps the structure you choose will have nothing to do with what the work is about, but it will lead you somewhere else and open new doors.
There is a difference between an arbitrary vs an organic structure. An arbitrary structure imposed on the work from another source can add meaning or give you clues about what the material is. An organic structure grows out of what you've done. None the less, it's a game to help you notice what you're doing. You need to ask questions to discover information within an arbitrary structure. The answers may be bizarre or useless, but they might also provide information. For example, based on the structure of organizing your room as a child you arrange the material into various clumps. How many steps do you take between sections? What age were you? Can you take 7 steps?
So that's what we did at the Dance Exchange. But what did I do? I returned to the poem, and decided that it might be about one becoming the victim of their own perceived reality. I imposed this on my own experiences and started thinking about the process of writing an email (sometimes used as a therapeutic way to confront one's perceptions) and the structure that my thoughts would take. Post script made me curious. The idea of adding on thoughts, taking things away, saying things in a different way, or saying something you shouldn't say, or thought better of and this is why you didn't say it in the first place. I looked at the word post script, and created two other phrases that P.S could stand for. Parallel sentences, and paradigm shift. I think I then also imposed a structure from personal experience. Starting off in a place not seeing eye to eye, or feeling unseen as if in a hallway, on a parallel path but in a different room. Something to say, but no one to hear you (perhaps because you refuse to send that damn email!) And evolving to a place of 'seeing.' Seeing surroundings, and shifting to a place of new perspective, and some sense of resolve. How did this effect the material? Accumulation and adding on is easy. Introducing new ideas. Inserting other material from a different creation period when my perspective was in a different place. This is still a starting place, I think the work can still evolve from here, but my experiments with structure were effective in adding new meaning.
I've been wanting to discuss Dance Exchange ideas around 'structure' for a long time, and I think I can use the process of creating this piece as a means to do so. I was easily able to create movement for this work using some of the Dance Exchange tools, (see previous post) but I was left with a great deal of material and little sense of where to take it. I knew it was leading somewhere, but that somewhere was away from the poem - the place where the dance began.
Talking about structure with Liz Lerman. 'Structure' can be a means to craft material you already have or to generate more material. However, it is different from a choreographic assignment in that it acts as a container, forming the overall arc or development of the work. For example, imposing the idea of a logical beginning, middle, end, and arranging the material to fit into those boxes is imposing a structure. But it's more complicated then that. Structure is framing even larger. For example, perhaps you insert announcements between each section to define them, and this creates a through line. How do you decide what is beginning, middle, or end; where is the meaning? How can you categorize what you've done? Take every inquiry seriously, as nothing is too small to notice. Once choosing a structure it can be an in road to discovering more about the work, or it can send you back to the generating room.
There are formal structures and many dancers are familiar with them:
The MASH structure: little stories that have a through line connecting to a bigger story
The Palindrome: ABCDCBA
Chance: arbitrary selection and arrangement of material. Example: numbering sections and picking a number out of the phone book to put them together.
Narrative
Theme & Variation
Accumulation
ABA
Imposing a structure can make it easier to access different material, or difficult material. Structure, and ideas about structure are forever in the world around us, we just have to be curious about it and willing to play. With Liz we did an exercise where she asked us a series of questions about structure. Societal structures, structured experiences, learned structures, organizational structures, and environmental structures. We created movements based on these responses. For example the structured steps of how to drive a car. The structure of how someone organizes their ideas before writing a paper. The structure of a day. The structure of a week. How you organized your room as a child. The structure of an ecological system. Etc, etc... We then annotated our movement in small groups, and noted something that surprised us. We then took it a step further and asked if there were structures within our responses. I think we did this simply to broaden our idea of structure, to underline that sources and ideas about structure are everywhere, and you can always add or subtract meaning from something, you just need to be willing to play. Perhaps the structure you choose will have nothing to do with what the work is about, but it will lead you somewhere else and open new doors.
There is a difference between an arbitrary vs an organic structure. An arbitrary structure imposed on the work from another source can add meaning or give you clues about what the material is. An organic structure grows out of what you've done. None the less, it's a game to help you notice what you're doing. You need to ask questions to discover information within an arbitrary structure. The answers may be bizarre or useless, but they might also provide information. For example, based on the structure of organizing your room as a child you arrange the material into various clumps. How many steps do you take between sections? What age were you? Can you take 7 steps?
