This workshop was on Friday 28 July; the third of four linked sessions at Contact meets Contemporary 2017.
Walk awhile. Now stand. Press your hands to your face, to move the skin: feel the surface, your hair, and move your jaw with your hands.
We stand and use our head to start a snake like movement in our spine. Changing the weight of our feet on the ground; moving; changing our stance. Hold you head and move to the ground.
Partner work
After each exercise, we swap roles with our partner.
- Our partner takes our head in their hands, and we follow their lead. They guide us to the ground, and induce rolling around the spine too.
- We line-up to travel across the space from one side of the hall to the other. Our partner takes our head in their hands; at times we are leading; other times they are leading us; crossing the space. The roles blend.
- We’re in table/bench position; our partner moves us by manipulating our head.
- We headstand while our partner places their hands on our back, to feel the changes in our spine and posture. Notice, how the spine is curved when begin the movement with our head on the ground and then we uncurl and straighten it.
- Our partner is in table/bench position and we position ourself beside them so that we can bring our back down onto theirs, and then over to crouching – on the other side of them.
Don’t dance like this!
We practice and refine the previous day’s choreographed duet, and once I again, I practice Olivia’s part. The teachers give us feedback: demonstrating the subtlety of movement in the routine; and showing that some of our efforts are not correct; don’t dance like this!
Routine recap: Olivia slides down the back & to the side of Yochai, offering her back in table; Yochia handstands over into crouching position;
Olivia stands up rolling her head under Yochai’s arm; she takes 1,2,3 steps with him to side and lifts him; Olivia places her shoulder and head to Yochai’s hip/pelvis and she pivots up – Capoeira like step – bounce. You can see it here, in this video:
on exit then Olivia takes Youchi’s hand and rotates her leg over their linked hands so she is astride them under her crouch; Olivia grasps Youchi’s shoulder with her armpit and up!; into fetal position. You can see it here, in this video:
Notes
See next session (fourth session) of Contemporary Intensive
See previous session (second session) of Contemporary Intensive
Olivia Court-Mesa & Yochai Ginton’s dance pages: https://www.facebook.com/thecommonbody/
[Top photo: Yochai (left) and Olivia (right, pointing) teaching the class]