Formations and Dancer's Attitudes

Following on from our dance group starting the introduction to the Connections piece, we sorted out and placed many different formations.  It was good training to practice transitions and different ways of travelling to each space, mostly using movements from the original House routine.  While travelling in and out of each formation It got me thinking about how choreographers creatively form each formation and how It will become aesthetically pleasing for the audience to view.  Why is a V a good choice?  A diamond?  Or simple lines.  It is the viewpoint of the choreographer, who makes these formations based around the initial, original concept of the overall piece.  I am most interested in how choreographers come to generate their viewpoints and ideas to create choreography.  Anne Bogart and Tina Landau explore these viewpoints: “As each Viewpoint is individually introduced, information accumulates.  First, we isolate awareness of that particular Viewpoint, then add another to it.  Each Viewpoint is, in turn, dealt with on its own terms, then added to what has already been investigated.” (Bogart & Landau, 2005, p. 35)

From this I imagined that the creativity is explored through a mind-map or a spiders-web – stranding from many different directions, diving deeper through each idea, however not becoming too distracted with similar ideas that may be similar: “If too many Viewpoints are layered on too quickly no single one can ever be explored with enough depth.” (Bogart & Landau, 2005, p.35)

In a particular formation slow motion was explored.  As we began to weave in and out of each other in a tight lump, we would open out spaces in order for lifts to be performed. 

However the session was cut short.  Carla gave us, what I like calling a motivation talk.  For me there are too many “dancers” in our group who just don’t pull their weight and do not put near to nothing effort into what they are supposed to love, it feels like they are only here for the “University Experience” and to look pretty while they apparently dance.  I want to become one of the best dancers in the industry, I push myself to my physical limits, and engage with my body mentally in order to fully unlock my beaming potential.  I try to give performance elements to every lesson I attend.  I love being here, and I love to dance, most of the people here don’t seem like they care, about dance, about life, about anything, and it annoys me:

“As with anything else, individuals who enjoy b-boying do seek out opportunities to make a living out of it.  But for the most part, people become b-boys or b-girls primarily because they simply like to do it.  Nobody takes up b-boying to get rich.” (Schloss, 2009, p.40)