Modern Dance Technique II. Journal Sample
Modern Dance Technique II. Journal Sample
Sample
This class began with a warm-up that was quite new to me; I have never done such a relaxing yet effective warm-up to date. The thing that certainly stood out to me was the arm stretches behind the back, although I predict sore body pains in the morning. Another thing that proved to be remarkably helpful was spreading the toes on the floor to aid in elevation, even though personally I think it’s an unattractive feature for women its really useful in dance.
Following the warm-up we began to explore space, use of levels, directions, unique movement and use of the eyes; something that I usually seldom pay particular attention to in dance. As I write this I just realized that music was not used throughout the entire class and normally whenever this occurs I miss it tremendously, however I only realized in my current reflections. Okay back to what we did; the use of the eyes was helpful in making me aware of my surroundings and also the importance of the eyes in dance. Most times when I dance I use a blank stare avoiding contact with the audience; however the eyes helped to make my movements bolder and more assertive. I have done classes wherein different levels would be attempted but the incorporation of the various parts of the body was unorthodox to me. It made me aware that the creation of movement is not subjected to what is considered the norm or things that have been previously done. The use of the chin, mouth, elbows can be highlighted in movement, this impacted in the way I have been taught and the way I have thought about movement in the past to entice me in exploring further possibilities.
The task of producing a ritual dance was given; the first thing that comes to mind when I think about a ritual is a practice linked to some religion or spiritual belief. However, we were instructed to produce a dance without linkage to a specific belief. This made it a bit challenging because on one hand a theme was given to work with but on the other hand all previous conceptions of that theme was taken away. Therefore abstract concepts were created but they were still linked to known ideals.
The thing that stood out to me the most with the first group was the use of keeping the hands linked in the group whilst still maintaining movement. This stood out to me because it is quite difficult to do, given a short rehearsal time for everyone to move in unison. The second group to which I had the privilege of being a part of, used the theme of the ritual in illustrating the ups and downs in life as a journey in which everyone must endure. The final group proved to be emotionally and spiritually gripping as theirs involved what seemed like an actual spiritual ritual of death and life. The thing that stood out to me was the intensity of the emotional depth the dance carried inclusive of all the dancers.
In signing up for this course I expected to learn some modern dance technique and work on my body and what may be seen as ‘technical faults.’ However, it is refreshing to learn about and embrace new ideals and ideas which are technically equipped for enhancing both the body and mind.
9/12/11
Journal Entry 2
Sample
Today I wondered if I should attend class due to the immense rain because I knew that hardly anyone would attend. However the turnout was fairly good in comparison to the past semesters and rain, I’m glad that I made the effort to go because it was indeed an enjoyable, learning experience as well as the fact that Jorge sternly does not believe in rain as a deterrent.
The videos that we viewed highlighted the origins of modern dance and captured some of the styles of this form ranging from very pretty and delicate to brut and emphasized what is thought of as masculine behavior. The question in my mind is what separates folk dance from modern dance? Usually it is the norm to classify dance and this goes further into classifying mainly nontraditional ballet type movements as modern. However if modern dance is supposed to be a rebellious form of unique contemporary movement why can’t African folk dance or Indian folk dance as well as other forms be considered as this modern dance form. If it’s an issue of codification then those aforementioned forms are becoming codified as well so where does the distinction lie? Okay back to the reflection of the class; firstly when we began movement we were told to dance disembodying all previous notions of style or traditional movement. This was indescribably difficult for me because from the day I began dancing my mind and body has been trained to learn a dance, a style or adapt to someone’s choreography. It has become so engraved in me that dancing at a party is a task for me to simply move freely to the music. Following the difficult notion of freedom of personal movement another challenge was given, the challenge of expressing emotion through emotive words in dance. When this idea was mentioned I thought it would be quite easy because I’m accustomed to doing this and the use of the face makes it a breeze. Then these tools were taken away and the idea of creating new movement without the use of facial expression was presented. This was the hardest challenge yet as I felt like I was stripped away with all previous dance tools I thought I possessed. However this surprisingly forced me to think in an attempt to create and not rely on my face but to produce movement.
