MONTREAL, June 2012, Dance improvisation

For me Montréal was "the place to be for impro theater" (with the famous "match d'impro"/theatresports created there in the 70's). Younger, I was in a theater group in Lyon and I really enjoyed it. But finally, Montréal is also great for dance, so my interest changed and I focused my practise on Dance improvisation.

So I went of course to the CI jams, and fall in love of the Montreal CI community; a very good group is managing all CI event, the ACI:
- every Wednesday, 20h-22h15, Focus Jam (nice souvenir of 1 warm-up given by Catherine Lessard) at Studio Caravane or Fleur d'asphalte
- every Sunday, 11h30-14h30, great jam at Studio S'temps d'art africain

And I had the opportunity to participate to the Global Underscore, 22th june noon, outdoor in a Park.
What is the Global Underscore?
The underscore has been created by Nancy Stark Smith and she defines it as "a framework for practising and researching dance improvisation that I've been developing since the early 1990s."

It is a score that guides dancers through a series of "changing states", from solo deepening/releasing to sensitizing to gravity and support; through group circulation and interaction, CI engagements, opening out to full group improvisation with compositional awareness, and back to rest and reflection". For the past 12 years, a Global Undersocre has been occurring near the summer solstice. Conceived by French dancer Claire Filmon,  dancers at many sites around workd practise the Underscore simultaneously.

 

Amazing deep feeling to be connected with my CI dancer friends from everywhere in the world, dancing all togehter in the same place: the Earth.

during this event came to me 2 gifts:
- my first meeting with Benoît Aubertin and Elizabeth Cooper who became dear friends. 2 amazing dancers and human beings very involved in CI and Community life. We meet again in Earthdance, New York Jam and Dance Camp of New England...
- Eryn Dace Trudell, teacher of CI, Skinner releasing technique and baby-mama dance. She proposed me to participate to a workshop she would give in Lasqueti Island (Vancouver) in July... I accept soo happy!!!! It looked just amazing, dancing and helping in eco-building/gardening!!!

In Montréal, I also participated to a week Workshop with Jacques Poulin-Denis "By all means" in the studio 303.

Enjoying all the warm-up with him (using meditation, braith, body visualizations), during the week we worked on the improvisation using our body, our voice (using also Action theater exercices), awareness of the space, the rest of the performer, the group... Laughing a lot... Fully satisfied!!!

After this workshop, I didn't really feel to take more classes/workshops. In Germany, I didn't have the chance to really perform I was very focus on my training. But in Montréal, I felt that at this moment I didn't need more training but to let my body move and express itself!!!
Lucky, in Jacques' workshop, I met Mélanie, amazing improviser, she offers me to stay in her appartment (in the French area, Mont-royal) 1 month during her trip in France...Pure generosity... Love

Thanks to her and Valérian, I was in the best conditions for the preparation of my next 2 performances: "Passons par ici" and "Presence & Absence" in July!

Ah I would like to share here Valérian' story; many years ago, he and a friend made a bike-circus-world trip!!!! They just improvise themselves clowns and share it Everywhere!!! ya ya ya ya!!!! BEAUTIFUL. Take a look to their website http://spectacleautremonde.free.fr

New york was not so far from Montréal. So I went with part of my dear Family to spend a long week-end there.

It was important for me to have this first contact with New York. Improvising the rest of my journey...

I had to decide between West and East coast fall:
- Seatle (SFDI, high level CI festival), San Francisco with an amazing Dance impro community
- New England (Earthdance, Northampton, Boston, Dance Camp), New York (Klein technique with Susan Klein and Barbara Malher, lovely CI community)...
So walking a lot in New York, Brooklyn, dancing at the Williamsburg bridge promenade,

participating to a Sunday workshop (with Jen abrams) in the Movement Research (Manhattan). mmmmmmh Yeahhh for New York!!!!

There I met Haruka from Japan who loved my origami gift ; )

Let's live for a while in New york!!! decision taken but for the moment, starting my summertime in Montréal!!!

MADRID, May 2012, Fer & Charly

My story with Fer y Charly, it's a love story.
In Madrid, the year before, Sara told me about them but I didn't reach to participate to their workshop or to see them performing... But I knew that I have to meet them, like always I let me guided by my intuition.

