January 22, 2008

Videos of Merce's Weekly Company Classes to be Distributed Online

This past Saturday, Julie Bloom wrote in the New York Times about "Mondays With Merce," an upcoming web-based video series that will feature extensive video footage from Merce Cunningham's Monday morning company classes, which he teaches at his studio in the West Village.

On the Merce Cunningham Dance Company (MCDC) website, you can read more about these educational programs and watch a short clip of a class, although it's not taught by Merce.

I think it will be fascinating to watch videos of Merce teaching his classes. MCDC has received significant grant money, $250,000 according to the NY Times article, to allow them to create a four-camera shoot of each 90-minute class. Here's a diagram from the New York Times of what the video recording configuration will probably look like.

The funding will go toward the creation of this project as well as the equally important task of preserving these important video recordings.

According to the MCDC website, videos of sections of Merce's company classes interspersed with rehearsal footage and interviews will be available starting in September of this year. These online videos will be available for free. If universities, dance companies and others want the full company classes, this material has to be licensed for an unspecified fee.

MCDC has negotiated a new union contract with the American Guild of Musical Artists, which represents the Merce dancers, so that company members participating in these video recording sessions can receive compensation. I think that this new union contract is an important step forward in terms of figuring out how dancers will be compensated for their work when it is distributed through new distribution channels. In April 2006, I wrote about the need for these types of new media contracts:

If I were an executive director of a dance company or a union representative, the first thing I would do is renegotiate the contract sections that relate to digital reproductions of performances, rehearsals and other dance formats. The online world, as I've written about extensively, represents a huge opportunity for dance companies to reach larger audiences, generate more revenue and ensure the financial health of dance. But the online world cannot be exploited without first addressing these contractual issues.

After writing "Rethinking Master Classes to Engage Larger Dance Audiences," on Friday, I'm curious how Merce and the participants in this video project envision who their online audience is and how viewers will interact with these materials.

When I first read about the upcoming videos of Merce's company classes, I thought that it was a great idea. I get to watch and follow along an entire master class--even though I knew it would be way too difficult for me. But then I realized that the online videos would feature sections of the master classes interspersed with video footage from other sources as I mentioned above. So it strikes me at this point that MCDC is creating an online, on-going documentary for those interested in learning about and observing dance. And the goal of the Internet portion of this project is not really participatory in nature along the lines of what I wrote about on Friday. I'm not saying that critically. Here is just one more approach that dance companies can take to using online educational videos to engage with larger dance audiences in new ways.

This Merce Cunningham video project is definitely an important development for the dance world. I think that many more dancers and dance companies will begin to explore how to capture classes, rehearsals, interviews and other process-oriented and behind-the-scenes activities. And there will be a related effort to explore different approaches to funding and monetizing the creation and distribution of these video programs.

It would be nice to have $250k in funding for similar video projects. But the truth is that experimentation along the above lines can be done very inexpensively. I'd be delighted to hear about similar initiatives.

Posted by Doug Fox at 5:20 AM - Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

January 18, 2008

Rethinking "Master Classes" to Engage Larger Dance Audiences

In "LEVYdance performance and masterclass," Maria writes about taking a masterclass with Artistic Director Benjamin Levy and then seeing his company, LEVYdance, perform at Dance Place in Washington, DC.

Maria points out that "The masterclass was a wonderful prequel to the performance, particularly in retrospect as I thought about the things we'd focused on in the class that showed up in Levy's work."

She also writes about why she never attended a masterclass before:

I have never been to a modern masterclass before because it always sounds so intimidating. One of the last few I looked at required an advanced level of training. Another had an audition immediately following the class, and I didn't really care for the sort of cutthroat environment that might result in.

I wouldn't attend a masterclass because my first reaction is that I don't have enough training. But I love the idea of taking a class with a choreographer whose work I'm about to see. I think it would be a great way to get inside the work and develop a much stronger feel for and connection with what I see on stage.

So maybe there is an opportunity here to go beyond traditional masterclasses and create a new type of workshop environment that reaches out to dancers, maybe non-dancers, with a much broader range of dance experience.

What I would personally like is to first watch an online video of a choreographer discussing his or her work. Then, the video includes a technique section for beginning and intermediate students who want to have some exercises and choreography to experiment with on their own. Then after watching this video, I'd attend a basic-level masterclass before going to see the company perform.

I'm pretty certain that this beginner-focused master class coupled with the instructional video would transform the dance-going experience for me. I like having a very physical connection with performances I see and I think this approach might work for many others as well.

The video might end-up being very viral in nature. If a dancer teaches a routine in the video, a lot of people might post their take on the routine to YouTube.

Add-ons:

For a good video about Benjamin Levy and his dance company, visit this link.

I like the large video on the opening page of the LEVYdance website. This is what I recommended that more dance companies do in this post.

Posted by Doug Fox at 7:05 AM - Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBacks (0)

January 9, 2008

My Upcoming Internet and Technology Speaking Programs

I'm going to be speaking about the Internet and technology at the following workshops and conferences for the dance community. I hope to see readers there:

- Dance/NYC is hosting a session on Technology Basics. The focus of this program is to offer artists an introduction to creating an effective website, posting videos to YouTube and implementing an Internet marketing campaign. This program will take place at Dance/NYC on Tuesday, February 26th.

- This spring I'll be conducting a session on web marketing as part of the Joyce's "Free Advice" educational series for members of the dance community. The program will focus on blogs, video, social networking, online marketing and related topics. "Free Advice" programs take place Monday evenings starting in March at Joyce SoHo. Date of my session to be determined.

- The Dance Critics Association Conference takes place June 13-15th in Washington, DC. On Sunday, June 15th, I'll be participating in a roundtable on "New Media & Dance - Opportunities & Obstacles" that will explore the latest Internet developments and trends related to dance writing and criticism.

If your organization will be conducting Internet and technology workshops and educational programs for dance and other arts audiences, I'd be delighted to discuss my possible participation in your program. You can email me at: doug@greatdance.com - Thanks!

Posted by Doug Fox at 9:45 AM - Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

December 11, 2007

Jazz Class at Luigi's Dance Centre

Last night I took a technique class at Luigi's Dance Centre with Francis Roach. Luigi is a famous jazz teacher who developed his own dance style after being seriously injured in a car accident. Check out his bio to learn about his career in the movies and on Broadway. I'll guess he's in his 80's since he served in World War II. He continues to teach and I plan to take one of his beginner classes soon.

Last night's class focused solely on the warm-up exercise that's done during the regular style classes. So I probably won't take the Monday class again. I'll just take the style class so I can learn the routine.

I tried to find a video of Luigi dancing or teaching, but no luck. But I did stumble upon this video with dancing by Chita Rivera and Jack Cole on the TV show "Tip Toe Through TV" with a wonderful intro by Sid Ceasar with his answer to the question: What is jazz?

Posted by Doug Fox at 10:09 AM - Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

December 4, 2007

I Would Really Appreciate Instructional-Type Modern Dance Videos

I'm endlessly frustrated by not being able to find the types of online dance videos I'm looking for. There are millions of Internet videos, but not the ones I want.

