CORE has a bunch of great stuff in Houston this week. (So no class till Apr. 5 those of you in ATL who like to come take it with them here.)
Tonight, Mar. 25, 5-10 p.m. is Cultured Cocktails, presented by Spacetaker at Boheme with proceeds going to CORE. The dancers will be present around 5:30-7:30 p.m. so please come out to meet them and support the company!
This weekend on Friday through Sunday they perform at the Bayou City Art Festival "Point, well taken..." a new site-specific piece created for several sites on the festival grounds at Memorial Park. They begin just before 2 p.m. in front of the HAA stage and move on from there. And if you want to take photos of the dancers or with them as they move between sites, we'd love to see them on our Facebook fan page! You can post them to our wall and the ones we like a lot will be used in upcoming e-news or emails!
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Monday, March 22, 2010
today
hello.
today corian gave a fantastic class complete with killer tunes, new movement ideas, and ......... choreography from the new lady gaga video, telephone!!!! so much fun! we will be heading to houston tomorrow (no atlanta class until april 5th) for bayou city art festival performances. today we have been polishing up our performance plans for bcaf and doing some costume scheming. so if you are around the houston area, come out to bcaf to check us out! happy spring and snow...oh atlanta.
today corian gave a fantastic class complete with killer tunes, new movement ideas, and ......... choreography from the new lady gaga video, telephone!!!! so much fun! we will be heading to houston tomorrow (no atlanta class until april 5th) for bayou city art festival performances. today we have been polishing up our performance plans for bcaf and doing some costume scheming. so if you are around the houston area, come out to bcaf to check us out! happy spring and snow...oh atlanta.
Friday, March 19, 2010
formally introducing
Here we have former CPC company member, now artistic associate, passing on her knowledge to new affiliate, Joanna Futral.
so i mentioned earlier this week that we have welcomed two artistic affiliates into the company to take kim's roles in some rep. without further adieu we have some pictures of the affiliates in the studio doin what they do...breathing new life into an already established piece.
here we have Sharon C. Sibley taking on kim's paper dress solo for Tus Pasos Encontrados. Sharon has just started working the solo in high heels...that is some treacherous, but fierce work!
then we have Joanna Futral who is taking on kim's role in Cumulus, and you can see her in one of the following pictures being lifted by blake.
and now a word from....
and now, a word from Teresa Chapman on her dance "Caught"
"I'm thrilled to put this piece back together with it's original cast! Some dances are easily reconstructed on new dancers while others are fun to rework for different performers. But THIS piece was built for these particular dancers with their strengths and personalities in mind. Alex, Corian and Kristi create these totally unique characters on stage that no one else could possibly duplicate! "
this dance is definately a fun task to undertake! it is more than a dance, it is a performance! it was created about 2 years ago for three dancers and a chair. what is most interesting is that as a performer, and we (teresa, kristi, corian and i) have all talked about it, we don't know what the dance is about. there are definately dark undertones to this dance that force the audience to think and come up with a story for them. told in a very non-linear fashion...i refer to the dance as a traditional "who done it?" that is where the chair comes into play. all of the performers make reference, and even dance with, on, in, above, etc. this ominous chair that sits on stage left (to use technical terms) throughout the dance.
another fun undertaking is trying to recapture the energy and vigor with which we move throughout the piece. even though it was only 2 years ago, i feel like a very different dancer. in discussion with corian about this whole phenomenon, we have let go of the sharp attack of our early years of dancing for a more luscious, almost indulgent way of moving. however, just because i choose not to move like that anymore, i know that i am still capable; if i was able to do it once, i can do it again.
besides the physical challenges of the dance, teresa touched on how we each created characters for this piece. each section highlights a particular performer technically and theatrically. we each have our individual story that influences our role (as a character) in the dance. to this day we each have different interpretations as to what the chair means, and who is the person who belongs there. this is definately a dance that has to be fully lived in and fleshed out in order for the audience to get the full scope of how you can be affected by things you are caught by personally.
so come out to miller outdoor theater april 30th to see this piece and many others!
