SECOND STORY REHEARSAL #4

August 16, 2016

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• Mandy dropped off her sons at camp before rehearsal.
• Lorena brings Sebastian and arrives nearly ½ hour late due to a train delay.
• Jonathan has child care today but finds himself missing his kids – an emotion triggered by Sebastian’s presence at rehearsal.
• Throughout the session, the dancers take turns re-directing Sebastian when he crawls around.
• Prior to this session, Jonathan and Lorena agreed on a plan to divide up the session time as follows:

1. 1st hour: class.
2. 2nd hour: duet Lorena is choreographing for Jonathan and Mandy.
3. 3rd hour: duet Jonathan is creating for Lorena and Mandy.

• Jonathan teaches a modern dance class.  He incorporates some exercises he plans to use in his upcoming Purchase class.  These exercises can be adapted to suit different ability levels by adding/subtracting layers of difficulty.
• Jonathan feels a bit nervous as the time approaches to work on Lorena’s new duet for Jonathan and Mandy.  He hasn’t danced in anyone else’s work in 10 years and also feels so out of shape.  Initially ambivalent, Jonathan ultimately agreed to dance in this work.  Today he is delighted to discover that he actually feels great and is having fun.  He describes the experience as a “comfortable skin to slip in to.”  Despite his concern over his ability to physically execute the movements – he has not danced professionally in years – he is relieved that the choreography is “doable.”  He taps into his extensive training to handle the muscle tightness and stamina challenges.  Dancing in this duet puts him in touch with his capacities and reminds him that his presence on stage is appreciated. 
• Jonathan feels the Bach piece Lorena selected is beautiful and easy to relate to, both technically and emotionally.
• The dancers take small breaks between the three segments of the session.
• Now that the group’s get-togethers are becoming more defined, the dancers discuss fundamental ideas about their collaboration.

1. Jonathan shares his idea for the name of the group = Second Story.  The name connotes the next chapter in their personal and professional lives.  Mandy immediately agrees with his choice.  After some consideration, Lorena concurs.
2. Identity:  Are we a dance company?  A group?  Is this a project?  Jonathan believes that approaching the work as a project “speaks to where we’re at right now.”  He proposes calling this endeavor Second Story Dance Project.  He notes that the group can revisit these identity issues as the process evolves.
3. Jonathan offers Lorena and Mandy the opportunity to produce work under his RDT umbrella and take advantage of its nonprofit status.
4. Lorena and Mandy agree to collaborate with Jonathan and Sherri in exploring and documenting Second Story’s unfolding process for the Process in Real Time initiative.

• The final segment of the rehearsal focuses on Jonathan’s piece.  Jonathan left last week’s rehearsal with the intention of making certain changes.  However, after waiting a couple of days and then viewing last session’s video, he discovered that his analysis of the work had shifted.  He essentially saw it with “fresh eyes.”  This change in perception is a great example of process.  Originally, Jonathan created three phrases of material:

1. Phrase 1 consisted of a series of poses.
2. Phrase 2 was fluid, “heavy,” and performed in canon.
3. Phrase 3 positioned Lorena in the foreground and Mandy in more of a supporting role in the background.

• Jonathan left rehearsal last week with a sense that the piece so far didn’t quite look the way he intended.  His initial inclinations for the new material included introducing more accents and creating for Mandy a variation of the third phrase of movement as a contrast to Lorena’s material.  However, given time constraints, he asked Mandy to simply perform Lorena’s material with a 4-count delay.  He decided that he would review the video later and evaluate the work more closely at that time.  By waiting a few days – giving the work time to breathe – he realizes that he sees the piece differently.  He now concludes the dance is “actually lovely the way it is.”  Rather than creating an entirely new phrase for Mandy, he wants to keep what he has, but tweak the spacing.  He will introduce the foreground/background idea later in the piece. 
• The notes he then makes to bring into today’s rehearsal reflect the evolution of the work’s development in a new direction.  It is taking on a different narrative arc than he first imagined.
• So today he applies these new ideas.

1. He takes out one of the poses in the opening phrase to give the material more breathing room.
2. He keeps Lorena and Mandy revolving around each other spatially and adjusts some of their movements.
3. Jonathan uses walking to transition Lorena from phrase 1 to phrase 2.
4. He changes some of Mandy’s spacing in phrase 2 so the two dancers are now closer together.
5. Jonathan changes Mandy’s spatial pattern in the 3rd phrase to follow Lorena through space 4 counts behind her.

• Jonathan gains greater insight into the value of filming rehearsals and studying them at a later point in time.  Previously, he viewed working with the videos as a necessity since he can’t have more frequent rehearsals.  Now he recognizes that the videos are actually a valuable tool to reflect, evaluate, and make decisions about the work in progress.  Moreover, taking time to look at the videos and take notes on them provides Jonathan with an “emotional bridge from rehearsal to rehearsal.”