All preconceptions of this class have been wiped away; this is strange, exciting, new, scary and enjoyable all at the same time. I like the feeling of going to each class and having a brand new experience, instead of sighing and dreading doing the same thing every class. I look forward to the adventures of the next class.
9/19/11
Journal Entry #3
Sample
Today I realized that my mind is undergoing a reprogramming process of simply dancing and not pre- analyzing every move that my body is about to make. I thought that it would be easier for someone that had no previous training in dance because it seems like my mind is already trained to accept and do whatever is given where movement is concerned. However I was reminded that after the recreation process of inventing things that are not what I would consider the norm in dance there must still be some structure and skill required to execute the movements.
As I reflect when we started the class with walking and directions involving eye contact, levels and turns the first thing that would come to my mind before turning was turning on the balls of my feet. So I tried to think of not turning on the balls of my feet and I felt stuck in actually doing movements, it was only when I simply threw my body without thinking was I able to achieve some sort of non-prescribed movement. I would have never thought that doing things without regurgitation from an instructor would be so difficult but I am thoroughly enjoying the process and metamorphosis of my mind and body. Now I see that it is so much harder to challenge yourself in stepping out of a box and not being conscious or afraid to experiment with movement and the possibilities of it. Following the turns we then tried movement that played with our center and balance. This again was difficult for me because having to actually push the limits of my body where I could actually fall easily is not something I would eagerly seek to do. I tried to explore movements on the floor but as I did this I felt weird and tempted to look in the mirror to see if I looked absolutely ridiculous but everyone around me was trying different movements as well and it encouraged me to discard my insecurities as well as the encouragement from Jorge.
Lastly we experimented with stops and rhythm, the sound that was used helped in resonating an inner sound that indescribably helped me to stop whenever it was time to stop. This exercise was helpful in creating new movement because I had to stop whenever the beat stopped even if I was in the middle of a movement. This allowed me to see that what can be thought as the middle or beginning of a step can become a step of its own. It also showed me that stops can have powerful usages in a dance or performance.
At the beginning of the class we all had some time to talk about the importance of being on time and present for classes. This is important to me because I hope to be a professor one day and I would like to impart this to my students because it aids in discipline for the things you are passionate about which deserves respect and in turn others will show you that same respect. I have a high regard for the way Jorge doesn’t shout at us in trying to get his point across about the importance of these things but kills us with guilt if we arrive late because it is beyond apparent that he’s passionate and concerned for his students and spends time with his lesson plans. I am in my forth year at UWI and never has a professor asked me how was my day or weekend or the way I’m feeling before class. I hope when I start teaching I can impart this warmth of allowing a wholesome unit in my classes to evolve.
22/09/11
Journal Entry # 4
Sample
I arrived to see everyone peeling the tape that was left on the floor by the theatre class; my immediate thought was “Gosh I wonder what Jorge has in store for us today.” We then proceeded with an unorthodox warm-up that seemed fully effective and every single part of the body was worked on, I have never ever thought of stretching my wrist before but thinking about it now it is part of the body. The warm-up emphasized the importance of every body part in dance. It is the norm to simple stress on stretching the legs, arms and abdomen but the body has many other parts that can be incorporated in movement and only now are my eyes being opened to this prohibition of the norm in dance.
Following the warm-up, Jorge brought out a reel of string and a roll of tape, I was scared, I thought he would have us wrap or stick our bodies together to form abstract figures or something ‘Jorgeish.’ I was relieved and quite enlightened with the exploration of movement we did next with a defined space. It felt different from working in the entire room; the space felt like it belonged to each dancer that entered it through my view. It also felt comfortable to move within even though everyone was watching. There were many things that stood out to me; the way in which the movement made by everyone entering and exiting the space complimented each other’s. Also the levels, contrasts of movement from confined to elaborate and the tabloids that were created. Another outstanding idea was the view of the audience, when we changed the location view, some of the movements looked so different, it complimented some, emphasized some and patterns could be seen as well. The thing that stood out to me the most was when we expressed what was on our mind by saying it and doing movement to go along with it. It showed me the power of the mind; all of a sudden the movements became more natural and pedestrian when the mind wasn’t focused on dance but simply expression.
