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Using Projection in Performance

Wasteland- Gary Clarke Company

Having recently watched Wasteland at the Lighthouse theatre in Poole after a workshop with some of the performers, I found it very moving to see projections of original footage taken of the miners in their final days of work before they were made redundant due to the closure of the mines. The movement by the performer who was playing an ex-miner was very clearly indicating that he was drunk, as he was carrying a bottle in a brown paper bag and the choreography was all pitched off-centre, falling the complete width of the stage sometimes all the way from standing to the floor. There is a moment of stillness where he stands more stationary, centre stage, and looks up with his back to the audience as he watches the projection of memories. It is a literal representation of looking back to the past but given the context that we had learnt more about in the workshop it was very poignant and didn't feel cliche at all.

I would like to utilise the footage I have taken, and I've begun to edit some of them together into a simple visual, which I think will work well as part of the improvised movement. I am not trying to create an emotional reaction, it is more about the functional shape and form that is created within that space in contrast to what comes when we are always being watched. In the context of my work there is no historic or profound event that is tied to the movement, it is simply every-day observation so I will aim to keep any audio neutral and one that does not hint to moments in popular culture.

Gary Clarke Company (2019). Wasteland Tour - Gary Clarke Company. [online] Wasteland Tour - Gary Clarke Company. Available at: https://wastelandtour.co.uk/ [Accessed 12 May 2023].

Nobody- Motionhouse

When considering the options of either projecting footage or using a TV screen, I have to reference what would be my idea outcome it I had unlimited resources and tech support. When watching Nobody, also at the Lighthouse Theatre, I was mesmerising by the ability to selectively project onto elements of set, particularly the stretchy fabric sleeve that covered the cube scaffold frame.

I would love to have a moving projector that moves around the periphery of the floating structure, which I would choreograph alongside, almost like a ghost dancer.

Motionhouse (n.d.). Nobody. [online] Motionhouse. Available at: https://www.motionhouse.co.uk/production/nobody/ [Accessed 12 May 2023].

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Movement Generation

Alongside using the footage I had taken in my own room of improvisational movement, I also decided to try working from old musical stimulus that I remembered from my childhood. I was intrigued by the opposition but similar poses within pop music and the sacred icons that I spent a lot of time looking at as a young person.

I had my dancers work from sacred imagery to pick 5 clear positions but then played disco or pop music with a heavier beat that naturally encouraged them to move in a more sassy, feminine style. Looking at these screenshots from Kylie Minogue's Two Hearts video, the facuak expressions and dramatics are very similar to those seen in religious imagery, especially of Mary, so I think within a different project this could have been really interesting to work with. However within the scope of my topic and seeing as I had purely been working without sound and basing my research more on the contents of my room it felt like too brief a connection to make given the short time frame.

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Community work, how to set an age limit

When writing my technical handbook it was always on my horizon to include some form of community participation so I decided to write about doing a mini version of how I had researched on myself but with members of the community local to a prospective host venue. As a practitioner, although theoretical, the idea of going into someones personal space and asking about their life feels very invasive and inappropriate for anyone under the age of 18 so was easy to classify. However when it comes to offering workshops to school/ community groups where attendees will be under 18 I had to do some research and decide if it would be appropriate. I first had some conversations with peers at uni and the general consensus there was 'provided you give a disclaimer and have parents sign a consent form' (AUB 3rd year Dancers, 2023). I also tried to look up some artists who have produced work containing some adult themes to see if they were still working with younger age groups but struggled to find any literature, so I took a different approach. The session I had formulated does not go into any detail about my personal research or anything surrounding the performance itself, it only draws on similar processes which can be applied to the lives of the young people in the session. For example

Icebreaker: (After a short, simplified explanation of the Johari window) Think about a fact you know about yourself, then ask a peer something they know/think about you and discuss how these two things are similar or different.

List 10 things from your safe space that are your favourite (which is how I went about building my curiosity cabinet)

Draw and describe how your safe space makes you feel.

