THANK YOU

Hello,

just a note to say thank you to all of our Boosted supporters - we were successful in raising funds for the immediate future of Composure. (https://www.boosted.org.nz/projects/composure) We have some exciting plans and will continue communications through our blog.

We are currently having a break but will be back practicing from mid-January.

Wishing everyone safe and happy holidays xxxxx

COMPOSURE - Part III Session 17 Open Rehearsal

We had an open rehearsal to share our practice with others, to invite discussion around improvisation / performance / practice / product.

We ran the rehearsal as usual, going from warm ups, to tasks, to improvisations. We did short improvisations with one shaper and a couple of shifters and then invited discussion for all to contribute to.

1. shaper = LC
JD -hung on to first provocation, even while finding new things
OG -stayed in the first task longer than later tasks - used it to totally drop in to start
JD -didn't really do any of own tasks, waited for shaper
BM -we did lots of morphing (what we explored in the warm up tasks!)
LC -began with idea of spacing; 3 physicallizing a task, 1 verbalizing the task.
OG -having an 'audience' meant that my experience was tainted... thought about 'what does this look like'
BM -was doing a head connected exploration with EF and at one point responded 'no' to a further direction. straight away realised it was wrong, so went back to exploration and morphed out of it instead
LC -aware of other people watching, offered them opportunity to suggest a task to me "what would you like to see them do?"

how did you respond to the improv? did hearing/not hearing the directions change experience? how were expectations created / met?
B -the struggle between OG lifting JD was really satisfying because it was so authentic
P -it's relational; authenticity comes from navigating space/other person through a genuine action
C -had different expectations, but didn't need to see certain tasks completed
P -at one point there were 2 duets, but no relationship between the two. how can you change the worlds/awareness to enable connection? identify particular moments / break away with nothing to do / spread out 
A -I wanted to hear the instructions the shaper gave to the shifters
B -it's unsatisfying when the perfomers drop out of performance mode

2. shaper = BM
-----'audience' could sit anywhere in space / could move around in space / could join in
used tool of catch/throw/grab exercise to begin improv which clearly has 'rules' though those rules are not necessarily readable/understandable
OG -started at high energy

how was watching this one different from the last one?
J -it looked more fun therefore, nicer to watch
B -it's a big thing to introduce other bodies into the space / how long does audience interaction last for do we need to set up guidelines hereA -when I sat in the space, I felt involved (felt like moving) especially when a shifter sat next to me
C -wanted to sit in the middle of the space, for a close up view, but it was hard to watch up close
P -viewing this work as a show, it is relatively low risk. how do we raise the stakes?
K -you could show the tools / do you want to make the tools (the how of the task) visible or do you want it to be shiny/performative. this could be explored through how the shapers shape the work? how performative is that delivery?
v -this work and way of working seems pedagogical rather than performative
P -moments of show pony / seductive moments

3. shaper = JD
this was a trio
C -it was different to watch, easier to focus -perhaps because it was only 3 people, or perhaps the group was more unified in their movement / ideas / approach
B -trio is always relational
v -the piece was more performative in the performative nature of JD's directions. How to radically develop the role of the shaper? What is the intention behind shaping? -perhaps in each episode, the shaper has a different intention. What is the shaper interested in and why? What other modalities can that person take on? What is the balance between a matter of fact delivery and performance making?B -there is such a range of nuances in the language ... could we potentially utilize these through pre-writing offers?
C -would love to see the shifters make more offers, rather than waiting for shapers

This opportunity to open up our rehearsals as been really enriching ... it has given us much to think about!! If any thoughts continue to pop up, we'd love to hear from you! Nga mihi mahana tenei ki a koutou katoa.

COMPOSURE - Part III Session 16

WARM UP

We started walking.
in silence
we traced patterns on the floor
we weaved in / through / around eachother
in silence
we developed the walking and pathways to become more complicated paths with more complex rhythms

There were three of us, BM, LC, and a new friend AN. We started so simply that we really quickly tuned in to each other, and from that point easily developed/expanded the material we were working with
-straight pathways become curved/long/short/backwards/spiral
-steady rhythms became syncopated/with some pauses/syncing up to other's patterns/different rhythms within the body
-action of walking became falling/spiraling/running

The image of weaving emerged.
So we explored weaving:
-pathways, patterns, movement trajectories, within our body, amongst/in/around an other
EF joined us and she explored weaving as an internal image -so we all tried this!

Weaving image
(unweave = unwind body / weave = re-wind body)

BM
-undwinding; started at the top of the head, down the body and out arms
-body still; unwind mind
-weave up mind; then to the inside of the body (organs) then to outside - last, think about skin

EF
-felt someone nearby and felt connection (sensing, not touch)
-pulling me in towards the other (person/body part/floor/wall)
-hard to unwind
-went with intuition of pattern
-tried shutting off but brain was still moving body
-unwound into sleep position

LC
-planned sequence of image in head before doing it
-hard to action the image in the mid-range (between standing on feet and sitting on bum)
-brought up image of fading -I faded to the back of my body
-unwound to savasana position (associations of neutral/muscle memories of being unwound?)