It was hilarious when Afiya said she was fed up of writing journals because it can become tiresome when you have to write journals for all five of your courses. But it also helps to recap in what was learnt and writing about it sometimes brings about new understanding and even ideas. In recapping this class I was thinking that working within a confined space can be used as a method of choreography. The exercise can even be used as an icebreaker for new students and can even be used for different forms of the arts like music and theatre. No one realized that the class was finished, Sarita looked at me and said “Oh no, we finish already?” I thoroughly enjoyed the last class, it was probably my best class to date, I can’t wait for Monday.
26/09/11
Journal Entry #5
Modern Dance II
Sample
Today we read about some of the Modern Dance activists as I like to think of them; Isadora Duncan, Doris Humphrey, Ruth St. Denis and Ted Shaw. My personal view though is that there were probably many pioneers even before them but they did not receive any recognition because of status and wealth. I’m in no way overlooking what the aforementioned dance transformers contributed to the art form and I understand that they themselves faced great difficulty but I like to believe that there were other maybe even greater ‘founders’ of modern dance. In Trinidad people consider Beryl McBernie as the mother of folk dance, I admire the way in which she paved a way for the folk dances to be acknowledged and provided ways for it to become widespread but she had the monetary resources to do so.
I guess I’m just upset that although we have artistic freedom it is affected greatly by the persons who control the economy or the persons in high hierarchical positions that society has built. Jorge said a Spanish actress once said to him it’s not about making it big but doing what you do as long as you live. That meant a lot to me because I don’t desire fame or anything along those lines, I desire happiness and joy in doing what I love. Jorge read some of his journal entries, it made me feel like my entries were on a primary school level, the way in which his words beautifully mastered and captured the movements he encountered in his work. I felt like I was doing the movements because they were so detailed and descriptive. I even thought that sometime I would like to experiment with a class and let them write their movements on paper and exchange it with their classmates and see what execution in movement they come up with. I must admit though it was funny when Jorge described his genitals but it is part of the human body.
Movement across the floor felt a bit more comfortable than last week, I felt like I had a better understanding of letting go of preconceptions in dance and my body felt calmer as my mind felt less confused. The use of breathing enabled me to notice the patterns of breathing that works for my body and also helped some of my movements to flow into the other. When I inhaled whilst doing movements it was more difficult and I felt like I got tired faster. We were then placed into groups and did movements that focused on inhaling and exhaling. The group I was in contained; Ardia, Sarita and Afiya, we all contributed a movements; there was a step where we fell backwards and exhaled. This helped in pushing us further backwards and the step felt relaxing, to end the sequence everyone inhaled then exhaled loudly in canon, this allowed me to feel the difference in dancing and the way the breath contributes. The second group containing Crystal, Nekeisha and Natasha began with movements that allowed them to exhale; this was apparent and stood out to me because the movements looked relaxed and fluid. The third group containing Joanna, Julia and Lurlyn did something similar to our group in releasing the breath at the end of the sequence and throughout their movements use and control of the breath could be seen.
29/09/11
Journal Entry #6
Sample
I honestly did not feel like exploring with movement today, I can’t really explain it but my mind felt congested with work. It was nice when we got props to use for this session even though it looked like fun when the scarves were first presented to us I knew in the back of my mind we were being tricked into being creative.