"I'm thrilled to put this piece back together with it's original cast! Some dances are easily reconstructed on new dancers while others are fun to rework for different performers. But THIS piece was built for these particular dancers with their strengths and personalities in mind. Alex, Corian and Kristi create these totally unique characters on stage that no one else could possibly duplicate! "
this dance is definately a fun task to undertake! it is more than a dance, it is a performance! it was created about 2 years ago for three dancers and a chair. what is most interesting is that as a performer, and we (teresa, kristi, corian and i) have all talked about it, we don't know what the dance is about. there are definately dark undertones to this dance that force the audience to think and come up with a story for them. told in a very non-linear fashion...i refer to the dance as a traditional "who done it?" that is where the chair comes into play. all of the performers make reference, and even dance with, on, in, above, etc. this ominous chair that sits on stage left (to use technical terms) throughout the dance.
another fun undertaking is trying to recapture the energy and vigor with which we move throughout the piece. even though it was only 2 years ago, i feel like a very different dancer. in discussion with corian about this whole phenomenon, we have let go of the sharp attack of our early years of dancing for a more luscious, almost indulgent way of moving. however, just because i choose not to move like that anymore, i know that i am still capable; if i was able to do it once, i can do it again.
besides the physical challenges of the dance, teresa touched on how we each created characters for this piece. each section highlights a particular performer technically and theatrically. we each have our individual story that influences our role (as a character) in the dance. to this day we each have different interpretations as to what the chair means, and who is the person who belongs there. this is definately a dance that has to be fully lived in and fleshed out in order for the audience to get the full scope of how you can be affected by things you are caught by personally.
so come out to miller outdoor theater april 30th to see this piece and many others!
Our Dynamic Lunchtime
wow...already it is friday! what a week?!? yesterday we had our lunchtime in the studio and salon performances. lunchtime this week was focusing on our dynamic exchange program. Ms. Annette from Good Moves brought the young ladies that she has been working with to show us what they have been doing in the dynamic exchange program. i was inspired and filled with happiness watching these young women move because despite obvious language barriers (some of the newer girls to the program are refugees from various countries) they looked and performed with such consideration and joy. i was pleasantly surprised so see some of the girls exude such confidence and maturity, and i think that can be contributed to dancing.
Ms. Annette was a hoot, and reminded me of the "old-fashioned" dance teachers that give the kind of "tough love" and structure that most kids need...and is given to people through the arts. i was inspired because i have a personal connection to youth outreach through the arts. most of my early training didn't come from fancy studios, or world-renown schools...it came from a community arts center in houston. there i learned all the fundamentals of what i know today, paired with structure, passion, and nurturing. all it took was someone with a vision of providing art to kids who wouldn't necessarily have an outlet...and that gift is irreplaceable!
i especially think about the refugee girls, and what their personal stories are...and then i think about how healing art (especially dancing) can be. to put it simply, it is liberating. it provides kids with the ability to feel at ease with who they are becoming. i mentioned in my last blog about how some kids think it is uncool to be passionate about things like art, etc. i was once in that position...it is easy to adopt the "herd mentality" and not stray from the status quo. so to see these young women have such self confidence, at their age, in the way they move makes me wonder how that will carry into other areas of their lives; even if they don't pursue anything artistic.
art can change lives, art can change the world...for the better. think about it...these young women who know nothing about one another (it was also their first time dancing together) personally and culturally, but they danced and laughed together as if they had known each other all their lives. also, they danced together...they took the time to connect with one another. that is what art can do...and to help change the world through art, to heal the world, and themselves...and maybe in the process, also change you and bring you joy!
Ms. Annette was a hoot, and reminded me of the "old-fashioned" dance teachers that give the kind of "tough love" and structure that most kids need...and is given to people through the arts. i was inspired because i have a personal connection to youth outreach through the arts. most of my early training didn't come from fancy studios, or world-renown schools...it came from a community arts center in houston. there i learned all the fundamentals of what i know today, paired with structure, passion, and nurturing. all it took was someone with a vision of providing art to kids who wouldn't necessarily have an outlet...and that gift is irreplaceable!