AN
-doesn't have to physicalise the image
-chest forward - figuring out what I can


Later, as a new thing to do ... we went along K Rd to find a place to try our walking/weaving improvisation from earlier .... here's a short video!

COMPOSURE - Part III Video

A snippet of our live-choreography practice

COMPOSURE - Part III Session 15

We began moving with our eyes shut, to activate our other sense more strongly. We explored shapes, movement pathways,


BM - completely different moves with eyes shut; it feels way better but maybe doesn't look better? It eliminates self judging in the moment
LC - my touch sensors are more active therefore I just more (myself and other when in contact)when I explore a body part on right, the left body part mirrors it; I find it really hard to concentrate via sensing on two things at once
JD - as soon as my eyes opened, my rhythm changed - I slipped in to the group rhythm
RT - went totally in to habitual movement

Tricky point: how do we get into contact with the others..... when that instruction is given, it can sometimes feel forced to get in touch. how do you know when the other is ready? how do you navigate touch/contact with eyes shut

Throughout this task there seemed to be windows of opportunity appear as a point to change but we all stayed the same
-we were all on the ground... either a new idea, a stillness, some common movement could have developed .. but we stayed a little in our own worlds

SO, in the next improvisation we explicitly gave each other the task to identify those windows of opportunity and give verbal offers to the group to help us get on the same path / lead us in that direction / assist in the progression of the group work rather than the individual within the group/



IDENTIFY / OFFER
JD - saw we were interacting in a line, sub-consciously exploring counter-balancing; gave direction to do more counter-balance
JD - saw the other 3 were doing something super interesting, didn't feel necessary to that idea so separated self and directed the exploration of other 3
LC - identified an idea earlier of movement from the head, carried that on later

This mode of identifying what the improvisation needs, finding ways to steer the direction of the group and the movement, and methods of delivering the instructions is one of our main focuses in this practice. Would love to hear any thoughts / experiences / suggestions from anyone out there reading!! 

HELP!!

hello.

we bring you a short advertising break in our weekly reflections to say, we need your help!!

We have some big performance plans! ...both here in the Auckland Fringe Festival and also, hopefully, in the Dunedin Fringe Festival. BUT, there are significant costs involved in hiring performance spaces, production equipment, travelling, and marketing. (So far, the whole project has been self-funded)

We have set up a Boosted campaign to raise money for the project. Boosted is a crowdfunding platform and works as an 'all or nothing' model. If we don't hit 100% of our funding by our closing date, all funds that have been received are automatically returned to our donors. And there are no fees attached to this for us OR the people that donate to our campaign. (If you have more questions about Boosted, go here.)

We would really appreciate any help you are able to give! If you have friends to share this with we are really happy for you to forward this message on to anyone who might be interested in supporting our project.

Arohanui,

Composure team

COMPOSURE - Part III Session 14

July - November 2016

Moving as a GROUP

We developed different ways / systems / timings / to move as an individual but in connectedness with the group.
aim to create movement language we know super well as anchors/buoys to our improvisations


+Group Slink:
  the basic pattern is-
  1 move
  2 still
  3 still
  4 still
  (but we could do any numbers really)
  - we only move (a solid/shift/transfer -type movement) on the 1. we don't have to move on the 1. we can break away (on the 1) and do whatever type (continuous) movement we like and then rejoin the group on a 1
  - we did it in mini groups and each group had their own timing, in a canon. So each groups' movement on the 1 was different, but there was unity in the overall rhythm

+conveyor belt: walking down & up the room using the same timing as above
  1 step
  2 still
  3 still
  4 still
  (but we could do any numbers really)
  - we can break away and walk for as long as we want (any style, any direction etc) before getting back on the conveyor belt.
  - this is a cool base. we can break off from here to do any of our other tasks -face off, catch/throw/grab, biosis duet, characters ....anything else!
  - would be good to develop triggers into those ^ tasks
  - do we find songs that the conveyor belt is associated with??

Unfortunately, we have no video evidence....sorry, we were all too immersed to step out and film! But we shall do it again.

COMPOSURE - Part III Session 13

July - November 2016

Following last session's discussion, we used the same structure and exercises as to see what differences would occur.

WARM UP

-biosis duet was looser as last session felt like a re-learning and required an energy from everybody to help organise the mechanics of the process. today the feeling and process were more present in the body, so dancers felt more relaxed in approach, and more eager to move toward the next section. The mood was lighter and more upbeat than in the same exercise last session.

TASK

We continued to follow the same structure, moving forward into the exploration of the variabilities applicable to different levels of yes/no.

