Feb 7, 2014 - Head, Tail, Spiral

Feb 7, 2014 - Head, Tail, Spiral

solo|soul rehearsal with Karen

Karen sifts through the material from the dialogue process. She asks: 'Are we in the solo, or is the solo in us?', or was it 'Are we in the soul, or the soul in us?'....I can't quite recall, but I feel the question is applicable either way. Is there any individual at all? She is asking this in relation to the fact that she creates a dance for herself out of multiple dialogues with peers. How can they be extracted from the dialogical experience?

Karen mentions the allure of getting attached to an idea and not noticing what you're actually doing. We've spoken about this before, and in talking with other dance makers, it seems to be something that we all have to be disciplined about. It's challenging when you are deep in the thick of it, but necessary.

Karen remembers dialogue with Jennifer Mascall, mentions the interstitial fluid, and begins to walk softly around the room recalling Jennifer's soft pudgy feet exercise.

She begins a series of experiments, to which I follow along on the side and try them myself. The first is a spiral down to a crouch on the ground from vertical. The head and tail must naturally be allowed to reach towards one another for this task to work.

The next is rediscovering the bounce. This one lives in the relationship between the perineum and the roof of the mouth, and the connection of the inner thighs to one another. She adds the naturally forming wings of the doorway to the heart, and transitions and rhythm are found in this addition.

The bound and flow are paired as physical tasks. There is an unexpectedness in binding the flow: how far can flow take you before the bind, before it starts to become structured rather than naturally rhythmic?