SECOND STORY REHEARSAL #7

SEPTEMBER 7, 2016

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• Jonathan enters rehearsal feeling overwhelmed by multiple triggers and many shifting circumstances.
• Jonathan has to bring Eliza and Edgar to rehearsal due to babysitter’s cancellation.
• Lorena arrives with Sebastian.
• One of Mandy’s children starts kindergarten today, and the other is with a babysitter.
• Since 3 children are present today, we really see how the dancers orchestrate rehearsing while caregiving.  The fluid way they move back and forth between addressing their children’s needs and warm-up/choreographing/rehearsing is an intricate dance of its own.  Without missing a beat, group members work as a cohesive unit to respond to these challenges with both individual and collective adjustments.  Together these dynamics are becoming a hallmark of Second Story.
• Jonathan leads the first part of the warm-up where the caretaking/rehearsing interplay is already in full swing.  Eliza holds on to Jonathan’s legs…Sebastian crawls on and around Lorena…Jonathan and Lorena try to partially execute the exercises while holding their kids.  Often, one dancer will hold a child so the other 2 dancers can warm-up.
• Jonathan maintains the verbal counts for the warm-up movements even when holding Eliza prevents him from actually executing the exercises.
• Lorena and Mandy alternately suggest particular across-the-floor movements.
• The dancers must maneuver around all manner of child-related obstacles: toys, food, drinks, books -- and the kids themselves.
• Winded after the warm-up, the dancers and their kids take a snack break.  Jonathan opens up a discussion about a possible Second Story Dance Project website.  He explains that it can be a part of an existing package he has with his web host; the current Riedel Dance Theater website + a Second Story domain.  The dancers also propose researching what grants would be helpful to pursue for Second Story funding.
• Jonathan misplaces his diaper bag and must borrow a diaper and wipes from Lorena to change Eliza.
• The dancers begin working on Lorena’s piece.  Lorena physically blocks the sound system from Sebastian and holds Eliza so Mandy and Jonathan can mark the choreography so far.  Lorena verbalizes directions.  As Jonathan attends to Edgar and Eliza, Lorena works with Mandy to clarify steps, timing, focus, and movement execution.  She decides to make slight rhythmic changes in the last phrase and begins to teach new phrases.  Initially using variations in the music as a guide to timing, she eventually figures out how to provide counts for a couple of challenging phrases.  Just when Lorena is particularly focused on choreographic details, she is distracted by the kids – again!
• The dancers individually and collectively come up with solutions to console and occupy the children for short periods of time, enabling the dancers to rehearse in spurts.
• Lorena finds a program on her iPad for the kids to watch.  Sherri holds the iPad for the children while writing.  Lorena takes advantage of the kids’ absorption in the video to teach the new phrases to Jonathan.  Before long, however, Eliza and Sebastian run/crawl to their parents, prompting another break.  Lorena feeds Sebastian, then pushes him around the studio in a stroller to get him to sleep.
• With Sebastian asleep, Edgar eating and watching a video, and Eliza reading a series of books with Sherri, the dancers are able to work on Jonathan’s piece.
• Jonathan announces he is committed to viewing Lorena’s character as an angelic presence.
• Jonathan demonstrates a couple of movement changes, then reviews the choreography with Lorena and Mandy, using last week’s video as a guide.  He clarifies and alters various gestures and body positions.
• The dancers collectively work out complicated leg and arm movements as their characters are physically entwined.  They test out several ideas and adjust the choreography accordingly.  Eventually, they are able to run this sequence with the music, confirming the choices they just made.  However, they note that the pace of their execution of this segment was too fast for the music.
• They are unable to use the last couple of minutes to work out this issue as one of the kids has an “accident” requiring all hands on deck -- getting him out of wet clothes, borrowing wipes, finding paper towels to clean the floor, and finding clothes for him to wear since the diaper bag is still MIA.
• Despite all of the challenges today, laughter and humor pervade the atmosphere.