i especially think about the refugee girls, and what their personal stories are...and then i think about how healing art (especially dancing) can be. to put it simply, it is liberating. it provides kids with the ability to feel at ease with who they are becoming. i mentioned in my last blog about how some kids think it is uncool to be passionate about things like art, etc. i was once in that position...it is easy to adopt the "herd mentality" and not stray from the status quo. so to see these young women have such self confidence, at their age, in the way they move makes me wonder how that will carry into other areas of their lives; even if they don't pursue anything artistic.
art can change lives, art can change the world...for the better. think about it...these young women who know nothing about one another (it was also their first time dancing together) personally and culturally, but they danced and laughed together as if they had known each other all their lives. also, they danced together...they took the time to connect with one another. that is what art can do...and to help change the world through art, to heal the world, and themselves...and maybe in the process, also change you and bring you joy!
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
full house
recently, we've had a very full house here at Core. not only are there lots of people here, and all of us are working...but we are all working on different things. we have a little bit of everything...some veterans have come by (and will continue to come by) to help some of our newer members (that's right, i said NEWER members) learn some of the works in our current rep.
having said that i would like to give a big welcome to our new artistic affiliates: Sharon C. Sibley and Joanna Futral, both of whom are taking on Kim Kleiber's role in Alicia Sanchez's Tus Pasos and Beppie Blankert Cumulus, respectively. it is always nice to have new energy in the rehearsal space because it keeps us all on our toes, and both dancers bring a fresh approach and perspective to roles that we are pretty familiar with, from seeing them so much. also, the process of watching new people tackle these roles with such vigor and excitement is very refreshing, it adds a newness to both of those pieces.
because they are taking kim's roles, she (kim) spent this past friday with us, and will do the same this week. her return always makes me feel like home because all the old dynamics fall right back into place...as if she never left. in addition to her visit friday, juana also spent some time with us with her baby boy (who is OH SO ADORABLE) Luke. so it is all kinds of good times in the studio...old and new faces, babies, and of course lots of dancing.
while everyone is working on those things, alicia and beppie's works, corian and i are working on remounting a trio choreographed by Teresa Chapman titled "Caught." this piece will be in our miller performance in april along with Blankert's Cumulus, and other work by various houston artists (including chapman). so stay tuned to find out what other stuff my go down in the studio...it's like a revolving door in here...even i don't know what will happen next. however, that's nothing new with me!
happy wednesday!
having said that i would like to give a big welcome to our new artistic affiliates: Sharon C. Sibley and Joanna Futral, both of whom are taking on Kim Kleiber's role in Alicia Sanchez's Tus Pasos and Beppie Blankert Cumulus, respectively. it is always nice to have new energy in the rehearsal space because it keeps us all on our toes, and both dancers bring a fresh approach and perspective to roles that we are pretty familiar with, from seeing them so much. also, the process of watching new people tackle these roles with such vigor and excitement is very refreshing, it adds a newness to both of those pieces.
because they are taking kim's roles, she (kim) spent this past friday with us, and will do the same this week. her return always makes me feel like home because all the old dynamics fall right back into place...as if she never left. in addition to her visit friday, juana also spent some time with us with her baby boy (who is OH SO ADORABLE) Luke. so it is all kinds of good times in the studio...old and new faces, babies, and of course lots of dancing.
while everyone is working on those things, alicia and beppie's works, corian and i are working on remounting a trio choreographed by Teresa Chapman titled "Caught." this piece will be in our miller performance in april along with Blankert's Cumulus, and other work by various houston artists (including chapman). so stay tuned to find out what other stuff my go down in the studio...it's like a revolving door in here...even i don't know what will happen next. however, that's nothing new with me!
happy wednesday!
Monday, March 15, 2010
ATL Fieldwork begins http://bit.ly/dgjiKL and Lunchtime http://bit.ly/cNXoIS and Salon http://bit.ly/9zFKDG are both this Thursday!
Cores Adventures in North Carolina
Hey CPC blog readers...happy Monday to you all! So much has happened since the last time I blogged. I even lose blogger points because I was supposed to be the blogger for our time in Fayetteville, North Carolina...sorry. It was a really fun trip...it started off on a cold note because our flight was rescheduled for the evening (instead of the early 8 o'clock flight) due to possible snowy conditions; however, there was no snow, and it was a beautiful sunny morning that day, but the flight was already rescheduled.
