Preparing For Houston!

Today we opened the windows and let the spring into the studio as we work! The morning contained a contact improv inspired class hosted by Alex and Corian. Next we moved into the Forsyth technologies for continued work on 'The moment between..'
Our main focus today is work on the Bayou City Arts Festival in Memorial park in Houston. We are creating site specific and event specific adventures for moving through the park on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. We often use this festival as an opportunity to take whatever processes we are currently working on and turn them on their heads. Each dancer is the 'Ogre' or lead choreographer on a section drawing from recent choreography in 'The Point', and the Forsyth improvisation technologies we sweated over with JHon Stronks in 'The moment between' except we are exploring color instead of white.

"The Unstable Nature of Color" is the title for the work at Bayou City. We are already inspired by the work of Carlos Cruz Diez that is now showing at the Museum of Fine Arts Houston. This is also a live laboratory lead in (say that 5 times fast) for our upcoming performance in May at the Museum in and around the work of Carlos Cruz Diez.

Lunchtime...in the studio

Howdy all...thing have been whirlwind crazy...

Trips & performances to my hometown of Houston...then back to ATL; only to gear up to go back to Houston for the Bayou City Art Festival (BCAF) next week! Yesterday was our first day back in the studio after our Houston engagements...it was mostly occupied with meetings because we were so busy with performing.

Now we are back & today is our Lunchtime in the Studio highlighting: The Field & Fieldwork. Instead of CORE dancers performing, we are showcasing another part of our programming & other local artists (and Fieldwork participants): musician Daniel Aguilera and dancer/choreographer/poet Louise Runyon. Our sponsors for today's lunchtime are Sammiches 'n stuff, Johnny's pizza , and Starbucks. It is free and open to the public.

It will be a nice change to finally be able to sit back, relax and finally be able to enjoy the lunchtime since we usually have to perform. I also like being able to eat the free food & drink free coffee!

All the Stage's a World

Being in the theatre is like walking into the middle of outer space....time exists, but not really. The performers are surrounded by darkness; we feel our way through the vast emptiness, slowly discover lights, and our place within the madness. It is tedious, it can be tiring...then there is the exhausted laughter and various distractions. The powers that be are calling cues, asking the dancers to go back & do that "again."

The notes during this time become more detailed...the work is never done. The pieces continue to evolve: notes on performance quality, focus, & intention are mingle with specific directions on spacing, or remembering to stay "in the light." Offstage the dancers worry about being seen from the wings...remember your sight lines. Fatigue is fought on all sides...from after lunch drowsiness, to recuperative catnaps in hidden spaces in the theatre, stretching & of course idle chatter helps keep us on our toes (no pun intended).

The premiere, or the performance, of any work is like watching a bird attempt flight for the first time. Then, as the lights go out and the dancers take their places; we are all faced with that challenging leap of faith and we ask the audience to take that journey down the rabbit-hole with us. Hopefully we all leave unscathed, more aware, and maybe even moved.

Alex

So...

I want to play a little game called "Who's socks are these?" Socks are an important part of the life of a CORE Performance Company member. One will rarely see a company dancer without his or her socks. Can you identify who is wearing these socks? Let us know in the comment section.

Also, be sure and check out our Facebook page for new photos of "The Point" and "The Moment Between."

'Til next time.

Sharon

The First Time

There is nothing like the first time. The first time you ride a bike. Your first time on a plane. Your first kiss. There's always the build up of anticipation, followed by the torrent of questions. What is it going to be like? Will I like it? Will I want to experience it again? How am I going to be affected? Funny enough this is what was going through my head today right before I saw "The Point" and "The Moment Between."

As the dancers were putting on their costumes and preparing for the run, I noticed their settled and even breathing and their focus. The studio's atmosphere was charged, and perhaps this was lingering energy from the class that was taught by jhon r. stronks this morning. There were few onlookers besides myself, but even so they seemed to possess the excitement of a full audience.

I could describe in detail both of the pieces that I saw today, but I'm hoping that you will come and see them performed at Barnevelder in Houston, TX on Friday and Saturday, March 11 & 12. I wouldn't want your first time to be marred by mine. Instead, here are a few pictures and words of meaning for each piece.