As I took the pink scarf in my hand I threw it up and ran to catch it after becoming a bit more familiarized with its motion I began to use soft movements to mimic the fluidity and softness of the material. When we were asked to move without the scarves the movements used remained with the same soft touch but because the scarf was no longer in my hand the movements were exaggerated because I did not have to time catching the cloth but imagine still dancing with it. The stick made me a bit uncomfortable because I like soft movements its within my comfort zone. When the stick was given to me I imagined tribal dancers and the aggression used in their movements. I found that most of my movements with the stick fell on a middle to low plane, whilst movements with the scarf was mostly on a high level. Dancing without the stick felt strange when it was taken away and the stick made me feel more secure, without it my movements felt brute and wild.
Standing aside and looking at half of the class move aids in showing me the possibilities in movement that I would not have thought about and creative ways in expression. Also in this class, the contrast between soft and untamed movement was truly captured in my observation. Although I felt it in my own body when I did it, it was useful to observe on someone else.
10/03/11
Journal Entry # 7
Sample
Class began with the viewing of some videos of dance, in all of the videos it was clear that the choreographers were searching for a unique style of Modern Dance. The first video was sexy and the lighting and patterns formed on the stage were well done. The music and unique movement style screamed out to me in admiration. The second video was a bit more on the theatrical side, humorous and stylized Cuban contemporary technique. Jorge said that we should form our unique movement identity as Trinidadians, I sat and thought about it and nothing could come to my mind. Our cultural influences have been so heavy and as a result we have so many genres of folk forms; Indian, African, Chinese and many social popular dances.
I guess the challenge is meshing the commonalities of each one to create something unique to this Caribbean region. After viewing the videos we went on the floor and worked with shapes, I actually then realized how geometric the body can be used in dance. I think I read somewhere that it is referred to as cubism. It was interesting to be conscious of working with producing shapes of lines, circles, squares and triangles.
Trouble began for me when we had to close our eyes and create shapes with our bodies. I have such a short attention span and I think way too much when my eyes are closed that I simply felt like screaming in frustration as Jorge called numbers for us to switch movements. I couldn’t help but thinking of my next movement or thinking about what I should do next or trying to remember my previous movements or peeking and looking at the person beside me. I guess I need to work on this exercise a bit more and learn ways in calming my thoughts, trusting my body and simply dance. Although it this was a rough class for me I enjoyed it nevertheless and will continue working at creative shapes in movement.
6/10/11
Journal Entry #8
Sample
At the start of class we had a discussion about a representative from the dance department and matters concerning the relocation of the arts center. This is something I am truly passionate about because I have studied on the main campus and the students there are treated with utmost respect in their respective fields of study in regard to facilities allotted to them. Many of my fellow classmates at that time and even at present are not aware of the Creative Arts Center and the arts programs. I am elated that the arts students can unite and encourage constructive progressive change to occur.
As we moved across the floor I tried to guess what we would be working on today, then I realized as we moved that we were recapping and enhancing what we have been doing in the past weeks thus far. We were then tricked into having fun but really actually working when we were given belts to explore the feel of restriction in movement. It felt like a contrast between tension and release in movement as well as the effort in partnership in dance. When I was being held I felt weightless, I enjoyed allowing that feeling of withstanding gravity throughout my body. It was difficult when it was my turn to hold my partner because from that light feeling to heavy in holding the person’s weight and the weight imbalance at times with different partners made this difficult. After working with the belts we then tried similar movements without the belts with our partners. This was a bit tricky because we kept switching partners and as soon as I familiarized my bodily weight with my partner’s we would then have to change partners. Working with the belts was easier because it felt as though your body had no limit of counter-balance; with my partner I was mindful of weight and balance.
We were then spilt into groups to produce movements with the transfer of weight and tension exerted by the body with each other. I realized how beautifully some of the movements in the groups flowed into the other and the creation of shapes and patterns across the floor. Once again we were tricked into learning but the process was nothing but enjoyable.
10/10/11
Journal Entry # 9
Sample
Today everyone was alarmed and worried because it was time for class to begin and Jorge was not yet here. It was no fault of his because of a seminar and we quickly resumed class; we were given the task to choose a place in or outside the space and create movement based on inspiration from this place or object inside the space.