As with the biosis duet today, a knowledge of what was to come and a memory of it's success in the last session pushed a more casual and confident approach, but potentially a less considered one. The first time we explored this idea, we found initiation of new movement to be taken directly from one another, creating strong connections - generally between two people. In this session, we tried to work on performing more collectively within the improvisation; a successful endeavor, however it meant that when a section within the work wound to a close, there were occasions where we found it difficult to move organically into another pairing or group, as the entirety of dancers involved were already working together. An option here could have been to have a complete 'no' and break away.

COMPOSURE - Part III Session 12

July - November 2016

NO

Something that has often come up in our explorations of the shaper-shifter role, and also in our performance at UDS, is what if we say no to the direction/instruction? We've found it hard to find a way to explore saying no. We brainstormed modes of saying no (how/why we say no in daily life):

(We used these modes as explorations in the improvisation)

We began with cumulative partnering as warm-up (catch/throw/grab) which lead again to our biosis duet. We find this to be a good way to prepare for the session, as not only does it engage our bodies fully, but it also sets up a connection and an understanding of the group's mood right from the beginning. We work through a series of provocations focussing on several initiation directives, each fine tuning the day's approach to movement. This biosis was not as fluid as previous ones have been, but it allowed us to ask the question about what allows and what blocks the development of an improvisation.

After warming up, we discussed the possibility to/methods of saying no within an improvisation. We realised that to feed our interests and to keep the improvisation moving forward, we needed to make change for development, but a complete block would halt that. This created a ponder-ment on how we could say no, or to what extent or variability we could do so; a graph was devised with the vertical axis ranging from yes at the bottom to no at the top, and the horizontal showing possible variabilities, for example: 'yes I will accept your offer right now' would sit right in the corner of the graph, and 'no I will not accept your offer, but I will build up to it' might sit somewhere in the middle of the graph.

Following our discussion, we moved into an almost tag-in/tag-out structured experiment, playing one pair at a time, with saying no. As we moved further into it and continued creating and changing the rules of the game, we made an organic transition into a long improvisation.

DISCOVERIES:
-no is actually just offers a varied form of saying yes -our yes offers were much more considered -even if we say no, how can we still compliment the improvisation / the others -an absolute no is no awareness -giving a brand new offer to the situation is a form of saying no to whats already gone before

this improvisation, we felt, was completely successful. A successful improvisation feels cohesive, productive, fun, aware, we are attempting to uncover HOW/WHY/WHAT makes a successful improvisation. -structure of the session? -the way we enter the improvisation? -our group focus?


SO NEXT WEEK, we are going to try the exact formula of this week..... will it give us the same outcome?! will having a different group of people change / help / hinder?

Composure - Part III Session 11

Composure - Part III Session 10

July - November 2016

CHARACTER

Following on from an improvisation 3 sessions ago in which Rodney put a bag on his head and created a character, we decided to explore how to make characters -specifically through use of props/costume.

WARM UP
-vocals
-voice and movement
-movement and voice
-create a vocal duet

TASK
-choose a prop (there were about 30 props [mainly random household items])
-explore use of prop in as many ways OTHER than its intended/normal use
-settle on a way of using / wearing / interacting with the prop
-explore the character that emerged (who am I? how do I move? what can/do I do? what space am I in? why am I in this place?)
-if appropriate chose another prop; add to the character and re:explore new possibilities / options
-begin (slowly, in own time) to interact with the other characters (who are the other characters? what do I think about them? how do I interact with them? can I talk? -how?)
....
IMPROVISATION
-the above task led into a 45 minute improvisation, as the characters

How did we all approach developing and exploring our characters?
Omea: immediately used hand cream as microphone and became that type of chr -drew on current events eg Donald Trump campaign
Jaz: used props to hide -but it became difficult to move on from that idea
Ben: a blanket was difficult to abstract
Elle: easily/quickly came up with lots of different options with leather jacket
Omea: character became pedestrian HOW DO WE ABSTRACT A CHARACTER INTO MOVEMENT?? 
Reece: broke the prop; then became cautious and developed chr from there
Joanne: less movement based as the props were so specific (possibly restrictive)
Leah: entered a trance-like state within my character's relationship with another chr

-there were lots of great 'coincidences' : Jaz read a story which seemed to explain Ben and Elle's duet
-we used lights / lamps to shape the piece
-someone began to sing; we all began to sing this was a strong action to unite the group 

Perhaps next time, rather than do the task then merge in to the improvisation, we could explore/create/develop the characters, then stop, then start the improvisation. This w/could make the interactions more deliberate and the structure of the work more cohesive.

[Elle and Jas]

[Omea]

[Reece and Ben]

[Joanne and Leah]

[Rodney]

[Rodney]

Composure - Part III Session 9

July - November 2016

WARM UP:

Flocking
(this is a classic improvisation exercise)
-creative movement
-tuning in with other and with group
-warming up physical body and creative mind
-push self to engage
-build group connection (key aspect)


TASK:
-identify personal point of choreographic interest
-research that idea
-develop that idea as shaper by creating a work with 1-4 shifters (with audience watching)


Identify Idea:
-what am I interested in? / what do I like watching? / how do I like making?

