My Choreography Radar

This is a video from a show we did last year. I choreographed a street jazz number for ages 9 to 15 to the Britney song Radar. This is two separate classes merged together, so I actually taught the dance to them separately as their two classes until the week before when we actually pieced the dance together. They have one 45 minute class a week, including a warm up, technique and then dance rehearsal, so I think they did pretty well considering.

My challenges with the choreography included the wide age range of dancers and not having them rehearsing together, but we got there in the end. Unfortunately the lighting ruined the beginning and end of the dance, so you can't actually see what they're doing, but you get the idea. If you scroll across the youtube screen at the bottom, I also choreographed Fame for the whole school, including ballet, street jazz, jazz and singers. That was fun!

Links of Interest My Motivation

I get extremely excited when I have a new choreography task ahead of me and the way I start a piece is to first find a good piece of music. Sometimes they find me (which I love) and I will consequently zone out and choreograph (with the track still playing) in my head. If I can visualise what I want first then it's much easier to create and then teach.

If I need to look for a piece of music I scan my iTunes library and search for new artists on Spotify. http://www.apple.com/itunes/

http://www.spotify.com/en/

Teaching and choreographing go hand in hand and if I don't know what I'm doing or what I want then my dancers or students are definitely not going to know either.

youtube.com 500 days of Summer

The above is a video from 500 Days of Summer the film, and I love the music and dynamics in particular. This song really inspires me, but my choreographic ideas are nothing like this video. Mine are more appropriate to my teaching, using more dancers for our annual shows. Also, what would be the point if we all used the same ideas for every piece of music. I have my own mind and imagination and sometimes I find very good songs which cause it to run wild. I might just use this track for my school's show next year so I'll keep you posted.

Youtube.com Warrior Dance The Prodigy Music Video

The above video, doesn't really use much choreography and I heard the song long before I saw this video. Again my visions were entirely different, though the director's ideas for this video are very imaginative and clear; it's a very good idea. I would love to direct my own completely different music video to this song.

Youtube.com So You Think You Can Dance

This dancer is absolutely amazing in my opinion and I could watch this video again and again. His technique and choreography are beautiful. Blake is an inspiration to dance and dancers. Blake and other talented dancers inspire and motivate me to get to where I want to be. Every journey starts with a single step, this man must have started at the beginning like the rest of us.

The Kolb Learning Cycle

by Lucy, KT and Sophie

A. Concrete Experience

Yesterday we went to the Cat Hill campus at Middlesex University and looked at the Learning Cycle process by David Kolb (see diagram). We were given extracts from an anonymous peer's blog, which we separated into the relevant stage of Kolb's system.

B. Reflective Observation

At first we were slightly bemused and unsure of the process. By dissecting the text and applying it to the cycle it enabled us to fully understand the diagram.

1. We felt the Concrete Experience was the easiest section to understand. Our understanding of this section is now "a previous personal experience that has happened".

2. The Reflective Observation of the text was another easy part to analyse, understanding it to be reviewing the event or experience.

3. Abstract Conceptualisation. This was a difficult section for us to decipher. We had difficulties differentiating between active and reflective as many tend to cross over. We simplified the term to developing an understanding by seeking information or forming new ideas.

4. Active Experimentation. We made a mistake in our cut and paste exercise with this section. Upon reflection we then realised our sentence should have been placed in the Abstract Conceptualisation. To make this section more understandable we referred to it as "trying out new ideas and learning from experience".

C. Abstract Conceptualisation

After our initial task we then asked to develop our text. We were asked to fill in any gaps of the cycle that were missed by our blogger's text. For example we had nothing in the Active Experimentation section, we would empathise with the blogger and create our own excerpt.

D. Active Experimentation

To put our experience into practice we will write about identifying instances when we have seen ourselves in each of the stages of Kolb's learning cycle. We will also write our learning diaries (and edit our blogs) accordingly to fit with this new learning cycle. My writing is below:

Another instance when I have seen myself in the different points of the Kolb cycle would be during the beginning of this home blog. Firstly, I didn't know where to start in the way of posting. I didn't want to start directly with information about myself. This is what I eventually did, but I didn't post it first. So I started my first blogging experience by posting a picture of Martha Graham. In terms of Kolb's cycle this was my concrete experience; posting a blog.

After experiencing other blogs and becoming a more accomplished blogger myself I reflectively observed that this picture meant nothing, nor told very much useful or interesting information to the reader. So why should anyone read a blog, which is merely a collection of photos that can be found elsewhere on the internet. As they say a picture can say a thousand words, but it doesn't mean it says what I personally feel about the picture.

My abstract conceptualisation of this problem was that if I am going to post an item, picture or link onto my blog, I should post with it an explanation, description or reason for putting it on there. It gives the reader more incite into a idea or topic, which consequently is more interesting than a picture on it's own with no explanation.

My active experimentation was to then add information about Martha Graham and how she had been a part of my training indirectly. I also added a link to a website, where there's is some more information about her. I compared her dance styles to another contemporary dancer. I set out the writing in the form of Kolb's cycle, starting with my studying of Graham's style, then reflecting the style, I went on to conclude the different styles of contemporary dance and finally completed the cycle with a plan to experiment with what I've learnt and try the stylesin my own choreography.

There you have a Kolb cycle within another Kolb cycle.

