1
Q
Choreographer
A
Lucy Bennett
2
Q
Company
A
Stopgap Dance company
3
Q
Premiere date
A
5th February 2014
4
Q
Dance style
A
Inclusive contemporary dance
5
Q
Dancers
A
4- 2 male, 2 female
6
Q
Duration
A
20 minutes
7
Q
Stage type/ Performance environment
A
Proscenium arch stage
8
Q
Disabled dancers
A
Dave Toole and Laura Jones
9
Q
Able-bodied dancers
A
Amy butler and David Wildridge
10
Q
Stimulus (3)
A
- the idea of a snow globe but rather than a happy image inside, it’s the image if someone isolated, perched on a collapsed wheelchair as someone else looks in
- the paintings of Govan Djurovic
- the dancers personal experiences
11
Q
Snow globe stimulus explained
A
- initial idea for scene 3 in Artifical Things was like a day dream
- it was snowing when the stimulus was created
- imagined what it would be like to be trapped in a snow globe
- thought about the happy and sad scenes within a snow globe
- saw image of Laura on a collapsed wheelchair and someone watching from afar
- thought about whether he had left her, was coming to support her or just observing her
12
Q
Paintings stimulus explained
A
-Govan Djurovic’s work is ‘ fascinated by man and his relationships, the difficult attempt at living together and suffering caused by dominance’
-his painting presents a disturbing dream world in which the mysterious truths of life are revealed. This is heavily influenced by Bennett’s work.
-The colour palette and scenery in his paintings influence set design and costuming
-The idea of tableau (freeze frame)
13
Q
Dancers personal experiences stimulus explained
A
- stopgap often tell stories in their work, especially from their own dancers
-for example, the final solo by the male dancer (Dave Toole) is about his own personal memory – an old-fashioned song is played that his father used to sing – he dedicate this solo to his family
14
Q
Choreographic intention (5)
A
- constriction within a snow globe
- the dancers coming to terms with life’s limitations
- the idea of loss and resolve
- the idea of time passing and finding resolutions as they go on
- being observed or gazed at by others/ outsiders
15
Q
Set
A
- wooden border
- back cloth
- overturned vitrine (glass cabinet)
- headless suit
- paper snow
16
Q
Wooden border
A
- picture frame
- as if they are in one of Govan Djurovic’s paintings
- like the dancers are constricted within a frame
17
Q
Back cloth
A
- back cloth has streaks of pastel colours running down the back, as if directly taking the background of one of Govan Djurovic’s paintings
- pale, cold colours like a snow globe
18
Q
Overturned Vitrine (glass cabinet)
A
- filled with snow
- from Govan Djurovic’s paintings
19
Q
Headless suit
A
- from Govan Djurovic’s paintings
- used in set to highlight difference between Dave and the others
- coming to terms with life’s limitations
20
Q
Paper snow
A
- on the floor and in vitrine (glass cabinet)
- is like a snow globe
- snow in a glass equals snow globe
21
Q
Props
A
- Collapsed wheelchair
- paper snow scattered on floor
= both link to stimulus of collapsed wheelchair in a snow covered landscape/ snow globe
22
Q
Laura’s costume
A
- boat neck sleeveless vest
- pale, grey, loose fitting trousers
- only dancer that wears shoes
23
Q
Dave’s costume
A
- loose fitting, open necked, short sleeve shirt
- loose fitted grey trousers adapted to fit as shorts
24
Q
Amy’s costume
A
- thigh length sleeveless dress with pale green peter pan colour
25
David’s costume
-loose fitting open-necked shirt sleeve shirt
-not tucked in so it flows freely
- loose fitting grey trousers
26
How the costumes link to the choreographic intentions
- cold colours = snow globe
- paint dripping = Govan Djurovic’s paintings
- costumes are coherent but adapted = inclusive
- each costume has a slightly different feature emphasising own personal experience but are still coherent
27
Choreographic approach
- collaborative: dancers actively contribute through completing choreographic tasks
- a lot of the movement was driven by Laura and her wheelchair which was translated and adapted by the standing dancers
- stop gap (getting dancers to contribute
- dancers own personal experiences woven into the dance through collaborative approach
28
Lighting designed by
Chahine Yavrovan
29
Aural setting created by
Andy Higgs
30
Costume designed by
Anna Jones
31
Dave and Laura’s duet: movement content
– Both have small movements, leaning and rolling/wrapping around one another and texture unison (cannot be in exact unison because of their impairments)
– They appear helpless, idea of being stuck in a snow globe/ life’s limitations
32
Dave and Laura duet: aural setting
– Natural sound (faint thunder, wind sounds, crunching of papers snow, ticking clock)
– Orchestral echo of strings (links to stimulus of snow landscape, clock sound showed moving through life’s limitations to resolution and echo creates feel of vast, cold, empty space)
33
Dave and Laura’s duet: lighting
– Stage in darkness other than two mid intensity, soft edged white Spotlights
- restricts their space, like a snow globe, and creates a cold ambiguous mood
34
Gliding: movement content
– David and Amy perform with an around Laura whilst Dave watches on
- they resemble one another’s movement – sometimes this is Laura in a wheelchair, sometimes David and Amy‘s
- dave watching is as if being viewed from afar (snow globe), overcoming life limitations by working together to resolve Laura’s problems
35
Gliding: aural setting
- soft and light music – piano notes moving from high to low rapidly
– Resembles passing of time, reflects travel work within movement, feels more positive/uplifting than previous section to show overcoming life’s limitations
36
Gliding: lighting
– Cold blue wash over the whole stage
– two mid intensity, soft edged white spotlights
– They’ve lit in warm, and side lights at low intensity in upstage left
– Blue light reinforces wind theme but amber sidelights imply a warmer mood – moving towards resolution
37
Daves solo: movement content
– Dave dances alone what others look on from the vitrine
– Drum fingers, pushes up and sways from side to side
– This is Dave’s personal story – he reflects on his time with his family and his found resolution in friends and family. Others watch on (snow globe)
38
Dave Solo: aural setting
– ‘ the sunshine of your smile’ with crackle added to emphasise age
- this is Dave‘s personal experience – song his dad played/sang to him, nostalgic and sentimental mood
39
Dave solo: lighting
– Intense deep blue wash with central white Spotlight on Dave
– Others lit in amber side light again
– Same as previous lighting – warmer light shows moving towards resolution, cold colours= winter scene
40
‘Family portraits’ section movement example
– Transition between freeze frames – holding movements of stillness in different formations
– Literally resembling Djurovic’s painting
DANCE
flashcards
Decks in class (13)
# Cards
