Dear All,
What a great start to the module! Thank you for a focused, committed and creative session with a high level of responsiveness and sense of responsibility for yourselves and each other. The work you created and its maturity allowed Paul and I to build on the session instinctively, leaving plans aside and going with the flow. This is very promising.
Think about the journey you undertook this morning and the learning curve accompanying it. Think also about the introductory talk we gave to prepare you for the whole year's work ahead. Think about the new way in which we introduced you to conceptualising the body and using it for communication. And now try and answer the following questions, reflecting on your own work from this morning and from those around you.
1. How did the session shift your understanding of 'neutrality' in performance? What do you think is meant by the centre and why is it important to ground the body before beginning to work in the genre?
2. More often than not, movement is associated with a certain idea of 'aesthetic' (find out what this means exactly before you answer this question). Dance holds the popular impression that movement must be pretty to look at.
In this morning's session, how did we approach this stereotyped understanding of 'aesthetic' movement? What made movement most interesting to watch? How pretty it looked? Or how honest it was and connected to one's inner impulse? Discuss this with examples.
It is always good to respond to these questions after reading around the subject. This will help locate your own experience in a wider theoretical context. Look up the websites on this blog of other companies and look at their comments on the issues raised above. Use quotes and reference them correctly if you want.
Looking forward to ALL your responses by Wednesday 1st October, 4 pm. Enjoy the weekend!
Royona
Bahok, Akram Khan Dance Company
Exploring Liminality
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33 comments:
Hi all,
Firstly I just wanted to take the chance to say how much I enjoyed yesterdays session. I think a lot of it was to do with how everyone 'clicked' and supported each other, and also a big thank you to Royona and Paul for making the intro so enjoyable.
1. My understanding of neutrality changed quite a bit after the session, mainly because I felt so different to what I did in my neutral state from devising 1. I felt much more 'zoned out' and realised what was meant when Royona said that your body should be ready to tackle anything in that state, because although I felt totally relaxed I also felt in control of everything.
I feel it is important to ground yourself and find the centre, so that you are totally in control of not only your own, but other people's actions. If this wasn't done beforehand, I think the experience would be totally different. Not only did I feel more in control by doing the exercises at the start of the session, but it also helped me forget any inhibitions and I especially noticed this when the whole group came together.
2. The beauty of the work was mesmerising, and I feel it was because we all acted on impulse rather than thinking through what we were actually doing. Once we had over come our initial barriers as a group, everyone seemed more relaxed and comfortable in what we were doing. Me and Gina were in the first group to go up, and by comparing that to the second time I noticed that the touch weren't as gentle or apologetic. I think that the couples which didn't hold back told the most interesting 'stories' and showed the most emotion and connection. For example Edward held nothing back, just like Mikey and the start of their journeys were emphasised. Even as a spectator we were able to pick up on the emotion and closeness of the friendships which the couples held. This was showed by the way we all said "Awwwww" once they had finished!
By comparing the first time we did the activity and the second, I personally feel it was clear to see that the barriers are what slows down the intensity and the potential narratives of the piece. Once they had been overcome slightly and once we started acting on impulse rather than planning it through, it became much more interesting and beautiful!
Hope I have blabbed on too much, enjoy your weekend!
Marie xxx
Firstly I would like to say how much I enjoyed the first session and how calming the lesson was once the group had overcome personal barriers. Well to Anna for the whole “feel” phobia!
1. Today’s session shifted my understanding of "neutrality" in many ways. Having found my neutral position in Devising 1 I seem to have forgotten what this actually was. When we began the exercise of walking across the room in neutral it was like understanding the basics again. Having completed this exercise I feel that my neutral position will need some working on which will hopefully become apparent through the journey of this module.
For me, the term "grounding the body" is about finding the centre spot of where your spine feels parallel to the floor with weight distributed evenly. It is important for me to ground my body before beginning this work as you have a sense of how you want your body to feel once engaging in physical activities throughout.
2. In today’s lesson we began to learn how to strip the body of our aesthetic movements. In everyday life we do not 100% concentrate on how we breathe, move or stand. In today’s lesson we learned how to dismiss standing normal and stand in "neutral". For me after finding my neutral and putting it into the walking exercise was rather difficult, this is because I have never paid that much attention to the way I move breathe simply because it is part of my everyday life. This allowed me to see how we move in everyday life compared to the way in which we move within the surroundings of physical theatre.
In my opinion we approached aesthetic movements in an unexpected way. For me, after we had warmed up and walked in neutral we were asked to get into partners which I thought this was going to be a simple exercise of walking past one another remaining eye contact. In this occasion we were demonstrated the way in which we can read people’s movements with our eyes shut using fingers and hands. This task was at first quite scary because we had half of the group watching us and we were the first group performing, therefore I felt it had an added pressure value because we were asked not to fear touching anyone’s bum or breast which was kind of hard when we had ever engaged in this level of physicality before. In a way I am kind of glad that we were thrown in like this because it gave me a mental kick which was kind of, forget people are watching you, think this is normal and stop holding back what you are doing because we all have to start somewhere.
I believe that today’s “movements” were not interesting because they were pretty or fancy but because each couple told a story. For example when myself and Richard began the activity I felt that I was holding back movements and holding the shapes because it felt unnatural and uneasy simply because we had never done anything like this before which I felt it told the story of an argument or maybe a disagreement because I was not giving him time to explore the shapes or the level of my movements. After about a minute of engaging in the task I began to slow my movements because for me that barrier had become broken and didn’t seem as weird as it did when we were first showed the task. Once the groups switched places it was more apparent that they knew what to expect having seeing this done before and most couples told the story or relationships or friends trying to help one another out. An example of this is Leigh-Anne and Mikey. When they were finding each others shapes they were not afraid to hold back from touching parts of the body which might seem unusual to the public eye and therefore enabled us as an audience to figure out some sort of story.
Well done all!
Dan
Hi all,
I really enjoyed the session on Friday, and i think we all achieved more than we thought we would in first session.
1. My understanding of neutrality came from Devising last year, and that was the outward neutrality acting as a blank canvas on which the devising was based. However after Fridays session the difference was obvious between the two. As I found the neutrality we we're looking at is an inward neutrality as my body felt more grounded physically not just on the outside. I think the centre is found when your body feels completly ready to work, to take on any challenge. I think it is important to ground the body for that very reason , so you can maximise your bodies ability.
2. I think what made it interesting to watch was how everybody acted on impulse and everybodies senses were hightened. You could slowly see bit by bit how peoples inhibitions gradually broke down, and i think the beauty of the piece came out of those things.