So that's what we did at the Dance Exchange. But what did I do? I returned to the poem, and decided that it might be about one becoming the victim of their own perceived reality. I imposed this on my own experiences and started thinking about the process of writing an email (sometimes used as a therapeutic way to confront one's perceptions) and the structure that my thoughts would take. Post script made me curious. The idea of adding on thoughts, taking things away, saying things in a different way, or saying something you shouldn't say, or thought better of and this is why you didn't say it in the first place. I looked at the word post script, and created two other phrases that P.S could stand for. Parallel sentences, and paradigm shift. I think I then also imposed a structure from personal experience. Starting off in a place not seeing eye to eye, or feeling unseen as if in a hallway, on a parallel path but in a different room. Something to say, but no one to hear you (perhaps because you refuse to send that damn email!) And evolving to a place of 'seeing.' Seeing surroundings, and shifting to a place of new perspective, and some sense of resolve. How did this effect the material? Accumulation and adding on is easy. Introducing new ideas. Inserting other material from a different creation period when my perspective was in a different place. This is still a starting place, I think the work can still evolve from here, but my experiments with structure were effective in adding new meaning.
Monday, October 15, 2007
Breaking apart the process
Looking back at some of my posts, I get the impression some of the information I've posted may seem a little ad hoc. If someone's reading this (damn I hope someone's actually reading this!) And you encounter questions or confusions - just send me an email, and I'd be happy to share more or clarify. lauraliann@yahoo.ca
In any case, so the project continues. I'm attempting to expand my learning curve in the methods of the Liz Lerman Dance Exchange through several means; teaching the Critical Response Process, hosting creation workshops (teaching the 'tools'), and using the tools to create and share my own work.
I've begun a series at the memelab, an evening comprised of a tutorial in Liz Lerman's Critical Response Process, an open showing, and then the Critical Response in action. We hope to eventually make this a once a month happening where by different disciplines will share their work in the same evening and well get a cross discipline dialogue started using the CR process. The Critical Response Process is a multi step structure designed by the Dance Exchange in order to create an environment that promotes dialogue and aids the artist in receiving useful feedback and inspiration to step back into the studio and continue working. It is extremely versatile, and useful for all kinds of situations where one is looking to develop their work further, or just simply interact with others in a way that avoids defensiveness and promotes understanding. The current dates are Oct 21st and Nov 30th, 7-9 pm at memelab. Please contact me if you would like to take part/show your work in this series.
I am also interested in teaching the creation 'tools' of the Dance Exchange. Extremely adaptable and versatile, both the experienced dancer and the less educated mover can be equally challenged by the same exercises. Let me know if a creation/generating dances workshop would interest you.
With the generous cooperation of the memelab, I've been able to produce a semi final version of the process I began in the Dance Exchange studios. Posted here are excerpts of the work very early on in the process (created and recorded June 14th 2007 at the Dance Exchange - there is a meeting happening in the background). Originally I was creating using the text of a poem "Yipiyuck" by Shell Silverstein. I used the Dance Exchange tool 'movement metaphore' - creating three movements for each of the words or phrases; "desist," "would not let go," and "bit" (as in to bite something). These movements were then rearranged in a short phrase which is the first section you see in this clip. The second phrase, I did the same with "fall," "blow," and "mudglumps." The third, "Whoa!," "whisper," and "soft and low."
In any case, so the project continues. I'm attempting to expand my learning curve in the methods of the Liz Lerman Dance Exchange through several means; teaching the Critical Response Process, hosting creation workshops (teaching the 'tools'), and using the tools to create and share my own work.
I've begun a series at the memelab, an evening comprised of a tutorial in Liz Lerman's Critical Response Process, an open showing, and then the Critical Response in action. We hope to eventually make this a once a month happening where by different disciplines will share their work in the same evening and well get a cross discipline dialogue started using the CR process. The Critical Response Process is a multi step structure designed by the Dance Exchange in order to create an environment that promotes dialogue and aids the artist in receiving useful feedback and inspiration to step back into the studio and continue working. It is extremely versatile, and useful for all kinds of situations where one is looking to develop their work further, or just simply interact with others in a way that avoids defensiveness and promotes understanding. The current dates are Oct 21st and Nov 30th, 7-9 pm at memelab. Please contact me if you would like to take part/show your work in this series.
I am also interested in teaching the creation 'tools' of the Dance Exchange. Extremely adaptable and versatile, both the experienced dancer and the less educated mover can be equally challenged by the same exercises. Let me know if a creation/generating dances workshop would interest you.
With the generous cooperation of the memelab, I've been able to produce a semi final version of the process I began in the Dance Exchange studios. Posted here are excerpts of the work very early on in the process (created and recorded June 14th 2007 at the Dance Exchange - there is a meeting happening in the background). Originally I was creating using the text of a poem "Yipiyuck" by Shell Silverstein. I used the Dance Exchange tool 'movement metaphore' - creating three movements for each of the words or phrases; "desist," "would not let go," and "bit" (as in to bite something). These movements were then rearranged in a short phrase which is the first section you see in this clip. The second phrase, I did the same with "fall," "blow," and "mudglumps." The third, "Whoa!," "whisper," and "soft and low."
Tuesday, August 28, 2007
Back in Van
Well, what can I say? Another entry or two has been due for a long time coming, and I'm one of the world's greatest procrastinators, even of activities that bring me joy.