What I would like is this:

- Videos from modern/contemporary/improvisational dancers.

- The dancer shows a small piece of choreography - maybe from a few different angles.

- The dancer breaks down the piece so that viewers can figure it out and more or less replicate it.

- The dancer also highlights the elements of his or her technique that students should probably have a grasp of in order to practice the choreography.

That's it. It doesn't seem to me that I'm asking for that much. But I just don't find videos like this. Maybe dancers just aren't inclined to do this?

Personally, I want short routines to work on by myself and these kinds of educational videos would really help me. I'd probably pay for this type of video if they were good enough quality. Maybe $2 or $3 a video.

I wrote above right after reading Amanda Abrams thoughts about Zach Morris' video from Honk Kong (Zach Morris and Tom Pearson are blogging about their site-specific work in Hong Kong on their Third Rail Projects Blog on Great Dance):

Posted by Doug Fox at 4:56 PM - Permalink | Comments (11) | TrackBacks (0)

December 2, 2007

Helping Dancers Get the Right Shot

Dance blogger Matt Gough links to post by photographer Brian Shaler who uses a good combination of video, images and text to describe how he got the desired picture. In his case, a static car with a blurred background.

Matt has a good point. There are many Internet-based video and photo editing/publishing tools that could be put to innovative use by dancers. In Brian Shaler's post, for example, the video application Viddler is used. You'll see when you watch this video that you can add tags and comments at any point of the clip to highlight whatever you think is important. I'd really like to see experimentations with this type of annotation for dance, especially for educational purposes.

Posted by Doug Fox at 3:36 PM - Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Stretching Things a Bit with the Anaheim Ballet

Here's an August Anaheim Ballet video from YouTube that I came across on the Inamorata Ballet blog:

Is this all supposed to be light-hearted fun? There's no way I'll ever be able to do these stretches. I thought after the humorous opening, they were going to dive into stretches for humans, but it didn't go in that direction.

On a more positive note, I'm happy how far more stretching has come over the past three years. There's a lot I'll never be able to do because I started dancing at 43, but I'm still a thousand percent more flexible than I use to be.

On related note, I'm experimenting with ballet again. I took an intro to ballet at Alvin Ailey about two weeks ago that was a lot of fun. I'm trying to figure out if I can fit in a weekly ballet class into my schedule - I'd really like to do this, but I'm not sure I can pull it off.

Posted by Doug Fox at 3:12 PM - Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

November 16, 2007

I Walked Out of My Dance Class Last Night

I've been meaning to take a dance class at Broadway Dance Center. So last night I took beginner jazz with Andrea Brown.

I walked out of the class in about 20 minutes because I was scared that I was going to get injured because of the instructor. I've taken a handful of dance classes that I didn't like but I've never taken a class where I thought the approach taken by the teacher was dangerous to my health. I was the only one who walked out last night so maybe the other 30 students or so don't feel the way I did. But here's what happened:

For starters, Brown talked incessantly at the beginning of the class. She was trying to be helpful and give direction to new students like myself. But I go to dance classes to move. And when teachers talk too much, you're not moving and you're not warming-up your body. So 15 minutes into the class I felt that I had barely moved a muscle, which is unlike any other jazz class I've taken before.

So maybe at the 15 minute mark, the teacher had us do an exercise that required us to move very abruptly from one position to the next. I don't have this exactly, but imagine the following: You're standing in a wide second position and you're leaning over with a flat back. Then you have to very quickly roll your back down so that your head is between your legs and you are holding your thighs. I'm not objecting to this transition - I've done the same or similar hundreds of times. I'm objecting to the fact that it wasn't done gradually. When I'm not warmed-up, I refuse to move my body, especially my back, in any abrupt way whatsoever because I know I'll get hurt. So overall, her exercise consisted of a couple abrupt movements (about 90 degree changes in the position of the back) that I probably wouldn't want to do at any point in the class even if I was very loose.

By the time we were doing the above exercise, I was already following along in slow motion because I wasn't about to do the exercise as the teacher was demonstrating/describing. So she walks over to me to help me do the exercise correctly. And while facing me, she puts her hands on the back of my head/neck area to guide me into some kind of rolling of my back. Putting aside that she didn't do this very gently, a teacher cannot lead my back by putting pressure on the back of my head or neck. That seems like a great way to injure somebody. Plus, she has no idea what the state of my health is, especially my back, so she's taking way too many risks.

I've had many teachers push various parts of my body into different positions and I've always appreciated it. Without having an instructor physically move my shoulders, head, hips and other parts of my body, I would simply not know what the correct position should be. But there are proper ways to adjust a student's body that are safe and there are other ways that are dangerous. Teachers have to know what the difference is.

About two minutes later I grabbed my things and walked out of the class. After I changed I went to the registration desk. I ended-up having a conversation with Lizzy, the manager. I told her exactly what happened and that this was the first time I had ever left a dance class in the middle. She said that they had had complaints (or some type of problems - I don't remember her exact words) with this instructor. And that the other classes at Broadway Dance Center were not like the class I had just taken. I asked Lizzy if she'd give me back my $18 and she did - I was surprised she gave me a full refund. I appreciate that Lizzy was very honest and open to hearing what I had to say. But our conversation does beg the question: Why is a teacher continuing to teach if there have been multiple complaints about her?

Posted by Doug Fox at 7:01 AM - Permalink | Comments (7) | TrackBacks (0)

October 30, 2007

I Don't Want Just a Mental Toehold on a Ballet; I Want a Full-Body Connection

In her New Yorker review, "The Newcomer," of Christopher Wheeldon at City Center, Joan Acocella focuses on how Wheeldon and his company Morphoses are determined to make their performances more accessible and comprehensible to audiences:

As each dance opened, its title was projected on a scrim in front of the stage. When the lights go down at a ballet performance, you often hear people asking each other frantically, "What's the next piece?" They spent intermission socializing and forgot to look at their programs. Wheeldon knows this, and is helping them out. In the evening's central section, a series of short dances, he made matters easier still by introducing each piece with a short film, maybe a minute long, of the cast rehearsing that number. The films (by William Trevitt and Michael Nunn, a.k.a. London's Ballet Boyz, who also danced during the season) were very good: sexy, sweaty. But their purpose, I believe, was to give the audience a toehold on the ballet before the curtain went up, and also to give them the pleasure, as they watched the piece, of recognizing steps. ("Oh, that's the passage they were working on in the film.") No art, not even opera, is more clad in snobbery than ballet. These little movies were an attack on that, and God bless them.

(Thanks to Anna McDonald for pointing out this New Yorker article.)

Christopher Wheeldon - Denver Post

I like this idea of giving the audience a mental "toehold on the ballet." But what I really want is a physical body-hold on the dance.

Two weeks ago I took a jazz class with Maurice Johnson at Joy of Motion in Washington, DC. I didn't know this at the time, but the routine he taught during the class was a snippet of a work that he was performing that weekend at Dance Place, which I happened to see.

