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. 

Fitzgerald & Stapleton, 2nd set of intensive sessions 19/11/14

Above is my journal entry from Day One of the 2nd set of intensive sessions with our choreographers Fitzgerald and Stapleton. It was really nice showing them a run of the performance in our costumes after the weeks of rehearsing and preparing by ourselves without them. They were very pleased with our progress which made us all very excited for tomorrow of where we will practise in the performance space of room 221 in the Ellen Terry building. 

After we performed a run through, which lasted an hour, of the choroegraphy, we split into our two groups again to finalize anything else that we need to in relation to the separate scores we have. My group went on to structure and record our self interviews, to be played whilst we are sitting facing the wall "untroubled by boredom" and "remembering to turn your fucking head". 

Here is my original interview that I produced: 

Hey Chelsea

Hey

How are you?

I’m okay thank-you

How are you on this particular day?

I’m tired, but feeling positive non-the-less. I say the same thing to myself every morning, that not every day is a good day, but there is something good in every day

Do you want to get up?

Not really

Why?

I’m really cold

What will happen when you get up?

I will have a shower, which when stepping out of it will make me even colder, hence why I don’t want to get up

What will happen after your shower?

I will get dressed, brush my teeth, and leave the house to go to classes

Is your life boring?

No

Why is it not boring?

I am always busy with university, work, dance, seeing family and friends

Chelsea, do you have any religious beliefs?

Yes I do

What are they?

I believe in God, and I believe in heaven. I have to believe in God, and I have to believe in heaven. I have to believe that I will see my little sisters again one day. Losing them left a deep whole in my heart. I remember staring at their still chests wishing they’d rise and fall, touching their cold cheeks wishing they were warm, and placing my finger in their hands wishing they’d squeeze back, but they didn’t. I know there is a God and I know there is a heaven, because I know that they are both waiting for me.

Do you have a close relationship with your parents?

Yes I have a close relationship with both of my parents

How is this expressed?

I love them both and spend a lot of time with them

What do you do together?

We go to the theatre, for meals, general family day trips with my other brothers and sisters, holidays, and other things

Do you think love exists?

Yes

In what form do you think love exists?

The love between family members, like a mother to her child and vice versa

Do you believe it can exist in another form?

Yes, like the love between two people in a relationship together, the love between friends, and the love of an activity or hobby

How do you feel about being a woman in England?

I feel privileged

Why?

I have equal rights and opportunities, which is a beautiful thing

Do you care for the environment?

Yes

How?

I recycle

You said you work which is a reason why your life is not boring, where do you work?

In a night club

What do you do there?

I dance on stage, and I also work behind the bar

Do you like it?

I love it

We have now chopped each persons down, decided upon the questions that we will be asked, who asks them, and whose answers will be given. Today we recorded the final version, of which we are all very happy with. I really enjoyed writing and recording the self interviews as for me it adds a personal touch to another's choreography, and it was also something to add a collective aspect and cohesion to our group so that we can relate to each other more as well as the score itself. 

Studio Practise 18/11/14

Today my spine felt cold, which I find effects my mobility; therefore I decided to use this as my main point of focus in the warm up of today's class with Andrea.

The new movement phrase we were taught today felt very beautiful and fluent to move through. Me and Abbie worked together in rehearsing it and found that we moved in similar ways, so that when we performed the phrase in unison, it has a lovely collective feeling with fluency and clarity.

The travelling phrases that we perform each week again felt very natural now in my muscle memory, however my feedback was very similar to the previous week of that I need to prepare less when beginning the phrases. I know that I do this a lot and it is something I am trying hard to leave behind me. New feedback for this week however was that I need more clarity in my arms during the travelling phrases to allow full extension and to show the journey that they take in each position of the phrase. 

Jonathan Burrows and Matteo Fargion Performance 17/11/14

I was very excited to watch the performance today due to Jonathan Burrows being the author of the book we received last year 'A Choreographers Handbook'.

The first duet for me sparked ideas of sign language as a form of communication, although there were some parts in sync with each other which then suggested otherwise. Some parts were quite comical which demonstrated the playfulness of Burrows and Fargion's relationship with each other as well as with the audience. They used books to read their scores from, which during the post discussion they revealed that Burrows was notes in context of how a dancer would write them, and Matteo Fargion's were produced by music notations due to his background of being a musician and not a dancer.

The second part of the performance although was a separate dance, I felt had a strong connection with he first performance. The use of musical instruments as well as voice was strong in comparison to the first dance of where the sound originated from clapping or friction etc. Again the performance was comical and very clever that it allowed interpretation from the audience to create a meaning for themselves, but simultaneously demonstrated togetherness and intention.