Research Idea
-3 minutes to investigate ideas and generate as many options/possibilities/ways to explore idea
-discern favourite options

Develop Idea
-use 1--4 shapers
-direct idea / shapers
-the creating of the piece is the creation (the audience watches the process)


EF:
-idea: collide / morph
-shapers as individuals, colliding with other/space
with my instructions, I did not quite get what I wanted, it was almost there!
yet I let the dancers find it

RT:
-cover face / move with body without face (what if I couldn't see)
-shapers cover face / exploring their face
the music influenced the shapers movement, I didn't like that = change music

BM:
-(could not physicalise thoughts)
-tried different ideas out with group: repeated/developed the idea 'go back to the start'
I added a layer each time, developed my thought, changed my wording, adapted the instructions. I discovered what I wanted as I wanted it to happen

JD:
-particular quality of movement/voice (have been playing with for a few months)
-does someone else's thought pattern influence the other?
How can I articulate my own way of working/moving/talking to pass on to another? Used imagery, though the shapers interpreted it differently than expected. Let shapers chose when to action new instruction

LC:
-action of hugging (how many things can I hug? try all the ways of hugging)
-chose the most interesting ways of hugging -instructed shapers to explore that way
I knew what hugs I wanted to see the shapers explore, I know the spacing I wanted to look at. I set up the shapers in symmetrical positions and gave the first few instructions. Then my next ideas were inspired by how the shapers interpreted the first instructions.

Composure Part III - Session 8

July - Novemeber 2016

Live Sound Exploration

Tonight we invited experienced improviser and live-sound artist Kristian Larsen to join us and contribute sound to our work. We sought to explore the role of live music and how that would influence our movement and out creating and then also how our movement/creations might influence the making of the movement.

IMPROVISATION [1 hour long]

guidelines:
-we were all shifters
-anyone could step out to be the shaper
-experience how live music can shape/shift the piece (explore this relationship)
-Kristian had the timer and at the end would direct the conclusion

Some really awesome things happened in our improvisation and we all responded really differently to the sound.
Elle: sound changed her approach a lot, was always reacting or letting the sound initiate the movement. went into a dance/performance mode
Rodney: was either going with or going against the sound, this helped him shift his awareness
Leah: used sound to initiate a movement idea but then left the sound to explore the movement
Cushla: was aware of the sound but purposefully go against it (but then that actually is going with the music)

We talked about a cycle of interaction: we go with the sound, we try to go against the sound, but as we go further from the sound we actually go with it...but in an opposite manner, to the point that we are just going with the sound. Maybe that's just human nature, we can't avoid or ignore the sounds of our everyday worlds, nor can we in a performative sense.

Some observations from Kristian:
-perhaps we became distracted by the sound (not used to having live sound)
-with an open narrative there are endless possibilities; creating some kind of limitation-could we be more specific with - content / material / movement / tools / skills
-dance = people behaving
-how do coincidences work?
-we could do further research into other dance forms which operate fully in an improvised sense eg tango, break dancing, martial arts [what are their principles of creating, interacting]

Composure - Part III Session 7

July - November 2016

After a small hiatus for a couple of weeks we jumped into our practice with a 1 hour improvisation: our favourite way of really exploring our own personal and our collective interests -and to put all of our tools into practice!

WARM UP:
we played a random playlist of songs and moved to the music!
-explore the lyrics / the mode of the song / the melody
-create relationships with other through the music
-act/ion the song
-can change the music at anytime
-go with first reaction to music

This is one of our favourite warm ups because it's fun, we can be silly, we can be energetic, we can engage as much as we need to warm our bodies up. In a way, this is our 'bad improv' time; to get rid of our movement diarrhea / clear our random movement desires so that we later can settle and focus on creating our interesting worlds.

IMPROVISATION [1 hour long]

we all engaged different tactics to enter and then to remain contributing to the improvisation:
Ben + Cushla: were both invested in developing a relationship but both did not want the other to know. Used different modes of not looking at the other, being subtle with the way the other influenced their work. Eventually it became a mutual duet and as they moved the duet changed heaps but through all changed they remained together, pursuing the next idea to it's fullest.
Elle: began with something that felt good, and continued to exhaust that idea:
Reece + Leah: reincorporated the idea of connected heads and various noise-influence-movement moments
Rodney: created a character -bag on head and explored various postures and props (character work would be a really interesting avenue to pursue)

In this improvisation, non of us really stepped out to take the role of the shaper.
-most felt it was shaping itself
-it is a hard role, with an element of the pressure to make it 'good'
-once, someone stepped out and it looked good enough already so they jumped back in without making any changes
-some thought that/waited for someone else to step out

Also, it was relatively low energy, something that as a group we find hard to shift. If there is an outside influence - music, a shaper giving big instructions - then we often respond with energetic movement but it is really hard work for someone on the inside to pull the group into a level of high energy.