I've now returned home to Vancouver, thus looking back on my experiences with a removed perspective. I believe I left off as we were stepping into the Teen Institute...
What a week! The teens were fantastic. I began the week feeling quite discouraged, I'd forgotten what it's like to be a teen and hadn't computed the fact that far from being just another institute to further explore the methodologies of the Dance Exchange, there was a much higher degree of emotion, fledging confidence, confusion, and stubourness that came along with. Surprisingly, I found being a part of their lives for that short time eyeopening to my own disposition: I saw myself as a teen, and what I might have been dealing with then and what perhaps I've been able to let go of (or not) came flooding at me. Needless to say, it was an emotional but hugely fulfilling week for all. I've heard other participants from past institutes at the Dance Exchange refer to their time there as an experience that; changed their life, left them filled with inspiration and excitement, or dramatically changed their perspective, but I am certain that the experiences the teens shared might even compete with such dramatic statements.
As I said, the week seemed to begin very slowly. I feared we might never be able to bring the teens out of their shells. It seemed difficult to get them to engage in or actively participate in the activities in a way that might truly broaden their experience. But none the less, the philosophic approach of Liz Lerman's proved true, and by the end of the week, the teens were so actively participating and enjoying themselves, it almost seemed as if an entirely different group of kids had entered the room.
The philosophy? Well, as the Dance Exchange asks, "who gets to dance?" (eg: why the vertical spectrum?) The idea is that everyone can get to the same place. Or as Liz puts it, everyone can get across the river, different people just need different sized stones. Resistance, is information. Resistance, tells you usually (as teacher, leader, or choreographer) that you missed a step, you've gone too far, too fast. People's experience is always the truth. Asking why when a statement is made may lead you to find out that the expereince is about more then you realized. Figuring out what steps and skills are required for what may seem the simplest of tools (to you) can go a long way in figuring out what steps you need to take first before jumping into an exercise. While also keeping in mind that a: there are different kinds of participation, and b: your well beign is not predicated by the participation of everyone.
For example: How do you get a group of non dancers, and probably strangers, to dance to music together in a room?
We started with 1-10...
I've now returned home to Vancouver, thus looking back on my experiences with a removed perspective. I believe I left off as we were stepping into the Teen Institute...
What a week! The teens were fantastic. I began the week feeling quite discouraged, I'd forgotten what it's like to be a teen and hadn't computed the fact that far from being just another institute to further explore the methodologies of the Dance Exchange, there was a much higher degree of emotion, fledging confidence, confusion, and stubourness that came along with. Surprisingly, I found being a part of their lives for that short time eyeopening to my own disposition: I saw myself as a teen, and what I might have been dealing with then and what perhaps I've been able to let go of (or not) came flooding at me. Needless to say, it was an emotional but hugely fulfilling week for all. I've heard other participants from past institutes at the Dance Exchange refer to their time there as an experience that; changed their life, left them filled with inspiration and excitement, or dramatically changed their perspective, but I am certain that the experiences the teens shared might even compete with such dramatic statements.
As I said, the week seemed to begin very slowly. I feared we might never be able to bring the teens out of their shells. It seemed difficult to get them to engage in or actively participate in the activities in a way that might truly broaden their experience. But none the less, the philosophic approach of Liz Lerman's proved true, and by the end of the week, the teens were so actively participating and enjoying themselves, it almost seemed as if an entirely different group of kids had entered the room.
The philosophy? Well, as the Dance Exchange asks, "who gets to dance?" (eg: why the vertical spectrum?) The idea is that everyone can get to the same place. Or as Liz puts it, everyone can get across the river, different people just need different sized stones. Resistance, is information. Resistance, tells you usually (as teacher, leader, or choreographer) that you missed a step, you've gone too far, too fast. People's experience is always the truth. Asking why when a statement is made may lead you to find out that the expereince is about more then you realized. Figuring out what steps and skills are required for what may seem the simplest of tools (to you) can go a long way in figuring out what steps you need to take first before jumping into an exercise. While also keeping in mind that a: there are different kinds of participation, and b: your well beign is not predicated by the participation of everyone.
For example: How do you get a group of non dancers, and probably strangers, to dance to music together in a room?
We started with 1-10...
Sunday, July 8, 2007
Finding New Meaning
Sitting in the Dance Exchange offices on Sunday with no complaints. We're going into the first day of our Teen Exchange Institute tomorrow for which I've had a hand in recruiting and planning, and will also be leading at different times throughout next week. I'm excited to see who's in the room tomorrow and how they will respond to the week, having had such a large hand in the delivery of this institute.
The last few days I've had the opportunity to partake in rehearsals for Funny Uncles, learning set material, or recapturing it from video with the dancers and improvising to create new material. This creative process, led by Peter (Artistic Director and creative lead on Funny Uncles) reminded me of a useful tool that I have had yet to talk about. I've found Essencing within the institutes and within this process, to be a tool that requires a particular degree of focus, attention and creative skills on behalf of the dancers, while also being extremely accessible to anyone, and in fact inviting different movement adaptations because of it's structure. For these reasons it works very well in creating human, honest, shared movement material that remains interesting to the eye. In a way, Essencing is a prime example of how expertise are used and shared at the Dance Exchange.