The Point by Sue Scheorder

tension, community, lines,

build up of energy, embrace,

discord, humanity, together, apart

The Moment Between by jhon r. stronks and Sue Schroeder

fire and ice, love,

forbidden desire,

elation, striking, a hideaway

Experience your first time of the "The Point" and "The Moment Between," and afterwards we'll talk about it.

'Til then,

Sharon

Holiday cheer at the studio

 

Ok, so you may not celebrate Christmas, but I just thought this red decoration looked too nice with our new red logo to pass up! So here's some holiday cheer and a happy new year! 

(And by the way, the dancers are off until mid-January, so look for more posts starting up then!)

To Stone Mountain! (in the cold)

Did Blake walk on the moon??

Oh no, I see now, it's Stone Mountain!

Despite the oh-so-brisk weather, the CORE folks went on a journey outdoors yesterday to the big piece of granite to the east of here. Sue and two of the dancers took visiting German composer, Christian Meyer, for an expedition to find inspiration for work on "The Point."

See, Blake's got inspired thoughts he's making sure he doesn't forget.

Here are Sue and Christian!

Singing in the studio...

If you would have come by the studio today, you would have been surprised to hear a vocal orchestra (or voicestra) coming from upstairs. To gear up for Corazon, we are working on our singing with help from Elise Witt. Personally, my singing is left for the shower, the car, or with enough courage...maybe karaoke with friends; so it is unsettling and scary to know that we will have to speak and sing in front of a theatre full of strangers.

I once had to sing in front of people and forgot all the words to the song. That is in the top ten worst experiences of my life!! Afterwards, my parents took me to dinner, told me it wasn't that big a deal, and said I did a great job (that's what parents are for, right?!?). However, it was fun to let loose and not have to worry about my anxiety. I am looking forward to how this will work out. Besides, there is a reason we are dancers...most of us prefer to look pretty and be seen, and not heard. Going back to the idea of challenges; I think we can work through this and make it a great experience. This time I hope not to forget the words :)

Oh, by the way...we have a free Salon performance tonight in our downstairs studio from 6 to 7:30. There will be free drinks and snacks for those who attend. We will be working on/showing material for our upcoming show: Corazon Hope to see you there!

New life

We are back in the studio after a week off, from a very long and exciting bunch of Houston performances. First days back are always difficult because you have to get back into the groove of things. Add to that challenge that we all woke up to lightning and rain this morning...talk about not wanting to get out of bed! However, once we began moving our bodies in class; it was apparent that we were all yearning to move our bodies and get cracking! It was infectious...I always love those studio days!!!

Some of you know that we have an upcoming performance of Corazon Abriendo at the Balzer in downtown Atlanta, November 19th & 20th. There have been previous incarnations of this dance, but this is not the same show. Almost everything is new! Today we jumped head first into really finding the new life in this dance. Remounting a previous work is difficult, but if the stars align...it could be a breeze. With clarity and precision, Sue started shaping sections of Corazon to better suit the chemistry of this newer cast. It helps to have the wisdom and energy of those who have experienced Corazon previously. Juana and Blake can understand some of Sue's references from prior trips to Mexico; while we newbies can draw upon our Guatamala experience. It is a great blend of old and new.

I guess Sue's challenge is to find the middle ground. Today, she left the studio happy because not only did we rise to the occasion, but we had fun doing it. We laughed every time someone forgot a step or did the wrong movement. Corian burst into hysterical laughter from getting dizzy because he was spinning too quickly. It was a wonderful day in the office. Work isn't work if you are having fun.

So it begins, the road to performance...the task of bringing a dance to life!

Hello all!

It's day five of our Houston adventure and already we have done so much! The Bayou City Art Festival went great, the weather was warm, the crowd was enthusiastic and we got to splash around in the fountains on Saturday after workin' up a sweat!
We are now in the second stage of our trip and working on Navigating the Hallways. We are in a beautiful space at the CAMH and working with wonderful people. The beautiful dancers of KDNY are here and everything is going off without a hitch (mucho thanks to Theresa Chapman, our project coordinator, and fellow dancer beauty.) We have the afternoon off tomorrow after a master class taught by Corian at U of H.
Well, Claire is giving a fashion show, and I'm off to see what other goodies Patton has in his costume grab bag.
Bye for now!!!

CORE on the go...