In some ways it seems like the project is shifting away from discovering what the role of the shaper is. Maybe we are becoming stronger improvisers? Maybe we are undertaking the shaper role simultaneously to our doing the shifter role? Maybe it's too hard and we need a new access point into the role of the shaper?
-We would like to keep exploring the relationship of the shaper-shifter / shifter-shaper as this where we can really identify the mode of live-decision making and (from an audience's point of view (yet, this is not a main focus for us!)) that is the really rich / interesting place of questioning / discovery.

All of us noted that many of our daily factors influenced tonight's improvisation. We use these elements to explore our movement and ideas within the improvisation (often as an opening point but also throughout. (Sometimes these are concious choices, other times we only realise upon reflection)
-tiredness
-one has been watching psycho TV shows
-sore neck
-haven't stopped to look at anything
-wanting human interaction

Composure - Part III Session 5

July - November 2016

We partnered through pressure, through giving pressure and receiving pressure. We could offer pressure to joints or to the middle of bones, we could give it opposition-ally (hands on either side of a joint eg front and back of shoulder) or complimenting-ly (hands on the same place eg on both shoulders) The person receiving is aware of these differences. This lead to a long partnering improvisation exploring pressure, through and between two body parts, the moments of moving to the next pressure. We focused on being vertical. Some lift opportunities arose.

Rodney and Ben

BIOSIS DUET

Again we worked on our biosis duet, the swirling, the disrupting, the entering, the continuing of the partnership.
-catch, throw, grab
-good to interrupt with different methods -catch / throw self in / throw self out / throw other out
-we observe that our natural patterns of interruption (are we hesitant or bold) effect how we approach the duet. We try to challenge these patterns

IMPROVISATION

we did 5 little improvisations, each of us directing a 5 min duet or trio. We made some interesting discoveries about our methods and approaches to being the shaper and being the shifter.

shaperwhat/when/how/why/where do you make decisions?
what/when/how/why/where do you give directions?
Cushla
-aware of spatial relationships, if not satisfying, she will change
-chooses how she views the relationship, enters space to see from another angle
Rodney
-identified the shifters natural, small gestures and built from there
-outside/other interests influenced directions
-if he didn't get idea or movement that he wanted, he continued to clarify the directions through use of more specific words
Geo
-enjoys being on the outside and seeing the whole improv, the complete/full picture
-sees an opportunity for humour and embellishes that
-play off what shifters are already doing and enhances
Leah
-views and directs from in the space, creates a third relationship -duet becomes trio
-alters method of giving direction -loud/quiet so the audience either included or excluded
-struggles to interrupt shifters if they are on a good path
-offers directions with large amount of freedom for shifters to interpret
Ben
-sees space in its entirety and understands how a change in one area will effect everything else
-often mimics dancer or moves to explore/understand what movement/movement  quality he wants in order to better explain it
-gives quiet instructions to specific shifters so that either the audience is in the dark or even another shifter, creating new levels of tension,
-gives tasks which require a long duration to achieve

Composure - Part III Session 4

July - November 2016

vocals

This week we explored some activities/games to unlock our voices / to give life to inanimate objects / to make meaning of movement. In pairs we described the space for each other then described each other's movement

-physically describe: (lines, shapes, colours)
      space
      movement
-emotionally describe: (emotions, feelings, characteristics, textures, personification)
      space
      movement
-metaphorical/abstract description: (story, concept, representation, idea, poem)
      space
      movement

NB: we are using our voices to produce words to give layered details to our movement, rather than creating sound for a soundscape/score

This is really hard and requires a new kind of concentration/focus. We have to access a new method to the process of verbalizing thoughts.
physically description: simple, lots to see in the space, hard to identify shapes and lines in the body when it moves....as the shapes and lines keep moving!
emotional description: we try to stay true to the feeling of the object rather than quick fire emotions that come to mind. One of us kept going until they found the right word. One person's emotional description came from their own emotional attitude/connection to the object or movement at the time
One of us kept going until we found the right word.

[Is the mover effected by the description!? yes, always. to ignore would be dis-intuitive, disassociated, disconnected/disregarding the point of offering movement. Though, mostly the mover decided to do the opposite!}

IMPROVISATION

Our 20 minute improvisation was full of vocals. We could establish partnerships more easily and clearly and through that connection between voice and movement.
-The shapers told stories, explained what self was doing, explained what other was doing, spoke lists of words.
-Awareness is stronger through using hearing sense (know where people are/what they are doing)
-Vocals offered a stronger overall arch -helped us make sense of the improv and in turn contribute more constructively.
-We need to practice how to 'drop out' of a vocal task. We have developed an understanding of how to fulfill a movement task (it could be 30secs long, it could be 4mins) but using vocals seems harder ... do we have to conclude the story? do we have to answer our own question? how can we morph one vocal task into another?-Did the first vocals set up the whole piece? we debate this most weeks... do the first moment/s of the improv set it up/dictate/establish the work [can we oppose those first moments?!] but....we will never know, what the 'other' improv could have been.

