As we move into the fourth week I thought I’d take a moment to
reflect on the first few sessions as Next Choreography. The last three weeks
have laid the foundations for this course; in the first session we had an
in-depth discussion on the definitions of choreography, and in the second
session we created choreography scores in groups, taking inspiration from the
methods Joseph Burrows used to devise Speaking
Dance (2006). Notation, or dance scores, can be a great method
to trace and translate choreographies, and it was very insightful to see how
each group built on Burrows’ principle to develop unique rhythmic structures.
We shared our work with each other towards the end of the session, providing an
opportunity to take on honest feedback for our own development as
choreographers.
At the end of last week’s session, we were all invited to
participate in the work OK
Future by dance artists, Lucy Suggate and Connor Schumacher.
The work has toured the UK and Europe where every performance space has been
different. Different participants, different settings, different movements.
This idea, in part, points towards one of the questions OK Future probes
at. How do social environments control behaviour? In what ways can movement and
consciousness be manipulated by the presence of unpredictable, human activity?
Why do we let other people mediate the way we want to move when, paradoxically,
we can’t be certain how they will move themselves? OK Future looks at
the inner anxieties that bodies experience when we feel socially exposed. The
work challenges the existence of social etiquettes by creating an alternative
performance space which does not let us conform to predetermined, behavioural
codes. Very exciting stuff!
I would like to share some of my personal reflections just here.
I don’t really want to divulge too much information about the piece, so if you
haven’t seen it then please read past this bit. My very rough, post-performance
notes include:
The illusion of the inflated silver balloon… what was it doing?
At what point did you stop caring or feel unawkward?
The role of music in the piece – its trance-like, somatic purpose.
How did other people react to my movement?
Did we have full agency in the piece? What was the role of the voice-over?
Party? Release? Bonding?
What is the boundary between dancer and spectator?
At what point did you stop caring or feel unawkward?
The role of music in the piece – its trance-like, somatic purpose.
How did other people react to my movement?
Did we have full agency in the piece? What was the role of the voice-over?
Party? Release? Bonding?
What is the boundary between dancer and spectator?