I felt when working with Zara that the music enhanced the exercise, as for me personally it affected the way i moved , because i don't think I would have moved in the same way without the music. It made me want to move in a more elegant way, but at the same time trying to move in a way that would give Zara the best opportunity to find out what i did when the roles were reversed.
When we were watching the other group, it was quite relaxing to watch and suprisingly it didnt feel weird to watch. When I was up there with Zara I was thinking
" I bet this looks so odd."
But it didnt look odd or anything out of the ordinary.
I think a prime example of honesty and instint was mikey and leigh anne, and they truly seemed to connect with each other, and i found myself perhaps watching them slightly more than the other pairs.
1. My understanding of neutrality completely changed from what I first understood it to be in Devising 1, last year. Initially I saw neutrality as making my body appear to be neutral, so it was seen as a blank canvas, removing all of my mannerisms that appear on the body, like leaning more on one leg, holding an arm when you stand etc. It seemed that the neutrality it aimed for was based primarily on the aesthetics whereas this time round I feel that this module has the primary aim to achieve a neutral state. What I mean here, is a state in which the body and mind are prepared for anything. Prepared to catch someone, support them, react and adjust your body in any moment. I feel that this is almost impossible to achieve instantaneously and will take a lot of practice to accomplish.
This genre inparticular creates a lot of physical demand for the body therefore making it essential to ground your body to adhere to the responsibilities that come along with the physical demands. If your not grounded, supporting or catching someone becomes dangerous and they might become hurt. The ‘centre’ in this context coincides with grounding the body. It’s finding that point in you, that you can channel your energy through when you’re in a stable stance. It helps you to remain balanced and almost connected to the ground.
2.In our session we weren’t concerned with the aesthetics at all. It wasn’t important to create a nice choreography based piece for the audience to watch and think what great movements were being shown, that was far from the intention. It was most definitely just acting on impulse, not thinking about anyone else around you, just being totally connected to the person you were working with. When I had my eyes open and Lizzi was following me, I wasn’t interested in making attractive shapes for the audience, it was just a case of moving freely in an uncontrolled, not thought about way. It wasn’t pretty at times at all, poking Lizzi in the eyes on a few occasions and tripping over each other but it felt natural because we didn’t have to worry about the aesthetics, just keep moving, connecting with each other. As a result of this, I think it made it a very honest thing to watch. When I was the observer of the couples, there were times when they misinterpreted movement, missed a raised arm etc but the moments when they did connect, they did follow the other person perfectly without any sight at all, made this honesty beautiful to watch. It was ok for Edward to grab at nothing as Sandi’s leg had just moved seconds before; it was ok for Sarah not to entirely see the shape that Tonia was making because in that moment when they did come together, probably best represented through Leanne and Mikey’s final pose, the movement had become so intertwined and effortless it was worthy of its own beauty, and was definitely aesthetically pleasing to me!
Awesome sessions everyone, see you on Friday.
Nicola
It's great to see such detailed, well thought through and coherent responses. Thank you to those of you who have shared your thoughts on line so far.
All of you speak of a state of readiness and Sarah speaks of an inward neutrality. In this context, it would be useful to consider the physiological differences in last year's neutral stance and this year's neutral stance.
1. Where in relation to the spine are your limbs this year?
2. What does the unlocking of the knees allow the body to achieve?
3. What is this inward neutrality achieving for the overall body?
You don't have to necessarily come back to answer these again. But these are just thoughts from me in response to yours. Try and get in and out of the two neutral stances you know and articulate how different it feels.
On the issue of aesthetics: this genre is unconcerned with how beautifully or pleasingly a movement takes place. It is instead interested in finding a reason for the movement in the first place. What is the impulse and how does it translate through the body and perhaps into another?
Accuracy of skill and not the beauty of movement is what we will be working for. With skill, a movement can be just as beautiful as it can be grotesque - and both convey meaning within physical theatre.
Keep your posts coming people....
For me "neutrality" is about finding your inner self, the core of your being, understanding it and being able to let go.Rather than it being all about your physical posture it's more to do with clearing and cleansing your mind of all distractions. Which i don't feel is any different from finding the centre, because as long as you are able to these things the mind and body will be "centred", ready for anything. Whilst i was watching the groups do the warm up, i noticed that the hardest thing to do was relax.This stopped alot of people from reaching their bodies central state and although i didnt take part, i believe this is because the mind has to be re-trained to help the functioning of the body. So the mind has to erase all ideosyncrasies of "Antoinette" lets say, in order to become neutral or even centred. If we don't allow our inhabitions to be casted out, we are at risk of limiting the process and progresson of work. Therefore we need to be a blank canvas so that an "art" can take place. To do all of this it is important that the body is grounded, being so focused that your in sync with all senses, this will heighten your ability of work and expression.
2.'Aesthetic' is about sticking to society's rules and whats seen to be "normal". For example dance is not usually seen without dancing to music of some sort but would dance still be dance without? This is what i felt we touched on slighlty. To begin with when people were coupled up, the movement was very mechanic due to their conscious mind, but once they trusted their partner, space and audience the movements became fluent and the body became an expressive tool.The reason being that instead of the movements being thought about, the performers acted on instinct and impulse this now dictated their movements which is how they became pretty. Although not words as in ABC, the dance became a conversation of which the audience were ease dropping if you like. The beauty of it was that it could be interpreted in so many ways and it was the choice of the reader to take parts to analyse or associate with their own personal experiences.For example Sarah's and Tonia's piece could be seen as a close relationship because of the close attention to movement or on the other hand, it could be seen as one idolising the other, a long for identity or a need to belong, as Sarah seemed to be almost a relection of Tonia, moving in the same way even though her eyes were closed.
The group as a whole got over a few barriers, just a few more to go! Lets push the boundries people! Well done! Antoinette.
I really enjoyed our first lecture it has made me look forward to the rest of the year. I think it is going to be a long but changing journey for us all to take. I feel as though I have already learnt a lot about myself and I hope everyone is too.
1: The ideas I had a bout neutrality changed, as after last year in devising I believed neutrality to be complete detachment from myself and becoming completely plain. How I would attempt to describe my idea of neutrality would be solid, focused and clean. But after the lecture might you idea changed so now I believe that you can have a connection with the surroundings and the nature as well as your performance space. I found grounding myself and finding my inner neutrality to be very useful, I think it is very important for us to ground ourselves now that I have done it myself as I felt more in touch with my body and how it moved.
