Rehearsal Day II (communication tools or how to develop trust)

I have decided not to use a translator in the rehearsals. My departing point is the same as when I choreograph in England: direct verbal and physical contact with the dancers. But obviously here I need some “extra” tools to help this communication happen:

1. The OxfordEnglish-Chinesedictionary,
2. their  little English
3. my more-than-littleMandarin
4. a simplified version of English language (talking almost in infinitives and with nouns)
5. sounds that physicalize the dynamics I want them to experiment
6. my actual execution of some of the movements ideas

I haven’t developped any other tool yet. At the moment those are being very useful. But it is interesting to see how each dancer responds better to one or another, so sometimes the same thing has to be expressed via more than one of those tools. I really enjoy having to do this, as it forces me to understand deeper the movement, the task I’m giving to them.

From the first rehearsal day I told them this was going to be a piece created in co-operation: I will take all final decisions and lead the rehearsals, but I expect them to be active in the creative process, as I don’t want replicas of myself. And above all, I want them to constantly talk to me (to us), to know what they feel while executing the tasks. All this means, that still we haven’t set any material. At the moment, my only priority is to get to know them: to see what their skills and weaknesses are (so I can work on it) and to study how they deal with improvisation and contact.  I basically want to give them time to know me as well (how I think, how I lead the group, what I’m looking for). I just want them to dare to trust me as much as I want to trust them.

After watching them for two days now, I can confirm their dance training is very different. There are two clear styles here that are being confronted: the one of the 7 Taiwanese dancers and the one of  the 7 dancers from Mainland China. They all are working together very well, trying to know their physicality better. The big challenge I have now during these 11 days is to try to find a harmony in their movement, a common land where their personality is not erased, on the contrary, where they can express themselves via different movement qualities, new body relationships.

Avatâra

P.S. Hopefully by the end of this week I will be able to pronounce and remember their 14 mandarin names!