Everyone was quite as usual; Natasha used a corner in the classroom upstairs and her movements reflected the stimulus of the table. Deon’s piece stood out to me the most as he creatively used the doorway and the upper staircase; his movements involved the actual use of the doorway wherein he lifted his body and created patterns with his feet whilst hanging from the doorway. Afiya used the door downstairs and there was suspense and longing in her movements. Surita used the gates at Jorge’s office and hung, climbed and swung from them presenting movements that seemed like a battle for freedom. Judy Ann’s movements under the staircase also seemed like a cry to be free as she used both the inner and outer of her caged space. Johanna was certainly influenced by the fans, as her movements were fluid and fast with arms rotating quickly like that of the blades of the fan. My piece was influenced by the white board; I pictured myself as a deranged painter trying to find clarity with my work. Ian used the bar stands and dance through them, Lurlyn used the mirror and produced calm slow movements. Ardia used her slippers as a prop and worked with them. This exercise served as a choreographic tool for me in working with one’s surroundings or even props.
After we did these exercises sadly I had to leave, my mother who was present at that class asked me if we were all supposed to be crazy people. I laughed and explained it to her she said she thoroughly enjoyed the dances that were created.
13/10/11
Journal Entry # 10
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Thinking of where to begin in writing about today‘s class because it was quite different from the others and unlike any class I have ever attended in my life to date. I thought we would have been working with props but I was in for a surprise.
We began working together in groups across the floor working with levels whilst maintaining movement and remaining closely linked to each other. The first time I did it I was careful and did movements I was already accustomed to but the second and third time I attempted simply moving without thinking. This worked out sometimes and then there were moments where I would lose my balance or even fall over someone. However the promptness of the movements and impromptu process of executing them helped in producing unique contemporary movement.
Following this exercise we began rolling on the floor, I was screaming on the inside because rolls are my least favorite things to do. It was not as horrible as I had anticipated but the part I honestly did not favor was when we rolled over each other. I felt as though I was being crushed and stifled, nevertheless I learnt that when I stopped or slowed down the rolls became harder when someone was rolling over you. Also in looking at the others roll it sparked ideas for movement vocabulary on the floor for a dance because it is usually difficult for me to move on the floor and making the transition off the floor.
Finally the last exercise we tried caused my eyebrow raise I’m sure high enough to touch my hairline. This was the ‘shout obscenities as loud as you can task.’ This made me extremely uncomfortable because my family is particularly religious and saying an expletive around them is seen as a ‘sin.’ So I have always tried not to so I may not offend anyone, but I believe that curse words are words that are socially set up and are simply socially unacceptable. However I understand that as artists you may have to become a character be it a dog, demon and so on but that does not make you those things. This exercise is helpful but was extremely uncomfortable as it caught me off guard and it is something that conflicts the teachings that have surrounded my life. All in all it was a fun class as usual but now I’m questioning if I should be scared for the next.
17/10/11
Journal Entry # 11
Sample
I found at last my least favorite thing to do in movement which was done all day in class; rolling on the floor and movements based solely on the floor. This means I have to work even harder on these movements. I overcame my fear of doing back rolls a couple years ago but I can’t remember the last time I attempted a roll moving forward, I think it was when I was younger playing with my brothers and my mom would tell us to stop it.
Today however Jorge wanted us to roll across the room and I quickly raked my brain for a valid excuse to run out of the class but could not find one that was feasible. So I tried and honestly after a couple of tries it wasn’t as bad as the block in my mind created. I’m actually pleased that I was encouraged to do this exercise. However I was hoping that we would finally leave floor movement but we were then paired up and rolled over each other. We then did it as a group and I wanted to scream and run, I had enough rolls, my head began to ache, my mind began to wander and I became irritable. I tried not to show it because I knew that this lesson benefits us and it’s evident that Jorge is dedicated to this work and imparting upon us valuable knowledge and skills and this pushes me and makes me value the work we do in class even more.
