This week’s lesson focused on (the German choreographer) Thomas Lehmen’s scores.
Carrying on from the jam last week, the start of the lesson was based on thick skinning and impulse. However, this time we had to use impulse whilst representing different things at the same time. For example a cat, wrestlers and seaweed. I found this task very difficult, because I felt that it was hard to get into the mind of a cat, whilst thinking of what impulse movements would represent it correctly. I think this may be due to the fact that I was conscious of people around me and I was worried about what my movements looked like to watch from an audience’s perspective. Whereas, I now know that I should have forgotten about everyone else and focused on what I was doing.
During the scores I found that they were a lot more interesting to watch when the dynamics changed from slow fluid movements to faster military moves. This makes me think about something someone said during the lesson. They said that you should never abandon what you’re doing, do something different within your solo. I feel that I can relate to this, because I am one of those people that, whenever I start to feel like I’ve been doing something for too long, instead of changing the dynamics of my movements, I am more likely to leave the space completely and leave a gap for somebody else to change it up.
We ended the lesson with a score which also carried on in the jam, which was explained in the reading prior to the lesson. The score included 5 basic functions: material, interpretation, manipulation, observation and mediation. I found this score very interesting as it was something I have never done before. However, I felt myself sticking to what I am most comfortable with which was observation, whereas I know that I should’ve put myself out of my comfort zone and may be used my own material. I think that this is due to that fact that I’m not as confident as some people, so I tend to take a back seat, although I know that this is something I shouldn’t do and need to work on.
The jam also included an exercise which was inspired by a performance called ‘Still/here’ by Bill T Jones. This involved us mapping out our journeys on a piece of paper, stating the highs and lows we have faced. We had to walk our paths around the room and really get into the mind set of emotions. I found this task very interesting and different as it came with a lot of emotions, however it was good to be able to include these feelings and emotions into our improvisations.
Husemann, P. (2005) The Functioning of Thomas Lehmen’s Funktionen. Dance Theatre Journal, 21 (1) 31-35.