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.

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.

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."

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...

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?

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!

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?

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.

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.)

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.

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.

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.

Stage hand goes to work....

This photo was taken in rehearsal today - the cast working on a full run through.
(Stephen and Jeffery in front, Cassie and Susie behind, Elver and Isabelle upstage left, Sarah stage right with three more people behind her whom I can't make out.)
Yet another day working on the VSA piece "The Farthest Earth From Thee," inspired by Shakespere's sonnets, and choreographed by Peter Dimuro at the Dance Exchange, will be performed this weekend at Greenberg Theatre in Washington, DC. I've been given the opportunity to come on board as an extra stage hand, which is great because it means I'm being involved at every level of preparation up until the show. I began sitting in on rehearsals last week for the first time and was amazed at how seamlessly the multi-ability cast was able to work together. For all the complaints and usual difficulties, my impression is that this team is experiencing far fewer creative differences and hold-ups then the average group of dancers and we're talking a 22 member, multi-generational, multi-physical ability cast, and a dog. Not your average group of dancers. The cast is moving in and out of various transitions with multiple props on wheels, with multiple issues to still work out from props, costumes, lines, and transitions, the cast is surprisingly calm with only a few days until the opening! I've especially enjoyed watching how adaptations and accommodations are made in a way that remains artistic and true to the quality of the work. Wheelchairs that can't make cross overs are worked into the stage space, some cast members are assisted with their entrances and exits, the crutches make cross overs whenever needed, and the dog is always entertained (and entertaining). Particularly interesting are the artistic choices when able bodied dancers are moving in the space with disabled dancers. The image is always interesting to watch and the choices clear. Here's a look into the creation of the work if you wish to read it:

Shakespeare’s Sonnet 44 for instance, gives us some obvious places to start for dance. Its references to “leap large lengths,” “injurious distance,” and “heavy tears” might lead us to seek 20 ways, both obvious and unexpected, of turning each of those phrases into motion. (movement metaphore) Also inspiring are the image polarities of sea and land, earth and water. But the ultimate, juicy challenge of this sonnet will likely be in what it says about the limits of physicality. That is where we find the true possibility for movement, partnering, imagery, and staging. That is where we find the permission for fantasy.(an interesting use of structure).

Day of Exploring

I spent time exploring the city today. There's a lot to be said for exploring a new place without setting a particular destination or time limit. Little things become exciting. I sat outside a cafe for 4 hours and watched an entire rain storm take place. It's amazing how alive people become when they have no choice but to aknowledge the present moment (as it thunders and claps, whips in wind and whirls in water.) I logged on to put in some personal responses from the last week, but at this point I think I'll get to bed. Just in case you're wondering, this is a picture taken while riding the escalator into the metro.... which I found quite exciting.

End of a long week

Tired, oh so tired. Coming to the end of a long week. But I'm feeling much more excited then I was yesterday. That's hump day for you I guess. I feel like I reached an exciting creative place today, and have begun to process a lot of thoughts I was having earlier in the week. For those of you who don't know, the Dance Exchange is a very unique place for a variety of reasons; because of the work they do, how they do it, and who they work with. (Who gets to dance and why? See the website...) The "institute" or workshop that I'm taking this week as a way to start off an internship with them is but one small example. Hosted by the company, led by artistic directors and company members, as well as the much esteemed Gerri Houlihan. Participants of a variety of experiences and abilities working together to figure out who they are behind their dance. Inserted into the institute are a number of creative/dance generating and group facilitation exercises from Gerri and the Dance Exchange. Here is a short summary of what we have done:
Day 1
Blind Lead
Blind Lead with scriptive elements placed on top. (Sliding/sweep, airplane/dive, breathing/length, taken from a phrase learned in the mornings technique class).
Blind Lead/Script: creating a short movement phrase from experiencing the previous exercises. The phrase is then witnessed with a partner and then half the room at a time.
Creating our own Script: Scripting the same phrase from the mornings technique class in our own words. Then creating a movement phrase based on the new script. (Group split in half to divide task of scripting the phrase).
New Phrases shown and process discussed (see personal response below).
Parameters: (used as a warm-up after lunch). In partners, improvise for a few minutes and your partner makes note of what is happening physically describing movements and patterns that they witness. This forms collum A - collum B, we discuss what the opposites might be. Choose three, and then improvise again focusing on this new script. Discuss then switch roles.
Day 2
Go Shopping: Find a partner who scripted the other half of the phrase and learn their phrase. (might be an interesting idea to learn their script, and create a different phrase as well - or combine scripts and work together on a new phrase).
Scripted duets: new full length phrases (in duets) performed as quartets.
4 Corner Writing: Divide a page into 4 quadrants. The first quadrant take 5 min to jot down highlights from the last 36 hours - can be anything from meeting new people to what you had for breakfast. 2nd quadrant: a journey that you and someone else made together. 3rd quadrant: we started to learn a bench duet choreographed to Shuman. What did the music make you think of? 4th quadrant: your life if it were a musical score. Would it be an opera or musical theatre? How would it be written, what would it look like? What would it sound like?
(over lunch we were given more time to delve deeper into a quadrant of our choosing.)
Script from writing: look back at your 4 quadrant writing, and put on your choreographer's lense. What is the choreography? Pull out statements, phrases, or sections that denote movement. Change images into action.
Point A to B: with this new script, with a partner get from point A to point B. Use movement from your scripted duet created previously (can be the same partner or someone new.)
End of Day: In a circle turn to the person on your right, and share with them a personal highlight of how they contributed to your experience.
Day 3
Arms and Legs (Gerri): Group split in half, one is to choreograph a 16 count phrase individually, using only their arms and upper torso, the other half of the group the same but using only their legs.
Arm/Leg Phrase: partner with someone from the other group and combine arm and leg phrases. Perform as duets.
Physical Detail: observe the room. Find something that captures your attention and create a shape or gesture (go with first impulse). Do this twice.
Physical Detail #2: recall the journey that you wrote about. Picture three postcards from that journey - moments that stand out to you frozen in film. Choose one. Pick three physical objects from that postcard. Set a shape or gesture for each. Combine these with the first two.
Shopping for details: Find a partner (we used the same partner from the arms and legs exercise) and learn two or three of their physical detail movement/shapes.
Quartet: With your partner, find another duet to work with. Use this score: movement from physical detail and arms/legs duet can be used, there must be a moment of unison, a moment of group improv, a moment of distance, and near or physical contact.
End of Day: Grid. Create a grid. 1st collum: importance to me, importance to my community, importance to the world, and wild box (for errant thoughts.) Top row: each exercise that was used that day. (this exercise has many applications - can be used for reflection on a project or work... anything).
Day 4
Build a Phrase: "I packed my grandmother's bag" (Gerri). In a circle each person adds something to grandmother's bag through movement or gesture and the phrase is repeated as it grows. Phrase is performed. Phrase is improvised (same material, moving through space, using movements however you wish - and relating to the group).
Environment Detail: standing in a circle, come up with a synonym for bag. Pick a type of bag and explore it. What does the space inside feel like? Look like? How can you fit into different nooks and cranies of the bag? What are the details of the bag?
Detail + Phrase gestures: Take the gestures from the grandmothers bag material and put them into the bag you were just exploring. Set or improvise a phrase.
Postcards: You have 2 minutes to write each postcard. #1: To someone who has proceeded you in life. #2: To yourself. #3: To someone who will follow you in life.
Phrase with Text: Place the text from one of your postcards over the movement phrase in the environment of the bag.
Commision: We learned a bench duet off of video on the first day (choreographed by Gerri). Now asked to create a beginning and or end to the duet with a partner, using whatever material from the week we wish.
Day 5
Time spent learning Critical Process (to be discussed later.) And working on duets, performed at end of day.

