Week Seven

If you haven’t noticed yet, I have a real interest in Dance for the Camera. This is a genre of art that is not just dance and not just film – it exists only when the two media are brought together. Check out these clips by French dance filmmaker Philippe Decouflé. The first is more light-hearted, the second more serious. Take note of those things that cannot be done on a stage in a live performance. These elements make it imperative for this dance to become a dance film.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kIOaIGJPmbk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZKwvwoVs41U

Corollary Question(s):

How important is "live" art to you? Is "live" dance becoming obsolete, replaced by dance films and other pre-recorded media? Is this a good thing or a bad thing? Why? Do you think that Dance for the Camera pieces like you just watched could introduce new people to contemporary modern dance? Brainstorm a few other ideas to help promote contemporary modern dance’s cause.

Week Six

These clips come from William Forsythe, an American choreographer who has been living and working in Germany for decades. He was the main choreographer for the Frankfurt Ballet for many years and now has his own company. He considers himself to be a "ballet choreographer", but as you'll see, he is interested in renegotiating the definitions and structures of ballet. One of Forsythe's legacies is his training program for new dancers in his company. It is called Improvisation Technologies. The first clip is a soloist from Forsythe's company performing many different ideas involved in Improvisation Technologies like anatomical representation, inscription, and bridging. The second clip is some of Forsythe's work reimagined for video. Notice recurring themes between the two videos. Check this:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=iPScI15bUkE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cufauMezz_Q

Corollary Question(s):

What is the role of imagery in dance? Do you feel it is important to have imagery in mind while dancing? Why or why not? How can you utilize the principles of "Improvisation Technologies" to support and challenge you in our Contemporary class?

Week Five

The response from last week picks up on a very significant topic in contemporary dance discussions: the fusion of forms. While there are certainly still purist groups out there, the lines between dance idioms seem to be getting fuzzier. If you pay close attention you’ll start to see elements of hip hop, jazz, and sometimes even african dance sneaking into the “contemporary” class you are in right now.

Last week's clip goes hand in hand with this week's, although we have an entirely new set of questions to consider. This week we'll see a clip from Mats Ek. He is a Swedish gentleman who choreographs "ballets", but as you'll see again, these ballets deviate quite a bit from any classical vocabulary. In fact, they're downright modern to me. Also like last week's clip, this piece features a duet between a man and a woman... perhaps you know where I'm going with this.

Give this a look:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kdXtP6GBHb8

Corollary Question(s):

Are there prescribed gender roles in dance? Are men expected to dance one way and women another? Do you think that modern dance promotes or distorts the ideals of the Feminist movement? Have you ever considered these questions as you approach movement in your dance classes?

Week Four

I think what I appreciate most about the posts from last week is the wide spectrum of beliefs we all hold about dance. The point here is to be thinking – and hopefully, to be thinking about things you’ve never thought to question before. Here are my thoughts (you’ll probably notice that they are as varied as your own): I believe that movement can be created (and therefore exist) for the sake of movement, and I find that often when I am creating movement myself, I have no agenda other than piecing together unique contortions, swings of the body, and things that generally feel good, regardless of how "weird" they might appear. However, I believe that the very act of presenting movement opens it up to the interpretation of viewers. And in that way, movement, whether created with a message in my mind or not, may in fact have one. That begs the question, do I always have to “understand” a dance in order to appreciate it? This is a huge topic for me, but we won’t get to that just yet.

New topic then. Check out this clip from La La La Human Steps, a Canadian modern dance company headed by choreographer Edouard Lock.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCHrzakA5X4

Corollary Question(s): Answer as many of these as interest you.

Is this ballet or modern dance? How can you really tell one from the other? Sure, the female dancer in this piece is wearing pointe shoes – does that make it ballet? Are the man and the woman dancing in the same or different idioms? Why might some consider this a contemporary modern work? What characteristics do ballet and modern dance share? How are they different? And why, then, is it important to train in both of these dance forms?