Dancing Naked

This post is a part of the Extend Project, includes my experience and personal thoughts on partially planning a live event. Most of it was done by Akademi.

It was about three months to Daredevas (24/11/09 - 25/11/09) when a concept was lingering in my mind and I had an urge to develop it. It took me about month to conceptualise what I really wanted and prioritize what the strength of the piece would be. I think I spent about 35 quid buying music from itunes until I found something that really inspired me. Different people have different things that drive them. For me having the right music is so important, If I don't find it, I can't settle. Anyway I started researching my thoughts and i came across Thomas Hardy's - The Ghost of the Past. I knew I needed text in my piece, I somehow had decided my priority is structure, and the text would really help bring that out.
I started booking rehearsal space to try things out and every time I would come up something different.

Anyhow 26th Oct was my first meeting with John-Marc, our mentor. I had a clear idea of my concept, the structure of the piece, the music i intended to use and the text however what i still had to work on was the movement and choreography! Costume and lights were two things to be planned later. only a month was left and it was high time I start movement and choreography! However i feel if you have the structure planned and concept ready movement is something you can just fit in. Organising the piece and yourself, I felt, was far more important than struggling with the content.

The music required editing, and the text required to be read and recorded. Extra sessions with John-Marc for this reason, along with coordinating a narrator into our busy London schedules was required! Rehearsal space was also turning out to be an issue and i had to book space myself and not wait for akademi to sort that out for me. Oh what a tense week that was, but Amaara (narrator for the text) came to the rescue and things started flowing again. Music score was hence done and dusted. Sharing was on 16th nov and I didn't have a costume! The last week I went to five different High Streets and I just couldn't find what i really wanted. Maybe planning here would require me not to be so picky and make do of available resources, but then, a growing attachment for the live event makes me want to have nothing but the best for it. Oh dear, anyway I did find a costume (which wasn't my choice) and I had to finally settle with it!

The tech run day brought about different issues in planning. Firstly the budget for extra lights was nil, which was a let down for Will and the dancers (definitely for me, don't know about the rest). Will, the lighting designer and me had to make do with whatever was available.
As I was on stage I did a quick risk assessment of the space, lights and psych. As my piece really made me move a lot through space I had to be very aware of my boundaries. The Dress run the next day felt assuring. It does feel great if the events go according to plan!
Anyway an hour to the show, immediate concerns were make up, hair, costume, warm up and inner peace and satisfaction! Irony as it is a concern!

Bah my checklist is done - Concept, structure, music, text, choreography, rehearsals, lights, dress run, video run, risk hazards, well fed, warmed up, costume, make up, hair ..
However when on stage and the show starts, there is absolutely nothing on my mind to plan or think or care about. Its just me in my world, unconsciously satisfied, abstractedly connected.
That is the charm of performance, dancing without inhibition, Dancing Naked.