Fernando Pelliccioli and  Carlos Osatinsky are 2 amazing dancers (teacher and performer). From Argentina but leaving from many years in Berlin, traveling around all the time (.
I met them the first time when I was in Berlin, we have such nice conversation, and they offered me peace and good recommandations for the rest of my journey. I found new friends, I felt deeply connected to them.
From the festival of Kiev, I decided to make a crazyness, pushing by my instinct, and to leave the festival before the end for participating to Fery and Charly intensive workshop in Madrid , "Espacio proprio-Augenblick".
"Espacio propio" names in Spanish our sense for our own space". It refers to a process of study of the multiple connections that we can discover in our indivudual body's space, its structure and intrinsic principles of organization and the surrounding space outside, with the various possible interactions and associations linked to a shared kinetic, sensitive and poetic space.
"Augenblick" is translated in English as "moment" or "instant". Literally it is composed by the German words "eyes" (Augen) and "glance" (Blick) giving to the term a full metaphoric meaning: a blink, what happens in between closing and opening eyes, the duration of seeing, witness of the whole instant.

I really enjoy the warm-up based on the connection with bone as structure of the body as a primary supportive medium. "Through a series of simple sequences awareness is leaded to the body organization in the bone level and to their interconnections through the deepest muscle and connective issue (hamstrings, pelvic floor, psoas, external rotators). Body a tensegrity system".

 They also gave us great tools for managing a deep awareness of the space and group movement in improvisation.
It was amazing to feel how my movement changed between the first day and the last day, such nice metamorphosis. And I also notice the same process with other participants... My arms was longer, my head was higher, attracted by the sky and my feet well grounded in the floor... This workshop was also moving my mind-soul, and I felt well supported by the group and the teachers to welcome it.
I remember very well, walking in the street or in the supermarket, I was able to feel my spine moving like a snake from the bottom of my coccyx to the top of my nake!!!
Other confirmation of the direction I want to take for my training of Dance improvisation.
Awareness of my body... Bones, muscles, fascia, skin were my new fascination!!! I directly stick on my Moleskine my new best friend:

MADRID, May 2012, Art installation Suspension/bondage Festival

During Fer and Charly workshop, I accept to participate to a project of Muestrarte from the Tabacalera. I was in charged of the decoration of the restroom of an old amazing Factory where will happen the International meeting of Suspensions and Bondage!!!

 It was in an amazing arts place...

Suspensions... I was very curious to discover this "world"... I love to meet people from other Community. It has been a rich experience!

And my suspension ; ) 

KYIV, May 2012, CI festival

I decided to take the Train from Berlin to Kiev for participating to the Kyiv CI Festival.
28 hours passing trough Poland in an old Sovietic train... YES

I arrived in Kiev some days before the beginning of the Festival and Valeriy had the kindness to open the doors of his house... Again... Origami forever...

Vadim, who I met before in Fuerteventura Festival invited me to the Kyiv Sunday jam...
In petit comité, Vadim, me and Vadim!

Very nice day... After the jam, Vadim took me to a second hand shop; ah yes! I came in Kiev with only winter clothes but it was 35°C, other ridiculous beliefs... There I bought my famous blue dress (I used in most of my video dance performances...)

It was such a good decision to go there! The best Festival I did. Ever ever ever...
Amazing teachers, most people from Russia and Ukraine, incredible jam (watch video) (opportunity to dance during the same jam with the best CI teachers and people from everywhere...), sound machine jam (watch video) , organization team/particpants (watch video)/teachers (watch video) night performances, great organization, nice Family.

SPACIBA!

This Festival has been a really good jump in my dance, I found during the jams who I was as a CI dancer... And I liked it!

Anecdote: during one jam, I dance a long time with Blake Nellis, and feel for the first time what means ""both are part of an expanded body" (Steve Paxton). Flowing, flying, falling, laughing... Impossible to define who initiate the movement, one Body-Mind. After the dance, I was shaking like a leaf... too much emotions... I was completly confused... It was real? Joerg was here, I go to him for sharing my experience, he enjoyed to witness me like that and gave me a Master-hug.

Teachers: Brenton Cheng, Frey Faust, Joerg Hassman (my intensive), Mirva Makinen, Ruslan Santah,
Leilani Weis, Blake Nellis, Otto Akanen, Yaniv Mintzer, Vega.

 

When, I was in Berlin I took the decision to go from Kiev to Madrid.  An intuition, I wanted to follow... I went to the intensive workshop of Fernando Pelliccioli and Carlos Osatinsky (other such good idea).

Merci intuition pour ta générosité. Je t'aime!