Day One, Gerri Houlihan Institute

Only at the Dance Exchange do you find a hard working cohesive group of people taking an intensive dance workshop whereby the individuals participating include movers over 60, (sorry, make that 70), professional dancers, dance instructors, the physically disabled, and young dance students. Damn right this is radical! Today (and for the next four days) the schedule will be this: technique class, creative lab 1, lunch, creative lab 2, and ending with repertoire with Gerri, running from 9:30 - 5:30 every day.
I'm not sure how to best organize this blog but given that the main purpose is to share my experiences with the dance community in a way that might be useful, I think I will focus on the use of specific tools, and then add a short section for personal response/observations at the end.
We applied and combined a couple of Dance Exchange favourites in the morning by starting off with Blind Lead (leading a partner with eyes closed, through the space) and moving into Scripting (generating movement from a written script or vice versa). An interesting twist was using blind lead as more then just an introductory/warm up exercise, but actually using it to generate movement. By having the experience of leading and following several times over we were able to recall the movements and sensations of leading and following thereby easily creating a short phrase from our experiences. We then switched to scripting by returning to a short phrase we learned in the morning session and taking a moment to "script" it, or in other words briefly describe each movement on paper. The script could be quite detailed or quite simple i.e: running hand over a hedge and pressing down firmly with palm with turn of head vs sweeping/push. we then used this script to create a new phrase. to be continued... night night for now. :)

Safe Arrival in Takoma Park

Isn't it weird when things work out perfectly? It gives me a queasy feeling actually, like things just shouldn't be so simple, but I'll accept it and move on. Arrived in Washington, aka Takoma Park without a single ounce of hassle. Oh, except that I had to submit to a full search just before stepping onto the plane, due to a chocolate craving. These things will always get you into trouble. Apparently it's a new rule for all passengers flying to Washington, be weary! The gates are now cordoned off by an official who will check your id and boarding pass before you can enter the seating area. No biggy, but... if you leave your gate to buy some chocolate lets say... they will put a mysterious X on your boarding pass, and then just when you think you're safe, and you are halfway up the tubular hallway connecting to the plane you will embarrassingly be submitted to a thorough search of your belongings and such... Why they feel this is effective (when you've already cleared security), was unclear to me, and after taking off my shoes, undoing my belt, and twirling around a few times in the middle of the passage way, I asked if I should perform a tour jete for them. The humor was lost on the guards, and I was the last to board the plane. All this aside I arrived in a very warm (27 degrees) Washington , DC, jumped on the metro and found my place in Takoma. Staying in a large heritage home owned by a young family who rent out rooms to various individuals.. my impression is that there are about 5 other people staying here at the moment, but it's hard to say. I feel like I'm reliving my res experiences a bit (I knew I would be grateful one day!), although these people seem a little more adult and less partial to the late night hooliganism of res life. I know I'm in the right place when the first thing they say is: "We recycle here. And expect you to too."