What’s gooood, Colby?
Today was a VERY productive day. Despite my pounding headache (originating from some sickness I had the honor of obtaining over the weekend), Ellie and I figured out the remaining choreography to Float!
We started out by watching the video a couple of times to refresh our memories of the movements we had most recently learned. We quickly moved on to the physical practice of that choreography–reminding each other along the way of anything the other person may have forgotten. After running through the routine a few times, we decided to move on to the last chunk of the video. Using the same (seemingly effective) learning style we had been working with until then, Ellie and I learned the final portion of the dance. I found transferring the movement of the dancers into my own body to be a little easier this rehearsal, which is probably a result of getting used to learning via video.
I realized something strange and inspiring today as I was dancing. My sickness naturally gave me a tired, lagging feel, which I automatically (and unknowingly) reflected in my movements. When I first noticed it in the mirror, I was upset at myself and tried to improve my posture and energy level, but they quickly fell back into the sickly, sub-par realm. After a while, however, I started noticing how this look accentuated some of the movements and underlying emotions I was trying to convey. For example, the male dancer’s crawl near the beginning of the piece took on a more struggling and helpless appearance as I failed to hold back my fatigue and pain. I took note of these renewed movements and definitely plan on returning to a superficially “sick” state to help with the performance.
After rehearsing the entire piece a few times, Ellie and I invited Annie to see and critique us. We messed up a few parts during the run-through, revealing just how much practice we still have ahead of us before we can even think about a real performance. Ellie and Annie then spent a good amount of time going over the female dancer’s solo in the second half of the piece, giving me an opportunity to review the sequence of phrases in the dance, solidifying them in my memory. I feel like I finally have the whole piece in my mind, which will allow me to focus strictly on intention and presentation in future rehearsals.
Having sung and played instruments in front of large audiences before, and having performed my first choreographed dance piece at the First Thursday Museum Event last Thursday (March 3rd), I know how much of a gap there is between knowing a piece and being able to professionally perform it before others. Although Ellie and I have come very far in our understanding and memorization of Float, we still have a huge amount of work to do. However, given our fast learning pace, I know we’ll be able to put on a great show at the New Works Festival in April. It will be legendary!
Nothin’ but love,
Logan
colbycontemporarycontact 
Great post Logan!
I think it’s interesting that while you were finding weight shifts through your sickness and fatigue, I was also discovering how to manipulate weight in the turn sequence that Annie and I were working . I discovered that once Annie talked to us about weight and the power and momentum of the pelvis, the movements flowed with more energy and intention. I think that is where a lot of the work we have to do lies- in making the piece a whole as opposed to a set of movements.
I realized while working with Annie today that each movement, no matter how small, can be adjusted and improved. Every action must flow into the next with constant effort, intention, and sensitivity to weight. I’m looking forward to discovering where that effort and motivation comes from and how we can utilize our different body parts as isolated mechanisms instead of considering the body solely as a whole.
Until thursday!
Ellie