In the Funny Uncles process Peter had the dancers do some topic focused writing, and then improvise from that writing. Essencing comes in when other dancers watch the improvisation and then put together a phrase based on what they are able to draw, (or essence) from what they witnessed. A chain of essencing can then continue, resulting in all kinds of material if the dancers continue sharing and essencing each other's movement putting together various phrases that are each unique to their own bodies but have significant overlapping images.
When using this tool in the institute it occurred to me as an interesting way of editing material - to ask an outside eye (dancer or non dancer) to watch and then give back whatever movements stood out to them - thereby allowing the choreographer to find those "golden" moments that stood out for someone else, and to edit the unmemorable. It also places significant importance on the "outside eye" and requires a significant degree of impartiality and willingness to play on behalf of the creator.
It's also a great improvisational structure having dancers enter a space - all essencing from the same phrase, and interacting however they wish.
I realize some of these tools are not new (perhaps none of them are) - many of these ideas are familiar to those of us used to a variety of creative processes. I think what is new and most significant is the ability to articulate the tools in such a way that allows us to find new meaning, create new applications for the tool, and teach them in a way that is accessible to anyone. I think this is a huge key in how and why the Dance Exchange has developed their creative methodology in a way that allows them to work in this "horizontal synthesized way of being", whereby community dance and professional dance all live on the same plane, creativity becomes accessible, and everyone is able to discover their own level of expertise when it comes to creating movement whether they've been doing it for 50 years (as Martha Wittman has - long time senior company member of the Dance Exchange) or if in their first generating movement class ever. A well defined and accessible creative methodology is something that I would like to see developed more within dance communities. I think it could be huge for the viability and success of the art form in general, (by making our work accessible, we can not only underline the significance of creativity in everyday life, we also welcome our audiences into our world as opposed to alienating or marginalizing them.) Articulating the creative methodology also opens doors for the deepening of creative exploration - by knowing where we've bin, we can figure out where we need to go. I wonder if there could be a grant created for dance companies to hire on someone to articulate and synthesize their processes, and help them define ways of teaching them. This would require a high degree of openness on part of dance makers, many of whom might be more interested in keeping their work very private. Why is that?
The last few days I've had the opportunity to partake in rehearsals for Funny Uncles, learning set material, or recapturing it from video with the dancers and improvising to create new material. This creative process, led by Peter (Artistic Director and creative lead on Funny Uncles) reminded me of a useful tool that I have had yet to talk about. I've found Essencing within the institutes and within this process, to be a tool that requires a particular degree of focus, attention and creative skills on behalf of the dancers, while also being extremely accessible to anyone, and in fact inviting different movement adaptations because of it's structure. For these reasons it works very well in creating human, honest, shared movement material that remains interesting to the eye. In a way, Essencing is a prime example of how expertise are used and shared at the Dance Exchange.
In the Funny Uncles process Peter had the dancers do some topic focused writing, and then improvise from that writing. Essencing comes in when other dancers watch the improvisation and then put together a phrase based on what they are able to draw, (or essence) from what they witnessed. A chain of essencing can then continue, resulting in all kinds of material if the dancers continue sharing and essencing each other's movement putting together various phrases that are each unique to their own bodies but have significant overlapping images.
When using this tool in the institute it occurred to me as an interesting way of editing material - to ask an outside eye (dancer or non dancer) to watch and then give back whatever movements stood out to them - thereby allowing the choreographer to find those "golden" moments that stood out for someone else, and to edit the unmemorable. It also places significant importance on the "outside eye" and requires a significant degree of impartiality and willingness to play on behalf of the creator.
It's also a great improvisational structure having dancers enter a space - all essencing from the same phrase, and interacting however they wish.
I realize some of these tools are not new (perhaps none of them are) - many of these ideas are familiar to those of us used to a variety of creative processes. I think what is new and most significant is the ability to articulate the tools in such a way that allows us to find new meaning, create new applications for the tool, and teach them in a way that is accessible to anyone. I think this is a huge key in how and why the Dance Exchange has developed their creative methodology in a way that allows them to work in this "horizontal synthesized way of being", whereby community dance and professional dance all live on the same plane, creativity becomes accessible, and everyone is able to discover their own level of expertise when it comes to creating movement whether they've been doing it for 50 years (as Martha Wittman has - long time senior company member of the Dance Exchange) or if in their first generating movement class ever. A well defined and accessible creative methodology is something that I would like to see developed more within dance communities. I think it could be huge for the viability and success of the art form in general, (by making our work accessible, we can not only underline the significance of creativity in everyday life, we also welcome our audiences into our world as opposed to alienating or marginalizing them.) Articulating the creative methodology also opens doors for the deepening of creative exploration - by knowing where we've bin, we can figure out where we need to go. I wonder if there could be a grant created for dance companies to hire on someone to articulate and synthesize their processes, and help them define ways of teaching them. This would require a high degree of openness on part of dance makers, many of whom might be more interested in keeping their work very private. Why is that?
