I carried out some workshops with 4 dancers around opening up the senses. Before we could go out onto the Bridge I wanted my dancers to be perceptually aware whilst performing in order for them to be really present in their experience with the senses.
I adapted some exercises from Lisa Nelson and Viewpoints. I included a lot of walking around the studio, with changes in direction, levels, speed, asking them to concentrate on different senses. The workshop provided a development into perceptually aware movers, whereby they were able to really tune into all their senses by building this strong relationship to the space.
The walking carried through into the choreography, as the piece was going to be on the bridge alongside a fast moving traffic of people. We did exercises using improvisational techniques, such as exaggeration, retrograde, size, quality, and change of planes, which would help us understand the body on the bridge and also how to completely reverse it.
We also did a flocking exercise, which is inspired by the group dynamic of birds, where there is no leader but a heightened sense of when to move. This exercise really exaggerates the notion of the stampede seen on London Bridge, but also contrasts it by demanding the group’s full perception for it to be carried out effectively, for this reason I decided that this could be a useful exercise executed on London Bridge, hopefully showing people an organic, unplanned relationship to the space and the senses, that ignores the ‘status quo’.
Another exercise I wanted to carry out on the
bridge was a choreographed piece, guided through the space by the senses, with
specific gestures that interrupt the ‘urbans'.
Here was the first attempt of waking up the city involving
both these exercises: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L8VgKeQniBs
Here is a few pictures, for more, please see my flickr account: http://www.flickr.com/photos/77909775@N02/sets/72157629211328350/
Here is a few pictures, for more, please see my flickr account: http://www.flickr.com/photos/77909775@N02/sets/72157629211328350/
The filming and photography was done by James Booth.
The choreography for the first piece was done in the studio,
where I worked with contrasting pedestrian movement with stylistic expression
that crossed different planes of the body. I also worked with shifting through
the senses, by incorporating touch, pause and different speeds, so the dancers
could have a dynamic relationship to the space.
The piece involved quite rather evident gestures, such as
‘come here’, inviting the audience to look at the view. I then went onto London
Bridge on my own, where I could adapt the movement to really fit with the sensorial
offerings of the Bridge and the flow of the ‘urbans’.
When teaching the choreography to the dancers I chose to do
it in the studio, this was because for 2 of the dancers it was the first time
we’d met and I wanted to do some exercises that worked with opening up the
senses, so they could understand the essence that I required in the movement.
Also, it was important that when they performed it, they would really feel the
transportation from studio to site.
For both of these pieces, I felt more time was needed for
the dancers to really engage with the senses, and be rather than just performing movement.
I would like to work even more with senses, and develop a
greater relationship to the bridge I use for my final project. I invisage
having moment where the dancers are interweaved with the spectators and they
stop and look, or touch or react to the senses which are usually ignored,
tempting the spectators to do the same.
M.J.B
Tuesday 20th March