2: When we where working in our pairs and moving there is no concern of beauty or purpose. The aesthetics to the movement where no concern only when watching others we began to make up purposes such as Leigh-Anne and Mikey as the lovers even though there were no real stories to be had. I think it was most interesting to watch and create because it felt so free when I was moving and Nic was feeling around my body I didn't have any thoughts as to my surroundings or anyone was watching only that me and her where in our own space and what seemed to me time. I felt completely detached from the rest of the room. Nearly standing on Lana's head at one point because I really just didn't think where I was all I knew was that I was moving on a wooden floor in the drama room. This exercise really opened my eyes to how movement can relate to feelings and how you really feel. When you connect yourself and allow yourself to connect to yourself and not feel conscious of your surroundings and neutralise your inhibitions and fears of others, then you can really make free movement ‘to free yourself is to exist.’ Boal, 2008
Boal, Augusto, Theatre of The Oppressed, 2008 3rd edition, Pluto Press: London
1. My understanding of neutrality changed in this session quite a lot from last year, previously to this I thought that standing in neutral required being very upright and quite rigid, not having any of your personal aspects showing, but after doing the exercise I felt more relaxed and that my neutrality was a lot more comfortable and it felt right. I noticed my knees tend to turn inwards more than they should but this helps my stand more firmly making me feel more secure should someone push me I would not move.
2. I think we get this stereotype because of how flowing most dance pieces are, in lesson we learnt to get rid of any boundaries we had with ourselves and partners and to work together as one communicating through movement. However I feel that when we were given our exercise we did not know how it would turn out, also that every pair would be different and showing different types of emotion. Mikey and Leigh-Anne made such an impact on me that lesson as I felt they worked so well together and even though they probably didn’t realise it they were really interesting to watch the way they interacted with each other and the fact they did it slowly and flowingly made it beautiful. I think the fact that they have such a close relationship with each other did help and this came across when they worked together. Was still amazing though!! So well done!
See you all next week!! I loved last week and cannot wait to see what’s to come!
Emilia xxx
1)Neutrality in Devising is about wiping the slate clean and having a clean working space to build on be it character, emotions etc. Where as with Process and Performance it felt much more calming and grounding yourself as person. It also makes you feel relaxed and “at one” with your environment and surroundings allowing yourself to feel comfortable enough to complete the tasks thrown at you.
In the session where Royona told us to “get into” neutral, our initial thought was to revert back to devising, so we did. But as Royona came along and gave individuals a gentle push (one of them being me) we realised we weren’t actually in neutral, we weren’t actually in tune with the floor. Therefore I personally find it incredibly important to ground the body before work so that you 100% understand what your working with and if something unexpected crops up you can gladly face them head on.
2)Personally when we were given the task to get into partners, the idea of making it ‘aesthetically appealing’ basically went out of the window and didn’t for a split second enter my mind. And with this task people were less inclined to actually think about what they were doing and basically just let the movement flow. I found the most interesting movement to watch was the pairs that actually wouldn’t normally associate themselves with, the reasoning behind this was purely because it was just a total shock to the system and in everyday life you just wouldn’t see particular pairs together, and because of this it broke “social moulds” and left you wanting more to see what movement they would produce.
From my personal experience working with Nikki, even though she and I are already close friends, inside I felt like another barrier had been broken down and by working so intimately I felt that not only our working relationship had progressed but now our friendship can reach a higher level.
When I first entered the class I had an idea of what I was about to experience but when we began each individual task that was completley throw out of the window. At first I felt vunrable and totally in aur of what we were asked to do but at the end of the session I felt, even they were only small barriers I felt I had already overcome things that were holding me back.
I really enjoyed this first lecture as well and have to admit it opened my eyes quite alot to the possibilities we have with our own bodies when we dismiss initial limitations. Thank you Paul and Royona!
1. Prior to the lecture I perceived neutraility as a state where I was relaxed, focussed and outwardly appeared void of any characetristic or mannerisms that make me 'me'. With regard to performance, I thought as Royona mentioned and displayed, that if I were in a neutral state I wouldn't fall if pushed. My knees were locked, my chest was open and I felt centred from my pelvis but also as though I were being held in place through the centre of my head. I never felt grounded and with hindsight now, realise that though I believed to be in control when in a 'neutral' stance, I actually wasn't. The simple 'undoing' of having my knees locked made my understanding of neutrality shift entirely. By removing that detail from my body I became more distanced from myself. As a direct result I became not only more open to anything that could happen, but personally, I felt more in control and as though I have the opportunity to be a better performer.
I feel it is better to ground the body before the work process begins to enable you to feel your surroundings and be aware of how your body relates and works with the surroundings. By grounding yourself, you make yourslef aware of what you can't do but also of what you can. You also allow yourself to be in control of your actions and your response to anything that could happen.
2.When we began the task in pairs of one partner being blind and the other discovering where they were and what positions they were in, all of us were quite apprehensive about it all. We thought we'd look foolish and we all ahd barriers we needed to overcome. It became apparent after the first group heard the audiences response that it was only the performers who felt this way. I think this evoked confidence with all of us. The audience felt relaxed and enjoyed seeing something that on paper might seem relatively mundane become something beautiful and aesthetically pleasing. There was no thought behind where we'd move or what position we'd go into but there was consideration for both the partner and the rest of the performers. There seemed to be a reciprocal appreciation with all the performers. Without the 'blind' person, the seeing partner would have no need for stillness or to consider their movements. Without the seeing person, the blind person would have no moves to follow.
During the performances, I became mesmerised by Sarah (Evans) and Zara's piece because from the very beginning they were working together as one. Sarah had firm hands on Zara and tried to trace her moves and decode what was going to happen next. Zara tried to give Sarah interesting positions: it was a relationship between the two of them. They didn't allow themselves to adhere to social boundaries and weren't afraid of touching places deemed 'innapropriate' which not only focused them as performers more on what they were doing but enabled the piece to flow much more smoothly. By letting go of inhibitions, something that could have been seen as a basic 'I lead, you follow' became a beautiful piece of performance.
Overall I've found myself feeling quite proud of all the Procees students for how well that first lecture went. Particularly peopel who pushed themselves more by working with people they're not necessarily friends with. After the first year here everybody has developed little friendship cliques. Following that inital introduction, I already feel more comfortable with working outside of my comfort zone of the friends I socialise with. I feel more as though we're all in one group rather than divided into little gorups just sitting in a room together.
There we go, my babbling is done! See you all Friday,
Michaela Xxx
Hello.
I really enjoyed the session and truley beleive that i will enjoy this module lots.