So we ended up in North Carolina a day later, but we made the most of the trip. We did a lecture/demonstration performance twice a day for two different schools in the town. Our audience were kids from gifted and talented high school program in Fayetteville. Performing for high school students is a different challenge than performing for elementary kids because even if a high school kid likes the performance, sometimes liking art isn't exactly "cool."
On the whole, most of the kids (and schools) we performed for seemed to really enjoy everything, and they asked thoughtful, and appropriate questions. It is always refreshing to regain faith in the next generation. I remember being in school and choosing not to like certain presentations just because it was cool to seem so disinterested. So, I was pleasantly surprised when the students had a genuine interest in what our stories were (as dancers) and asked very articulate (and thoughtful) questions in regards to the work that we did. We took, and performed, an eclectic mix of work from our rep: Nature from Corazon, two sections from Alicia Sanchez's Tus Pasos, an excerpt from Polly Motley's Charmed Romantics, and lastly we showed what material we had from Sue Schroeder's newest work The Point.
Personally, I thought the lecture/demo performances were meant to not only show kids dance, but to teach them about the various aspects of modern (or contemporary dance) and then to encourage critical thinking of art. One of my favorite moments of the program came at the end when we would have our question and answer session. When the kids would ask what a particular dance meant, or asked if we could explain any of the dances to them; I would flip the questions and toss it back at them asking what they got from it all. I believe it was Corian that said it the best, "the beauty of modern (contemporary) dance is that it makes you use your brain...as an audience member, but also (and even more importantly) as a dancer." It forces us to be thinking, conscious performers...because if we don't bring something to the table, when the audience sits down they can just hop on the ride with us and experience something worthwhile...and not just check out. It is all about perspective anyway...and at the end of the day, it teaches the kids to sit up, pay attention, and eventually (hopefully) think for themselves.
So we ended up in North Carolina a day later, but we made the most of the trip. We did a lecture/demonstration performance twice a day for two different schools in the town. Our audience were kids from gifted and talented high school program in Fayetteville. Performing for high school students is a different challenge than performing for elementary kids because even if a high school kid likes the performance, sometimes liking art isn't exactly "cool."
On the whole, most of the kids (and schools) we performed for seemed to really enjoy everything, and they asked thoughtful, and appropriate questions. It is always refreshing to regain faith in the next generation. I remember being in school and choosing not to like certain presentations just because it was cool to seem so disinterested. So, I was pleasantly surprised when the students had a genuine interest in what our stories were (as dancers) and asked very articulate (and thoughtful) questions in regards to the work that we did. We took, and performed, an eclectic mix of work from our rep: Nature from Corazon, two sections from Alicia Sanchez's Tus Pasos, an excerpt from Polly Motley's Charmed Romantics, and lastly we showed what material we had from Sue Schroeder's newest work The Point.
Personally, I thought the lecture/demo performances were meant to not only show kids dance, but to teach them about the various aspects of modern (or contemporary dance) and then to encourage critical thinking of art. One of my favorite moments of the program came at the end when we would have our question and answer session. When the kids would ask what a particular dance meant, or asked if we could explain any of the dances to them; I would flip the questions and toss it back at them asking what they got from it all. I believe it was Corian that said it the best, "the beauty of modern (contemporary) dance is that it makes you use your brain...as an audience member, but also (and even more importantly) as a dancer." It forces us to be thinking, conscious performers...because if we don't bring something to the table, when the audience sits down they can just hop on the ride with us and experience something worthwhile...and not just check out. It is all about perspective anyway...and at the end of the day, it teaches the kids to sit up, pay attention, and eventually (hopefully) think for themselves.
Friday, February 26, 2010
Video and dance
Dance and art in general are always discovering new ways make thoughtful work. This sometimes calls for artists to work interdisciplinary in other fields of medium. Some of the great collaborations I recall is the Merce Cunningham and John Cage.
Collaboration can lead artists so many different direction. You can start with an idea and end up somewhere completely different. Collaborations can also deepen art and make it more accessible to a wider audience. Let's say you make a dance about nature. If you were to work with a videographer you could add the element of pictures and video taken of real life nature. You could actually bring the outside in and help evoke that atmosphere of walking though an exotic landscape.
