Ileanna and I are at it again.
We’ve created another dance and we’re showing it at Nextfest.
Sunday June 8 at 6pm. Friday June 13 and Saturday June 14 at 5pm. The Roxy Theatre. Edmonton.
We play with boundaries. We play with oranges.
We create tasks and we complete them.
We’re the same, but ultimately different.
(And we dance with knives!)
We hope to see you there.
Photos by Ileanna Cheladyn.
Quick update. This is what I’m up to right now. Hope to see you there!
Our show “Collision” was actually a giant collision. There’s no other way of putting it. Here are some of my favourite parts:
This piece was the beginning of something: David Clennin and I collaborated for the first time ever. Our minds (and bodies) collided for the whole month of August. In short, it was awesome. I can’t wait to again.
It was also the end of something: we used the solo that I have been working on since March 2012, and recently developed during my residency at Mile Zero Dance, as the source material for the show. That solo has now found it’s home in “Collision” and it feels good to leave it there.
We had the masterminds Evan Osinchuk (original music, emergency prop man) and Kasia Brytan (stage manager, lighting designer, multiple board operator, best hug-giver) by our sides the whole time, as well as the support of a lot of amazing sponsors, friends, and family members. We really couldn’t have done it without them!
Also, if you’re at all interested in our creative process, Dave and I created a ton of lists as we were creating “Collision” – here’s a few of them in chronological order. You can see how the piece morphed (and all of the things we were working at, even at the end of the process):
And a final look into our rehearsal process… our pre-show songs of choice.
Dave’s (Super ambient):
Mine (Super pop-y):
We may or may not have clashed a bit on our music preferences. If anything, it created some tangible tension, which was exactly what we were going for.
Check out this awesome review that we got from the Edmonton Journal. They said that we were “moving and exhilarating.”
We have four shows left! We’re way out at St. John’s Institute (Venue 37) but it’s totally worth the walk.
Look out for an awesome post-fringe post complete with rehearsal footage, creation notes, and (maybe) photos.
Right now I’m about to transittion from holiday mode to intense (and fun!) creation mode for my new show Collision at the Edmonton Fringe.
But first. I’d like to share some thoughts on the Gaga workshop I attended last week in Lucca while the thoughts are fresh.
Gaga is a contemporary dance technique that was created by Ohad Naharin. He’s the artistic director of Tel Aviv’s Batsheva Dance Company and Gaga is the primary dance language of his dancers.
I was fortunate to study with Aya Israeli, the Head of Academic Activites for Gaga. She was the rehearsal director for Batsheva for many years and has an immense knowledge of Gaga and Batsheva repertory.
Gaga, when you just look at it, is kind of like wiggly improv. There isn’t a set structure or vocabulary of movements, but instead you focus on the energy of the body and the qualities of movements.
These elements make Gaga a technique that can be studied by anyone (there are two streams of Gaga taught – “people” – for anyone – and “dancers”). It’s full of imagery too.
Here are some key Gaga take-aways (or Aya-isms):
1. Connect to the “traveling stuff” inside of you. I took this to mean the blood, oxygen, food, material, energy moving in my body – the body is a living moving thing, all of it! I feel like this sounds obvious but when you really think about it, there is always movement within the body.
2. Connect to your “Lena” – the sun of the body, the ball of energy found between your belly button and groin. The core of the body. There’s a lot of power and potential in this place and you want to allow the flow of energy from the Lena to all extremities of the body. Don’t block the flow!
3. On that note, let your whole body echo the movement of one body part. It’s all connected after all.
4. The moons of the body are the balls of your hands and feet. Connecting to them and activating them make you more open and receptive to movement. I had a total dance geek/spiritual moment on tue first day of class when I opened my hand moons and felt the energy of the entire room. Just by engaging my first two fingers! It was a good reminder to include my hands in the dance.
5. We did a few standard dance moves – plies and tendus. Aya said to find the form of them differently every single time. These moves appear in almost every dance class. To approach them with fresh eyes EVERY TIME is something that would radically change dance in general – no more boring ballet barre! I love this notion.
I now find myself thinking of Gaga all the time. All I want to do is connect to my traveling stuff and Lena. I find them when I’m walking, eating (I’ve done tons of both in Italy), and I can’t wait to implement these ideas in upcoming Fringe rehearsals and in the classes I’ll be teaching and choreography I’ll be making in the 2013-14 year.
Unfortunately it’s hard to find Gaga class because the technique is so new and ever-changing. There are workshops held in a few places – New York and Tel Aviv hold a couple per year and it’s slowly starting to branch out across the globe. The workshop I took was hosted by the Dance Italia summer intensive.
However, if you get the opportunity, try it! Even if you don’t dance or never even want to dance, you’ll experience a connection to your body like no other.
Friends, Family, and Dance-Lovers,
I’m producing a show for the Edmonton Fringe Festival and I need your help!
I’ve created an indiegogo campaign to help fund “Collision”, the show that David Clennin and I are currently creating (and will be presenting in just a little over a month’s time).
We are also working with the super talented Evan Osinchuk, who will be composing our music.
The specific things that we’re fundraising for are the costs of renting our performance space, lighting and sound equipment, and printing programs and pamphlets. We have lots of exciting perks set up for anyone who’s interested in donating. Check them out!
Rehearsal footage of our piece can be seen in previous posts here and here.
You can see more fancy dancing over at our indiegogo campaign page here.
If you can’t donate at this time, but support what we’re doing, please tell your friends about our campaign. And come out to see the show!
Dance in Edmonton rocks!
Entrelacement Dance is a company of emerging dance artists in Edmonton, Alberta. We work together to create and develop new contemporary dance works.
Location: St. John’s Institute (11024 Whyte Avenue), first floor gallery
Start time: 1:00pm, doors open at 12:30. The audition will be about 2 hours long.
Come warm and ready to explore! Audition will consist of a contemporary technique class, as well as dance composition and improv exercises.
More information can be found on the official Facebook event.
The 2013-14 season will run from September to May, and culminate in a 6-show run in May 2014.
We are offering a scholarship for one dancer this year – please contact tatianacheladyn (at) gmail . com for more information
The whole program costs $500 for 9 months of dance instruction and creation, the final show in May, as well as other exciting performance opportunities! With fundraising, there’s a chance that this cost will go down.
We just finished our first season by showcasing our first, self-titled work at Nextfest 2013.
Today’s the day I start my residency at Mile Zero. To say the least, I’m excited!
Here’s the third collection study:
The second collection exploration.
In the first two weeks of February, I will be creating a piece in residency at Mile Zero Dance. For the weeks leading up to it, I’m using my videos as a way to do some research for the project…
Here’s Collection #1!