choreography class

Today in class we used improvisation as we created movement using opposites such as up and down for example, and then took it in turns to travel across the space. This to me was a valuable experience as it allowed me to create new movement material, that was out side my already established movement vocabulary.

We then developed this to become a group piece using each other and our movement qualities to get across the room. The movements we had to work with were movements that used as much space as possible, and then movements that took up minimal space.

 I found that this made it a longer process to get across the room but was more interesting dynamically, making it more enjoyable to watch. It also made me think about using the space around me for effectively in my solo and how I could manipulate it to best benefit my narrative. As my solo was about over coming the difficulties a person faces when they have impaired vision. I decided to travel around the room in a circle to represent the eye, and then to dance in the middle which would then act as the pupil.

choreography class

Today we showed back our solos again, and the group gave fed back on the developments we had applied since the last viewing. I liked doing this as it is always is interesting to here other peoples opinions, also it makes a good process of elimination for material you are working with.

I was told to slow movements down and also to become more hesitant within my movement. This really helped me develop the way in which I was going to perform my piece. However sometimes peoples comments would contradict each other, so I found it was important to take both opinions into consideration and see what works best.

choreography that caught my eye

Free illusion got my attention as they merge dance and technology together, making for an interesting watch. I really like how it up's the performance level and engages me as an audience member.

choreography class

In this class we looked into how to structure a dance with a narrative, we were told to give the choreography a beginning, middle and an end. The stimulus for our narrative was a picture that was chosen by random, my photograph had a lion on with colours bursting out of it.

 I decided that my narrative would be a lion catching its prey, I enjoyed this task as it has we hadn't had the chance to be creative in this way before. I found working with a narrative refreshing and when we showed back our choreography I enjoyed watching and was interested to see what other people had came up with.

Using a narrative allowed me to be more creative with my work and I was able to make a better connection with the audience Now that I have studied Laban's efforts and other ways of choreographing, I was able to apply this to my choreographic process naturally. Making me think about the dynamics of the movement and not just the movement itself. Below is the image I had to work with.

Fact file

Review

             My review on the performance “Beauty of The Beast” by company Chameleon

Personally I really enjoyed this performance, it appealed to me because it was a very modern piece.  I was able to understand the narrative based on male dynamics within groups and gangs, making the performance very accessible to me. The work was controversial highlighting the behaviour within gangs but not done so in an overwhelming way, I felt that they had a nice balance between comedy and narrative content.

 The fact that it was an all male dance company gave the performance a diverse range of dynamics as they were more masculine and strong which was interesting to see. Especially within the duet as in most cases it is a male and a female dancer. So in this case the dynamics complimented each other, giving it a refreshing feel of equal status. Also I liked the movement vocabulary as in one section the dancer was manipulating 2 other dancers in a way that represented them as dogs. This created strong imagery and it was made up of pulling and throwing each other giving a very rugged and intense performance. I felt that the change in narrative throughout the performance was represented clearly to the audience through the appropriate range of movements and dynamics used, as the first section used sharp dynamics and the end soft but some movements remained the same.

Lighting used enhanced the work and helped the audience understand what was going on for example in one section they used the disco balls to simulate a party , then in another they used darkness and isolated a part of light on a performer so we could focus on him . A point of interest was that the dancers also held the lighting during the final stage of the performance and it came across that they were witnessing the end of the narrative.

The accompaniment was very dark in places and this suited the narrative, I felt that if they only used classical music they would of struggled to of created the build up that they needed to compliment the performance. I liked that they included indie rock as again it made me want to engage with the performance, helping reveal the darker side of the narrative. The performance really pushes the boundaries with its comical elements and using different genres of music such as indie rock that is not often seen in the same light as contemporary dance, however is beginning to prove more popular as contemporary dance continues to evolve.

The performance is not for everyone and appeals to a niche audience however really pulls in its target audience. The only thing I would do to improve the performance, would be to show some sections for a longer duration so the audience can soak up that section of the narrative so nothing is lost. I also felt that an interval was needed so there are no distractions for the audience such as needing a drink.