Saturday, July 7, 2007
Duet with Dorthy
This is an excerpt of my duet with Dorthy, (still dancing at 72) created and performed as part of "Technique, Invention, and Performance" a Dance Exchange Institute with Gerri Houlihan.
Dancers: Dorthy Levy and Laura Hicks
Choreography: Dorthy Levy and Laura Hicks with excerpts of "The Bench Duet" choreographed by Gerri Houlihan.
Text: Dorthy Levy
Enjoy!
Friday, July 6, 2007
Tools for Generating and Crafting
I've been meaning to get on here to at least share some of the material from last week's institute: Generating and Crafting Dances. The focus obviously, was on creating material and crafting it. We were again a varied group, while mostly dancers (including once again, Kip Lee) and dance teachers, we had Doug Fox - dance blogger extraordinaire, and Erin Onweller an extraordinary visual artist and as it turns out, skilled mover as well.
Thoughts on Theme and Variation
What is it: Using material, and finding variations of it to arrive at new material.
Variations can mean change of: levels, different body part, speed, layering of ideas/tools, take out repeats, add repetition, change of direction, timings, stillness, sound, tracing, enlarging/scale/size - various scales to think about: room, house, neighborhood, world.
If crafting a phrase or work using theme and variation - it could mean thinking about what's there and what's missing.
Personal Response:
I began wondering about how to make choices. Do you replace the phrase with a new one, or craft it by adding/subtracting variations/themes. We used variation as a tool to generate and share material, (this is the phrase, make a variation of it using different body parts, scale, etc) but we never used it to add a theme to a phrase or section of material, other then by using Parameters. My impulse was too make big changes (very small becomes very large), I felt I was missing the crafting aspect by skipping out on the less obvious. (Maybe because I feel I do that already when working on material - without thinking about it).
We used Equivalents by selecting a section of journal material and creating a movement equivalent for each word. For an interesting discussion check out Doug's post "The Body As A Verbal Memory Recorder." It's interesting to note that the Dance Exchange is pursuing some projects that will involve working with teachers and ways of using Dance Exchange tools such as Equivalents to help kids learn/absorb information in the classroom.
Parameters:
What is it: Using improvisation with a partner/or group observing, to figure out 3 new parameters for you to focus on to find new ways of moving. We then used parameters to find new phrases with shared themes and also to find a variation on a phrase of material we were already working with.
How does it work: I improvise. My group observes and takes notes on what they see. Eg: rippling spine, small gestures, low plain. Together we find the opposites to what they observed (eg: what was not there), and I pick three I want to focus on eg: straight spine, large gestures, high plain. These are now my parameters for making a new phrase, or a variation of a phrase.
Personal Response:
I began thinking of different ways that parameters could be used to craft a work. You could structure a dance using parameters - each section reflects different parameters that you decide on, based on your goals for that section, or there might be an on running theme throughout. I began wondering about how parameters could help with the desire to create that infamous "dance section." I.e: the part of the dance you struggle with because you want it to be honest, but you also want it to be really "dancy." Parameters could be used by figuring out what parameters you apply to "dancy dance." Eg: I came up with: change of direction, clear choice of rhythm, full bodied movement as parameters I might use to create a "dancy" phrase or section.
Perhaps you can think of even more uses for these tools?
Thoughts on Theme and Variation
What is it: Using material, and finding variations of it to arrive at new material.
Variations can mean change of: levels, different body part, speed, layering of ideas/tools, take out repeats, add repetition, change of direction, timings, stillness, sound, tracing, enlarging/scale/size - various scales to think about: room, house, neighborhood, world.
If crafting a phrase or work using theme and variation - it could mean thinking about what's there and what's missing.
Personal Response:
I began wondering about how to make choices. Do you replace the phrase with a new one, or craft it by adding/subtracting variations/themes. We used variation as a tool to generate and share material, (this is the phrase, make a variation of it using different body parts, scale, etc) but we never used it to add a theme to a phrase or section of material, other then by using Parameters. My impulse was too make big changes (very small becomes very large), I felt I was missing the crafting aspect by skipping out on the less obvious. (Maybe because I feel I do that already when working on material - without thinking about it).
We used Equivalents by selecting a section of journal material and creating a movement equivalent for each word. For an interesting discussion check out Doug's post "The Body As A Verbal Memory Recorder." It's interesting to note that the Dance Exchange is pursuing some projects that will involve working with teachers and ways of using Dance Exchange tools such as Equivalents to help kids learn/absorb information in the classroom.
