Estonia: 27/01/15

Morning Session

I am still, (even though very tired from travelling), excited to work with dancers from another culture/country/dance background and see what Estonia has to offer and what we are going to make together. I am ready to explore and I am carrying with me something which I learnt from the previous performance projects back in December: 

be comfortable with the uncomfortable... embrace it... time and space are always moving... this chance and and these moments will never repeat themselves. 

We have established that because we are dancers, we communicate better via movement rather than speech; this is extremely convenient for this particular situation as there is a language barrier, of where none of us Coventry Students speak Estonian, and English is not the Estonian students' first language. 

Via talking, however, I have discovered how the Estonian students do not engage within contact improvisation sessions for as lon as we do, and I noticed how their attentions and focus' often wandered. 

Afternoon Session

I feel that the morning session, was in theory, an ice-breaker as this afternoon we seem to all be much more comfortable working and moving with eachother.

"Time and space are always shifting"

I have surprised myself by finding that I am in ways enjoying not being able to understand what the Estonian dancers are saying, as it has made more room for curiosity and increased my hunger for a journey and to explore. 

During an improvisation task I worked closely with an Estonian student called Jelena Melts, who described my movement as "like an 'Aero' chocolate bar, light & bubbly" ...interesting!

International Field Trip : ESTONIA! 26/01/15 (day of travelling)

The big day has come and I am finally travelling to Estonia! I have waited so long for this experience, and even though we have a big day of travelling ahead of us I am so excited, not just for the dancing, but to experience a new culture and country that I was unfamiliar with before the announcement of this trip.

For me especially, I am looking forward to finding out more about myself, and hopefully surprising myself along the way. Having 'Anxiety Disorder' I often stay within my comfort zone and feel even though I am independent financially etc, quite attached to home and being with my family. Even though this trip is only a week long, I want to make myself and my family proud by coping in another country where English is not necessarily a vital language to know, and embrace it. Here I come Estonia!

Performance! 'The Work The Work Reworked' 04/12/14

I felt that the performance of 'The Work The Work Reworked' went really well. I felt that we all had a beautiful sense of group cohesion which bought the piece together to show the intention, and the relationships between us movers. Due to disregarding 'repetition' as a choreographic device and therefore a problem to interrupt my performance, I had no worries or sense of apprehension and felt as though I performed as best as I could according to the score I was provided. 

I have really enjoyed worked with Fitzgerald and Stapleton; they have once again shifted my thinking (which seems to be happening the longer I am at Coventry University) and I have rethought about myself as a dancer and maker, and where I want to be heading.