Howdy everyone...from deep in the heart of Texas, this is Alex reporting on our current tour to Houston. We have an action-packed tour with performances at the Bayou City Arts Festival tomorrow and Sunday, a performance (with many Houston choreographers & a New York-based company) next Thursday at the Contemporary Arts Museum, and a performance next Friday at an outdoor theatre in downtown Houston (Discovery Green).

We arrived yesterday, had lunch then rehearsal. This morning many of CPC members took a fabulous dance class with Jane Weiner at HopeStone. We just finished eating delicious food and sipped on some well-made coffee at Brasil Cafe in the heart of the Montrose area (right down the street from my alma mater...Lanier Middle School, go Purple Pups)! We will have rehearsal soon, so some members (Corian, Claire, & Alisa) are using this little free time to have a quick shopping spree in the many nearby, trendy resale shops & boutiques! Oh the life of a dancer...trying to look fabulous on a budget! Well, I am about to check my bank account so that I may join them...hehehe!

Peace, love, & chicken grease!
CORE...OUT!

Houston get Ready!

We are gearing up for Houston!

Claire Molla and Blake Dalton performed the 'push up Pact' to be in top physical readiness.

We ran "Cumulus", which we will perform at Discovery Green. Now "In the beginning there was a word and the word was love" is being sweat through by Alex Abarca and MJ Pennington. Choreographed by CORE member Corian Ellisor, we will show this at Discovery Green also. Today we will also work on Navigating the Hallway for the Contemporary Arts Museum, and a new work for the Bayou City Arts Festival.

We are busy! If I can figure out my technology there will be some video today, too!

Lunchtime in the Studio, September 30th, 2010!

Today we are hosting our community in our downstairs studio. We have show some snippets of dance and we'd like to share some of what we recorded via video tape.

Signs are finished!

Here's the updated look at the studios and offices with our new pretty signs painted by Michelle Black of acoloraffair.com (designed by our graphic designer, Jon Scott Weaver.)
Here's the back parking lot and the silhouette of Claire jumping that looks great from up when you turn into the alleyway/entrance to the parking lot. 

 Here's that same one a little closer up:

 The front of the studios and offices with their new signs. I had no idea how much went into getting a sign permit, let me tell you, but we worked it out and here they are!

 Another silhouette on the front of the office. It had to be 8 ft. square by the regs, so she couldn't be huge and fill up the whole front.

 The front of the studios is a little more understated without a dancer on them, but it still looks good!

 Sign showing where to go from the back parking lot--no longer faded and no more old logo!

 Back door to the offices. Should help with the "where am I going" factor, don't you think? Now I just have to price the equivalent size stickers to go on the glass of the studio door. It may be too expensive in this size, so we'll see what we can do.

Rainy Days and Mondays

Hanging around...nothing to do but frown...It's Monday and it's rainy...Good thing we are inside dancing! This morning we are tackling a run of Cumulus for one of our many performances in Houston next week. This particular performance is sort of a retrospective performance that we are sharing with Ad Deum dance company. We are both celebrating anniversaries. Ad Deum is turing 1o, and CORE is now considered over the hill with this being our 30th season. The Show is Friday October 15th at Discovery Green in Houston Texas.

Also on the bill, we are presenting a piece that I (Corian) choreographed titled, "In the beginning there was a word and the word was love." I am honored to have the opportunity to show this dance in a different venue in Houston again. A new crowd will be exposed to my choreography. Being a young choreographer, that is all you can ask for...people coming out and seeing your work. When you are choreographing it is sort of a cathartic experience; almost a birthing process. Everyone wants a cute baby that people compliment; not those ugly babies (there are ugly babies) that people lie and say are cute! So you hope when people come and see your work that they are actually moved by the whole experience and honest with what their feedback.

Finally, we are presenting a new piece that we are in the process of making. "Room" is something we are creating in conjunction with our performance at the Contemporary Arts Museum in Houston. It will be quite interesting to see how we will adapt the dance for two completely different spaces. In CORE we are always up for the challenge!

Wednesday Corazon and other Adventures

We are delighted to have Juana Farfan back with us for Corazon Abriendo! She was with us for the original development of Corazon and then was busy having baby Luke. Now she is back for the November performance of Corazon and she looks great!

This afternoon we will work on 'Navigating the Hallway'. This is an exciting new work that we will perform at the Contemporary Arts Museum in Houston with Houston Choreographers and KDNY from NYC. Alisa is a new dancer in town joining us for this project.

