Choreographing and Improvising from Sensorial Memory

In this choreographic workshop, participants are invited to discover and nurture movement from within their lived reservoirs. Through delicately blurring the lines of knowledge, memory and interpretation, visceral experiences and sensations can become starting points for compelling choreography.

Ripen Movement

Experience Jeong Bin’s movement mechanisms that feature heavily in her work, There was no room for food, presented at Open Stage (Programme B) this year.

Through the shapes and textures of the body, find movement expressions in relation to the environment and the Earth.

Mind, Movement, Presence

This workshop focuses on performers’ psychophysical awareness through perceiving the conscious impulses that form movement. Exercises focused on breath work, the inner & outer gaze, and an awareness of one’s spine in shifting states of heaviness and stillness will guide performers towards finding a personal connection between mind, movement, and presence in performance.

Less is More

The class/workshop will dig into the exploration of improvisation, as well as a deeper play of acknowledging our body and sensations through movement. Inspired by the principals of Gaga, we will dabble in dynamic energy patterns, use of imagery, initiation, gestures, softness, and simplicity to engage with the idea that sometimes, less is truly more. A judgement- and pressure-free space, this guided improvisation class is for us to come together and enjoy our passion for movement with other bodies. Come with an open mind and heart!

EndurDance Method

What moves you? Do you give yourself permission to love dance? Is your dance truly evolving? If you’re reading this, somewhere there is a love for dance. Maybe just a flicker? Let’s create a bonfire together! We will be go deep around endurance, moving beyond familiar limits with a scientific curiosity for this expanding body-instrument. There will be sweat, there will be softness, there will be laughter. Through choreography and improvisation scores, we will try to tease out our very own unique virtuosity, focusing on the delicate balance between the athlete/artist/human trichotomy.

Basic Modern-Contemporary Dance Technique

Kenji Shinohe gives a contemporary dance technique class based on the Jooss-Leeder technique and Limon Technique, combined with his own unique practice. This class focuses on the body and musicality, inviting you to interpret simple movements through musical phrasing and dynamics.

Standard Deviation

Standard Deviation is a workshop that accompanies, and expands upon the ideas/concerns in the performance Standard Practice, presented at Open Stage (Programme A) this year.

The object of interest in Standard Deviation is the classic “7-minute High Intensity Interval Training1 (HIIT),” which Kai Er began doing in 2020. Over time, her practice of the 7-min HIIT has mutated so much that she now calls her version “HIIT var” (HIIT variation). “HIIT var” contains exercises associated with dance practice, such as arabesques, as well as those associated with fitness, such as push-ups. In the Standard Deviation workshop, the class will look at the classic HIIT (and do it!), and explore the individual and collective, intentional or accidental, deviations from the standard exercises. Come ready to sweat, perform up to standard (or not), and deviate joyously.

Reference:
1. Brett Klika and Chris Jordan. High-intensity circuit training using body weight. ACSM’s Health & Fitness Journal (2013), Vol 17, Issue 3, p 8-13.

Freedom Exercise

Freedom Exercise is a method coined by Puri Senja, developed during the creation process of her work The Other Half, presented at Open Stage (Programme A) this year. Using the theory of anima-animus (Carl Jung’s theory of collective unconsciousness) as a starting point for exploration, Freedom Exercise challenges the body to break away from its constructed limitations, and encourages the body to seek new expressions through muscle suppression, breath work, imagination and silence as pathways. At the end of the workshop, the participants will produce a short movement sequence and share their reflections of this practical experience.

Masterclass by Olé Khamchanla

Dancers will experience the working methods and creative processes of Olé Khamchanla, beginning with a preparation of the physical and mental states of the body. The class then flows into exercises of blended techniques and movement from various backgrounds (hip hop, contemporary, South Asian traditional dances, etc.), and moments of improvisation and experimentation with different energies in the body, before closing with a group composition segment using the materials explored together.

