five constant factors
Rosie Kay started making a work on the 3rd year dance company today.
we began with a socio-political discussion of the uk military. rosie has been training with the 4th rifles battalion (dartmoor & salisbury plain), and visiting military rehabilitation centre Headley Court.
War is violent, but its rehearsal and training in many ways has unique correlations with dance training. Each attack is a piece of choreography- the battle formations of now and history are masteries of co-ordinated human movement. [rosie kay]
pt
a mix of physical training exercises; vaulting, press-ups, sit-ups, fwd-rolls, etc. rosie wanted to keep the students moving and embrace a ‘military’ attitude to moving.
contemporary class
a focused exploration of alignment, flow and shape. mixed elements of core stability, and strength work.
floor-work phrase: rosie asked them to think about the ‘right’ before doing ‘on the left’. a soft, but detailed performance quality. she addressed the key moments in the phrase and the direction of intention.
centre work beginning with core ballet vocab. some familiar corrections (always good for the student to hear from an outside source).
onto a the main phrase, a contemporary grand allegro. i find it pleasing to see the students engaging with ballet derived vocabulary. rosie maintains a high level of detail, and performance is a core technical component.
the phrase is legs, jumps, arms and wildness. the students need more confidence and clarity to ‘let fly’.
rosie will stick with a similar class all week, so we can concentrate on devising.
devising
toying with tyres (possible props / scenery). small groups explore different ideas/uses. (are there methods for exploring objects?)
the students produce some rich possibilities without realizing it. if this were a lesson i’d take longer to discuss what has been shown. ‘military’ movement is a rhizome of signs.
hyperassult: ridiculous and/or nearly impossible pt exercises. activities to promote adrenaline/agression. 8bit/chiptune and thrash metal accompany the endeavors.
- what is a soldier?
- what is a perfect soldier?
values for a british army soldier [mod pdf]:
- Selfless Commitment
- Courage
- Discipline
- Integrity
- Loyalty
- Respect for others
seven values for a US solider (LDRSHIP)
- Loyalty
- Duty
- Respect
- Selfless Service
- Honor
- Integrity
- Personal Courage
some values for a christian solder (or soldier of god): follower, faithful, familiar, fighter, finisher.
the day ended with a loose discussion of war, politics, humanism (etc). i’m pleased that rosie has chosen to make a politically minded work. commentary on the current conflicts is missing from dance discourse (practical and academic).
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