That is exactly what we are doing today. AND MORE! We are working with New York based Maya Ciarrocchi who is a video and designer and installation artist. The whole studio is dark. We have blacked out all the windows to make it feel like a real theater. The scrim is up and being projected on as we speak.
What makes for such interesting images being projected is having the person taking the video and pictures here. We had the luxury of having Maya Fly down with the company to experience Chiapas. She then was able to turn it around and give a new prospective on Chiapas, Mexico and the Mayan Culture.
Collaboration can lead artists so many different direction. You can start with an idea and end up somewhere completely different. Collaborations can also deepen art and make it more accessible to a wider audience. Let's say you make a dance about nature. If you were to work with a videographer you could add the element of pictures and video taken of real life nature. You could actually bring the outside in and help evoke that atmosphere of walking though an exotic landscape.
That is exactly what we are doing today. AND MORE! We are working with New York based Maya Ciarrocchi who is a video and designer and installation artist. The whole studio is dark. We have blacked out all the windows to make it feel like a real theater. The scrim is up and being projected on as we speak.
What makes for such interesting images being projected is having the person taking the video and pictures here. We had the luxury of having Maya Fly down with the company to experience Chiapas. She then was able to turn it around and give a new prospective on Chiapas, Mexico and the Mayan Culture.
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Prep
We Ready...We ready....We ready....for y'all!
This week has been all about preparation. Here at the studios of Several Dancers Core, the dancers and the directors have been feverishly working. Tomorrow is our Lunchtime/Salon Series in which we will be tackling questions of art and art making. (Oh and there is free food!)
Next week we will be out of town in North Carolina doing shows at high schools around fayetteville! If you know anyone around the area give them our number! The more people to support Core; the better!
Other than that, we are also preparing for our MAD festival concert, which is February 27 and 28....There are lots of opportunities around ATL to get your art on! Come and see us!
Corian
Wednesday, February 03, 2010
Wednesday
February 3
Today we had a special guest John Hardesty accompany our class.
It is always a nice balance to have dance accompanied with live music.
We are moving forward with The Point and are finding interesting connections with one another in individual segments and group interactions.
We leave this afternoon to head up past Blue Ridge for a retreat focused on strategic planning for the upcoming season: SDC's 30th Anniversary... wow.
We will be nestled in the mountains discussing and planning with Core Performance Company members, SDC Staff and some Houston and Atlanta Board Members.
Hopefully we will strategically plan for an exciting future.
Have an inspiring rest of the week and a beautiful weekend.
Today we had a special guest John Hardesty accompany our class.
It is always a nice balance to have dance accompanied with live music.
We are moving forward with The Point and are finding interesting connections with one another in individual segments and group interactions.
We leave this afternoon to head up past Blue Ridge for a retreat focused on strategic planning for the upcoming season: SDC's 30th Anniversary... wow.
We will be nestled in the mountains discussing and planning with Core Performance Company members, SDC Staff and some Houston and Atlanta Board Members.
Hopefully we will strategically plan for an exciting future.
Have an inspiring rest of the week and a beautiful weekend.
Monday, February 01, 2010
Monday
Yay for Mondays
We are constructing and deconstructing phrase material today.
Claire and Blake are reviewing their duet as Corian and Alex are creating their duet.
Earlier we improvised using "go and withdraw" we are still searching for a "name" for this particular assignment. Basically, we start at a distance, meet at a particular point in space finding a moment, leave the moment to begin the process again. We repeat until we find the moment in its true essence.
Today process is what I think the POINT is... because where/what would dance be if it did not live in process.
We are constructing and deconstructing phrase material today.
Claire and Blake are reviewing their duet as Corian and Alex are creating their duet.
Earlier we improvised using "go and withdraw" we are still searching for a "name" for this particular assignment. Basically, we start at a distance, meet at a particular point in space finding a moment, leave the moment to begin the process again. We repeat until we find the moment in its true essence.
Today process is what I think the POINT is... because where/what would dance be if it did not live in process.