The last exercise involved individual work; we explored rolling the body into various abstract stops. This was helpful to me personally in introducing new floor movement than the ones that I would usually do. This is the reason most of my movement sequences rarely involve floor movements because previously I believed that floor movement was limited. However in exploring the way my body turned on the floor I realized how much could actually be done and that I should never limit movement creativity. When we were displaying the movements to each other however I think I hit my limit and my mind went blank. I was thankful that I had the opportunity in being part of this lesson and also thankful that the rolls were finished.
20/10/11
Journal Entry # 12
Sample
Props were presented to us to work with today; I stared at the non enticing pile and decided to use a candle. As I picked up the candle I quickly racked my memory for movement vocabulary that would be suitable for this prop. However Jorge instructed us to simply play with the prop; I followed willfully because I am confident that there’s always logic in his creative processes no matter how unorthodox they may seem.
I then forgot about thinking about suitable movement and began playing with the candle which became many things; a wand, a marker and even a knife. We were then instructed to create a movement sequence and imagining the candle was all of the aforementioned items aided in movement emerging from me without even thinking about it. It is funny looking back at this exercise at how easily movement can be created when we rely on a simplistic juvenile approach.
As I watched my classmates present their sequences it was interesting to watch the way in which they used their props. Deon’s sequence in particular stood out to me as he used a brush and as I interpreted his story, it was a painter who lost the use of his arms and then used his mouth and legs to continue painting. This encouraged movement in Deon’s entire body which as dancers we forget to highlight in movement. This exercise was extremely useful as the same movements done with the props could be used without them and countless movement material can be created.
27/10/11
Journal Entry # 13
Sample
The exercise on the use of props continued today, I missed Monday’s class but I was fortunate enough to explore movement with a prop that held significant personal meaning. The challenge with this firstly for me was finding something that was important or personal to me. I honestly could not think of something that was emotionally dear to me, I’m not a very emotionally expressive person and things that have been significant to me I threw away.
I finally decided to bring a prayer card that my mom gave to me when I was much younger. We were told to play around with the prop and create movement; I felt completely stuck. There’s no words that could really describe the way I felt; simply blocked, I looked around and I saw everyone else producing brilliant movement and I sat feeling like an underdog. I told Jorge that I was having a block and he told me to use it, to let it help me in creating movement. As I tried I began feeling upset and frustrated and I simply looked around at everyone. Jorge then came and told me something that helped me a great deal; he told me that the only block was a mental one because even when we speak we produce movement with our hands. He told me to simply move and don’t limit myself in not producing movement because it isn’t what I ideally envision dance to be basically.
I managed to produce some movement that I was not content with but it felt somewhat pleasurable to produce movement that I’m not used to at all that is synonymous to pedestrian movement. It felt organic and I think in my spare time I will explore these movements even more.
31/10/11
Journal Entry # 14
Sample
I missed Jorge today, class began about 3.30 pm because the previous class ran late on their presentations and only a handful of us came to class so the energy felt a bit low. Deon began warm-up then he wanted to begin working on his piece which involved the ocean and us as his waves which in his vision meant us rolling on the floor continuously throughout his piece. A loud inner scream pierced through me as everyone then decided to make it an entire group piece with the various groups and solos contained in a long dance. I knew that rolls would come back to haunt me in some way.
We began rolling continuously over each other, under each other and passing through spaces and creating shapes. Then we parted and broke into the very first groups we were in when we did the ‘ritual dance’ in class. We collaborated and began working on movement, then I asked each member of my group what do they think of when they think of water; they said refreshing, life, death and other things so we each created movement based on the way these words impact on us personally.
In the last sequence of my group we decided to use a folktale of the sea of a woman who lures men into the ocean and kills them, this was a lot of fun. We also tried to incorporate all the things learnt in the previous classes and methods of creating movement like body weight, connecting with each other, focus, creating shapes whilst rolling and trying to forget technique at the moment of producing movement to name a few elements.
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