Parameters:
What is it: Using improvisation with a partner/or group observing, to figure out 3 new parameters for you to focus on to find new ways of moving. We then used parameters to find new phrases with shared themes and also to find a variation on a phrase of material we were already working with.
How does it work: I improvise. My group observes and takes notes on what they see. Eg: rippling spine, small gestures, low plain. Together we find the opposites to what they observed (eg: what was not there), and I pick three I want to focus on eg: straight spine, large gestures, high plain. These are now my parameters for making a new phrase, or a variation of a phrase.
Personal Response:
I began thinking of different ways that parameters could be used to craft a work. You could structure a dance using parameters - each section reflects different parameters that you decide on, based on your goals for that section, or there might be an on running theme throughout. I began wondering about how parameters could help with the desire to create that infamous "dance section." I.e: the part of the dance you struggle with because you want it to be honest, but you also want it to be really "dancy." Parameters could be used by figuring out what parameters you apply to "dancy dance." Eg: I came up with: change of direction, clear choice of rhythm, full bodied movement as parameters I might use to create a "dancy" phrase or section.
Perhaps you can think of even more uses for these tools?
Friday, June 29, 2007
Life Lessons with Liz
I've experienced so many shifts of brain space since last week, I don't know where to begin. I think I'll move backwards.
Liz Lerman said something today which I would like to make note of: There is nothing at the Dance Exchange that is not about expertise. That her mandate (and I'm rephrasing here) in starting the company was to have equal commitment to themselves on stage and equal commitment to the world. In other words, while yes, the Dance Exchange does a great many activities that may be considered in the realm of "community dance" and they also do work on the stage - that the two areas of dance do not need to live on a vertical spectrum. That in fact, placing things on a vertical spectrum is an impoverished way of thinking. She and the Dance Exchange have discovered and continue to propagate the idea that they can be artistically excellent and engage in the community in a horizontal, collaborative, synthesized way of being. Boundaries can be recognized, but they also need to be permeable.
We shared our dance space (the last day of Generating/Crafting Dances Institute) with 40 or so Truman Scholars today. I had no idea that the day would begin with so much insight. Having a large group of young academic achievers in our mist and being part of their experience really underlined how powerful art and physical experience can be. We began with blind lead. Liz related experiences of waiting with eyes closed for a leader to find you with the difficulties of being a follower. Hypersensitivity, desire to nurture, be clear, with the difficulties of being a leader. The desire to break the rules or perhaps change them, with the recognition that entire groups of people can function within a structure and then decide as a group when rules need to be broken, or the structure recreated in order to get to a new place. Someone observed the pleasure associated with simple touch. Again the vertical spectrum, touch has been outlawed in some places because of abuses of touch. What a disaster this is! People can go years without any form of human physical contact. Blind Lead and Sculpting (shaping someone's frozen body) allow complete strangers to engage in a form of touch that requires trust, listening, responding, and mutual respect. Someone observed that they could get ideas for movement by watching others. Liz highlighted the idea that people so often confuse creativity with originality. That in fact, copying in one of the most used forms of creativity. That it's okay to learn and experience from what others have done.
When I told people that I was coming out to intern with the Liz Lerman Dance Exchange, some assumed that this must mean that I was moving into the realm of "community" dance and leaving my stage pursuits behind. Not the case. So you ask why I'm here? I'm here because my world matters to me. Dance matters to me. And I want to learn how these two things can be mutually enhancing.
Liz Lerman said something today which I would like to make note of: There is nothing at the Dance Exchange that is not about expertise. That her mandate (and I'm rephrasing here) in starting the company was to have equal commitment to themselves on stage and equal commitment to the world. In other words, while yes, the Dance Exchange does a great many activities that may be considered in the realm of "community dance" and they also do work on the stage - that the two areas of dance do not need to live on a vertical spectrum. That in fact, placing things on a vertical spectrum is an impoverished way of thinking. She and the Dance Exchange have discovered and continue to propagate the idea that they can be artistically excellent and engage in the community in a horizontal, collaborative, synthesized way of being. Boundaries can be recognized, but they also need to be permeable.
We shared our dance space (the last day of Generating/Crafting Dances Institute) with 40 or so Truman Scholars today. I had no idea that the day would begin with so much insight. Having a large group of young academic achievers in our mist and being part of their experience really underlined how powerful art and physical experience can be. We began with blind lead. Liz related experiences of waiting with eyes closed for a leader to find you with the difficulties of being a follower. Hypersensitivity, desire to nurture, be clear, with the difficulties of being a leader. The desire to break the rules or perhaps change them, with the recognition that entire groups of people can function within a structure and then decide as a group when rules need to be broken, or the structure recreated in order to get to a new place. Someone observed the pleasure associated with simple touch. Again the vertical spectrum, touch has been outlawed in some places because of abuses of touch. What a disaster this is! People can go years without any form of human physical contact. Blind Lead and Sculpting (shaping someone's frozen body) allow complete strangers to engage in a form of touch that requires trust, listening, responding, and mutual respect. Someone observed that they could get ideas for movement by watching others. Liz highlighted the idea that people so often confuse creativity with originality. That in fact, copying in one of the most used forms of creativity. That it's okay to learn and experience from what others have done.