With your partner, both try and move how your space makes you feel. Teach your movements to each other and try them at the same time.

Using all of the pictures we have drawn as a group, place them next to each other forming a shape outline on the floor, this will become our new safe space. Repeat task 4 but instead of in pairs, you are now one big team.

My main concern was that any adult who had seen a performance of the work could take those themes out of context and assume any community involvement with participants under 18 is inappropriate. Having checked the CBBFC website I have learnt, under the topics I have referenced in my work, what would be deemed acceptable under a PG12 certificate in terms of film content:

As the only direct referencing is in images where these items are not being used, with no further description or storytelling, I believe that offering workshops to young people aged 12 and above would be classified as safe, provided parents are given a disclaimer with the option to withdraw their child from the session.

CBBFC (n.d.). BBFC | CBBFC. [online] www.cbbfc.co.uk. Available at: https://www.cbbfc.co.uk/rating/12 [Accessed 23 May 2023].

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Techincal Requirements

From looking at the Reckless Sleepers webpage earlier in my research I found the technical details really interesting as I had never seen this kind of document before. The only tech sheet I've written or read from is a lighting and queue sheet. However knowing that I want to simulate advertising my work to prospective venues it is something I wanted to recreate. I knew it would not be as thorough but my main aims were:

give a preface of the concept and content of the work

outline basic technical requirements, mainly methods of rigging the set

rough budget and community work options

I have drawn inspiration from the clear, minimal design to not distract from the information but wanted to add in some more diagrams and images to tie in the branding with the conceptual handbook.

Reckless Sleepers (2015). technical. [online] reckless. Available at: https://www.reckless-sleepers.eu/ns-technical [Accessed 14 Feb. 2023]. 

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Design updates

Reflecting on the whole process, from starting off imagining a complex interactive set, to wanting more performers in the space, to ending up with a solo, intimate performance with a minimalist element of set, there are many elements that have changed due to circumstances I cannot control and some for logistical reasons. However I am not viewing any in negative light as I would prefer to adapt and make the most out of what I have access to.

Unfortunately Izzy fell ill over the time where we were meant to be trialling the set design and so I managed to recruit some external help to see if my vision would be possible. I used some sewing thread to create reinforced attachment points on the fabric where I then added multiple long threads which were twisted together and used to hoist the fabric. I was not so sure this would work but we managed to get three points off the floor before one connection snapped. This will be an easy fix and I will opt to use clear fishing line instead of thread, as it will be as easy to cut during the performance but more sturdy whilst holding the fabric up.

After getting as far as three attachment points, I decided to trial dropping the fabric as Scott had highlighted that it may not fall in the direction I want, especially because it is a very light material. I put a water bottle underneath to see how long it would take to settle around an object and really liked the hang time as it falls and can't wait to see this is on a larger scale. I am aware that because it will require 4 crew members to coordinate doing this together it may not fall exactly central or even but if I were to carry on developing this work, I would find a better system of having a visible or audio queue to make this as seamless as possible.

An observation I made recently was from working in studio 2 during the day doing some movement exploration was that the skylight creates some really beautiful focal light which I hadn't thought about. The LEDs in studio 1 allow for only sideways light projection which is angled down onto the space. As I have been trying to mimic a bedroom space, albeit very abstract, the addition of a soft spot through the top of the fabric structure could elevate some of the more slow-moving sections.

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Having never written a budget proposal before it seemed pretty daunting so I have been working off a template from People Dancing to identify areas that I can be sure would require funding. I have worked off the basis that I would have applied for funding which would cover the cost of performers, space, and resources prior to taking the work on tour.

Gibson, R. (n.d.). resources and downloads Sample Budget -Production and Short Tour. [online] People Dancing. Available at: https://www.communitydance.org.uk/DB/resources-3/sample-budget [Accessed 17 May 2023]. 

