Wednesday 27 November 2013

November Blog Post

24th October- 22nd November
 
Another month has passed far too quickly and there are plenty of things to blog about. So...
 
29th October - Release Based Contemporary
 
My Focus for this lesson was quiet ribs. I always thought that they were generally quiet in class anyway and haven't noticed any changes in other styles of dance either. However, the week before, when jumping, I noticed tension in my shoulders and my chest which changed the way I held my upper body. This week, I wanted to pay particular attention to this area in order to improve it.
 
Landing Exercise One: In this exercise, when leaning backwards over the legs, I have a tendency to arch my back and drop my head backwards. However, after talking about the head to tail connection a lot recently I realised that I needed to keep the connection in this movement also. Since, I keep my tail bone, spine and head in a straight line.
 
 
 
1st November - Experiential Anatomy
 
In this lesson, we focused on the Naval Radiation Pattern (Star Fish Pattern). We were given a task in which we had to lie in the star fish position and visualise a colour dispersing from the centre of the body and out to the limbs. This was a very clear and vivid image for me, and instantly made me think about this video below...
 
 
 
 
 
 

4th November - Improvisation and Instant Composition

Today, both Katye's group and Polly's group worked together. In this lesson, we began working with levels in moving, for example:
Level 1 - Floor
Level 2 - Sitting
Level 3 - Pelvis lifted off floor
Level 4 - Standing

We then worked with the notion of curling and uncurling the spine. I moved in a way that my body arched forwards over the legs and then backwards into a high release. I imagined this, as a flower with two leaves arching in different directions. In my journal I tried to reflect this in my drawing.

 




5th November - Release Based Contemporary

Today, we were asked to reflect on the aspirations we set ourselves at the beginning of the year. I feel that I working consistently in class to maintain my concentration levels. I sometimes feel now that I can't always fully engage, but I still continue the movement to try to recapture this again.

I feel that I want to make the most of my final year of training because classes will be less accessible to me as a dancer when I graduate.




8th November - Experiential Anatomy

In this lesson, we discussed the Mouthing Pattern and how the mouth and digestive system offers a line of support through the body. After moving with an awareness of the digestive system, this is the drawing I created.

 


For me, I see the digestive system as one long line travelling from the mouth, through to the stomach and to the intestine. At the intestine, this line becomes a tangle and a maze inside the body. This is what the picture portrays.




18th November - Skinner Releasing Technique

I received a lot of useful feedback during this session when moving alone and in contact with a partner. This feedback was:

Keep moving forwards, not backwards
Keep eyes closed
Keep chest open, not closed (front surface)
Keep pelvis in contact with partner.

I think that this feedback reflects things I have previously tried to improve but in the moment of dancing, this time, they have slipped my mind. In second year, I began to work with the idea of moving forwards because I received that as feedback then as well. I have always struggled to keep my eyes closed in certain tasks and clearly this is reflected in the feedback I received again today. I have not previously noticed my chest being closed before but when it was pointed out to me today, I could see why this correction had been pointed out to me. In future, I am going to try to be aware of this feedback when working in partners again. I feel like the last snip it of feedback sometimes applies to me but sometimes doesn't. When working in partners, it is important to apply a lot of pressure and receive that pressure back in order for Contact Improv to work. Sometimes, if I do not receive enough weight off my partner, I am reluctant to give them my weight and risk falling over! Depending on how I work with a particular partner depends on how I respond to this sort of task and today, I couldn't give my weight as it did not feel safe to.

In this lesson, we also worked with the arms as sails, from the shoulder to the little finger and down the length of the body. The spine was a rope hanging down the centre. With this imagery, I felt expansive, wide, seeing out, fluid, swirls of energy,
continuous movement...

 

I was given feedback in which it was explained to me that I needed to be able to fold more easily in the hip, knee and ankle joints when moving. I understand this as usually, I tend to fold only at the hip joints.

Sunday 17 November 2013

Reoccurring Theme

Across the variety of classes during the week, I am noticing one particular theme that seems to have transpired throughout. This is the notion of condensing and expanding.

 
In Released Based Contemporary, we have been working with condensing and expanding. At the start of the lesson, we have been asked to move with this in mind.  It also feeds in to the phrases we have been doing. Continuously through the phrase there are moments when the one will counter act the other.

 
In Experiential Anatomy, we have been working with the naval radiation pattern (starfish). Alike the start of the Release Based Contemporary classes, we have been asked to condense and expand passing through the star fish position.


In Improvisation/ Instant Composition, we have breifly touched on curling and uncurling which to me, is very similar to condesing and expanding and evokes a similar approach to moving.