When I told people that I was coming out to intern with the Liz Lerman Dance Exchange, some assumed that this must mean that I was moving into the realm of "community" dance and leaving my stage pursuits behind. Not the case. So you ask why I'm here? I'm here because my world matters to me. Dance matters to me. And I want to learn how these two things can be mutually enhancing.
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
dancing still
Finally I have access! I've been having trouble with my internet connection lately, I apologize. I know you're all out there waiting impatiently to hear me drag on about my experiences. This week we are doing yet another Institute, this time "Dancing Still: An Institute for Dancers over 50." What fun! Not that it wouldn't be otherwise, but it is very inspiring to share a creative space with people who have a life time of experience beyond my own. I think perhaps that some of the ladies must think that it might be uninteresting for me to explore movement creation with them, when in fact it's quite the opposite. Being a witness to how they approach the creative tasks and embody them is really an honor. If only I could figure out how to capture some of their movement experience in my own body, how fortunate I might be. I've also been noticing that they are much quicker to move to a creatively interesting place within their material - particularly with the telling of stories. For me, I feel the editing process would require more time, but somehow they just arrive there as if the creative editing was instantaneous.
In this institute we've been exploring the theme of knots. We began with the seemingly complicated task of creating from maps. We each drew visual maps (with picture, or stick figures in my case - reference points) of our creative path, aging path, family, and current events mapping of experience. We then used these to create solos based on objects, windows, interesting spatial pathways, and points of intersection or collision found within the maps.
Later we learned a duet that had been created based on the images of Celtic knots, playing with with idea of clasping and wrapping to create our own duets. We wrote postcards (to self, to someone we connected with, someone we are disconnected from) and over layered the text with the Celtic knot duet. Today we looked at images of knotted rope and used these to create spatial pathways and layered on movement "shopped" from others or movement created from direct equivalents of written descriptions of different kinds of knots (double loop, wrap around, intertwine...). We also used stories, times where we felt connected or disconnected, and layered movement with text in trios, the knotted pathway dance layered with a connected/disconnected personal story, over a narrative description of tying a knot.
Whew! And that's just two days work. (DE "tools" are in bold.)
In this institute we've been exploring the theme of knots. We began with the seemingly complicated task of creating from maps. We each drew visual maps (with picture, or stick figures in my case - reference points) of our creative path, aging path, family, and current events mapping of experience. We then used these to create solos based on objects, windows, interesting spatial pathways, and points of intersection or collision found within the maps.
Later we learned a duet that had been created based on the images of Celtic knots, playing with with idea of clasping and wrapping to create our own duets. We wrote postcards (to self, to someone we connected with, someone we are disconnected from) and over layered the text with the Celtic knot duet. Today we looked at images of knotted rope and used these to create spatial pathways and layered on movement "shopped" from others or movement created from direct equivalents of written descriptions of different kinds of knots (double loop, wrap around, intertwine...). We also used stories, times where we felt connected or disconnected, and layered movement with text in trios, the knotted pathway dance layered with a connected/disconnected personal story, over a narrative description of tying a knot.
Whew! And that's just two days work. (DE "tools" are in bold.)
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
Time passing
Almost another week has passed since my last entry - where does time go? I just didn't feel like writing to be honest. I'd like to say that I was ridiculously busy and accomplishing all kinds of amazing feats for which you probably wouldn't know the difference, but hey, I'm better at being honest. So where did my time go? I have admittedly been making occasional use of studio space. One always complains that they don't have access to space when they need it, and then when it's there, the pressure is overwhelming, what am I to do with all this space?? (I speak of the ever intimidating empty studio). Twice, I tell you, twice I have endeavored to work on developing a solo. One I hope that will be somewhat near completion upon my departure. I'm not sure what it's about, nor why it's of interest to me, but I'm attempting to stick to the task of creating movement from impulse using the methodologies of the Dance Exchange, and not judging the result. There may be some severe editing before whatever showing I have, but I'm not there yet, so I'm trying to to let it bug me. I'm trying to stay away from ambition and stick to movement that speaks to me and remains distinctly human. This is perhaps much harder then it sounds. On the side I've been doing some admin tasks which I actually quite enjoy. In fact, it disturbs me how much I enjoy sitting at the computer accomplishing things that don't involve movement. I've mostly been researching and recruiting for teens. We need teens!! Any teens out there??? The Dance Exchange has an awesome institute for teens coming up the last week I'm here, but it's so hard to find them and get them to sign up! The things you don't think about when coming from the other direction. Another interesting aspect of simply being around the Dance Exchange is having had the chance to sit in on some meetings. No wonder everyone's so busy, they're in meetings all the time! But, how informative! It really makes me realize the importance of hashing out process with the incorporation of different perspectives. It also highlights the amount of work that goes into each and every little thing. It would seem obvious that every institute or workshop is the result of a great deal of planning, organization and brainstorming, but until you become part of that process it's hard to appreciate. The overall themes of the institutes, and how they're organized such that the participants are guranteed a full circle experience that makes sense and leaves them feeling fulfilled, is complicated but well worth while. I'm realizing that for me, and my experiences with the DE institutes (which is what brought me here in the first place), the organization around planning that goes into the week is one important aspect of what made my experiences in the DE institutes unique in comparison to other workshops I've attended. Ideally, you leave feeling like you've had an experience that reaches beyond making and exploring movement with new peeps in a workshop setting. In particular relating common warm-ups or movement exercises to conceptual ideas about the body, people, society, or relations. For example "passive/active" is a fairly well known warm-up exercise or idea that I've experienced in a variety of settings. (One partner is passive, while the other actively manipulates their partner's body to warm themselves up). But have I ever thought about how the information I'm gathering about my partners passive body or my partner moving my passive body, how I make choices around being passive or active. How I take care of myself in a passive or active role? How I meet resistence? How I deal with surprising responses? The body is a treasure chest of information, and this is only the beginning.