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Johari Window

Psychologists Joseph Luft and Harrington Ingham created a framework for understanding conscious and unconscious bias. By using four quadrants they allow participants to identify what they know about themselves, and what others know about them. There are 4 areas of understanding which come as a result of this deduction:

Open area: Anything you know about yourself and are willing to share with others

Blind area: Anything you do not know about yourself, but that others have become aware of

Hidden area: Anything you know about yourself and are not willing to share with others

Unknown area: Any aspect unknown to you or anyone else

Gartner. (n.d.). Definition of Johari Window - Gartner Human Resources Glossary. [online] Available at: https://www.gartner.com/en/human-resources/glossary/johari-window#:~:text=The%20Johari%20Window%20is%20a [Accessed 15 May 2023].

Mind Tools (2022). MindTools | Home. [online] www.mindtools.com. Available at: https://www.mindtools.com/au7v71d/the-johari-window [Accessed 15 May 2023].

In analysing this process I have been able to identify and categorise my own biases of the memories I recall. I have also decided that within my community involvement I could use this framework within a workshop. As part of my budget I have specified that I'm willing to exchange teaching time for the use of space so having a starting point of asking participants to write down characteristics or interests that fit in the know categories, then asking them to work with the unknown and visualise what version of their self is seen by others.

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Curating my own Cabinet of Curiosity

A key aspect of exploring the function of personal spaces has been looking at the things that fill them. At a young age this is heavily dictated by those around us but as we progress through adolescence we start to curate a very personal collection of items that stem from different facets of ourselves. This can often then dictate whether something is hidden away or put on display, kept in a shoebox under the bed or proudly hung from the end of a curtain rail.

As a starting point I gave myself 10 minutes to write down any item I can recall being in my bedroom, whether this be at my family's home or in rooms that I have lived in since moving away. At first this was easy as I worked from memories of dance, art, school, music, and sharing a room with my older sister. As I worked forward to more recent years it was much harder to pinpoint objects and I realised that, aside from a few strange or frowned upon items that were kept out of sight in drawers or trinket boxes, the spaces I have called my own as an adult have become much more transient. The purpose of the items I could recall were not for making a room homely, they were simply belongings with a simple use or people with which I have various relationships.

In terms of creating from my investigations this has given me an interesting insight into how in the past when living at home I have may have hidden particularly clothing items or belongings in fear of being judged or questioned. It is only now at age 25 that I would happily let anyone see the inside of my room without fear of how that version of myself might clash with what they see outside of that space. I am more invested now more than ever to try and make those two existences as much of a partnership as possible, instead of two opposites fighting against one another, as I think over time this can put an unhealthy strain on your mental health as you try to switch between characters.

Ideally I would love to comb through my old bedroom and discover all the trinkets and weird collections of toys and shells that I have squirrelled away and forgotten about. Logistically this is not possible so I have started to make a list of things I remember as being crucial in creating the environment that was instrumental in shaping my imagination. I plan to make a mock curiosity cabinet displaying layers of weird and wonderful things. My hope is that it will serve as supporting material for those who are working alongside me to create the performance and those who see the finished work, as well as standing alone as an artefact in its own right.

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Update on set design

I have been experimenting with different materials, including various fabrics and paper in collaboration with a variety of lamps to see how they throw shadows and whether or not the dancers would be visible behind them. I really liked the idea of using finger lights at some point and when they are in closer range to the material the lights can be seen clearly so I will try to include them within a rehearsal to see if they would be a viable option. Head torches are very easy to put on and do not obstruct movement at all so could be interesting to play with once we have access to the theatre space.

Having met with Izzy again I had some new ideas to put to her. When we last spoke the plan was to create some sort of scaffold to hand paper or fabric on behind the dancers as an open-ended space. However from my own research I am drawn to having a more pliable structure that can form around the dancers. From conversation in my first session with them there was a lot of talk about restriction when we return to our childhood spaces, so I would like to reflect this in the set design. I have also been reflecting on Motionhouse's performance on Nobody, where they used a fabric sheath over a scaffold to project various images and textures. The options they had to fall into the sides and be submerged by the image was so beautiful and something I would love to play around with.