As Acocella writes, there's a pleasure one gets from seeing steps/movement with which you're familiar during a performance. She's definitely right. But there are different levels of pleasure when it comes to seeing movement. At least in my case, I derive much more enjoyment seeing movement on stage with which my body is familiar than seeing movement on stage with which only my mind is familiar.

"Dancing in the Seats" - New York Times

Maybe this preference on my part is because I relate to dance more in a physical than mental manner. And also explains why I like this editorial so much in the New York Times "Dancing in the Seats" by Daniel J. Levitin. The author, a professor of psychology and music, explores the historical indivisibility of music and movement (many languages that are spoken today have a single word that means both music and dance). And he points out that from an evolutionary perspective the professionalization of performances which has led to a separation of performers and audience members is, essentially, unnatural. Our biological circuitry has not been trained over thousands of years not to move when we hear music that MOVES us. [via Amanda Abrams in DCDance Blog].

Full-Body Connections - A New Audience Development Strategy for Choreographers

This is what I'd really like dance companies to do during the weeks leading-up to a performance:

Take a section of your work--maybe a minute or so in length--and create a routine for students of different levels. Essentially, a choreographer would shoot a video of this routine in two versions (beginner and intermediate/advanced). This piece of choreography would be shot from different angles so that nothing is missed. And on the video the choreographer would talk users through the routine.

Then these videos would be posted to the web. Now anybody could download them. I could download the beginner routine and learn it on my own. Or a teacher could learn the routine and teach it to students in a dance class and promote the upcoming performance in the process. The dance company could even provide downloadable music files for use in dance classes - assuming they had the rights to do so.

It would also be helpful if the choreographer created an additional companion video that highlighted the basics of the technique that would be required to properly do the routine.

I have no idea how much of a market there would be for these types of videos. All I can say is that if you produce them and I can make sense of them, then I'm definitely going to your performance.

Posted by Doug Fox at 10:25 AM - Permalink | Comments (6) | TrackBacks (0)

October 29, 2007

Mastering The Rhythms of Salsa - The Unlikely Salsero to the Rescue

I would love to be out on the dance floor Salsa dancing. There's just one major problem. I can't for the life of me hear the beat in Salsa music. And I don't like the idea of leading if I can't hear the music.

But I now think I can solve my Salsa rhythm challenges. About two weeks ago Don Baarns of The Unlikely Salsero blog emailed me to let me know about his blog and share some kind feedback about mine. I encourage you to read his blog - he has excellent posts about all aspects of Salsa.

In any case, I shared my frustration with him about my inability to hear Salsa music. He said that he's taught many people "to listen" to Salsa music and he was confident that he could help me if I put in enough time in over the next few months to half a year. So I was delighted to take him up on his offer.

My first assignment - Listen to the title track:
Salsa Never Ends

You can read Don's post Finding "One" Over the Wires about our pending collaboration. We will both be blogging about the process as we move ahead.

So I'm delighted that Don will be helping me so I can hit the Salsa clubs again.

Posted by Doug Fox at 11:10 AM - Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBacks (0)

October 24, 2007

My Notes for Panel Discussion Tonight at Dance/NYC

Here's draft of my notes for panel discuss tonight tonight at Dance/NYC.

I figured I'd share, but my notes might be too abbreviated in some places to make sense.

Feel free to share your wisdom before session.

How is technology impacting the dance world? Is it good? Is it bad? How can we use it to grow our audiences? How does live dance compete? These are all questions that will be discussed at our first town hall of the year. Please join us!

Initial Thoughts

For most part, presenters & dance co's >> Internet as traditional marketing >> inform audiences and sell tickets.

Limitation >> Internet and tech developments transforming expectations of audiences.

+ Internet audience mil. x larger than theater audience.

Key Technology Trends

- Home entertainment systems - wide-screen/videos/games

- Faster, more versatile Internet - large resources/new forms participation

- Wireless and mobile devices - match Internet/real-time sharing/friends

- Growth in social networking tools and applications/myspace, facebook, blogs...first person comm. Networking w/ people similar interests.

How do users act - What do users want result of trends:

- Multi-tasking and short attention spans

- Easy access abundance content and info.

- Instant access to advice - soc. Networks

- Spur of moment planning - always connected

- People expect to b more engaged/involved in pursuits

- Users don't want to feel marketed to

Will these traits & tendencies build audiences? Challenging!

They are opposite of sit quietly 90 min, be engaged and absorbed

So what approaches can/should be pursued:

- Dance delivered multiple platforms: live, Internet, hi-def and mobile

- Dance shared different points creative process w/ feedback

- More content/resources/videos about specific performances

- Audience given direct access to choreographers and dancers

- Dance integrated into larger cultural, social and political context

What do dance-makers do to realize these approaches:

- New approaches: marketing, communication and community-building functions

- Dance videos need to be compelling and innovative

- Intellectual property and contractual issues need to be addressed

- Choreographers/dancers spend more time communicating with audiences online

- New biz model to sport these initiatives - w/o, it is impossible to implement (but challenging).

o Advertising
o Corporate sponsorship
o Individual and corporate donors, and
o Monetizing video content in different ways

Specific ideas and possibilities

I've been blogging

- Integration /w environ. Blog Action Day - 15 bloggers/millions readers

- Replicate depth coverage/resources classical music - Alex Ross

- Tap into amateur dancers - people who do are ready to watch - soc. Net.

- New models for Internet-based works-in-process - Inquisitive Owl blog

Conclusion

We're in chicken and egg quandary:

- Internet, rich opportunities, larger, more involved audiences, unlimited video distribution, more bookings, new $$ streams.

- But time, energy and financial resources needed to kick things off

- And dancers have hectic schedules the way things are and funding far from ideal.

- So few courageous souls needed to jump start process

Posted by Doug Fox at 2:23 PM - Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

October 18, 2007

From Washington, DC...Dance Classes and New Bloggers

I'm in DC for a few days - packing-up my stuff and getting ready to move everything to NYC. One of the things I'm doing is getting together with DC dance bloggers - especially ones I haven't met - while I'm down here.

I also have a number of dance classes left on my Joy of Motion class card so I'm taking classes while I'm down here. Last night I took Daniel Burkholder's contact improv class - see his blog on Great Dance. I found last night's class fun and challenging. Daniel led us through a series of exercises where we were supposed to let the movement follow its own energy and direction, but I find it very difficult not to play a significant role in trying to force movement when in contact with my partner.

For example, toward the beginning each of us was with a partner. We closed our eyes and pressed our index fingers against each others. We were just supposed to follow the natural flow of any movement generated. But it's hard to let things just happen naturally and I have to constantly stop myself from trying to achieve a specific outcome. We did similar exercises with our heads and also with a single point of contact as we were dancing.

The class was real small - only 4 students. I really don't understand why so few people go to Daniel's contact class. He's an excellent teacher and his classes are always thought-provoking and offer much to reflect on. Most people seem more interested/comfortable going to the regular technique classes.

