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Once I had determined to work with Gene Koshinski’s Afternoon in March, a gentle understated piece of light character, my dance-making approach was to improvise through the music, again and again, staying deeply connected to a particular physical and emotional state, remembering what I could of vocabulary ideas, anticipating the structural shifts. As the work gained focus the vocabulary became both expressive and self-referential. The result felt to me a bit like prayer or ritual.
These three studio trials show some of the origins of the final dance. Immediately noticeable is how, in comparison to the final version of 11, the vocabulary has become focused and cohesive, treated with a performance that is emotionally contained.
This simple work is a dance prayer, reflecting on a personal and serious matter. Gene Koshinski’s piece Afternoon in March expresses an easy joy, a perfect counterpoint to heaviness, and a lesson in living in light.
We acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts.
Nous remercions le Conseil des arts du Canada de son soutien.
Dance/Music
I (1’07)
0 – 13 / 14 – 25
exposition A, 4-part theme: up and down scale 2x, up with 4 high note tags 2x
Upscale in stillness, down scale let the hands float away slightly
hands float back to floating at pelvis,
focus right with right hand curve, wrist drop, 2nd 4 high note tag
reiteration A, 4-part theme: up and down scale 2x, up with 5 high note tags 2x
Contract elbow lift look away forced arch, 1st up and down scale
Continue to Carve fingers down, high right shoulder, open hand/right knee etc
Arrive at right hand spread at heart, left hand pelvis, 1st high note tag
Travel us, left ft flat, right demi, 2nd high note tag
26 – 36
shorter 7 note counter theme B 3x
heartbeat pulses w r/l hands, 1st and 2nd iterations
float right hand to meet left at pelvis, swing hands to left, follow with pelvis and
deepen arrival, 3rd iteration
37 – 45 / 46 – 55
C – 7 chord/note phrase similar, followed by a longer ralentissement
Tight pivot chasse to right to face usr forced arch l, transfer weight to left foot and off again to start w left on 6 step curve chassse to right face usl right foot forced arch, transfer weight into right, pivot curve chasse ¾ turn on left right foot forced arch
C – reiteration of 7 chord/note phrase and longer ralentissement
Paddle turn w right around left ft 2x, 6 steps chasse curve starting left and pivoting both feet slightly on last step to face dsl, right parallel fourth, palms open and lean back, hands return to pelvis step underneath w r ft,
Quickstepping on spot around to same dslfacing, on arrival turn wrists over and drop the hands and head, reverse the action w head and hands and bend elbows bring hands parallel to floor as fingers slowly curl up
56 – 1’03
long resolving slowing phrase
flat left demi right fast small steps travelling upright backwards, back of hands together
coming up front of body opening at collar bone and down to sides with chest and curved
back and up, stay
1’04 – 1’07
short accelerated bridge
slowly returning hands overhead to set up for diving curves w hands/spine
II (1’08)
1’08 – 1’20 / 1’21 – 1’32
Theme A – 4-part theme: up and down scale 2x, up with high note tags 2x
Down and up w left foot shifting front & back, down and up travelling dsl sitting hips back, down travelling upstage up coming forward to feet parallel dsl, drop down and to right while shifting feet right, slow arms almost cross at chest with left lean, pull right arm down again to right and quickly gather arms wide to centre w head toss w 3/4 turn
Arrive at dsl with over head down up with left shifting back and forward,
Theme A reiterated –
tip left arm down to ds, change facing to dsr and deepen in hips slow down the gather, right hand flowers to sr, into hips, right lunge left leg back
beginning hands around the aura at 2nd high note tag,
1’34 – 1’42
Theme B – 3x – shorter 7 note counter theme
Finishing aura hands at right hip, shuffling back right flat left forced arch hands floating up to chest while turning ¼ to usr on second half of 2nd and all of 3rd finishing facing usr with hands reaching up and beginning heart beat
1’43 – 1’53 / 1’54 – 2’02
C – 2x – 7 chord/note phrase similar, followed by a longer ralentissement
Heart beat hands filling out entire first iteration
Hands return to front of pelvis, rocking to left, change hands to face each other and swirl en dehors, the qi ball around the corner to face dsl, continue turning hands to buddha holds up the earth face sr with upper body twisting to right, hands drop from above to left to initiate chaine turn to right facing sr both hands open
2’04 – 2’10
long resolving slowing phrase
from hands down open at pelvis facing sr, step left to parallel to dsl get swirl to left buddha holds up the earth, step left paddle turn right into left lunge to sl right leg back sustain briefly buddha arms, step left to turn to parallel dsl swirling arms low to slowly float up
2’11 – 2’15
short accelerated bridge
step in and under to collect, deepen plier, bring hands together, palms touch
III (’26)
2’16 – 2’26 / 2’27 – 2’39
Theme A – 4-part theme: up and down scale 2x, up with 5 high note tags 2x
Improvise the qi rubbing and releasing bringing palms back together,
downstage a few times
Theme A
Reiteration starting ds, and then turning to upstage, walking around the circle,
Hands going to different directions
2’40 – 2’42
PPPP chord, note sign off
Hands coming into the heart, while body inclines, deep plier facing dsr