Thursday, January 28, 2010
holy thursday!!!!
is anyone else noticing how the month of january has just flown by? i can hardly believe it is thursday! tomorrow we have 3 school shows of Loco-Motion in Woodstock, GA. we have to be up and at patton's condo by 7 in the morning and then we leave by 7:05 (did i mention i'm not a morning person?)! so today we had class with "the Schro" (or Sue), followed by a run of Polly Motley's piece "Charmed Romantics," then we ran the school show with all the recent additions. i'm learning that the longer you keep things in rep, or keep dances in rotation, the more difficult it is, because you have to keep making it new and fresh every time. it definitely keeps you on your toes...hehe, did i just make a dance joke? any-who, maryjane left us halfway through the day...she may be working with gloATL...or maybe she is out finding a way to make world peace happen...she was missed...so we did more "Point" work without her.
corian and i revisited a duet that Sue started working on back in october...you can check out the video of the duet from the last blog in october...the halloween edition of the blog! so while we were busy putting that together...claire and blake began working on a "stop and freeze" assignment. i believe, they had to invent various lifts and then hold them. when it came time to show Sue the progress thus far, she informed us that we would be putting these two duets together and making a quartet; however, we would be combining the two assignments (of the duet phrase-ology AND the stop and freeze). so within the structure of this duet, we have to find moments to make contact...so we will see how that shapes up.
so that is just a snippet of what blake and claire's stop/freeze work was...with some direction/input from Sue. i always find it fascinating to watch contact work, because it is truly a skill to do partnering and make it look effortless and smooth. that is the trick of doing partnering: fooling the audience into thinking it is just a "walk in the park." so here is the beginning stages of getting partnerwork to that point...haha, another dance joke...point, get it???
oh and just for kicks...here is a video of an adagio taught in one of blake's classes...i found it while downloading videos from the camera. hope you enjoy...this is an oldie, but a goodie! peace out...alex
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
for the children part 2
so change of plans....due to maryjane not being here we have changed the agenda for the day. we are postponing "point work" until tomorrow. now we are watching the video of the MFAH (Museum of Fine Arts Houston) Corazon performance...there is a more recent phantom video that has up to date edits, so that we have Corazon material ready for our residency in North Carolina, and for our intense Corazon work period. we have so many school shows to gear up for...the North Carolina residency is mostly for high school kids, so we have to find, revisit, and remount things that we have in rep (such as polly, corazon, and maybe some tus pasos work). unfortunately our brains only hold so much choreography! that is when we turn to modern conveniences to help...
video watching is a good tool when collectively we cannot remember all the changes to a particular dance...i will say, that it makes me sleepy. especially since i'm already sleepy. i think it is the wednesday energy. however, this is the life. sometimes we have to rely on technology to jumpstart your brain. what did dancers, choreographer, etc do when they didn't have video, or dvds? i guess that is where Laban Movement stuff comes in handy...or just having an amazing photographic memory.
hehe...there is talk in the studio that maryjane organized the videos, hopefully she knows where this infamous "recent recording" of the Corazon material is located. now...it is time for a meeting...just like a regular job.
happy wednesday folks!
video watching is a good tool when collectively we cannot remember all the changes to a particular dance...i will say, that it makes me sleepy. especially since i'm already sleepy. i think it is the wednesday energy. however, this is the life. sometimes we have to rely on technology to jumpstart your brain. what did dancers, choreographer, etc do when they didn't have video, or dvds? i guess that is where Laban Movement stuff comes in handy...or just having an amazing photographic memory.
hehe...there is talk in the studio that maryjane organized the videos, hopefully she knows where this infamous "recent recording" of the Corazon material is located. now...it is time for a meeting...just like a regular job.
happy wednesday folks!
for the children
hello again my internet friends (hopefully we are also friends in real life)...it is alex here again as the blogger for the week. as we know, last week was our first official week back here at CPC...and this is now our second week back, and i for one am already tired and drained. many of us performed in The Dance Project this past weekend and in the I.C.E. showcase (referenced in last week's blog). the shows went well...but when you perform 6 times in the span of 4 days...it takes a toll on your body and energy level.
