The blog which follows is now presented chronologically as an archived blog narrative.
The challenge of timetabling always features strongly in Elixir Ensemble projects as each performer has another life outside these unexpected forays back into the dance studio as a performer. So, I am absent from the video of the first session below, although I did arrive later in the session to at least be present for some of these initial explorations. In fact, on this occasion I returned to the UK from China for four days in order to be present – beginnings are important.
The videos make clear how Jonathan and Matteo created an atmosphere where laughter was not only allowed but encouraged, a welcome feature to the Elixir dancers as we were not only older, we were also more nervous than we had been in our previous dance experiences. In these videos Jane Hackett is present as she was the Sadler’s Wells Director of Creative Learning, who had developed the project; and also present is Robert (Bob) Cohan, the former Artistic Director of London Contemporary Dance Theatre, where I and a number of my Elixir Ensemble colleagues had danced. We are back in the Sadler’s Wells as dancers, more than twenty years after we had last gathered there.