We have drawn up a plan of how the set would be rigged up in the theatre. Our plan is to see if a sketch-up/CAD model exists for Izzy to mock up a design and then take a look at the upper works and spacing of the trusses to see if it would be possible. Although I am very excited to see this concept come to fruition I am aware that having such an interactive set will require a lot of rehearsal time in the space which may limit how many choreographic sections I can tackle. However I will be happy to let some of this be put on standby in order to explore more with the overall design of the work.

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Cabinet of Curiosity

‘Cabinets of curiosities, also known as ‘wonder rooms’, were small collections of extraordinary objects which, like today’s museums, attempted to categorise and tell stories about the wonders and oddities of the natural world...The scenes were intended to work like plays or stories, representing particular themes or ideas - that, for example, our life on earth is short’

This illustration shows the tiny scenes created by the anatomist Frederick Ruysch (1638 - 1731) which were included in his cabinet of curiosities. Ruysch's museum displayed body parts and preserved organs alongside exotic birds, butterflies and plants

https://www.bl.uk/learning/timeline/item107648.html

From the outset I have been keen to construct some sort of anthology or artists book of inspiration and contributing materials to my final outcome. However I was thinking very literally to try and produce something that would make chronological sense, almost like a scrapbook of my thought process behind the work. In a recent tutorial, Jane presented an alternative route which was to do some research into curiosity cabinets as a form of deconstructing and displaying my findings. Something that is important to me is shaping work that can be accessed and contributed to by as many different people as possible. If sitting through a contemporary performance seems out of reach for those who would be able to offer a unique perspective on my subject area, I want to allow other routes for feedback. By presenting a collection of artifacts it offers an opportunity for the viewer to form their own interpretation as the connotations of these items will be different depending on your environment growing up.

-University library museum of plastics, displayed without excessive explanation apart from title.

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Using shadow and silouette

When considering how my set might look I have been really drawn to the idea of an interactive element, specifically that from Negative Space where the walls can be torn open. 

Don’t want to have too many dancers in the space, can use silhouette and puppetry to create scenes without loads of bodies.

Concept of seen and unseen space, lit from within showing shadows at beginning and then slowly revealing to see whole bodies. 

Jasmin Vardimon inside the book of ALiCE

https://www.theguardian.com/stage/gallery/2022/jul/22/alice-by-jasmin-vardimon-in-pictures

https://www.thereviewshub.com/wp-content/uploads/cwv-webp-images/Alice-Jasmin-Vardimon-Ashford-5235.jpg.webp

https://www.sadlerswells.com/whats-on/jasmin-vardimon-company-alice/

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Reading

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The Lounge

From Small Anthropologies by Professor Shawn Naphtali Sobers.

Small Anthropologies presents a series of works that explores the narrative fragments of everyday life and material culture from a personal perspective. The work is rooted in intergenerational dialogues, through an engagement with the narratives of objects from elders in Sobers’ family and community, and also sees Sobers in conversation with his younger self. From still life, portraiture, landscape, installation, archives, and AI, Sobers asks the question: what stories can the objects around us say about our past, present and future, and our hopes, fears and dreams?

“we arrive with nothing, and we leave with nothing. I guess I’m interested in that space in between, and how we accumulate things and add meaning to them, and how they can be the stuff of stories and legend”

AUB – Arts University Bournemouth. (2023). Small Anthropologies: Professor Shawn Naphtali Sobers. [online] Available at: https://aub.ac.uk/latest/small-anthropologies-professor-shawn-naphtali-sobers [Accessed 25 Apr. 2023].

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Christopher Caines:  Choreographer and Lighting Designer

“I treat a designer the way I liked to be treated as a designer myself, sharing my imaginative vision of the work in lighting-friendly terms.” Christopher believes that true leadership means hiring the right person and letting them do what they do best. “I know how not to say silly things,” he says, “like ‘Make it darker by putting more blue light over there!’” (Heymann, 2017).