that being said, we are gearing up for a performance this coming friday in Woodstock, GA to perform our children's show Loco-motion! the past two work days (monday and today), we have had a guest director, Priscilla Smith, come in to give us some outside feedback to help with the flow of the upcoming performance. each of us really dug deep to find a character that would better suit the mood of the children's show. if you have ever performed for children, you know that it is a tricky situation. kids are brutally honest, and it is our job as performers to keep them engaged, entertained, and learning...and that is no easy feat!
now we are on our lunch break...i'm still a little hungry, i think i'm craving a cookie (like claire)...mmmmmm, a chocolate chip cookie would be ideal...but anyway, we are one company member down...maryjane had another obligation, so we will continue rehearsing The Point this afternoon. i'm excited to see what kind of assignments we will be given today to help "point" us in the right direction (i love my cheesy jokes)...
that being said, we are gearing up for a performance this coming friday in Woodstock, GA to perform our children's show Loco-motion! the past two work days (monday and today), we have had a guest director, Priscilla Smith, come in to give us some outside feedback to help with the flow of the upcoming performance. each of us really dug deep to find a character that would better suit the mood of the children's show. if you have ever performed for children, you know that it is a tricky situation. kids are brutally honest, and it is our job as performers to keep them engaged, entertained, and learning...and that is no easy feat!
now we are on our lunch break...i'm still a little hungry, i think i'm craving a cookie (like claire)...mmmmmm, a chocolate chip cookie would be ideal...but anyway, we are one company member down...maryjane had another obligation, so we will continue rehearsing The Point this afternoon. i'm excited to see what kind of assignments we will be given today to help "point" us in the right direction (i love my cheesy jokes)...
Friday, January 22, 2010
workshop with allen pittman
well hello there. it is friday and we are getting back into the swing of things after coming back earlier this week from a winter break. today we are running rep and working in the studio with sue on our work in progress, the point. but yesterday we had a guest, allen pittman, come to our studio to give a workshop. he integrated concepts about human and animal evolution and development of motor skills from infancy through adulthood. allen also thought us some egyptian yoga postures, breath work, and mediation techniques. we explored the context and power of social gesture and body stance as performers. it was a wonderful, varied, and comprehensive workshop open to the public as well.
in addition to the work we are doing in the studio with Several Dancers Core...many of us are performing this weekend at 7 Stages in The Dance Project presented by Staibdance and Greg Catalier (George Staib and Greg Catalier are both Emory University professors). Corian, Alex, and Claire are in the performance...and they are also involved in the Independent Choreographer Exchange (I.C.E.) at 7 Stages as well. The Dance Project runs tonight (Friday) and Saturday at 8, and Sunday at 3...and the I.C.E. showcase is Saturday 3 and Sunday evening at 7pm. for more information call 7 Stages at (404)523-7647.
Mary Jane is also working with gloATL on their upcoming project Bloom, a site specific performance at Lenox Mall February 12th at 7, and the 13th and 14th at 4 pm. This is a free event...so please come support dance in the atlanta metro area.
also, other projects the company members have coming up are more choreographic endeavors by Blake Dalton and Corian Ellisor....but more on that later.
back to business and rehearsal....
soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo ttyl
in addition to the work we are doing in the studio with Several Dancers Core...many of us are performing this weekend at 7 Stages in The Dance Project presented by Staibdance and Greg Catalier (George Staib and Greg Catalier are both Emory University professors). Corian, Alex, and Claire are in the performance...and they are also involved in the Independent Choreographer Exchange (I.C.E.) at 7 Stages as well. The Dance Project runs tonight (Friday) and Saturday at 8, and Sunday at 3...and the I.C.E. showcase is Saturday 3 and Sunday evening at 7pm. for more information call 7 Stages at (404)523-7647.
Mary Jane is also working with gloATL on their upcoming project Bloom, a site specific performance at Lenox Mall February 12th at 7, and the 13th and 14th at 4 pm. This is a free event...so please come support dance in the atlanta metro area.
also, other projects the company members have coming up are more choreographic endeavors by Blake Dalton and Corian Ellisor....but more on that later.
back to business and rehearsal....
soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo ttyl
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Weeee're BAAAAck!
After a month-long hiatus, CPC started back with class and rehearsals for the remainder of the 2009/2010 season.