Tonight I'm going to take Maurice Johnson's jazz class, which opens with one of the more rigorous one-hour warm-ups that I've ever taken in a class. So if I survive all the plies and ab work, I'll know I'm back in shape and pretty much injury free.

More bloggers...

I'd like to welcome three new bloggers to Great Dance that I'll write more about:

- JoAnna Mendl Shaw, the artistic director of The Equus Projects, started blogging earlier this week. JoAnna choreographers works for dancers and horses. I find her work fascinating.

- And Misnomer Dance Theater started blogging last night. I've written a number of times about Chris Elam and Misnomer. They have been in the forefront of using the Internet and video to engage audiences with their work in new and different ways.

- And within the next few days, Tom Pearson of Third Rail Projects will start blogging about an upcoming site-specific work in Hong Kong.

It's great to be working with new and current bloggers!

Posted by Doug Fox at 1:44 PM - Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

October 15, 2007

My Path to Learning How to Improvise and Create Movement

I think I finally figured out what type of classes and dancing I ultimately want to take and pursue so I can develop my own personal approach to movement.

What I want is a mix of elements that I've come across in different dance programs I've taken:

- A rapid way of disconnecting myself from my intellect and my inhibitions so I can more comfortably explore a much wider range of movements and possibilities without judging or limiting myself every step along the way.

- The use of a diverse range of structured exercises that makes it easy to generate new phrases, rhythms and fundamentally different approaches to how I move. This more rational approach might conflict a bit with my desire to let go and disengage from my rational side.

- Find classes and dances where participants have extensive training and much more experience dancing than I do.

That's it - the above will give me exactly what I'm looking for and here's some background on where I'm going with this:

5 Rhythms: Letting Go on the Dance Floor

Last Friday, I went to another 5Rhythms program - this one was called "Night Waves" and it was hosted by Tammy Burstein. I would describe this two-hour program as a place where people can come to let go and experiment with movement in a non-judgmental, non-critical atmosphere. There were about 25 people in last week's program and the class consists of light guidance and a few exercises to get us to the point where we're comfortable in our own skin and not burdened with our doubts and insecurities. There's nothing really fancy about the class - it just works, at least for me.

At the beginning, you warm-up and start to move at your own pace - some people stay in a fixed spot while others move across the floor. I felt self-conscious beyond belief and I couldn't stand moving to the mellow sounds of the '60s playing over the sound system, but the music got much better. So, everybody is moving about in their self-contained world. Then, at one point, Tammy said, "If you're emotionally tired go in this corner, if your physically tired go in this corner and if your intellectually tired go in this corner." I didn't really feel like going to any corner, I was revved-up and had tons of energy; I ended-up going to the intellectually tired corner. Then in our three different groups we formed circles. What surprised me is how uninterested some people in my circle were in connecting to the people right around them. When I'm in a circle, I tend to watch other people dance and often start replicating the movements of others. Maybe some people just come to these 5Rhythms programs to be by themselves and experience their own dancing without having to deal with anybody else. I like dancing alone part of the program, but I have no interest in spending all my time in isolation. But after awhile, I started dancing with one women in my circle and we had a very connected, high-energy dance together.

A little later during the class, Tammy had us break-up into two groups. She said that everybody who wanted to dance with a partner should go on one side of the room and everybody who wanted to dance solo should go on the other side of the room. Well, guess what happened? Me and the woman who had just danced together were on the partner side and everybody else went on the other side of the room - this struck me as very odd. 95% of the people who went to this program wanted to be by themselves? In any case, the two of us started dancing like crazy, most of the time facing all the other dancers - I'm not sure what we were doing - maybe it was something like a fast-paced aerobics dance - we were dancing all out. So eventually some of the solo-people came around to our side and tapped into the energy. I'm not sure where my stamina on the dance floor has come from lately. I guess it's from the gazillion dance classes I've taken. My energy has gone through the roof and I'm probably in better shape than I've been in many years.

One more exercise, a bit later in the class, consisted of our forming a large circle. And one person after another would do a solo improvisation dance in the middle. By this time, I had burned so much energy and I was so unconcerned by just about anything that I went for broke when it was my turn - except for a few moments when I felt awkward - I'm not sure where that came from.

Finally, the music become softer and more mellow, we were dancing slowly alone or with partners. And as the music came to an end, we were all relaxing on our backs winding down from an intense two hours.

Do you know when I read the 5Rhythms website, it sounds incomprehensible to me and I don't know what they're talking about. For me the class on Friday was a great experience. Partly it was the fun of dancing, it was feeling connections with other dancers and it was progressively feeling more comfortable in my own skin. While all that is very positive, I'm not sure what specifically it is about how the class was gently directed, the music or anything else that actually led to this experience - maybe that's the point.

Liz Lerman Dance Exchange: A Structured, Creative Approach to Generating Movement

I've written many times about the "Generating and Crafting Movement" workshop I took with Liz Lerman Dance Exchange. Their methodology is covered in-depth in their online Toolbox that you can access after completing an online registration form - there's no charge.

Their methodology for developing choreography is suitable for both experienced and newcomers to dance.

After taking the 5Rhythms class, the additional point that I'd make about the Dance Exchange methodology is that it is for the most part a rational, logical approach to dance making. The goal, unlike 5Rhythms, is not to give you an instant avenue to break down your inhibitions, but to provide a set of creative tools that offer a comfortable path to generating a large variety of movement ideas that can then be shaped into a finished dance piece.

In Search of Experienced Dancers - Combining All Three Elements

There's one thing that 5 Rhythms does not have: trained, experienced dancers participating in these programs - of course, I'm among those untrained dancers.

What I'd like to do is find a group of people that got together on a regular basis that in some way combined the three elements I described at the opening of this post: A combination of the rational and the non-intellectual, ways to break-free of my intellect while still using structured exercises, and the opportunity to learn from dancers with much more training and experience than myself.

Posted by Doug Fox at 8:11 AM - Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

October 12, 2007

I'm Participating in Dance/NYC Town Hall on Future of Dance and the Internet

On Wednesday, October 24th, I'll be participating in Dance/NYC's first Town Hall of the season. The title of this program is close to my heart:

How is technology impacting the dance world. Is it good? Is it bad? How can we use it to grow our audiences? How does live dance compete? These are all questions that will be discussed at our first town hall of the year. Please join us!

Since this is a town hall format, my guess is that each of the presenters only has a brief amount of time to talk and most of the program will be devoted to an open discussion relating to the future of dance and the impact of the Internet on the concert dance community.

So what I'll do is write a post or two next week with my thoughts on these and related issues. And it would be great to get ideas and feedback from readers as well. I'll include your comments in my handout so participants can get a diverse range of views on these issues.

I'm delighted to be participating in this Town Hall. And if you're in New York City, it would be great to see you/meet you at this event - it's free! Here's the RSVP form.