The shifters worked in a pair, and consulted each other before offering directions to the shapers. (Shifters could swap out/in with a shaper.) Some partnerships consulted as mode of reassurance, some as a form of collaborative instruction, some just to inform the other beforehand.

How do we move away from our associations with words. How do we de-socailise our words to access abstract vocal pathways. How do we use our movement skills to create/change/develop the vocal explorations.

ALSO: Do our minds network subconciously..... without our conscious knowing... is this how we create?

Composure - Part III session 3

July - November 2016

warm up:
-massage/invigorate/activate muscles of another
-which leads into finding a point of shared pressure of rolling/rubbing. we follow this point of contact and through the contact enable movement of the rest of the body/s.

we are both 50% giving and 50% receiving.

new options: 10% giving and 90% receiving OR 90% giving and 10% receiving. both people can shift between these three operating modes. can work in opposing or complimentary modes. This is not an indication of quality or weight or effort but merely a level of how much direction we are receiving or giving.

we must always be receiving direction/guidance through contact
to give well is to receive well
the reception of movement is already a gift of movement
receiving = listening
the partnership becomes one body, one organism (with several parts)

Biosis Duet
we mill and seethe and then
-catch (by a touch and then a melt into partner)
-throw (by calling out a name and throwing our bodies for them to catch)
-grab (by pulling someone into a fall/swivel/lift)

which becomes our Biosis Duet (partnership continues until someone (a lurker) interrupts/replaces/emerges

it's unpredictable (which heightens our focus/engagement)
we are in a trance
the separation is interesting -pull someone into a duet / -push someone out by pressing into the other / -call out name to catch self
the different modes of separation/beginning/ending offer different narratives
lurkers = not totally convinced of their role (aesthetically) but there is an element of suspense (when/how will they enter)
how do we enter - at the 'good' bit or after? hard or easy ? must be with full commitment!

what if the audience was circling as they watched???

Composure - Part III session 2

July - November 2016

Exploration of milling and seething layer groups including catch, throw, grab - increase awareness of the space and encouraging interactions with other shifters with a direct intention.
What happens when we merge these three options? It forms a mode of manipulative movement through which we found these options:
-Biosis Duet
     continual exploration of catch, throw, grab.
     what are the possibilities as an outsider during this interaction. How can we allow the continuation of movement without interrupting the flow. 
-Lurkers on the outside
     heavy engagement without physical interaction.
     Rip the duet apart to keep it together - actively encouraging change and development
-Provide a support as an escape rather than waiting on a 'jump rope' moment

IMPROVISATION
-Exploration of adaptation in regards to the mode of giving 'instructions' - or 'shaping' the shifters
 - this meant a more conceptual approach to direction, layering influences or meaning to existing movement rather than applying a physical change to a shifter
-Used one shifter as an 'informant' for another; Omea expressed an extremely rational explanation to the movement being used, and inspiration/keywords were taken from the dialogue by our shaper and given to another shifter, Cushla, as a movement or conceptual catalyst. This created an externally available relationship between the two performers without affecting their own perception of the interaction

Composure - Part III session 1

July - November 2016

warm up:
-lying, feeling comfortable, pushing, weight into floor, gradually moving to hands and feet then to standing
accessing body/weight/gravity to move the solo body

-connecting one body with another:
-coming together, using eye contact/sense contact then physical contact, transfer bodies together from standing to lying, separate, rise. repeat.
shared movement, reliant movement, reactive movement
-do the same from a distance.
the void between fills with the recollected imagining of the partner

IMPROVISATION:
-used a different (very small) space. this had an unexpectedly strong influence on our interaction with each other.
-used more props -interact with, extend from, relate through
-created story through familiarity with objects -chairs, curtain, piano
-used a specified start time and shaper invited the shifters into the space
-the first time we did not create a 'front' (before or during)

some questions:
-how can we identify how to 'get into' the improvisation? what is my access/axis point?
-shaper struggled to be on the outside looking in because of small space they physically were in the 'performance space' does the shaper need to be out looking in? how can they be in looking in?
-if a small space restricts physical possibilities, how do disregard the limitations to uncover alternate possibilities?

Composure - Part III

July - November 2016

Our intentions/aims/interests/goals for Part III

intentions:
-we will move away from using the words choreographer and dancer. We have replaced these terms with shaper and shifter and will use these to access new modes of creating, until new potential roles emerge.
-we will call our 'rehearsal' a session to move away from the notion that we are repeating movement to get better but rather, are constantly developing our collective practice and growing our personal skill set.