1. Compared to last year, i am much more of a fan of neutrality. I found that the new excersies i learnt in the session helped me understand neutrality alot more. At the begining of the session i was more worried about 'getting it right' whereas after the excersises, I realuised how important the nutrality is, that you, the performer, can be anyone, anything.
The lack of sight is what made the excersise so indulging. The movement of the two bodies at first sometimes looked quite restrained, due to nervs or just not being comortable. As time went on, we could see how 'beautiful' the excersise actually is, it makes you and the audience realise, just how beautiful the human body is, and exactly what it can do.
Hi,
I really enjoyed last weeks session and cant wait for this weeks. I just want to see how far we all can go and how confortable and trusting we can get with each other.
1. Regarding my understanding of 'Neutrality' i didnt realise that there were different types. My Mind let alone my body felt increadibly different comparing it to last years session in devising. Even though you are relaxed and in a neautral state (rid of all other thoughts) your body and mind feel like you are ready to do anything. Even though it was our first session, when we created our neatral stance my centre kept changing. I felt this will keep happening until i find my own personal centre. This needs to be done so your body feels confortable and stable to hold our own weight let alone when we finally get to the stage of taking other performers weight.
2. In everyday life beauty and appearence sometimes can hold people back, and especially in physical performances some audiences expect it to beautiful and pretty.
When put into our pairs to follow out the task at first im sure i wasnt alone in thinking "what shall i do" but as you get into the neautral state and the right frame of find, you forget there are peaople around you and you let your body move on instinct without thinking too much into it and feeling silly.
As me and my partner kelly got into the music and got rid of our inhibitions, our movement began to take overand it was as if we were as one and our movements fit together like it was one person. Even though it wasnt a choreographed piece and obviously if we ever had to put it on stage there would need work, but the beauty came through the different peices by the others in our group showing feelings and emotion through the body. It is very interesting to see how much you can read through movements and see how aethetically pleasing the body can be.
see you next week pals x
1)From Devising last year - I thought that neutrality was clearing of any emotions/personality - so you were literally a blank canvas to be moduled into whatever it is that you needed to be moudled into!! But when we were told to get into neutral *P&P stylie* (even after doing the exercise to help us get into the new state of neutrality) must be hobest and say i felt no difference! Im not trying to say I got it right fist time as when Royona gently pushed me I moved - but I didnt want to say anything as other members of the group felt a change!! :s
2) I think when we were given the task to wrok in pairs - the whole idea of making it look aesthetically pleasing never crossed my mind, as i kept thinking OMG...what are they going to do to me when my eyes are closed!?!? :s aswell i felt it didnt need to be aesthetically pleasing as we werent performing a dance - i think it may had been differnt if we we were told 'you are going to perform a dance' but because it was just an exercise - it didnt cross my mind to make it look pretty!
What made it interesting to watch for me - was as the exercise continued you saw the level of trust grow between the partners - admitadly some people wouldnt touch certain parts of people (understandly as it is only week 1) but you could physically see the level on trust growing - so the exercis ebecame more flewant and beautiful to watch!
For myself (as was pointed out by Anna) i didnt mind touch Sandi's bottom becasue i am gay - so those parts of the female body dont contain sexual connotations for me - however if i was to do the exercise again, there is nO WAY i would feel comfortable doing it to man - as *as strange as it may seem* i have difficulty being physically close to men!
I have no idea if that answered the questions - but atleast ive done it!! :D xx
Hi everyone,
I really enjoyed the session as it seemed alot of us did! I think we moved thorugh barriers as a group really well, which allowed us to move forward!
1. I always struggled in devising last year. I struggled to find a neutral state, and ideas such as "the centre" were unfamiliar to me. It was exercises such as the spinal roll however, that suddenly made my body fall into place with this idea.
People have said to me "what did you mean by your centre changing because I felt nothing?" Basically, I had a symbol of what I thought being in neutral was but I was wrong. Doing the spinal roll and loosening my knees enabled me to find a place where my body was happy to finally sit in neutral. I felt connected to the ground with an invisible line from my head to the ground.
This is why I think "grounding the body" is so important, because if u can find that state, then you are ready for anything. Like Royona showed-you are prepared for anything.
It is like Akram Khan said that for him "...it is about finding the horizontal and Y axis, the centre is in between those two places..." (http://www.akramkhancompany.net/html/akram_productions.htm)
2. In my opinion, movement is not always pretty to look at. However, sometimes it can deceive you. Such as Friday's lecture; the task we were asked to do was simply movement; One of us tracing the others movement. Being in the first group, I did not have any idea how this was being read by the other group watching. I felt like I was moving with Marie and concentrating on following her.
However, when I became the viewer, I was watching an aesthetically beautiful piece of dance (how it became in my mind.) To watch pairs moving around the space so close and very sensual was more beautiful than I could have imagined. To be the person moving, I was unaware of the effect it had to someone watching!
3. For me, the approach to aesthetic movement in a subtle form. When we begain the exercise, I did not know how it would make me feel or how it would be to view. In a way, it did become a sterotype. With music playing and 2 people moving slowly and carefully-it did become a dance.
The thing that made the movement so interesting for me was the innocence. Nothing was choreographed, nothing was planned. The pairs were moving spontaneously and experimenting all the time with new movements, new positions and new feelings. There was a feeling of freedom watching because nobody was confined or told what to do to an extent.
It was also beautiful to see the partners watching out for the other one. Such as Michaela constantly pausing and allowing her partner to catch up with her, and then breaking barriers and getting closer. You could see people's connections develop and their barriers start to dissapear.
In this respect, I believe that it was very honest to one's inner impulse. Maybe not at the beginning, but as time went on, people gave in to their impulses and just tried it! Barriers melted away and willingness increased!
I am excited to see what else we can do guys!
Gina xxx
1. Having worked predominantly with Lecoq’s neutral mask last year in Devising 1, my preconceptions of ‘neutrality’ were that of creating a blank canvas. Wearing the mask allowed identification of physical imbalances and idiosyncratic physical behaviour. Lecoq’s approach neutrality requires the alignment of the body. Described as if a string was holding the entire body up. This differed greatly to the ‘neutrality’ we discovered and explored within the workshop last Friday. Instead of a central alignment, feet were shoulder-width apart and the body had a direct connection to the floor (as opposed to the hanging concept). I would argue that a more appropriate word than ‘neutrality’ would be ‘unconscious readiness’ as the body is in a position to be able to move in any way to accommodate such demands of the genre (lifts etc.)
