New Me
Title: Birth on Red Couch
Statement of Intention: To explore the opposite of my choreographic self.
Objects: 1 performer, 1 red couch, 1 purple blanket
Direction:
The performer begins completely covered by the blanket and slowly emerges from it.
Conclusion: The performance concludes when the he has emerged from the blanket.
Reflection: For this assignment, we were asked to find "the opposite of our
dancing self." This proved more challenging than our other assignments,
as I have made a conscientious effort to explore throughout my
choreographic journey; if my last piece was a high-energy group piece,
my next one would be a contemplative solo, the one after that would be
an abstract trio, etc. In the end, I gleaned inspiration from one of my
peers, Kelly Southall, whose solo this summer was very much the
opposite of what I think of as dance. It was interesting, intense, and
hard to watch. It made me squirm in my seat and I felt that if art can
illicit that kind of reaction, then it is successful, whether or not it
is one's own personal taste. I decided to use stillness and suspension
and nudity and color. It is very low energy, which to me is new. I
guess this dance is a new me that I can use to push myself as a
performer.