Company Manager D. Patton White taught class this morning (yes, I did just refer to myself in the third person), and structured the class to encourage a fair amount of improvisation both at the individual and partner levels. We had a visitor, Terry, who was one of our Fieldwork participants last Fall.
The company jumped back into development work on The Point, with Sue Schroeder directing the dancers through many more improvisations.
Company Manager D. Patton White taught class this morning (yes, I did just refer to myself in the third person), and structured the class to encourage a fair amount of improvisation both at the individual and partner levels. We had a visitor, Terry, who was one of our Fieldwork participants last Fall.
The company jumped back into development work on The Point, with Sue Schroeder directing the dancers through many more improvisations.
During Checkouts, when everyone shares what they have experienced during the rehearsal, Alex shared that he really enjoyed a particular improv moment when he was cradling Claire's head in his hands.
Friday, December 18, 2009
during the break
howdy everyone...it's alex, and i hope you are all having a great holiday season. just because our season is over for the time being...the work doesn't stop at all. we are all still some dancing fools! Maryjane just finished a show last week with GLOatl, Claire is working with George Staib, Blake is busy creating work for his own show this coming spring, and Corian and I are busy working with Greg Catallier (for the same show Claire is in)...also, Corian and I are performing in The Big Freeze, a burlesque/variety show at Eyedrum this Friday and Saturday (the 18th and 19th), tickets are 10 bucks.
also...corian is busy exercising his creative energy by beginning work on a new dance to be performed in late january, actually the same weekend as the Staib/Catallier show...haha, that should be fun (since some of the people cast are in all of those shows!). logistics aside, here is a short snippet of a "fun" movement pattern we have been working on. as you can see, dance isn't always about razzle-dazzle...sometimes you gotta think too!
also...corian is busy exercising his creative energy by beginning work on a new dance to be performed in late january, actually the same weekend as the Staib/Catallier show...haha, that should be fun (since some of the people cast are in all of those shows!). logistics aside, here is a short snippet of a "fun" movement pattern we have been working on. as you can see, dance isn't always about razzle-dazzle...sometimes you gotta think too!
Happy Holidays!
This is Claire the office person stepping back in just to say "Happy Holidays" to anyone who's reading the blog and to let you know that the dancers are off until Jan. 20. They'll be back in the studio and back to blogging about their adventures then!
Have a safe, warm and happy holiday!
--Claire and all of us at SDC
Have a safe, warm and happy holiday!
--Claire and all of us at SDC
Thursday, December 10, 2009
the point?
so what is the point, or "the point" (as a dance)??? i don't know...and maybe that is the point. i probably can't explain it in words...because we are dancers...we dance (duh). it is a performing art...it is meant to be seen. in this video, claire is trying to explain her point of view as a dancer in the trio that corian created.
maybe the point is about differences and similarities, relationships and solo studies, intention and dynamics, needs and wants...it is hard to put into words, but i think individually we all clearly know what it feels like personally. how else can we move an audience, if as performers we are not clear with ourselves as to what our own personal journey is...so that then as a collective we can move foward in this endeavor together. what is even more beautiful is that Sue (our fearless leader) doesn't even know what "the point" is...i'm sure she has ideas, but the fact that we are all in this together is comforting.
maryjane yesterday said something that spoke volumes about this dance (the point)..."we are all going for the same thing, but trying to find it in different ways."
so that is what happened the first half of rehearsal today...the second half was yet another layer added upon this whole process. we had a 25 minute improv where we took each layer from the wall drawing, our solo phrases, the laban studies, and the movements that we learned/taugh one another...and combined them to have a vast bank full of movement possiblities...and then adding onto that the possibility for human interation (or contact). sue also played DJ and gave us a varied musical pallette that affected the emotional atmosphere of the improv....
of course, this is my own recollection and experience of the work...and it was beautiful, heartbreaking, bonding, lush, and simple...all in all, it was a good day...another day we all got to live, work...and most of all dance.
tomorrow we have class, a little bit of work...and then a christmas party, but no more point work...so it begs the questions: What is the point? What do you need to survive? what is your intention? what dynamic choices do you make? and lastly, how does it feel?
once you have possibly answered those questions...i ask you this...where do you go from there?
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