However, there is a key difference between the two ideas of neutrality. Lecoq’s neutral mask is for the individual and was not intended to exist within performance (to my limited knowledge) rather it was to be used as a training tool early on in his teaching approach to theatre. The neutrality explored on Friday seems to be a more ensemble orientated experience where the ‘neutrality’ can transcend the training exercise and exist within a performance
2. There are clear aesthetics to this genre. However they are not created from a pallet of moves that have been predetermined and arranged into a formation that is visually pleasing. Rather than having set rules/patterns to follow movement emerged from impulses within the performers. Grotowski describes theatre as an encounter between director, LX designer, performer, literary text etc. The idea of encounter can also be applied to the nature of this genre. In the exercise on Friday performers encountered each other through impulse and each movement created further impulses, which developed to more encounters. This is why the work had such an organic look and feel.
“If something is symmetrical it is not organic…theatre requires organic movements.” (Grotowski 1969) The organic nature of the work directly contrasts with some stereotypical movement styles, such as some dance forms, where symmetry is sought out in order to look pleasing to the eye.
I noticed how the more organic the performance was, how much more drama was created. For example, when Nicola and Lizzi moved so symbiotically that their hands met and clasped it was beautiful to watch and also moving. Also however, when one partner reached for the hand only to find it wasn’t there (I forget which partnership that was) was particularly dramatic as the spectator had experience this moment while the partner with their eyes closed would never know what had taken place.
Had the movements been choreographed there would have been a distinct loss of truth in the performances, or rather the truth would have been the choreographers truth and not that of the two performers. In my opinion it is this impulsive and honest encounter between to performers that really engages the spectator in this genre.
Grotowski, J. Towards A Poor Theatre 1969, London : Methuen
Sorry for rambling.
Really enjoyed the workshop :)
Look forward to Friday!
The notion of neutrality has varied quite significantly for me from Devising 1 where neutrality meant; in a sense, loosing your identity to become that blank canvas in which, a character, emotion, feeling ect. is built upon.
In Process and Performance I feel that neutrality is based on emotion and feelings from within rather than a stance. In Devising 1 the 'centre' was somewhere in my body, which was constantly in the same place, that acted as a force, cementing and straightening the muscles and bones in my body and locked joints such as my knee hinge joint, so that I no longer look like an individual but rather a black canvas. Whereas in Process the centre, I believe rather than being focused so much on cementing and straightening muscles and bones, but focuses more on balance; with the ability to control the body’s position either stationary or moving. Core stability; using the spinal muscles to control your position during dynamic movements, and also your centre of mass, which will constantly change, this is very important to ground you in Process as you will be entrusted with someone else’s weight, so it is imperative to understand the different ways in which your body works and moves first.
It is often believed that things that are aesthetic or pretty to look at are more interesting. But I believe that Friday’s session proved this otherwise. Not being able to see removed all aesthetics thoughts I held, by not focusing so much on how it looked and making it look pretty but, building a connection between myself and my partner, and finding out how things moved. I believe this is the real beauty; something that is not forced, but something that grows and develops out of that connection and emotions felt. The aural sense was heightened in this process. The musical factor too allowed our ‘blind creations’ to become more than just a pretty picture, but a unique unforced beauty, because you and your partner become one with the music as well as with each other.
Some really thought provoking responses so far and a good number of replies too! Remember you have until this afternoon 4 pm to post your comments. We need another 15 of you to share your thoughts...
I particularly want to respond to two comments:
Edward - I am glad you are honest and point out that in the session, unlike your peers, you did not feel any changes inside the body since your previous understanding of neutrality. I would encourge you to share these thoughts out in the future, in class instead of feeling you mustn't because you are feeling differently to others around you. It is important for us tutors to gauge individual paces of your journies. It may be that you were already in physiological alignment with your embodiment of the 'neutral position' even before we started the session on Friday. Which is great! Or it may be that I hadn't explained the placement and alignment clearly enough or unknowingly you were making subtle adjustments that were not shifting your perception within the body.
Either way, it's important to vocalise your thoughts to maximise your journey within the sessions. It's good though that you are voicing your thoughts on the blog. If there are others who felt the same as you, this could be a way of generation a discussion around your experiences.
Gavin - I am really interested in your use of the term 'unconscious readiness'. Yes, perhaps it is a more useful term than 'neutrality' which is loaded with its Lecoq based meaning. Particularly astute is your comment, "The neutrality explored on Friday seems to be a more ensemble orientated experience where the ‘neutrality’ can transcend the training exercise and exist within a performance".
It is precisely this ensemble based readiness that transcens training and continues to form the premise of performance that is important in this genre.
There are some lovely quotes being used in your comments. Gina, the Akram Khan quote is relevant and very well used.
Keep writing guys and if you feel you want to comment on my comments, feel free to do so.
Royona
Hi all.... I really enjoyed last weeks session and am looking forward to getting rid of my inhibitions again this friday!!
1. My first understanding of neautrality came from devising one in which i felt slightly stiff and ridged, however after fridays lesson i found a new way of looking at a stance. Before my head told my body to stand in a certain way and in fridays session i felt my body told my head (if that makes sense) as it was so much more natural to me, the warm-up into the stance was so relaxing. Using the horizon to focus on was really interesting as your mind has to focus, and you can't be be distracted by peers.
2. It was really intereting in the final part of fridays session as we rid all aesthetic movements and we concerntrated on our core and almost went back to basics focusing on how the spine moved and how to control breathing. We split off into pairs, i worked with Emila which i really enjoyed as i nocticed a progress in our "performance" each time we did it. At first you have to break social barriers as you would not normally touch or be touched by a fellow classmate in an intimate way. However this was easy to overcome with the feeling of relaxation and soft music to make moements flow, we "performed" this three times and on the third time i was completely at one and concerntrated on Emila's movements and the way her spine moved. I felt the key elements of this exercise were trust and instinct and an example that showed this was Mickey and Leigh-Anne!!weldone!!.
See u all friday!!!xxxx
When discussing neutrality, they way in which we approached it during Friday’s lesson was somewhat different from devising 1. Firstly I think this is because we were working bare feet. I didn’t think that this would have much effect on my stance, but in fact it was totally different from the way in which I first perceived as the act of being ‘neutral’ By being bare footed and having contact with the floor, it aided me to be more at ease with the space, surroundings and my body felt more relaxed, whereas during devising one, I always felt like by body had to be upright, straight and fairly stiff. Reflecting on what I thought was neutral during devising one has made me feel as though I had may have slightly forced myself into a specific stance during that module, but now the neutral I came across during Friday’s lesson seemed to be more of a natural stance based on my instinct and impulses I got during the warm up exercises.