-Dancer is Shifter: they move, offer ideas, drive the piece; taking away the term ‘dancer’ also allows shifters to broaden the spectrum of material they create. -Choreographer is Shaper: they mould, meld, give structure to the piece.

aims in response to our feedback from 2 July showing:
-continue to work towards the option of the shaper being fully immersed in the work
-challenge our way of giving directions
-evolve our range of instructions and the form (physical, conceptual, abstract)
-develop our ability to say no to directions (while still providing constructive work)

interests:
-scene work
-vocal explorations
-structural/spacial design
-investigation
-the grid
-supported movement
-story making

goals:
-increase our improvisational stamina towards an endurance piece!
-individual goals and personal development
-collaborate with fresh shapers

From now, we will write weekly notes and findings from our sessions!

Composure - Part III

July - November 2016

Our intentions/aims/interests/goals for Part III

intentions:

-we will move away from using the words choreographer and dancer. We have replaced these terms with shaper and shifter and will use these to access new modes of creating, until new potential roles emerge.

-we will call our 'rehearsal' a session to move away from the notion that we are repeating movement to get better but rather, are constantly developing our collective practice and growing our personal skill set.

-Dancer is Shifter: they move, offer ideas, drive the piece; taking away the term ‘dancer’ also allows shifters to broaden the spectrum of material they create.

-Choreographer is Shaper: they mould, meld, give structure to the piece.

aims in response to our feedback from 2 July showing:

-continue to work towards the option of the shaper being fully immersed in the work

-challenge our way of giving directions

-evolve our range of instructions and the form (physical, conceptual, abstract)

-develop our ability to say no to directions (while still providing constructive work)

interests:

-scene work

-vocal explorations

-structural/spacial design

-investigation

-the grid

-supported movement

-story making

goals:

-increase our improvisational stamina towards an endurance piece!

-individual goals and personal development

-collaborate with fresh shapers

From now, we will write weekly notes and findings from our sessions!

x

Composure - Part II Showing Images

April - June 2016

Showing/Sharing at the Undisciplining Dance Symposium, University of Auckland, 2 July 2016

opening the piece

photo: val smith

Leah, Reece, Ben, Omea, Sione
photo: Karen Barbour

[Leah at back, directing] Ben, Reece, Omea
photo: Karen Barbour

Reece, Ben, Omea, Elle, Rodney
photo: Karen Barbour

Omea, Sione, Elle, Rodney [Leah + Ben at back, directing]

photo: val smith

entangled group, Reece

photo: val smith

Omea, Sione, Ben, Rodney, Elle, Reece

photo: val smith

Carol Brown facilitating our post-performance reflection

photo: val smith

Composure Part II - Showing

April - June 2016

Showing/Sharing at the Undisciplining Dance Symposium, University of Auckland, 2 July 2016

The Undisciplining Dance Symposium was an incredible gathering of dance practitioners, researchers, performers and creatives from around NZ and worldwide sharing their work as a way of unpacking the term 'undisciplining dance'. People addressed this in regards to education, performance, research, choreography -even in their mode of presentation! For us, this was an exciting context in which to share our work, an undisciplined approach to creating and performing work and in the undisciplined performance structure of informality and collective post-performance reflection.

Our performance was 20 minutes long. Leah began the piece with verbal communication to the dancers who responded physically in relationship with the space and the others. Throughout the piece the 'choreographer' role was transferred between people offering directions for the dancers to fulfill. We could start and stop sound tracks and the piece concluded with an (unfortunately silent!) alarm.

Our audience offered these thoughts/proposals/questions/offerings/possibilities:

cb: interesting inquiry into our modes of decision making = intuition vs choreographic understanding

nm: what if the choreographers were completely immersed in the piece?

    what if the choreographers were outside people, foreign to the project?

    what if the choreographers were the same but directing new people?

el: what is the mode of saying no?

   we have to push past our boundaries, we have to risk take, we have to go to those 'scary moments' -that is where we learn, where we make art, that is where the interest lies for the audience

ae: encouragement to see the process, the raw making rather than the finished product

al: how do we offer the instructions? is it a command / question / offer / suggestion ?

kl: what role can music, or a live musician, play in the live-creation of the work?

We are considering all of these ideas as we move into Part III.

Composure Part II - Showing

The Undisciplining Dance Symposium was an incredible gathering of dance practitioners, researchers, performers and creatives from around NZ and worldwide sharing their work as a way of unpacking the term 'undisciplining dance'. People addressed this in regards to education, performance, research, choreography -even in their mode of presentation! For us, this was an exciting place to share our work, an undisciplined approach to creating and performing work and in the undisciplined performance structure of informality and collective post-performance reflection.

Our performance was 20 minutes long. Leah began the piece with verbal communication to the dancers who responded physically in relationship with the space and the others. Throughout the piece the 'choreographer' role was transferred between people offering directions for the dancers to fulfill. We could start and stop sound tracks and the piece concluded with an (unfortunately silent!) alarm.