Movenbodies: Groove & Flow

Pakhamon utilises the spirals of the torso and pelvis as a core powerhouse that drives movement through space. Easing from warm-up sequences into more challenging and exhilarating movement phrases, she focuses on the fluidity of the spine, the articulation of the body, and the clarity and efficiency of movement. Through this class, participants can gain a deeper, innate understanding of the body to connect to their inner groove and flow.

Socio-Lines

Do lines hold space? How do our bodies relate to lines? How do we create space through lines, individually and collectively?
What would it look like to move between, and be moved by, inner experiences and outer worlds, straddling distance and proximity, dreams and conscious reality?

The class begins with a guided relaxation exercise, through which participants will be invited to draw from their subconscious. The lines that emerge then become the score for an embodied movement and exploration. As part of the class, participants are welcome to bring along their own sheet(s) of paper and pencils (coloured or non-coloured), or to use the materials provided.

Socio-Lines is part of Chung’s ongoing choreographic research in Collective Consciousness/Collective Dreams (CCCD), which emerges from the curiosity of lines manifested out of the meditative state of mind-body and sleep/dreaming experience.

For reference: Collection of DreamLines (CoDL)

Signals and mysterious perceptive instruments

The session is divided into three parts. The first relates to body technology, with a focus on skeletal alignment, breath, a sense of weight, control, and one’s relationship to space. The second applies these experiential information to different movement sequences. The third part, through guided improvisation and the sharing of movement practices, aims to discover and build movement mechanisms that can offer new relational and individual possibilities.

“MoDem” Movement Language

“MoDem”, short for “Democratic Movement”, is the movement language developed by founder and choreographer Roberto Zappalà, and his company Compagnia Zappalà Danza, over the last 30 years.

Led by Roberto himself, this 3-hour session delves into the mechanics and principles of “MoDem”, investigating the musculature and joints of everyday movement and gestures to rediscover infinite movement possibilities.

Limitations

Limitations create freedom: limitations in space create new space, limitations in movement will lead to new movement, limitations in shapes will create new shapes, limitations in energy will generate new energy, limitations in expression will offer new interpretation, limitations in effort will create expressive body power.

Interpreting the “Human” Creature

Our body is always thinking. Our body knows more than our brain; our body sometimes causes “errors” that cannot be grasped by logic. Using dance as a method and medium to tease out notions, understanding and interpretations of the “human” creature, Reisa offers the question of “What kind of creature is a human being?”.

Floorplay

Enter into serious play, and build a relational dynamic with yourself, your practice, and the others in the room through improvisational tasks with elements of contact-listening and interdisciplinary influences.
The class is likely to consist of: floorwork, sweeping, travelling, play, task-based instructions, growing in practice individually and in relationship with other movers.

Network of Attention

Network of Attention works on the pre-performative body dealing with notions of presence, attention and concentration. Through a collection of exercises developed from static and dynamic meditation, you will be led to notice, engage and dialogue with movement that is already happening inside, within us. These practices of attention will expand our awareness to subtle sensations moving through the body and its intricate effects on the psyche, noting the interconnection between one’s environment and the interior body.

Affect Movement

This class is a physical movement session that guides you into a deeper connection with your body. On the basis of moving fluidly, there is an invitation to you to move together. Class is built upon a series of instructions that are layered upon one another: these instructions range from simple breathing exercises, body conditioning exercise cues, to movement cues and improvisation cues led by imagery, all of which will lead and challenge the body to move and experience physical sensations.

The Body’s Voice

Experience the innate energy and dynamic force of the body, and the shifting sensations of movement. Through it all, find a continuous expansion of your inner state of self.

Strength in Fluidity

Harness an inner flow and power through the exploration and articulation of joints, muscles and movements.

Creating from the Body as Archive

Our bodies contain multitudes, ever growing and regenerating throughout our entire lifetime. Our bodies remember, and memory is malleable. Our bodies are not just the medium, but also the very material which we can draw from. Drawing from theatre, live art, and Butoh, this workshop is a sharing of exercises and tools amalgamated in Sonia’s practice. Come if you have an interest and curiosity in looking within and beholding your own body.