When working in pairs during the end of the session, I found myself surprisingly comfortable with not having my sense of sight and having to use my sense of touch to move with my partner. This was at some points difficult though as I found myself losing balance but as the exercise progressed instead of thinking about where to move I found myself naturally moving with Michaela, uniting together and collaborating as one.
I look forward to working with people I am not necessary familiar with to see how I react and if I feel as comfortable and open-minded as I did in Friday’s session.
Leyna
1. My understanding of ‘neutrality’ changed quite a lot in the first session, but it took a while. The first couple of times we did the spinal roll up into neutral, I found myself forcing my body to stand in a certain way, which really just made me more tense and awkward in my stance. By the third time we did it, I was getting a bit frustrated, thinking that I just wasn’t getting it, so I gave up trying to stand correctly, yet this time it just happened. Once I felt that I was truly in neutral my whole perception of what neutrality was changed completely. I felt grounded and in control of every part of my body. I still felt the sense of being a ‘blank canvas’ as learnt of the devising neutrality last year, but there was much more to it. Not only did I feel focused and ready to portray any feeling or expression, I also now understood that with the process + performance neutrality the ‘state of readiness’ was external and physical as well as internal and emotional.
The unlocking of the knees also allowed a new kind of freedom of movement. With this freedom, finding your centre and being grounded, the new approach to neutrality also enables us to work in conjunction and interact with other people or objects i.e. supporting someone’s weight, rather than just being concerned with ourselves.
2. In the session, the thoughts of the exercise having to being pretty to watch were forgotten. Instead the emphasis was put on controlled movement, connection with your partner and particularly for the one with their eyes closed a sense of ‘seeing’ things without sight. As the exercise progressed however, it was clear to see that the pairs were overcoming social boundaries and beginning to flow as one, which in itself became a performance. Many of the couples, whether close outside of the lessons or not, told some sort of story. Just with the movements, there were emotions and atmospheres being created, perhaps unknowingly, but this really accentuated what a powerful tool the body is. When used in this way the body can pretty much do anything - convey any meaning, generate any feeling etc.
I personally found the exercise very relaxing and in some way empowering. I felt that I could do anything and I didn’t care what anyone else thought while watching, in fact it felt like it was only me and Mikey in the room and nothing else mattered.
The exercise was also very interesting to watch because of the fact that although each pair in their own right became performers, there was no preconceived idea of what was going to happen. Every move and every touch was honest and purely based on impulse, and seeing people’s confidence and trust in each other grow as it went on was very moving.
Well done all, can’t wait for the next session.
Leigh-Anne
1.Last year, whilst studying Devising 1, my understanding of neutrality was to transform into an emotionless figure in order to ready myself to build a character from scratch. The exercise I participated in on Fridays lecture provided me with a new way of approaching neutrality. Instead of thinking about getting into a neutral and grounded position it just came naturally from the methods Royona and Paul suggested. I not only found a natural, comfortable stance I was also mentally ready for any challenge I might face.
The centre is achieved when your body is ready to work and have formed your neutral stance. At first I didn’t know where my centre was and when I began rocking forwards, backwards and sideways I managed to balance myself and discover my centre without thinking about it.
It is important to get into neutral and centre yourself before taking on physical work as it fully prepares your body and mind for movement. It allows you to rid yourself of your social insecurities and use your instincts rather than thinking “I must do this with my arm to achieve this.” Without this exercise I doubt I would’ve be focused enough to do the work later on. I fully understand that if I haven’t done the warm up I can’t join in on the rest of the lecture.
2. For aesthetics to have been a vital part in Fridays lecture it would have deemed finding neutrality pointless. The whole idea was to ground us so we could lose any inhibitions of working with each other and being observed. By worrying over how pleasing it is to watch the movement loses the truthful and natural approach and takes the idea of creating a visual conversation away from the pairs. By having pairs communicate by taking away the visual and aural senses provided honest movement that you wouldn’t necessarily get from an exercise where you can both see each other.
When working with Tonia I was trying to keep the movement going at first, which may have made the performance seem like I was trying to please the eye of the audience. However once I had gotten used to the movement and the communication I was able to guide Tonia around the floor. I was so absorbed that I hadn’t realised that the audience had joined in.
Another example was how unafraid Nicole and Lauren were of working together which benefitted their performance greatly. They felt comfortable which gave them no limitations in their movement making it honest and relaxing to watch. Had they have been uncomfortable it would have become modest and restricted.
Anna commented that although she had known Ellen for a year she doubted her ability to perform well in this exercise and also that she was worried about the audience observing her. This didn’t affect their performance and soon all worries Anna had disappeared which allowed their movement to look as comfortable as Nicole and Lauren’s performance.
The honest actions and the way everybody connected made the performance , no matter how self-indulgent, pleasing and relaxing for the audience to watch.
This looks like it will be a promising module and I look forward to Fridays lecture.
Sarah
After devising 1 last year I thought I had an understanding of neutrality however after the session on Friday my understanding completely changed. Last year I found that the neutral stance was uncomfortable and off centre, however after the session and the exercises, when rolling into a neutral stance it felt more comfortable and centred. I felt as though I had forgotten any habits and I was focused and ready to work.
Having to ground the body before work is most important as it will allow full concentration on what is going on around you and the physical activities of yourself and others. The centre is found when weight is distributed evenly, where you feel balanced and have a connection to the floor. Being grounded allows you to react effectively and prepares you for any work ahead.
Having a close friendship with Rian before the session, when working together I thought that this would make the work easier and less uncomfortable. However when put in the first group for the others to watch I felt aware of the audience and nervous about “Performing” but when I closed my eyes and worked with Rian, following her movements and feeling the way the body moves in ways that we are unaware of in every day life made me forget that people were watching and it didn’t feel like a performance as I was only aware of mine and Rian’s bodies moving together as “one”. Not having my sight automatically got rid of looking at the movements in a sense of visual pictures and allowed me to feel the way in which the body works and the way in which breathing is used. As we repeated this exercise various times I began to trust my partner and start to make a journey together…
See you Friday guys !!!
1. Friday's lesson was an eye opener for me. It's quite amazing to see the difference between the meaning of neutrality in this module compared to neutrality in devising 1. Strangly I felt it was much easier to find neutrality having warmed up and after performing a spinal roll.
I think to centre the body is to focus, relax then to ground the body. I believe this is extreamly important to achieve the perfect neutral posture before adding neutral movement within this particular genre.