The event takes place at Dance/NYC offices:

Dance/NYC
63 Greene St
New York, NY 10012

View Larger Map

Posted by Doug Fox at 8:31 AM - Permalink | Comments (8) | TrackBacks (0)

October 9, 2007

8 Dance Classes in 7 Days

For some reason I've been obsessed with taking dance classes lately - I'm not sure what's gotten into me. Maybe I'm frustrated that I'm not at the point where I want to be in terms of my dancing. So that might be motivating me.

This past Saturday I took a Skinner Release Technique (SRT) workshop in SoHo that was facilitated by SRT instructors Karl Anderson, Pamela Knowles, Mary-Clare McKenna and Laurel Tentindo. (They don't have a website - you can email Karl to learn more).

I find it somewhat difficult to describe various movement techniques such as SRT and the Feldenkrais Method, which I recently took a class in at Movement Research.

You can go here to learn more about Skinner Releasing Technique. For myself, I would say it is an approach to better understanding your body and making your movements freer and more efficient. A central focus was on isolating and relaxing different joints/body parts so you were both more aware and more comfortable using that part of your body while dancing. For example, we might start by doing exercises that concentrate our energy on our shoulders and then release tension in this joint. This would be followed with improvised movement where the idea was to concentrate on loosening the shoulders and arms while dancing.

The last hour of the workshop was devoted strictly to improvisation with some warm-up exercises to help us get our free-form movement bearings.

What I'd really like to find in New York City are open improvisation sessions with some limited exercises and warm-ups that help participants develop and explore different types of movements. For example, shadowing and delayed shadowing might be used to get dancers to experiment with new movement patterns and approaches. (Shadowing is when one person replicates the movements of another dancer. Delayed shadowing is when you replicate the movements of your partner with a few second delay.) There are many different exercises that could be used to get the ball rolling.

In any case, I haven't found anything like this yet. And if anybody knows about something similar, please let me know. There are contact jams, but that's not really what I want. For my purposes at this point, I find contact improv too limited a sub-set of the general types of movement that I want to explore.

Simonson at DNA

I've also taken a couple Simonson Technique classes at Dance New Amsterdam - these are essentially jazz classes. I took a real beginner class with Chris Heller and a regular beginner drop-in with Te Perez. I'm conflicted about whether to continue with a regular beginner drop-in class. It just moves so slowly that I'm about ready to go out of my mind. I like fast pace classes even if I feel overwhelmed at times and I like to get a good cardio workout and leave with abs that have been pushed to the brink, especially now that I'm almost recovered from a very long back injury. But at the same time, I really need to continue taking beginner classes so I can get constant help with my technique and form - it seems to be taking forever for me to learn how to hold my body, drop my shoulders, position my pelvis and do the many important details of dance in the correct manner. And I need instructors to push my body repeatedly in the correct position so that I'll finally remember how to do everything right. Plus, the routines in beginner classes are perfect for me so I really shouldn't complain.

So the only solution I can think of is to take a good number of beginner classes and a bit more advanced ones as well so that I can get everything I want.

I've also taken Horton modern classes (click and scroll down to "Intro Horton") and West African classes at Alvin Ailey. I've been taking a beginner modern class with Anne-Rene Petrarca every week at DNA - I especially like this class and I try to take it every week. And I continue to take an Erick Hawkins modern class at 92nd Street Y.

Posted by Doug Fox at 3:08 PM - Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

October 5, 2007

Discarding My Inhibitions on the Dance Floor

I've been taking a good number of dance classes here in New York City. And I'm finding the suggestions to my post "Planning My Future Dance Education" very helpful.

Since I only have so much time to take classes and go dancing, I'm trying to focus on what I think I'll enjoy the most and benefit the most from.

Photo credit: Lekha Singh

One of the things I'm starting to do is explore classes/dancing where I can simply experiment with movement and improvisation in an environment that feels comfortable and non-threatening. I like taking my two modern classes every week, but in the end, I want to feel comfortable moving in my own skin and I want to get rid of the inhibitions I often feel on the dance floor.

So this past Tuesday I went to one of Gabrielle Roth's 5Rhythms classes "High Vibration Waves." Here's their description:

In this class we dance hard, we dance bold, we dance deep. Jonathan [Horan] takes us to the place where the soul of hip hop, the catharsis of rock and roll, the trance of techno and the heart of house collide into the world beat. And in this beat, we get together to reinvent ourselves, to discard last week's fears and move into this week's dreams. This is our practice.

It doesn't matter where we come from or how we grew up or whether we can or can't dance. Movement is medicine, and whether we feel clumsy or graceful, it heals us. Real learning happens when we show up and move because the body can't lie. It lets us know right away if we're feeling closed or open, fixed or fluid, tight or loose, off or on.

Before you walk into the room where the dance takes place, you're told you can't talk for the two-hour class. On Tuesday, maybe there were around 80 people or so. At times we're dancing by ourselves, at other times dancing with a partner. The music ranges from a strong, fast beat to more tranquil, reflective sounds. I felt it was a very comfortable place to move, experiment, dance with others and, once in a while, just let go.

Posted by Doug Fox at 7:36 AM - Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

September 21, 2007

West African Dance Class Last Night at Alvin Ailey

Last night I took a beginner West African dance class at Alvin Ailey with Maguette Camara. This was first West African class I've ever taken and it was probably the most fun I've ever had dancing - all though I need to be in a little better shape. From the beginning of the class, the focus was on learning bits and pieces of the routine that we eventually did across the floor in groups of 3 or 4 students. So it was all dancing all the time - perfect. Plus, Maguette along with two other drummers provided live accompaniment for the class - there's really nothing like having live music.

I'm definitely going to continue taking this class, which takes place Mondays and Thursdays at 6:30 PM. Maguette, who is a West African choreographer, musician and teacher, said that he'll continue with the same choreography for the next few weeks. So, I'll have enough time to get the hang of it.

Google map of where I've been taking dance classes in NYC - Alvin Ailey is at 54th and 9th Ave.:

View Larger Map

Dance Bloggers on Dance Classes

Dance bloggers are thinking about dance classes lately:

- DC blogger Maria in "A Time to Dance" asks whether you Can you simultaneously engage in two dance addictions?

- Amanda Abrams in DCDanceBlog takes modern class with Helanius Wilkins at Joy of Motion.

- Tonya Plank of Swan Lake Samba Girl takes Flamenco at 92nd Street Y.

Posted by Doug Fox at 7:09 AM - Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

September 20, 2007

Back to the Beginning - Modern Dance Class at 92nd Street Y

Update: 92Street Y blog write-up of this post.

I took a beginner modern dance class at 92nd Street Y last night - me and about 30 women - typical for many performing arts dance classes - as opposed to social dance classes. I still find this imbalance perplexing and I'd like to know if as few guys go to modern and ballet classes in other countries as they do here.

When I first started taking classes two years ago, I was very self-conscious about being the only guy in the class - or one of a few guys - and I thought that all my weaknesses would stand-out and be criticized - of course that never happened. Now my attitude is completely different. I'm so used to being one of only guys that it's just not something I think too much about. Plus, even though I'm a beginner dancer, I feel a thousand percent more comfortable moving, which makes taking classes much more relaxing and enjoyable.