People I Admire

The Singer

KRISTEN CHENOWETH

An excellent classically trained soprano, well known for her artistic impressions and skilled singing abilities. You may have seen/heard Chenoweth as Glinda in the original Broadway musical and soundtrack of Wicked by Schwartz. Chenoweth also won awards for her Broadway performance in You're A Good Man, Charlie Brown (1999).

Chenoweth also does a lot of cabaret as well. Not only has Kristen Chenoweth conquered the world of theatre but she has also established herself as an accomplished film, television and voiceover actress. Chenoweth has appeared in Will and Grace, Frasier, Sesame Street, Four Christmases, and most recently the comedy series Pushing Daisies starring along side our very own Anna Friel and through this Chenoweth recently won an award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series.

I admire Chenoweth because I am also a Soprano singer and to watch her perform songs that I may go on to learn is such an inspiration, with her ability to create a character through her voice. Chenoweth uses comedy, depth and pure vocal skill which bring the songs she sings to life. Also Chenoweth is an inspiration because her voice is very different, and she's used that to her advantage and grabbed opportunities of roles suited to her voice that others can't achieve. I think this is great because she has not shied away from being different in a very critical industry. Chenoweth is a wonderful role model and aspiration to performing industry.

http://www.kristin-chenoweth.com/ This is kristen Chenoweth's official site and blog, which holds news, pictures and her CV attributes within theatre, film and television.

People I Admire

The Dancer

SAVION GLOVER

My main dance style is tap dance and what better modern inspiration is there today than Savion Glover. His technique, style and performance quality is out of this world. Glover made his Broadway debut at only 12 years of age. His most recent credit is co-choreographer and main motion dancer for the animated film “Happy Feet”. The detail and musicality used in his work is very effective to watch for dancers and non-dancers a like. Glover has made tap a more impressive and appreciative art form for a whole range of audiences. See the video as proof!

When I was still in training, he had his solo show on at Sadler's Wells “Live for London” and to and from college I would walk past it. It was almost a reminder for me to keeping pushing and practising. Not many make it as tap idols, most dancers can tap but they aren't known for tap dance specifically, which is why Glover has a great achievement and talent for reaching this far in his career.

He has strengthened my love for tap dance and pushed me work, practise and strive for precision. I hope you enjoy his work as much as I do.

The official website for Savion Glover is http://www.saviongloverproductions.com/ He has his own teaching school which runs courses in America called Hooferzclub – School for Tap, which encourages more talent in tap dance.

People I Admire

The Composer

JASON ROBERT BROWN

The Composer

JASON ROBERT BROWN

The next big thing since Stephen Sondheim and listened to all over the world.

He's written famous musicals such as The Last Five Years, Parade, Songs For a New World, and 13. I appreciate him mainly because of his musical work. My favourite songs being “See, I'm Smiling” and pretty much the majority from Parade.

I am inspired my Jason Robert Brown ever since I saw the recent West End Production of Parade and I still state today it's the best musical I've ever seen. Based on real events in history, the detail of the show, the mixture of characters and songs is absolutely brilliant. It helped by being beautifully directed and performed. The song “Come up to My Office” performed by Bertie Carvel was one of my favourites, merely because of the bass line in the musical score. Choreographically I am desperate to create a solo tap piece to it, it's just a shame it's about pedophilia!

Like Sondheim, a lot of what Brown writes is sung as it would be spoken, which is hard to create but amazing to listen to. In many moments in The Last Five Years the performers easily transfer from singing the lines to speaking, whispering or shouting them. Jason Robert Brown has created quite modern music and even a few years down the line if you heard it today it could have easily have been written yesterday. He has created a new era for musical theatre, one that many aspiring musical theatre performers use to audition with and base work around. Recently I watched an independent joint show of The Last Five Years back to back with another and it proves the enthusiasm to keep Brown;s work alive and ongoing. I really would love him to bring out more songs and musicals for myself and others to enjoy. It's a true art form to be able create such great music and with it tell such great stories..

The video below is Colleen Ballinger performing See, I'm Smiling from Brown's The Last Five Years. Ballinger, also known as Miranda, has since become a youtube star performing as a stange alter ego who cannot sing a note, yet is extremely arrogant with her talents. You can see for yourself that she can sing, yet her online joke has increasingly gained popularity. I even went to see "Miranda Sings" at the West End a few months ago, where she teaches a collection of current West End stars how to sing and sang duets with them. It's become a cult classic.

Resources for Teaching

I keep realising and forgetting that I don't just perform but I teach and choreograph too.

So I am just figuring out if my resources differ for these. To be honest, like I've mentioned before I almost stumbled into choreography and teaching and didn't really get much choice (not that I'm complaining), but I absolutely love both and they work nicely together too. So onto resources.....

As a choreographer:

google and youtube - for background research and ideas

iTunes and Spotify - to listen and download music and get ideas

Pineapple - watching and taking class influences my ideas subliminally at the least

As a Teacher

iTunes - again for getting the right music for a class

google - for researching the school I'm to be teaching at

TFL - Transport for London - I get lost very easily

Lyrics Websites - crucial for Musical Theatre Classes

Word Programmes - for creating invoices to send off for payment

In conclusion they don't really differ too much, and I am scraping the barrel by the time I get to "Word programmes"!!!