The intricate and delicate choreography of Slip was daunting, yet relatable. Phillip Chbeeb and Renee Kester created the concept and the choreography and performed the dance beautifully. Everything about the setting, the music of choice and the moves blended ever so perfectly. From the beginning when they made contact with each other through their hands to the very end when he caressed her face very lightly and their eyes met, each part of the choreography was felt through the viewer. The setting was in a subway station underground. The set did affect the way the dancers moved. Most of the time they would advance toward each other, conveying a message of being intimate, not really were they ever apart from one another. Although they never really retreated from each other, the viewer does get a sense of push and pull from the dancers. The idea of “slip” was to find a way to slip through the pain and let go of the past that can damage …show more content…
In the beginning, the dancers start on the ground and in the motions of the music and essentially “slipping” through the past there was this rise and sink motion that was fluid. Both dancers arced, spoked and carved. Renee made lots of lines with her entire body as he held her straight (horizontally) in his arms and she also arced as she put her arms around him to hang on to him and as she let go of him she continued to make circle with her feet. In addition, in the beginning of the video, they created an infinity symbol with their legs and feet to an extent signify the past as always being a part of your life even after you slip through and let go. The push and pull was choreographed beautifully and it was an amazing concept to watch someone hold on to their past. This type of dance is not only beautifully but it conveys a message using the body in mixed postures, opening and closing, advancing but not really ever retreating until the end, using straight pathways because the past is
Unlike most of his contemporaries, Grossman’s dance movements vary from one production to another. In the 1975 production ‘Higher’ the dance movements were mainly using the whole body. The piece went for 15 minutes and was explicit in its design so that the audience could clearly see and understand the intended message/s. This piece received many awards and is what got Grossman noticed and brought into the dancing world.
After watching the videos most made me feel same as in our book Bill T. Jones says, “Make something beautiful…Make something that comes honestly from you. Dare to fail.” That is exactly ho I felt after watching most of the videos. They were full of emotions and contact. The movements were very touchy feely and emotional with a story to tell; especially, the one called “What is contact improvisation?” I did reminded me of some of the previous choreographies we watched. I most of the videos there was a lots of ballet movements except the “Rennie Harris Puremovement │ Jacob 's Pillow Dance Festival 2009," which I actually enjoyed the most. I also did see some jazz, and musical, but not tap. If I look at previous video from Bob Fosse and his “Sweet Charity”, I don’t really see any connection between the videos we have see in this chapter.
Dance is an ever evolving form of art; in much the same way that one can categorize and differentiate between eras and styles of architecture one can also do so with dance. These eras at times have sharp delineations separating them from their antecedents, other times the distinction is far more subtle. Traditional forms of dance were challenged by choreographers attempting to expand the breadth and increase the depth of performance; preeminent among such visionaries was Seattle born dancer and choreographer Mark Morris. Mark Morris' began as one of the millions of hopeful individuals attempting to simply make a career in dance; he not only succeeded but managed to have a lasting effect on the entire landscape of dance.
He thought it was very unique and he was simply surprised that he did not know about the impact such a simple movement can do to a dance which is stomping. This documentary
This writer’s brother danced for 16 years and he mostly did ballet. One time when he was practicing for a show he lifted his partner and she twisted wrong and he got a hernia in his groin area. He danced on it for the longe...
Sokolow was a well renowned dancer that I was unaware of before starting this project and I learned an immense amount about her. Her movements having the strong technique as many Graham and Duncan dancers have, nevertheless, she still has a particular unique style to her movement, even after watching multiple works I am still not positive I have figured out what it truly is. If I had to guess though, it would be how human the movement is. Either way, Sokolow received much acclaim around the world and had started her own company which is still running strong
In January 1889, Wavoka, a Paiute Indian, had a revelation during a total eclipse of the sun. It was the genesis of a religious movement that would become known as the Ghost Dance. It was this dance that the Indians believed would reunite them with friends and relatives in the ghost world. The legend states that after prayer and ceremony, the earth would shatter and let forth a great flood that would drown all the whites and enemy Indians, leaving the earth untouched and as it was before the settlers came to America. The religion prophesied the peaceful end of the westward expansion of whites and a return of the land to the Native Americans.
This section opens with the ghost dancer exiting the stage and three female dancers and three male dancers enter the stage. One female is wearing an old dirty old flowy dress that is ripped up, the second female is wearing a nice frilly red skirt and flowy white top, the third female dancer is wearing a button up grey shirt with a black mid-length skirt. As for the male dancer, one male is wearing a grey suit, the second male is wearing a nice business shirt and pants. The last male dancer is wearing an old long white t-shirt with baggy pants. These costumes represent how everyone was affected by the Pinochet regime and it wasn’t just the poor who suffered. They used folk lament which is a very happy upbeat song. They use space and levels in this section, space and levels gave structure and interest to the section. The ghost dancer return and violently grab the male dancers and throw them to the ground, and take their place in the partner work. The female dancer and male dancer are moving in unison, they run down the stage to either left or right. They then begin to do their motif, which is where they swing their shoulder forwards and backwards, and they then jump and turn around and began walking slowly in the other direction. The ghost dancers return at the end of section and repeat their motif, this motif represents victimisation (Jane Pritchard, 2000, Ghost Dances Study
All Indians must dance, everywhere, keep on dancing. Pretty soon in next spring Great Spirit come. He bring back all game of every kind…all dead Indians come back and live again. They all be strong just like young men, be young again. Old blind Indian see again and get young and have fine time. When Great Spirit comes this way, than all the Indians go to mountains, high up away from whites. Whites can't hurt Indians then. Then while Indians way up high, big flood like water and all white people die, get drowned! After that, water go way and then nobody but Indians everywhere and game all kinds thick… (Wovoka, The Paiute Messiah qtd. In Brown 416).