And then we will see you tonight from 6:30 - 8pm ! at Jill Celeste gallery ( formerly Palate)

Monday CUMULUS!

Corian started us off with a vivacious high energy sweaty class. We worked the slyly humorous text in Cumulus, re connected with the elegant fluid lines choreographed by Dutch Choreographer Beppie Blankert and dove back in to the aggressive almost pro wrestling partner work.

In mid October we will perform outdoors in Houston at Discovery Green. Joanna Futral is once again deftly stepping in to Kim Kleibers role ( Kim just had baby Evan, GO KIM!). Alex is finding a little machismo for the intense fight partnering.

Wednesday evening 6:30 - 8pm is our kick off event at the Jill Celeste gallery/Mcgowan's ( formerly Palate Wine Bar)

Studio renovations

So we didn't get a "before" to go with the "after," but if you've been to our studios, you'll see the transformation (still in process in several places.)
So in the alleyway, they removed the awning that ran the length of it and painted everything our fantastic new blue color. 

 

And in the downstairs lobby, there's a shiny new floor and a working kitchen with plumbing and a fridge and everything!

  

We even have a newly wired, working doorbell by the back door to the office (the wireless one we were using was very, very unreliable! Sometimes it didn't work at all, sometimes it got stuck and wouldn't stop ringing...)

 

We got a new front and back door to the office so that they fit better and will close all the way so they won't leak air so much etc. We still have to get new stickers and/or paint the new logo on them.

We also got a new door to the studio so no more confusion on which one to enter through, and also a nicer seal.

Also painted the front of the studio the base blue, and soon to have "CORE studios" on it in the new red.

A lot more stuff to do with the logos and stickers on doors. They're also rewiring the front windows of the studio so the displays are more visible at night. Oh and the best news for the dancers, they redid the floor upstairs in the studio so it's sprung and isn't lumpy any more (no photo of that, though it might be hard to see the difference as much as feel it.) Stay tuned for more when we get the finishing touches done!!

week two

hello again. we are in the thick of week two of our 30th season. there is a lot of activity in the studio and in the building. we have a new dance floor in our upstairs studio, new flooring and a kitchenette in the foyer space downstairs, and a paint job including the new logo on the building to come in the next couple of days. we have been taking advantage of our new studio floors with company classes (which rock and are open to the public) and lots of rehearsals. core is very happy to be working again with Juana Farfan on the remounting of Corazon Abriendo which will be in our performance schedule this season. we are also busy working on In the beginning there was a word and the word was love, a duet choreographed by Corian Ellisor, which will be performed at Discovery Green in Houston next month. Cumulus, choreography by Beppie Blankert, will also be presented in the Discovery Green performance. we are really excited about our upcoming trip to Houston, which will include performances at Discovery Green, Bayou City Art Festival, and the Contemporary Arts Museum alongside KDNY and Houston dancers, Teresa Chapman, Leslie Scates, Becky Valls. pretty sweet!

And we're back...

Howdy everyone! We are back and ready for some dancing! Our first official day back in the studio was yesterday. Our day started with class taught by the one and only Sue Schroeder. Can I just say that after a whole summer of living in the real world, working a customer service job, trying to make ends meet...it feels good to get back to the grind of dancing! My body is happy (albeit sore), so therefore my general mood has lifted...no pain, no grain, right? Getting our repertory back to performance is a challenge, but a much welcomed one.

Despite having been on hiatus since May, we have had quite a busy summer. We had the amazing pleasure of traveling to Sweden to perform in the ABUNDANCE festival. We were one of three U.S. Companies to perform in the festival. We adapted our newest work, The Point, to be a site specific work in Karlstad, Sweden. Then, most recently, in August we performed in the Houston Frenetic Fringe Festival. Many of the company members created our own work that was presented with various other artist for a full evening of eclectic performances.

I would have to say, that because I got a taste of what life is like to work in the "real world," I would much rather dance for a living. I am able to interact with my fellow dancers, choreographers, etc in a very relaxed, personal, and professional level that is extremely satisfying. Who wouldn't like to go to a job that not only is a great personal escape, but allow you to laugh
, be productive, and stay active? I feel very blessed to not have to sit in a cubicle all day! Besides, it isn't work to me...it is play! Simple put...I am very glad to be back, and I can't wait for this actioned packed 30th season to unfold!