Thursday, June 7, 2007
Personal Response Stuff
So, this is where things get interesting. I've been meaning to get to this for a while, and it seems sort of out of date now, but, well, still relevant.
Day one of the Institute with Gerri, I found myself in what was I thought a workshop, based around technique, in a room with very different movers. I found myself struggling with the notion of experience and countering it with the idea of professionalism. I kept asking: "what is my job here?" At each turn, I found a different answer, and a different challenge. I think in the end all, the easiest approach was to simplify things: my job is simply to learn from my experiences, whatever they may be. By doing that I think I opened up doors to new possibilities of learning that continue to grow.
Blind lead is always a wonderful learning tool: what strikes me the most is how people's personalities are expressed in how they choose to lead or follow. Creating movement from this experience was also enlightening - the pathways of memorable movement patterns were very clear and easy to recreate because of the aspect of touch involved, and the focus and attention directed to one's partner. Scripting a phrase and then taking that experience and placing it over the original material was an interesting way of inserting meaning, intent and familiarity into movement that had been given to you. It added possibilities of a narrative, visceral, or emotional experience to be layered onto the movement. As a result we had a brief discussion about different processes and the need for different adaptations. Different dancers scripted the same phrase very differently, resulting in very different subtexts. This process allowed room for different adaptations and learning processes to take place with different dancers (very different kinds of movers) performing the same movement phrase. At the end of the day I realized that "doing the job" never changes - regardless of who is in the room - be it young experienced movers capable of high virtuosic dancing, someone in their 4th dance class ever, or someone adapting the movement due to physical limitations. In fact, I realized in some ways the job becomes more challenging - as you become even more aware of your place and your role in such a diverse group, instead of struggling to stand out, you struggle to work at a high level while still allowing room for everyone else.
Day one of the Institute with Gerri, I found myself in what was I thought a workshop, based around technique, in a room with very different movers. I found myself struggling with the notion of experience and countering it with the idea of professionalism. I kept asking: "what is my job here?" At each turn, I found a different answer, and a different challenge. I think in the end all, the easiest approach was to simplify things: my job is simply to learn from my experiences, whatever they may be. By doing that I think I opened up doors to new possibilities of learning that continue to grow.
Blind lead is always a wonderful learning tool: what strikes me the most is how people's personalities are expressed in how they choose to lead or follow. Creating movement from this experience was also enlightening - the pathways of memorable movement patterns were very clear and easy to recreate because of the aspect of touch involved, and the focus and attention directed to one's partner. Scripting a phrase and then taking that experience and placing it over the original material was an interesting way of inserting meaning, intent and familiarity into movement that had been given to you. It added possibilities of a narrative, visceral, or emotional experience to be layered onto the movement. As a result we had a brief discussion about different processes and the need for different adaptations. Different dancers scripted the same phrase very differently, resulting in very different subtexts. This process allowed room for different adaptations and learning processes to take place with different dancers (very different kinds of movers) performing the same movement phrase. At the end of the day I realized that "doing the job" never changes - regardless of who is in the room - be it young experienced movers capable of high virtuosic dancing, someone in their 4th dance class ever, or someone adapting the movement due to physical limitations. In fact, I realized in some ways the job becomes more challenging - as you become even more aware of your place and your role in such a diverse group, instead of struggling to stand out, you struggle to work at a high level while still allowing room for everyone else.
Tuesday, June 5, 2007
The Farthest Earth
The show went well! I was glad to be involved, even if envious of the dancers. Not to mention that working tech is way too stressful - I'd much rather be performing. This is a photo of our most popular cast member - Madeline, waiting in the theatre for the show to start.
I will update more later.
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