So, the class I took last night was beginning modern with Susan Cherniak who danced with Eric Hawkins and teaches his technique (Erick Hawkins Dance Company). She's performing at 92nd Street Y's Harkness Dance Center in December. I liked the class - it was taught at nice, comfortable pace, was well within my experience and had live musical accompaniment from percussion player.

After taking classes for over two years, I feel like starting from the beginning again. Some of the modern and jazz classes I've taken have been too challenging for me - although fun - with the end result that I don't really have time to focus on the fundamentals because I'm struggling too much just to stay with the rest of the class. So I just want to take beginner classes like this one and have more time to develop my skills and technique. But most of all, I just want to move.

Posted by Doug Fox at 6:31 AM - Permalink | Comments (5) | TrackBacks (0)

September 11, 2007

First Class in Feldenkrais Method at Movement Research

I received a lot of great suggestions in response to my post "Planning My Future Dance Education" for when I go to New York City.

What I took from the recommendations is that I should get exposed to as many different types and forms of movement as possible and then focus on what I find most worthwhile for myself.

So, I'm beginning to do that. Last night I took my first class at Movement Research in SoHo. (Map location - I created new Google map for dance studios and movement training centers. The other map is for performance venues.)

I took a class in the Feldenkrais Method taught by Jimena Paz that meets every Monday at 5:30-7:00 PM. In a handout she distributed, the Feldenkrais Method is defined as a

...form of somatic education that uses gentle movement and directed attention to improve movement and enhance human functioning. With this Method, you can increase your range of motion, improve your flexibility and coordination, rediscover your innate capacity for graceful, efficient movement.

You can also learn more about Feldenkrais on this website or just do a Google search.

I've just taken one class, but I think this might prove worthwhile. I liked the emphasis on enhancing our awareness of the small movements that we make as a way to better understand and control our bodies. Plus, I like the idea that we always have choices when we set out to execute any type of movement.

The class consists of focusing for extended periods of time on specific parts of our bodies. So we'd be lying on our backs and work just with our right leg for example. With our left leg straight, we'd bend our right leg with our knee cap pointing toward the ceiling. Then we'd experiment with moving and sliding our right foot in different directions to figure out what felt the most comfortable. We'd lift our toes and ball of our foot and rock on our heel. Then, we'd reverse the process and lift our heel while maintaining contact with the floor with the ball of our foot. These were are all gentle, small movements that were intended to help us develop a better awareness of how our bodies move.

Then, the next step would be to rock our right foot back and fourth while at the same time tilting our pelvis. So I might tilt my pelvis so that my lower back was further against the floor while at the same time lifting the heel of my right foot. And then we'd reverse the process in the other direction.

At every point in the program, Jimena would ask us whether we felt any different as a result of the exercises we'd just done. For the most part, I didn't notice anything significant--except once. After doing the above exercises for both the right and left legs, Jimena asked us to bend both of our legs towards our chest and roll our pelvis back and fourth. I've moved my pelvis like this hundreds of times in dance classes. But this time it was different. I felt a strong connection between my pelvis and my lower back. It seemed that my pelvis was acting like the small mettle rod that opens up a can of sardines and that I could instantly stretch my back in new ways - nice sensation.

Movement Research really needs to enhance their website. They don't have to get fancy about it - they just have to present all of their classes and programs in a way that people can follow. At class last night I picked-up a brochure for the Fall 2007 Calendar and now I finally figured out what they're offering.

Posted by Doug Fox at 8:18 AM - Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

September 5, 2007

Dance Performances, Classes and More in NYC

I guess it goes without saying that there's a lot of dance happening in New York City.

Last night I went to an Argentine tango class at Sandra Cameron Dance Studio - I had never heard of this studio before. I just wanted to take a class and they had intro. to Argentine Tango. I forgot how much I like this dance form. There were three guys and about eight women in the class - very lopsided for social dancing, but I got to dance non-stop. The instructor Karina Romero is also general director of New Generation Dance Company and she was promoting their November 24th performance at the Tribeca Performing Arts Center.

Here's Google map of the location of this dance studio in SoHo (the blue marker) - actually, I'm plotting all the places I'm going on this map, so you can click this link to see all locations I mention below and on an on-going basis.

View Larger Map

I always like introductory classes with the repetition and the focus on the fundamentals. And I'm happy practicing endlessly brushing my feet forwards and backwards and left to right in a tango class. Amanda Abrams has a post, "Dance for Non-Dancers," in which she talks about the need for dance classes, in the performing arts world, that focus on helping students to move and don't intimidate students by requiring that they learn complicated routines. That's the type of movement and improvisation classes I'd like to find in NYC and I'm currently exploring this.

Amanda also writes that guys in particular "don't seem to enjoy all the small details that go into a technique class and all the things they have to keep in mind." By the small number of guys in ballet, modern and jazz dance classes, maybe that's the case. But personally, I like the details and the repetition as I just mentioned. I wrote this post earlier this year "In Search of Really Boring Ballet Classes." The problem from a dance studio perspective is that most students would get bored out of their minds if they don't progress quickly on to new movements and exercises and probably wouldn't come back to class.

Dance Performances

I'm already lining-up a number of dance performances to see in NYC. Tonight and Sunday I'm going to the dancenowNYC festival at Dance Theater Workshop. (DTW just re-launched their website. Danciti likes it: "WAY better than their old site and totally clean." By the way, there's only one video on DTW home page. I like clear, simple, appealing look and it is much improved over previous site. But I have trouble reading white text against the different light colored backgrounds).

This Friday I'm going to see This Woman's Work at Aaron Davis Hall/The City College of New York. Last year I did audio interviews with Princess Mhoon Cooper and Ursula Payne about this project before a performance of theirs at Howard University, which I didn't manage to make - so it will be good to see them now. Plus this weekend, you can see work by Makeda Thomas, whose dance blog I wrote about yesterday.

And then next Tuesday, I'm going to see Martha Graham Dance Company at the Joyce Theater.

Posted by Doug Fox at 8:54 AM - Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

August 15, 2007

Planning My Future Dance Education

I'm moving up to New York City in September.

One of the things I'm starting to do now is figure out how I'm going to move ahead with my dance education and which types of dance classes and programs I'll take in NYC.

After taking classes for the past two years--modern and jazz mostly--it seems like a good time to assess what I'd like to accomplish in terms of my long-term dance goals.

Two programs I took in June have definitely had an impact on my thinking about dance. I took a week-long institute, "Generating and Crafting Movement" at Liz Lerman Dance Exchange -- my write-up. And I took a contact improvisation class with Daniel Burkholder at Joy of Motion -- my write-up.

Both of these programs contributed to my desire to create and experiment with my own movement.

So here's a brief overview of some of my thoughts at this point and I'd be delighted to hear your ideas and suggestions.