The post show discussion was very enlightening and inspiring, and one thing that Jonathan Burrows did say has stuck with me in relation to my own practise within the performance projects: "Rehearsing is boring." We as a group discovered how our improvisation has become predictable due to over rehearsing, which was my relation to what Burrow's said about his practise.

I really enjoyed the performance and it has broadened my perspective again to dance including both the performance and making process.

Instant Composition 17/11/14

Today I had Polly for this session, and the main focus was upon giving a partner graphic in trios.

I worked with Gabby and Melissa from the third year, and the graphic concentrated mainly upon the upper half of the body e.g. mapping out the clavicle, getting under the shoulder blades, identifying the bones within the arms and hands, then the muscles etc, until eventually the support of the 2 people giving the graphic will enable the person receiving it to come o their feet with their eyes closed and relinquish weight to be able to move around in a different way to perhaps we would normally move. Eventually the two people supporting the receiver will completely loose physical contact to allow the mover to explore and play with their bodies at that particular point, although the other 2 people still stay present to ensure the mover is safe.

Giving the graphic:
- I don't enjoy the responsibility of another's body and therefore safety. However, it was interesting to feel and discover another's bones and muscles as everybody's are differently positioned and shaped.
- It was a delight to see another relinquishing weight and really giving up their bodies to allow them to move in a different way
- Being aware of another's injury made me feel cautious and I would therefore hold back when applying pressure to that area.
It was hard to perform the graphic when the receiver doesn't relinquish weight easily, as you cannot progress throughout the procedure if they keep returning to the original state of having tension in the muscles.

Receiving the graphic:
Due to my anxiety disorder I have a fear of losing control, and therefore I automatically assumed that this graphic would take away the control of my body, which made me feel apprehensive on taking part. However, after Melissa was the receiver she assured me that the 2 people performing the graphic can only have as much control as you allow them to have. This made me feel much more comfortable and keen to take part. I preferred the first part of the graphic of where my bones and muscles were being mapped out and acknowledged, in comparison to the 2nd part where I was on my feet with my eyes closed as this felt very alien whilst moving around.

Movement session with guest teacher: Joe Moran

It was a lovely experience to have a studio practise session with the choreographer/performer Joe Moran.

During his session, we discovered that like Fitzgerald and Stapleton, he too is inspired by the principles of Deborah Hay. He repeated the quotes of: "What if where I am is what I need?", however, when he explained it in his specific way of interpretation, I too interpreted the meaning of this quote in a completely different way, which made me question my own practise within the choreography 'The Work The Work Reworked'. When our choreographers explained these principles to us, I thought of what if where I am is what I need as though it refers to the environment: 'where'. However, when Joe Moran discussed his relationship to the principle, I re-considered my original analogy and thought about it in the context of what if where 'I' am is what I need, therefore thinking of it referring to my body, rather than the environment of which my body is in. This for me was mind blowing and complete changed the journey of which I was on, and how I related to the score. 

I found an interview on the internet between a Dance UK intern and Joe Moran, which I found very enlightening and useful when considering him as a maker of dance and a performer:

 http://www.danceuk.org/uk-choreographer-directory/featured-choreographers/joe-moran/

Dance Performances In London 12/11/14

Research on Deborah Hay

Due to our choreographers being inspired by Deborah Hay, I thought I would do some research as well as start reading Deborah Hay's book: 'My Body, the Buddhist'.

Here is a short interview with Deborah Hay that I found on YouTube of where she discusses some work and how she sees dancer's in space, how they should see themselves, and how the audience perceives them: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j5SYVDPpxUI

"What if the question “What if where I am is what I need?” 

is not about what I need but an opportunity to remember 

the question “What if where I am is what I need?”? "

A list of her dances can be found here: 

http://www.deborahhay.com/dances.html

A list of links for her scores for the dances can be found here:

http://www.deborahhay.com/scores.html

My Second Role- Fundraising For Performance Projects

Me and Carly have decided that due to the success of the first bake sale, we will hold weekly ones in the hub in order to raise more money for the performance projects, to cover things such as costumes, the choreographers time, as well as the flights and accommodation of our choreographers.
We have decided to have them on Thursdays and give them themes, and so therefore we have spoken to Abbie whose second role is Marketing and Advertising, and asked her to design a poster.

Through research, I have discovered that home-made goods are an effective fundraising idea that make money, so we are going to as a group decide on things to make e.g. bracelets, and sell them at the bake sales. In addition to this, we have also discussed the following possibilities to raise money:

- open mic nights 

- raffles

- tombolas

- dance performances

- themed events

Carly has said she is going to email some venues in Coventry to ask about having an event there in order to raise money for the dance performance. As she is doing this I am going to think of ways to then raise money from these nights e.g. admission fees, creating our own cocktails of which we will get a certain percentage of the money from etc. 