2. When Royona 1st demonstrated the excercise she wanted the group to explore after telling the group to pick a partner, I have to say I was a little uneasy. When picking a partner I chose to work away from people I have previously worked with. I chose Sarah as my partner. We were part of the second group to go up so we had the advantage of watching the othergroups and spottin what worked and what didn't work within each pair. It was interesting to watch the pairs as it was clear to see which pairs felt comfortable with their partners whilst otheres held back
Once we had over come the "i just touched her bottom" barrier the movement between the pairs became almost dance like. It was amazing to exprience.
I look forward to next lesson...Remember guyz...bright and early!!!
Tonia
Heyy guys!!! Really enjoyed last weeks session, Thanks Royona & Paul!
My own understanding of neutrality from Devising 1 was that its about being a blank canvas that can be moulded into anything that it needs to be and that there is no sense of individuality and therefore carrying across the message that we are every man in a sense, which to me meant everything was upward and sort of a very static sort of composure compared to the neutral that I found in last weeks lesson, I felt this neutrality allowed myself to be my own neutral if you get what I mean, because I felt more connected with the ground which sort of helped with my neutral walk because I just felt more in touch with the ground and lighter on my feet and felt I could control what they were doing and the way in which the foot moved was visible to see instead of being hidden behind my shoe, and so I wasn’t worrying that I was doing it wrong because it was as much as my body could take and so in that way I felt I let go of a lot of innihibitons. I found this a bit weird at first because I wasn’t this mould anymore I had sort of transformed into a neutral that my body was comfortable with and so I felt like me...(if that makes sense :s!)
Also I felt a lot more grounded with this neutral and it was something I was more comfortable with because it just felt and seemed more natural therefore enabling me to focus on my thoughts and preparing my body for the things that were possibly going to test and strengthen you both mentally and physically,
I think its important to ground the body before initiating any sort of work in this genre because its just so unpredictable, you can have something set in your head or written down, but until you put yourself through it physically, you can’t say whether or not something is going to work well because ‘each unto their own’ and different people take to things differently and you’re not worrying about whether you’re going off task, its like you’re letting the moment take you and for the while you have to go with it because your body/mind is exploring these things as part of this journey that we are all going on together and also those individual journey’s, overcoming those barriers etc, and its not something that can be scripted, it’s an impulsive act, its about instincts and just going with what you’re body is telling you.
It’s like Paul and Royona were saying they weren’t expecting things to progress as naturally and the way that they did, and that in a sense what they might have had planned for the start/end of the lesson all depended on how we all reacted to it and that may have been changed to what they intended to do initially.
I think the lesson last week showed me that you don’t have to make something look beautiful for it to be pretty because if you’re forcing it to be pretty or wanting it to be pretty it can sometimes hinder this and sometimes can restrict your movement because if you have this ideology that it has to be perfect and look mesmerising, (however some of the pieces did seem captivating but that was because it was a natural thing and you could see the way they'd evolved once they'd overcome the barriers and were comfortable with each other), then that mind-set could potentially damage the intended effect, as you’re not opening your mind/body to allow it to go down any ventured path. And the exercise in last week’s session was an introduction to the module, to our bodies and also to each other in a new way and not intended to be nice to look at, it was more about exploring the way we channel with each other and also a chance to inter-act with people that we’re not as close to. When I was with my partner, we were the second group to go up and as I started to get into it and once the music came on, I shut my eyes even though I was the one doing the movements and Ed was moving with me, I don’t know why it was nothing to do with people watching me but I just felt so in that moment my body just became so relaxed and I think I felt comfortable and it was almost as if I zoned out everyone else around me and was focused on me and my partner.
I really enjoyed last weeks session and looking forward to this weeks, and I want to try and work with someone else who I don’t really know that well, to see if I can be as connected and focused as I was with my previous partner.
See you on friday folks :D xxx
Comment from Zara Bailey :
Hiya!!! :)
I found the first session very inspiring, fun and kept to the edge of my chair! Leaving me to want to know more, do more and explore more! I’m very engrossed to see what the future sessions in Process and Performance will bring. Whoo hoo!!!
The session indeed shifted my understanding of neutrality!
When I thought of neutrality, the outward appearance came to my mind, the outer look, rather than the connection through the body to the ground.
Beforehand my honest perception on neutrality was how it looked. In terms of; legs so much apart arms width, stood up straight, eyes focused out and so on. However when Royanna came round and challenged us with a little force I lost balance and went forward.
Does this mean that it was just a pure lack of balance and co- ordination or was it down to the fact of neutrality I ask?
Some would say neutrality is to do with the stability of ones position others would argue that maybe my neutrality was fine but in fact my balance was of and I was caught of guard.
I found that its about the connection from each part of the body, joining of limbs that connect where every part of the body is inlined with the ground, an inner neutrality. With a little looseness and unlocking of the knee behold I would not know that it would of prevented the loss of control I had when falling forward from the little force given to myself. By the readiness, groundiness and the unlocking of the knees I found gave more stability. As from the first time I went into the position from my own experiences of other lessons and memory. I did not feel as secure and grounded as I felt the second time round.
Therefore I feel that it is very important... again I stress very IMPORTANT to have a center and be grounded. The stability and groundiness allows you to be ready for action thats about to take place in the space. Especially in this genre, physical theater I feel its importance is heightened as physical theater I feel is lot more demanding with the body.
The whole idea of dancing and making a piece look pretty did not cross my mind once if I'm honest! Even to perform, although I was aware that there was an audience watching me.
I suppose I felt that as it was a specific task given, in my mind I was completing, a task a set exercise. Although my mind being aware that it was a set task, i fully let that idea pass and engaged myself in the moment. Where I felt my partner and I had a good relationship. I don't really find it hard to trust people, so didn't find that very hard and trusted Sara completely, however I know this may hinder me at times as I found I trust people sometimes to much.. as I am told :S
Watching the other groups as a audience member for me became a performance unconsciously as the signs showed to me signified that it was, leaving me to expect a performance. It became clear to be a performance as each couple started to show a narrative through their body language and movement. An example of this is Lian and Micky- their performance gave us a icon symbol of holding hands and close contact with the body.. this sign of holding hands and close contact with each others tells us that they have a close relationship whether it is a strong friendship or a relationship of boyfriend and girlfriend. The holding hands and close contact is a intimacy thing and then would leave an audience to expectedly create a narrative.
During that task I just did, rather than thought about my movement and if it looked pretty. But just rolled of my inner feelings of what my body felt like doing at that time moment in time and bounced of my partner.
Wow, i didn't think I would write so much but there you go....
