Scape

Abstract

My portion of the Spring Footholds Concert, Moving Images, will consist of a solo that I will create and perform, as well as my main thesis project: an original ensemble work. This piece will be performed by 10 dancers (I will not dance in this project), and will be at least 15 minutes long. This piece is "about" the movement. There will not be a literal narrative element to this dance, such as in other pieces that I have created here at UH. What I am interested in is how my own stylistic movement vocabulary and my personal aesthetic preferences regarding use of space and design can be used to create a dance on bodies other than my own. Although there is no "story" per se, I intend to create a specific mood/tone/atmosphere/sense on stage. One theme that I will work with is the idea of the dance as a progression of time. Perhaps it is sunrise to sunrise, or a year's time, or the time it takes to complete a group journey. Anytime there is an ensemble on stage, there is of course a set of relationships between people. Although I am not concerned with assigning specific roles or characters, I am asking myself how this particular group is defined... A community? A tribe? A family? A people? As the dancers move through space together, I will not depict a particular narrative of group+time+travel such as a nomadic tribe wandering, but rather just evoke the suggestion of people experiencing a journey together-be it migratory, emotional, spiritual, transformative, or what have you.