My goals:

- Develop my own movement style

- Learn how to improvise

- Learn about movement analysis

- Stay healthy

Types of Classes and Programs I Might Take

These are my initial thoughts on the types of programs I'll take:

- Classes in creative movement and improvisation - other than contact improvisation classes, I'm not sure what types of classes I should be looking for.

- Modern/contemporary dance classes representing different schools and approaches.

- Workshops in Laban Movement Analysis or similar studies. I only have a very vague understanding of what these classes are about. But this general area of study seems intriguing. Are there other types of educational programs in this area?

- Later on, maybe classes in choreography and composition - at least the basics.

- Programs that help you better understand your body so you can stay healthy - I was reading about the Alexander Technique, which seems to address this issue.

Of course there are time constraints, but the above are my current thoughts on what I'd like to accomplish with my dancing.

I would very much appreciate suggestions and recommendations about the above.

Posted by Doug Fox at 6:41 AM - Permalink | Comments (14) | TrackBacks (0)

August 7, 2007

The Interconnectedness Among Different Dance Forms

Two excellent posts about the benefits of learning multiple dance forms:

In a Time to Dance, Maria writes about how her modern dance and salsa training have each contributed to strengthening the other:

I have gained a lot of strength, control and a greater consciousness of my movements. Even the differences between modern and salsa enhance the other. In modern and ballet, we have to have a lifted, aligned core and relaxed but straightened, fluid upper body. In salsa, we are more grounded--our center is found by bending our knees and our shoulders and torso move in opposition to our hips and feet. While there is always the risk that too much modern and ballet will stiffen up my Latin motion, somehow the contrast between the two makes me more conscious of the unique characteristics of the way you should carry yourself in each style.

And in Addicted2Salsa, Dano writes "Thinking Outside the Box-step," in which he describes how swing, ballroom, Argentine tango and hip-hop have enhanced his salsa dancing. When highlighting the benefits of swing, Dano writes:

From Swing (Lindy Hop, East Coast, West Coast, Charleston, Shag, & Balboa): I learned the basic concepts of lead and follow. Leading with my body and not with my arms has helped me tremendously. I learned how to use a person’s momentum to help move or spin her faster. I learned about musicality and syncopations and how to play with the music. Were I to characterize this dance, I would describe it as smooth, jazzy, and relaxed half of the time, yet energetic and happy the other half of the time.

I especially like these two posts because they emphasize the interconnections among diverse dance forms and the benefits of being exposed to many dance styles.

I would enjoy seeing this topic explored more online both in written form and with video clips. If you start with salsa, for example, a mix of many traditions, as Maria explains, it would be fascinating to see side-by-side videos that show how different styles of salsa share commonalities with other social dance forms. By seeing these videos in relationship to each other, along with good text descriptions, viewers would develop a much richer understanding of how different dance forms influence each other.

Posted by Doug Fox at 10:46 AM - Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

June 28, 2007

Capturing the Essence of Movement

Elizabeth Johnson , associate artistic director at Liz Lerman Dance Exchange, taught part of the "Generating and Crafting" program yesterday.

She started with mirroring exercises. We broke up into to pairs and then one person's entire body would follow the movement of the other person's hand. Then we transitioned to free-form mirroring where we mirrored the exact movements of the other person. Finally, we did a time-delayed mirroring. I found following in this exercise very challenging because at any given point, your movements were the ones performed by your partner a few seconds ago and you had to keep watching your partner to see what she was doing in the present. But I really enjoyed the leading in this exercise. For some reason my improvised movements seemed to come very easily.

Next we worked on what Elizabeth called an Essence-ing exercise -- essentially, a way to both generate movement and edit movement in very quick order while working with a partner.

We partnered again. The first person would improvise for about 15 seconds. The next person would then dance what they just saw as best as they could. Then the first person would do the same for what they had just seen the second person dance. The second person might have done this one more time.

Then continuing to work with our partner, we converted what we had just created/edited into a short routine.

Next we repeated this entire process so the second person started improvising a new piece and then we followed all of the steps above.

At the end, we had two short routines - one's own and that of the person we were working with.

Next, working alone each person in the class created their our dance by combining and editing the two routines we had just created.

Finally, we got back with our partners and created a duet based upon the solo works that we had just made.

This essence-ing exercise is an excellent way to generate movement very quickly and to start editing a piece more out of necessity than actively thinking about what you want to remove - this especially is the case when you watch your partner improvise and you have to replicate what you just saw. I was only able to remember a handful of basic movements that my partner danced so I was editing simply by not being able to recall.

The duet section at the end of this exercise was interesting because you first got to see how your partner took the two routines you had made together, and integrated and edited them. Then, once we danced our own routines at the same time, it was intriguing to see overlaps and variations of the same movements that we had worked on when we created our two initial routines. Then we continued to work on our duet and perform them for the class.

In the afternoon Liz Lerman focused on creating form and structure for a dance work we are each creating based on the movement we've generated over the past three days. I'll write about this section of the institute in the next few days. I want to get a better grasp on how to go about creating a form for your dance piece.

Posted by Doug Fox at 5:00 AM - Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

June 27, 2007

Make a Dance on Me? -- Not a Chance

The first time I heard the expression "to make a dance on me" - as in George Balanchine made a dance on me, if you're Suzanne Farrell speaking - I cringed.

The sense of passivity I feel in this phrase is overwhelming. Why would I want a choreographer to make a dance on me? Are they going to force me to wear it like prison fatigues? I recall two references one in Suzanne Farrell's "Holding on to the Air: An Autobiography" and the other in the DVD "Paul Taylor: Dancemaker." In the Paul Taylor video, one of his dancers talks, I think, about the privilege of having Taylor make a dance on himself.

(BTW, I saw Paul Taylor last night at Wolf Trap last night -- more about that in the next few days).

I realize that many dancers have no problem with the phrase that annoys me and are more than happy to work with choreographers in the traditional manner and be instructed in how to execute a specific piece of choreography. But this approach is the antithesis of the Liz Lerman Dance Exchange methodology of creating dances that I'm learning this week in their Generating and Crafting Dances program.

In the first two days of this institute, we've learned and experimented with a huge number of tools from their Toolbox (free registration required) that are used to generate movement. It's a fascinating experience - one that is very new to me. I just never imagined that there are so many ways to attack this issue of how you go about creating new types of movement while working by yourself, with small groups or with the entire program.

Toward the end of yesterday's class, we were in a circle talking about "ownership" -- as in when do we feel that movement is truly our own and represents ourselves in some way. From my perspective, the difference between creating movement for myself and being taught a routine in a dance class is worlds apart. While I enjoy my regular dance classes, there's no substitute for dancing what you create.

If you'd like to share, what is your approach to choreography or as a dancer what is the way you prefer to work with a choreographer?

Posted by Doug Fox at 6:19 AM - Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

June 26, 2007

How Do You Generate Movement?

How come more dancers and choreographers don't write about their approach to generating new movement ideas?

How come more dancers and choreographers don't write about how they edit and shape their work?

How come more dancers and choreographers don't write about their dance styles, and the types of movements and ideas they are exploring?