In fact, by excluding God and all religious aspects the monologue can now be shared to an even larger audience than before. Continuing his speech, Jon declares, “But then I did a little research and by that I mean I researched and researched and researched over and over again and through all of my researching I keep coming up with the same exact question” (Jorgenson). At this point in the dance, the dancers are preforming a turn called a fouetté. As Jorgenson repeats himself they spin around and around; this motion is repetitive just like his statement. The actions within the dance create pictures that coincide with the words. Jon says, “when I lean on hope,” (Jorgenson) and the dancers all lean together. Throughout the entire dance this pattern repeats itself. Jorgenson verbalizes a motion and the dancers carry it out. Another example of this is when he says, “I’ll ask you again, what room does fear have when I step out of the darkness and I bask in the light”. The dancers lift their legs dramatically and step as if they are stepping out of the darkness like the quote entails. Every movement in this dance functions as a depiction of the monologue. In an interview with Jade Dowling, a dancer of 16 years, she claims that, “none of the motions in any dance are used without purpose. Whether it is to portray a certain word, action, or phrase, or if the motion is to
In which the definition is used in reference to the absence of motion. The dancers use this element whenever they roll over into an embrace grasping each other while they are in the low position on the ground. This is unique to me because the embrace shows that the two dancers in the story have a physical
The dancers did not seem defeated, but slightly emotionally disconnected. I felt like this signified the exhaustion that comes while waiting for the rain. There were several positions that were held in the first part of the dance. I also noticed that flicking motions were a motif in the dance, whether that be from their wrists or their ankles. Morgan Moore first showed this motif as she held her leg up in a tilted position and stared down at the sheet below her. She began to flick her wrists which not only reminded me of one who is flicking the rain off their fingertips, but it looked like a begging
The dancers begin in unison in a large clump. They dance together with slow movements; reaching up with their arms straight and palms open. It is to be noted that when they stretch their arms up, they tilt their head and look up as well. Throughout the piece the dancers repeat this movement, which represents reaching and praying to God. The dancers are constantly reaching up, embodying their despair and their yearning for help. As the dance progresses, the dancers repeatedly break out of the clump in the center and do different movements and their own sequences. After this, they always go back to their clump and do synchronized movement. Their constant breaking away from the group symbolizes their continual want to be free, as well as their persistency. On the other hand, their constant going back to the group shows how African-Americans will always be joined together by their culture, prayer, and hardships. Additionally during the piece, multiple dancers will run up to another dancer and jump or hold onto them, and then they do a couple of movements together. This shows how they are reliant and dependent on each other, and how they need each other throughout their suffering. Lastly, Much of the movement in this section possesses the downward energy characteristic of African dance, which symbolizes a connection to the earth. The choices Ailey made choreographically communicates all
The Ghost Dance was a very important custom performed by many Indians during the 1880’s through the 1890’s. During the 1890’s, the Indian civilization started to die. The Ghost Dance was a dance that tried to bring back the dead and bring back the ways of the Indians. During those times the Indians were having a hard time dealing with all of the white men. The white men were trying to push the Indians out of their land. In these times, the white man had basic control over the reservation. That meant that the white man had control of the supplies and food that the Indians received. The white man did not take good care of the Indians, as partrayed in the movie Thunderheart. During the movie Thunderheart the white man is sent in to find out about a murder of one of the Sioux tribe’s members. In the movie there is a revolt going on with a group called the ARM’s that are trying to save their Indian culture. Just like back in the old days. The white man in the movie treats all of the Indians like they are dirt. The Indians turn out to be very smart people who have many talents. During the movie the main character, Ray Levoi starts to have visions and see many Indians doing the ghost dance. The main character is part Indian, but he does not believe that the Indians are his people. During the 1880’s, that is when Wovoka had the vision of the Ghost Dance. Ever since that day he tried to get as many people as he could to join him to fight the white man. The ghost dance plays a major part in the movie Thunderheart and also plays a major role in the lives of the Indians.
Also, the performers are constituted with same number of men and women. They imply the importance of equality through the performance. The female and male dancers use the same movements to show that they are equal. The message being conveyed here is important, on the grounds of its social influence and giving the whole performance a deeper meaning. The thing makes dancing different and odd to other occupations is the fact that most famous and well known dancers are mostly females, since on other social circumstances males tend to dominate more realms. Here, besides all the female masters, the male dancers appear as much as the female artists do and they also showcase what they are capable of. As I watched more of the performance, the interactions between dancers and the LED lights became more appealing to me. Dancers use their bodies to interpret the connections between human beings and technology. Moreover, the background music also plays a vital role in the production of this whole piece of art. The tempo of the music, the dance movements, as well as the frequency of the lights going on and off together appeared to the audience as a desirable combination. I love how the dancers do every movements according to the rhythm of the music and how they two fit perfectly. All of those things together made a great show to watch and