Tech Has Begun

So, I haven't written a post in a while, trying to save my piece for those of you who will be coming to the show. In the time since I have posted, a lot has happened!! My piece has totally transformed into this beautifully chaotic work, with depth. Many adjustments have been made since my October rehearsals.

This past weekend, we have spaced and cued in our piece to the Dorothy Betts Marvin Theatre. This process was smooth sailing for my piece, which made an easy move from Building J to the theatre. There were minor adjustments to be made, in order to accomodate the space, but all in all I found the process heaven on Earth.

Here is my piece, as of today's Stop-and-Go rehearsal!! ENJOY!!

Rehearsal 10/22

As of Thursday's rehearsal, my work on my piece is DONE!! Now it is up to my extremely capable dancers to take the movement and make it their own. They can now take this piece and inject some life into it, and really live in the moment with it. I am SO excited to see the piece grow and exist on a whole other level.

As always, comments are WELCOME!! And please email me if you would be willing to visit a rehearsal and give me feedback on what you see!! I would really love that more than you'll ever know!!

Rehearsal 10/20

Last night's rehearsal was very productive, and I believe it was due to two things that were different about my rehearsal. I believe that the presence of Mary Buckley, Whitney Fetterhoff, and Maida Withers for the first forty-five minutes of my rehearsal really focused my energies on one aspect of the piece, and for a longer period of time than I would have allowed myself to work on this section. We looked at the begining of the piece, with Billy moving from upstage to downstage, and vice versa, and the rest of the dancers crossing on the horizontal plane. Focusing on the movement of Billy, versus the movement of the rest of the dancers, and what specifically they are doing across the floor, amplified that section.

I made the executive decision last night to cut the other pieces of music I've been using, and to use the "Rods and Cones" piece by the Blue Man Group for the entirity of the piece. It is going to take some doctoring to make my structure fit the dynamic shifts in the music, but I think that this decision will work out for the best. I am very happy with the ending I tagged on to the piece last night as well. I made the decision to use the diagonal as a theme in the piece, and as such, the piece ends with the cast around Billy, walking him offstage on said diagonal. I feel that this ending speaks to the quote, "And then I climbed the sharp hill that lead to all the years ahead."

Here is video footage from my rehearsal of the piece, as of 10/20. Enjoy!!

10/8 Rehearsal

On Thursday, a number of visitors were at my rehearsal, among them Kadie Del Sordo, Courtney Coughlin, and Maida Withers. I am SO very thankful for their feedback and constructive criticisms!! Courtney filmed me speaking to my cast, and without further ado, here is said video:

10/6 Rehearsal

Tonight's rehearsal was such a success, and I owe it all to my capable cast and my rock star ASM, Rebecca!! I feel that in these rehearsals I have created a family environment, where ideas and suggestions can be shared, both good and bad, and in the end we are all looking out for each other. What with this being such a personal piece, I could not ask for more from the people involved in sharing and creating this art.

Tonight, we played with a couple ideas I have been mulling over in my head. We worked on creating "dashboard ornament phrases." These phrases consist of combinations I have taught which move through space, except I have asked my dancers to create their own phrases based on this movement, but the only catch is that they must stay in the same place. I found this movement to be extremely personal, and in the video from rehearsal you will see Billy, Brooke M., Brooke S., Remy, and Ricci perform their phrases. I am trying to find a place for the rest of my cast to perform their phrases because they really are quite stunning!!

We also played with combining the phrases we have worked on, utilizing two differing music tracks, and attempting to create a string of phrases. I am very pleased with this permutation of work we created tonight. I must applaud my dancers because their focus and drive to accomplish this task tonight was STELLAR!! We accomplished SO MUCH!! I hope to have guests come and watch my rehearsals live, so that my dancers can have someone to perform for, other than Rebecca and myself. If anyone reading this blog would like to come and visit a rehearsal, please let me know!! We rehearse on Tuesdays and Thursdays, from 8-10, in Building J. Email me at rick.westerkamp@gmail.com. I would LOVE the feedback!!

Without further ado, here is the permutation of work we created today.

22 September 2009

Tonight's rehearsal was absolutely amazing!! I have to say that working with a cast of eleven really scared me at first, but with the eleven dancers I've got, it's like heaven on Earth. My dancers come into rehearsal ready to work, and they give their all from the minute rehearsal starts until the minute rehearsal ends. I could not have a better cast!! I appreciate their hard work more than they could possibly know!! I am CONSTANTLY impressed with their abilities in terms of performance. When i ask them to dance like individuals, they each have a personal style that snaps, crackles and pops. At the same time, when I ask them to dance in unison, the less advanced dancers step it up and the more advanced dancers tone it down, at which point we reach a very happy medium!!

First, we cleaned a phrase I put together last week, and added an improvisation we've been working on for a while, as well as the audition phrase I used this semester for DanceWorks. This is a rough combination, yet at the same time there are many good moments happening that I were purely by chance. I love the focus of my ten dancers, and the abandon with which Billy dances. I have to give Billy a shout out after tonight's rehearsal!! The boy is a sponge when it comes to choreography!! I give him a phrase and a concept and he runs with it!! He worked it out in rehearsal tonight!! It was magnificent to watch!! He grasps whatever I throw out at the cast so well, and he really assists the others and leads by example!! I am lucky to be working with him this semester!! (NOTE: In this video, Billy was improvising while the cast danced around him. We have set up time to rehearse 1-on-1, to solidify his movement during these periods of travel for the rest of the dancers. I am so excited to see what we can come up with in a matter of a couple rehearsals!!)

We switched gears during rehearsal and worked on a floor phrase that I have been playing with in my head for the past couple weeks. I do not yet know where I see this phrase coming into play in the piece, but I do know that I want to explore with more movement on the floor. There were some concepts that were foreign to the dancers, so we took some time working these "tricks" out and breaking them down. I appreciated the drive and determination my dancers showed in their learning this material!! While it was not performed perfectly, they are all WELL on their way to nailing this combo and I was so proud of all of their hard work!!

I am VERY excited to see what develops next rehearsal!! I am looking forward to seeing the phrase we put together in a couple of different ways. I hope my dancers watch the floor phrase they performed tonight, as well, because I think that they will have a better grasp of it after seeing themselves perform.

17 September 2009

Tonight's rehearsal was a testament to having a cast of 11. I have been second-guessing myself for a while, thinking, "God, I hope I can use all of these dancers, and make them feel like they're necessary to this piece!!" I would hate to have any one of them think that they are just a number. I love the unique qualities of movement they all bring to the table!!

Anywho, tonight we played with another phrase moving across the floor. I explored with having them perform as a group (11), in pairs, and in solos. I loved, Loved, LOVED the cannon we played with, and have decided that this phrase, or some form of it, will be in the final piece I choreograph this semester!!

Switching gears from the across the floor phrase, we did some "improvisation." I tried to stress to

my dancers the fact that want them to be invested in the movement that they create movement that they enjoy doing

and feel invested in, because I'd hate for them to do something they hate executing and have me love it, and

have them end up dancing this phrase ove and over in the final piece.

Here are three clips of them dancing the audition phrase, but making the first half of the phrase low to the

ground and the second half of it jumpy, through space, and big!!