For a good long time after Studio Current’s Confluence and Rebellion workshop ended, we (Salt Horse and about three of us) all sat and talked about our respective experience. We had all crafting impulses into a short dance sequence that we replayed, performed for a partner and then watched said partner replay the dance to their best interpretation.
From this, we each saw elements pop out we hadn’t recognized in our practice. Some of that, sure, was elements of the personality and style of whoever was replaying at the time. But the moments, movements, textures and things each chose to accentuate in their replay showed a nebulous lot about both participants in each duo.
One note referenced how often my face, my body and my energy each expressed different things in the moment. It was one of those “I could never put my finger on what is so strange about you until this moment” things. Like many, I frequently choose exclusively to fight my tendencies, to try and hen myself into the idea for a particular piece… instead of letting the quirks, style and elements of my practice and identity inform the direction of the piece. It occurred to me that working with the dichotomous expression of my face, my body and my energy could be a dramatic choice, a source of material and work in itself. I could in effect perform as a trio, my face my body and my spirit each playing different characters, whether working in unison or at odds with each other.
I am slammed right now with work, a loaded schedule, troubled energy, life. I want to explore and research this. I need the space, though I’m not sure I’ll have much before Thanksgiving weekend. And I’m not sure I want to wait that long.