Fundraising - First Bake Sale 16/10/14

Today was our first bake sale that we launched in order to raise money for the performance projects in December. As I decided to put myself forward as Fundraising Organiser with Carly as my second role, I really hoped that today would be extremely successful as our first attempt at fundraising to get all of our group excited and motivated for the future events.

I decided to make 'sweetie cones' as my contribution to the bake sale, to compliment everyone else's contributions of brownies, cakes, and smore pops! 

Everyone who contributed made an enormous effort and we managed to raise an amazing £147! I'm really proud of everybody for being so dedicated and I feel it has really bought us together as a dance company so we have good group cohesion. Go Year 2 Dance students!

Performance Projects - Day Three of Intensive Workshop - 15/10/14

Day Three with Fitzgerald and Stapleton

Today was the final day of our first intensive set of days with our choreographers. Looking back over the past 3 days I have learnt a lot about myself including my movement patterns and comfort zone, and how its okay to break the two and experiment.

In today's open practise I was very confident to use my voice whilst engaging with my cells and trying to claim the "originality and uniqueness". I felt comfortable being in contact with other people and again felt a determination to 'double my cells' and take another persons so I have more to play and experiment with. I also experimented with stillness, however, I personally felt a stronger connection with my cells and others if I was moving around, no matter how extravagant or intricate.

We have completed all of the choreography now and are aware of the principles, stage directions, and details that we need to put into the movement in order to reflect the score.

Fitzgerald and Stapleton urged us to create contracts with them so that we sign it and are in agreement of committing to a certain amount of rehearsal time, both in groups and individually. We are also aware of what needs to be completed from now until they return in November, e.g. to write out our self interviews which will be used in the performance in December.

I have really enjoyed working with these two choreographers as my perception of dance has once again been widened, and I am now in connection with new improvisation techniques and movement ideas. Can't wait to see them again in November!

Performance Project - Intensive Session - Day Two 14/10/14

Day Two with Fitzgerald and Stapleton

Today I decided to test out my voice during open practise. I did it where it felt necessary as I was slightly apprehensive to do so yesterday, however, I felt that the use and variations of my breath were more effective for me than the use of voice. Today it was more of a natural need to try and experiment with new ways of moving and engaging with my "trillions of cells."

We spent a significant amount of time with a particular part of the score which we say out loud in three separate groups:

"The work the work the work the work, before final darkness, in language, some truth to find again before it can work. 

The work the work the work the work, before final darkness, a promised task borrowed and changed before it can work. 

The work the work the work the work, to allow us to think of ourselves as somewhere between points a and b for whatever points a and b represent.

And if not improving, at least changing and saving maybe a little of what we love." 

By going over the score and text even more today I have also understood it more which has enabled me to connect it with my movement further. After the lesson, however, I started to think more about the score and the quotes our choreographers used in reference to Deborah Hay, especially: "What if where I am is what I need." With how the choreographers express this, I feel as though it refers to environment of which I am in, and how can I get more out of it for what I need as a dancer in that space, in that time. On the other hand, I also feel that there is more too this, and I am going to explore this as a personal task to see if I can engage further or even let it claim a new context or reference for my own understanding and moving. 

Performance Project - Intensive Session - Day One 13/10/14

Day One with Fitzgerald and Stapleton

Above is the journal entry I made about the first intensive session with our choreographers: Fitzgerald and Stapleton for our performance project which will be show cased in December.

The task I am referring to is 'open practice' of where Fitzgerald and Stapleton first regurgitated some principles of Deborah Hay in order to achieve what was needed of us:

"What if where I am is what I need?"

"What if every cell in my body has the potential to perceive and surrender the uniqueness and originality of all that there is?"

"What if my perception is the dance?" 

This open practice was then the starting point of our performance which is choreography based upon Fitzgerald and Stapleton's original piece of 'The Work The Work'.

Instant Composition - 06/10/14

So second year has arrived quite quickly, and for the next few weeks I have Polly as my tutor for Instant Composition on a Monday afternoon.

In today's lesson I noticed similar principles being used like what we use in Skinner Releasing technique, with a lot of visualization at hand. The poetic language helps my creativity when in improvisation/instant composition based tasks as there are no specific instructions on how to move or articulate the body; you can interpret the language in your own way to generate your movement which can completely contrast what somebody else composes with their bodies.

"the breath is our constant companion."

"the breath is a white mist..."

Discussion in relation to the duet: with Angie

As Angie wasn't involved in either my choreography or performance, I had my discussion with her. 