Christopher Caines is an established choreographer who discovered he had an interest in lighting design when working with student technicians, but he really began to explore the possibilities of this interest when he was hired as an assistant to Cunningham Studio’s TD, Nicole Werner.

He is specifically interested in the use of a restrained colour pallette, having worked with Jennifer Tipton who paid extreme attentiveness to the ‘peripheral effects of light’, such as flare, bounce, and the effects of shadows, as if her work is being sunlit.  Alongside subtle, carefully considered tones, Caines also enjoys working with textural overlays on his dancers. However he believes it is best to achieve this through the use of gobos to create a heightened contrast whilst still having full visibility of the dancers movements as opposed to using video projection which he believes ‘upstages the dancer and makes the live performer look small and boring’. As part of the technical consideration for my piece I am looking into using some of the writing I have produced as a result of my investigations to project onto my set and dancers. Reading into Caines’ knowledge of maintaining the right balance of light and contrast whilst using a projector has been helpful in noting potential logistical problems before comitting fully to an idea that sounds good in theory but will not pay off in practice.

Heymann, M. (2017). An Interview With Christopher Caines Choreographer, Lighting Designer, And... Neighbor. [online] Rosco.com. Available at: https://spectrum.rosco.com/index.php/2017/07/an-interview-with-christopher-caines [Accessed 25 Apr. 2023].

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Reckless Sleepers - Negative Space

Theatre                  

6 performers

1 technician

1 producer

get in day before

get out 3hrs

rehearsals on get in day

performing area 12m x 10m

‘As a company Reckless Sleepers make projects – they are not theatre performances, or gallery exhibitions, or workshops – they are all part of the same thing. The project of Negative Space is about ideas – sharing these ideas – and this can’t be constrained to one particular medium. The project is about developing audiences, about presenting the work, about talking to venues and audiences, about writing a book, about making and designing the set, about this exhibition, about having post and pre-show discussions, about the development of workshops for schools and colleges that engages different audiences, about connecting with students and interns etc. It is not JUST a performance…’ (Constructing Negative Space -Curating Knowledge Talk at Axis Arts Centre, n.d.)

‘From a blank architectural canvas, something fantastical emerges. It’s a love story. It’s a slapstick comedy. It’s slasher, action, melodrama…and not a single word is spoken. Soon different possible stories are spiralling around, hurtling towards an ending’  (Lancasterarts.org, 2021)

The concept of a single room to perform from came about very early in the conception of this project so when Jane shared this company with me it immediately caught my eye. The highly interactive, and sometimes violent, use of space is exactly what want to channel in my own performance. The whole premise of my space is showing what goes on behind closed doors, what we do within our own completely private and safe spaces to express what we cannot in front of others. To me this ingrained in movement and music, and the weird, lizard-person that I can become in my own space. This has been pivotal to my development both as a young person and a creative, most importantly in discovering how I relate to others and how we can be quick to change our natural behaviours to fit with those around us. There have been many times where I have hoped that I could tear apart the walls that surround me, and other times where I have used violence against my own space to release the emotions I otherwise could not express. There have also been times where I feel like the way others have existed within my safe space has left permanent damage or changes that cannot be undone, which as a visual within my performance could also be shown in a similar way to that in Negative Space. This will be a key reference when collaborating with a designer when trying to produce a functional performance space/ scaffold for the stage which can then become an artifact for the audience to investigate alongside my collection of photographs, creative writing, and textures that I will collate as part of my output.

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Welcome to room9125

My aim with this digital log is to give some more detailed context to the concepts and outputs I’m hoping to produce. I am going to be looking into different working relationships between choreographers and their technical/ creative partners, as well as how my work could be best presented and recorded in order to most effectively gather feedback and responses from a wide range of viewers. As my work is going to be both biographical and autobiographical I am not concerned with every viewer having the background information for what they will see, read, feel, and hear. Instead I want to make sure that what they receive is coherently presented and allows them to form their own opinion and feeling on the subject matter.