Thanks
See ya all next lesson..
looking forward to it and challenging ma self.. I looove a challenge.. bring it on!!!!
I am very sorry about that.
Thanks
Zara Bailey
Hello, I thoroughly enjoyed last week’s lesson and my hamstrings were fully stretched.
With neutrality I was already aware of the importance of bending the knees however last weeks session gave me a greater understanding of the importance behind this such as; balance and a readiness to perform.
With having inward neutrality you become ready for moulding like a blank canvas.
With being aestically pleasing this is not necessary in physical theatre most dance is stereotyped as being pleasing to the eye however physical theatre takes away these preconceptions and focuses on meaning and emotion for example; DV8 ‘just for show’ where the meaning is easily portrayed but can look grotesque to those unfamiliar with physical theatre.
Thanks for a great lesson.
Sorry it’s late....
1. On Fridays session I found that I had forgot a lot of the basic skills we had gained through Devising 1, and found that i had to start again with finding my neutrality in performance. After doing the walking in neutral exercise i realised this module was going to be a lot harder than what i originally expected it to be.
I think to become neutral you have to work from your own centre as you can’t become neutral without starting from scratch if you start by keeping your weight distributed evenly and keeping you back parallel to the floor you will be able to achieve neutrality.
Also in physical theatre there are a lot of lifts and work where you need to be very steady and stable which is why it is important to keep the body grounded to the floor before starting to do such performances.
2. In Friday’s lesson we were stripped of our own aesthetic movements, what I mean is that we got rid of any way we walk and any way that we felt was i nice way to walk. We had to concentrate on parts of our body that we use that we had never really looked at before such as our breathing and walk. This did make me feel quite insecure at times but i hope that it will be a barrier i can overcome during this module.
What made a lot of movements quite interesting for me were the stories that a lot of movements created in my mind. Once we got into pairs to start the exercise of following movements with our body as opposed to my eyes, i found it again quite nerve wracking but after a while this barrier started to fade. There were certain partners that made very aesthetic movements such as mikey and leigh-anne who although already knew each other and were quite good friends gave a performance like piece in which stories started to emerge, especially through the use of music played in the background. The music in certain pairs were very influential with mikey and leigh-anne the mood changed after the pairs swapped and the music changed it became very playful.
From last lesson I found there is alot more to physical theatre than I thought and am anxious but look forward to the rest of the year.
I am delighted that comments are still being posted even though the official deadline was yesterday a 4 pm. I don't mind that much because it demonstrates your individual willingness to engage with the work and the wanting to reflect upon last week's session.
A few more and we will be a full house! I don't want to point out names of course...
:-)
Keep them coming!
Hello, First off sorry for this post being so late I had trouble finding the link (can't access wolfe).
In answer to the questions I've found that finding my 'neutral' this year has been slightly different from last I think maybe I lost it over the summer it is something I will have to work on but I'm glad we did the walking across the room task so I could learn where I was making the mistakes. I think in comparison to last year there was alot more focus on being grounded, I found myself standing on the train this week as there were no seats left so I stood there in neutral with my knees unlocked and every time the train jilted everyone else went flying apart from me. I did look a little silly standing there dead straight staring at the man in front of me - he looked a little scared but hey, thats just a comfort barrier he will have to get over! (Please note I didn't bend over and touch the floor on and stand up again to find my centre then be in neutral on the train!)
There was a beauty to the last exercise we did I can only imagen that if asked to do this again at the end of year two it would blossom in to something of much more beauty down to the confidence that I can only hope we will have all gained with each other and ourselfs. It was actually very lovely to see how people who knew each other on a closer level moved in comparison to people who had hardly spoke before. I really do think that paired up with different people different stories and emotions would appear. I was comfortable working with Anna but as the friendship was already there it would have been nice to see how I would have reacted with someone I barely know. Some of the peices we're really theriputic (sp) to watch along with the music watching one or two pairs really provoked some lovely emotions.
Again apologise for the lateness of this, I've now saved this on to my faves so I have no excuse for it to happen again!
See you all tomorrow!
Post from Anna :
heya guys, well first things first i wantto appologise for my late post. Secondly, i would like to thank everyone who was in the session last week it really was a great one and any worries i have are decreasing already just from that one session.
1. My previous understanding of neutrality was that you acted as a blank canvas, showing no personal traits of you or your character, so after our first session i was supprised with how my opinion and understanding had already been adapted. I have always been aware of the way in which i hold myself when i walk and how it is not very neutral even when i do try. So to try and walk in a 'new' neutral way so quick in into the session was very strange, and increasingly difficult, that 20 secondsfelt like the longest most uncomfortable 20 seconds i had experienced in a long time. However, even after our first hour together of just walking from one side of the room to the other i felt a lot more comfortable doing so. I wont claim that i had a rapid change and felt 100 i feel 100% comfortable with everything in the session by i can say that i now know that if i focus on how my body is moving and ground myself before i begin to move, perhaps by the body roll, i will be able to achieve this soon, or atleast i hope so!
2. When we were told to get in to pairs my instant reaction was of an instant worry.I have a few personal issues and barriers that i knew were about to be forced infront of me and that i couldnt back out, such as feet being to close to me (being in the room was bad enough!), people having to take my weight and people touching me.
I worked with Ellen, i figured this may help me feel a little more comfortable as out of the class i know her quite well. Being in the first group was quite nerve-racking (sorry about the spelling), ellen moved first and i had to feel how her body moved, i thought this would be the easier part of the pair but i was mistaken, i felt very aware of where my hands were going, how much pressure i was applying and most of all the fact that there was half the group watching me touching someone. i just felt very uncomfortable and at times i was overcome by a nervous giggle. The change i felt when we swaped roles was huge, i felt much more comfortable and confident when i had my eyes closed and ellen had to touch me, maybe it was because i knew i had already done that part, maybe it was because the innitial shock of the exercise had worn off, maybe it was that we had stepped further away from the audience i'm not sure, but with any of these being the answer i was still shocked by feeling comfortable with someone touching me and i never knew where her hands where going to go.
I found that the music was very influential, from when i was performing and when i was observing. I have noticed alot of people have commented on Mikey and Leigh-annes movements and i must say, i agree with many of them. I found myself drawn to watching them, even though at times i did feel as if i was slightly intruding on a slightly lets say, romantic couples moment haha. I think the bond between them being such good friends became very apparent during this execise. I also think the music influenced thier flowing movements, do correct me if im worng guys, it would be interesting to know if it did or not...
ok well i guess its time for me to stop babbaling on now haha
i shall see you all in the morning for our second session!
Anna
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