I told Angie how at the beginning of the assignment I was excited to have the only male/ female duet, as it flooded my brain with loads of potential ideas and concepts to challenge. 

Deborah was a brilliant choreographic partner, and we bounced off each others input to create a range of ideas to test out. 

However, absences and lateness from the performers made me anxious and nervous about how secure our end result would be. Nevertheless, we were able to produce a performance that communicated the choreographic idea and after speaking to several audience members after the show, had the desired affect: they kept guessing to see what they were going to do next, which demonstrated a journey. 

I found it hard, however, in the choreographic process to communicate feedback and ideas due to resistance and apprehensiveness. Though Angie told me how her experiences were the same, which didn't make me feel so at a loss to others in my group. 

As a performer, I was open to new ideas from my choreographers and we had good communication throughout the assignment. I felt at ease throughout the whole process, which made me comfortable and confident to suggest ideas and say when I felt something wasn't working. I enjoyed performing with Kelly and working with Abbie and Natasha as my choreographers, as there was always a sense of group coherence and a good vibe.
The overall experience for me was an eye-opener, and showed me what I am in fact capable of. I have learnt so much from this experience, including communication skills, openness to new ideas, and my ability to perform as well as choreograph.

Listening to Angie's experience, I felt she had similar issues to me involving the 'commitments' we had established as a group at the beginning of the process. She overcame them by speaking to her performers/choreographers to establish a mutual understanding. Angie also had to choreograph by herself, which added extra pressure for her. But I thought her choreography was something to be proud of and communicated a clear choreographic intention. 

Questions in Response to the Duets.

How has my perception of myself as a dance artist changed?

I am more capable than what I originally thought at the start of this assessment of choreographing a dance piece for other people. As the course grows, I am simultaneously growing and becoming more open to create and perceive dance in a new way. It is hard adapting to a new practise, but I feel the longer I am here the more open I am becoming and the more I understand and want to work in this way.

What was the biggest challenge I faced? & How did I resolve and work with that challenge?

Getting a mutual understanding of what is required from both roles i.e. the choreographer and the performer. It was hard for some people to distinguish between the relationships outside of the studio and inside of the studio, which made it hard to get a full rehearsal without interruptions occurring. I overcame this challenge by reminding the performers of the rules we, as a whole group, decided upon at the start of the assignment, such as being prepared, being punctual etc.

Identify and describe a moment of transformation in the process.

Similar to the first question, I felt a huge change in my own perception of myself in a sense that I thought "I can do this after all." I am forever learning on this course, and mine and Deborah's choreographic idea was taken from a Improvisation/ Instant Composition session with Nicola; at first I couldn't see how I could produce a duet from one idea, but as the material churned, my confidence grew, and I surprised myself with how capable I was of creating something that even kept me as a choreographer guessing.

If you could offer some advice to a group of first years, what would it be? 

When mutually making the commitments as a group, stick to them. Don't just say them as you think they are good things to say to impress your tutor, say them and stick to them to avoid any disruptions or problems.

How can a blog support you as an artist

When we was creating our choreography for the duet assessment, I researched blogs that I thought could assist me in my making. Now we have been given our 'placing practice in context' essays to complete over Easter, some of the blogs are still relevant to my new research:

I was told to watch work by Jerome Bel for my duet as it could potentially help me with what I was working with. Therefore I researched various blogs that made comments upon his work to get a wider range of views based upon his choreography and what he works like. Blogs included: 

- http://blogs.walkerart.org/performingarts/2014/01/09/jeanne-calvit-on-disabled-theater-by-jerome-bel/

- https://cap.ucla.edu/blog/?tag=jerome-bel 

- http://www.newyorklivearts.org/blog/?p=3291

Though these blogs can still aid me in the development and construction of my essay as Jerome Bel is one of my choices of choreographers to consider, I also researched blogs by Rosemary Lee as her work was also relevant to what me and Deborah was working with:

-http://www.exberliner.com/blogs/the-blog/a-chat-with-rosemary-lee/

Contact Improvisation 25/03/14

Here is an entry from my Artist Journal of what I recorded from a partner graphic we did in today's lesson.

I was really delighted that I was able to let go and give up the weight and responsibility of my skull, as I normally really struggle with tasks like this, especially due to me holding so much tension in my jaw.

I felt such a difference in my skull and enjoyed the experience that much that I am going to take Katye's advice and repeat this graphic outside of the lesson as I loved being able to "give my skull a break". I also think its an experience everyone should be able to enjoy so I am going to share the graphic with my family, as I know my mom will definitely appreciate it like I did.

It was also an accomplished feeling being a successful supporter and hearing that Angie felt safe in my care and was also able to let go without a feeling of doubt or nervousness.