Our audience offered these thoughts/proposals/questions/offerings/possibilities:

cb: interesting inquiry into our modes of decision making = intuition vs choreographic understanding
nm: what if the choreographers were completely emmerced in the piece?
       what if the choreographers were outside people, foreign to the project?
       what if the choreographers were the same but directing new people?
el: what is the mode of saying no?
     we have to push past our boundaries, we have to risk take, we have to go to those 'scary moments'      -that is where we learn, where we make art, that is where the interest lies for the audience
ae: encouragement to see the process, the raw making rather than the finished product
al: how do we offer the instructions? is it a command / question / offer / suggestion ?
kl: what role can music, or a live musician, play in the live-creation of the work?

We are considering all of these ideas as we move into Part III.

Composure Part II - Images

April - June 2016

a few moments of our improvisation explorations

Regie, Omea, Elle

Composure Part II

April - June 2016

Our explorations last year were so interesting and informative that we decided to continue working! With a new collection of dancers we began working again, developing our methods of live-composition. We worked with a practice-as-research approach to making choreography, intrigued in our personal and collective modes of live decision making.

We worked once a week within this loose structure;
-task to c/entre the body and the group
-task to create/build our collective language
-task to develop our awareness and our decision making patterns
-1 or 2 long improvisations
-reflection / discussion

The reflection / discussion at the end of each session is where the value of our learning lies. We place a strong emphasis on asking questions of ourselves and of the group ...
what are my preferences/automatic responses?
how can I harness/oppose those instant choices?
what and how am I contributing to the overall piece?
what am I interested in as a choreographer
what is the relationship between choreographer and dancer? (do we need to use different terms!?)
what tools do we need?

Composure Part I - Images

July - September 2015

a few moments from our improvisations

Elle, Cushla, Omea, Sione

Cushla, Omea, Elle, Sione

Ben directing Cushla, Elle, Sione, Omea

Georgia, Cushla, Rodney, Reece, Elle

Cushla, Georgia, Rodney, Mariafelix, Reece, Elle, Sione

photos: Leah

Composure Part I

July - September 2015

Ben and Leah were choreographic partners for our student choreography project in our final year at Unitec. We worked with eight dancers but also incorporated 'the mass' -the rest of the class (16 more dancers)- into the performance.

The practice of Composure emerged during the rehearsal project; initially we were interested in the way the crowd can hide and reveal the dancers/dancing and we began creating large scale group structures for the dancers to move in/around/under. During group showings Ben and Leah directed the rest of the class amongst the dancers' choreographer -it emerged that this direction and response was the most interesting action to watch! And so, we shifted down this path of showing the choreographers direction, developing a method of working that was foreign, exploratory, exciting, and terrifying! Each rehearsal, Ben and Leah began with a task which would lead to an improvisation, usually an hour long, and we concluded with a discussion -what worked, what didn't work, what language were we building and how each of us operated within the improvisation. From the improv and the discussion Ben and Leah would develop the following rehearsal's opening task as a way to continue to broaden our improv skills, build our shared language and open the improvisation. We worked in an immersive, accumulative way and totally trusted the process!

Our performances (six show season) were a 12 minute improvisation. The dancers had three suggestions on a card, their acquired history of moments and interactions, our language, and their improvisational skills. Ben and Leah directed 'the mass', conducted the music operator and shaped the overall piece. The audience saw a large countdown timer, heard some directions/were excluded from others and attempted to make sense of the organised chaos! Our programme notes said: This is live composition, for you, tonight. It will never be done again.

Overall this process was completely successful in encouraging us to work in a trusting, open, non-prescribed way; in encouraging us to explore improvising as a method of both practice and performance; in encouraging discussion/investigation into methods of creation and the relationship between choreographer and dancer; in igniting an interesting mode of working that we wanted to continue after leaving dance school!


List of explorations/tasks/concepts we developed:

-milling and seething [catch, throw, grab]
-investigations [up close, distance, with body]
-x8 highly choreographed phrases
-marshmellow phrase (movement quality)
-duets [separated OR together]
-screaming grotesque faces
-symbiosis (functioning in an old way with a new partner)
-pulling duet
-long drop duet
-CHANGE [focus, level, dynamic, intention, speed, use of body, relationship, resistance, effort, intensity, awareness of others, vocals, performance, influence of sound]
-holding hands
-compose space
-drop [click]
-keys
-G.E. therapy
-MF singing

Opening Notes

Composure is an improvised creative practice that Ben and Leah developed during their student choreographic season in their third year of the Contemporary Dance programme of Unitec’s Performing and Screen Arts department, Auckland, 2015. In 2016, with a revised group of dancers, they continue Composure. As part of the practice the group reflect and discuss at the end of each session; what they've discovered/uncovered/recovered and learnt about themselves as makers/movers and about the process of collectively creating choreography. From July, the beginning of Composure Part III, these reflections will be recorded on this blog. (We'd love to hear comments, thoughts, input from any interested parties!)