Or, alternatively, why don't dancers and choreographers address the above issues by putting a video camera on themselves in the studio and show how they create movement, how they experiment with different ideas and how they edit/shape their work?

I'd be especially interested in seeing or reading about dancers who have created unique movement styles and their own dance vocabulary.

Am I the only one who wants to read/see this? There's definitely not enough of this type of exploration on the Internet.

On Sunday, I saw a captivating performance by Italian-born Swedish dancer Cristina Caprioli at the Swedish Embassy - I almost didn't make it because Google Maps let me down by misidentifying the new embassy building's location. Her performance was really a showcase of how she creates movement, which was followed by her describing her creative process. It was fascinating to learn about her creative process, although as Amanda Abrams wrote in DCDanceblog, it was challenging at times to understand exactly what she meant. I wish I could have interviewed her there so I could have encouraged her to give specific movement examples of the points she was making.

But even with those hurdles, these are the types of programs that I love to see: the artist in her studio (or imaginary studio) creating movement and then talking about this process. Too bad they didn't videotape it and make it available online.

Posted by Doug Fox at 7:13 AM - Permalink | Comments (12) | TrackBacks (0)

June 25, 2007

The Body as Verbal Memory Recorder

At the Dance Exchange program I'm currently taking on "Generating and Crafting Dance," one exercise we did was called equivalence. We transformed a spoken phrase into a movement phrase where each word was expressed through a specific gesture or movement.

Toward the end of the day we broke-up in groups of three and recapped the day. We were trying to recall a spoken phrase that was used to generate movement in the equivalence exercise. I couldn't remember it until I expressed the phrase through the movement I created. As soon as I started the movement, the words came back to me: "I came into the world."

There must be lots of research on the relationship between dance and language. I find it intriguing that physical motion can help the brain recall specific words.

When I took tests in school, I used mnemonics but I never thought of using movement to recall important information. Can movement be a mnemonic or is there a different word for describing the use of physical movement to recall ideas? Would a teacher object to your standing-up in class and dancing during an exam so that you could remember the answers?

Posted by Doug Fox at 7:09 PM - Permalink | Comments (7) | TrackBacks (0)

June 21, 2007

My First Contact Improvisation Class

As I wrote yesterday, I took my first Contact Improvisation class last night with Daniel Burkholder at Joy of Motion. It was fun and interesting and I'm going to continue to take Contact Improv classes.

Daniel started the class by having the 8 or 9 students lie on our backs. Then, at his prompt, we slowly moved from one position to the next of our choosing and held the position. As the exercise progressed, the transition period increased in duration and each position was only held for a fraction of a second. Then, we progressed from our fixed location to moving around the floor in any direction as we continued to make one shape after another.

What I liked about this exercise is that it's the first time in any dance class I've taken to have a chance to improvise and there's something to the relaxing nature of this warm-up exercise that made me very comfortable exploring any type of movement while not being self-conscious about it.

Next we worked with partners. In the first exercise, we had to maintain contact with some part of our bodies at all times. One person would move and the other person would stay stationary. Once the first person found a position of rest, the other person would then initiate a move. Part of this exercise is to experiment with the type of contact you have with your partner. I think I was trying to respond in a natural way to the pressure and movement of my partner but at the same time initiate movements that sometimes went against the grain of the current pressure against my body. It seems like part of the experience is to figure out a good balance between directing your partner and responding to movement while at the same time exploring new positions and movements for your body.

Then additional variables were added including both partners being able to initiate movement at any time and pausing at any point, as well as adding locomotion across the floor.

Event though this was my first class, I didn't spend that much time watching the other students. I pretty much focused on my own movements, tried to find different ways to move while in contact with another person, and responded to my partner. I think I should try to slow down next time and think more about movement at any given point instead of trying to rush things.

Next, we lined up on one side of the room, and Daniel demonstrated what I think he called contact bootcamp. The idea was for each one of us to move across the floor while imagining their there was a 2-foot high ceiling as we moved from one side of the room to the other - hopefully without simply rolling the entire time. Imagine soldiers crossing under barbed wire as machine-gun shots roar overhead. I found it challenging to come up with a lot of variations to propel myself across the floor.

The following two exercise were very similar. In the next one we moved across the floor at mid-height level. We were allowed to place our palms and feet on the level while our bodies went no higher than about waste level. And finally, we could navigate the room at a standing height. These exercise were then combined so that we would cross the floor in any combination of these three possibilities.

In the final portion of the class. The exercises that we did were combined into any combination of our choosing. So while working with a partner, we could place our weight against each other as we moved or paused. Or we could have no contact. In addition throughout these exercises, we could be at any of the three-horizontal levels from the floor exercise as we moved across the floor or stayed in a stationary position.

I found that the more variables that were added, the more awkward I felt. Since I'm very new at this, the exercises that involved just one or more possibilities made it easier for me to experiment in a more comfortable manner. But with lots of choices, it felt a little overwhelming.

I like the feel of contact improvisation. It's relaxing and engaging and it puts me in a different mindset than the jazz and modern classes that I've taken. I didn't have the same focus on trying to get my technique right or getting frustrated because I'm struggling with a routine - not that I mind these characteristics of these other dance classes. It's just different and fun. And I plan to continue with contact improv and to learn more.

Posted by Doug Fox at 10:09 AM - Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBacks (0)

June 20, 2007

Contact Improv Tonight with Daniel Burkholder

I'm taking my first contact improvisation class tonight. Daniel Burkholder is the instructor. I'm looking forward to this class and I'm sure it will be much different than the modern and jazz classes I've been taking.

Here's Daniel's latest post to his "My ocean is never blue" performance blog.

I grabbed this "Free Jam Contact Improvisation" shot from david-o.net's dance blog:

Posted by Doug Fox at 12:58 PM - Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

June 19, 2007

Dancing Again!

I took my first dance class last night in about 4 months. It's great to be dancing again. The next time I get injured I'm going to ignore the pain and just keeping dancing. More realistically, I'm going to try to be smarter about stretching and how hard I push myself in class. I really don't want to spend a portion of each year unable to take classes.

Last night I took Helen Hayes' modern class at Joy of Motion.

And next week I'm participating in Liz Lerman Dance Exchange's week-long Institute, "Generating and Crafting Dances."

Posted by Doug Fox at 7:32 AM - Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

June 14, 2007

My First Intensive Dance Program

In two weeks I'm participating in the week-long "Generating and Crafting Dances" program at Liz Lerman Dance Exchange in Takoma Park, Maryland - just outside of Washington, DC.

Here's the description of this Institute, which takes place June 25-29:

This institute will provide multiple ways of approaching composition, concepts and content. We spark inspiration, move beyond traditional tools and learn to form, structure and edit using Dance Exchange methods. Bring your own ideas or work in the context of current Dance Exchange projects to discover how subject matter can offer both a guide and goal to help make your dance YOUR dance.

I'm excited about this upcoming program, but also apprehensive. I've been taking dance classes for less than 2 years. But Peter DiMuro, producing artistic d