2006

why you should come more than once

Wednesday, May 17th, 2006

We’ve been having a forum after each show at the Australian Choreographic Centre. One of the things that keeps coming up is about the nature of the improvisation – how improvised is our work. One of the answers we’ve been giving is ‘come and see the show again’. It’s really the only way you can get a handle on the work we are doing and the rigour of our practice. After the show tonight we thought that if people are really keen to understand this work they actually need to come at least three times. Here is what we came up with:

In seeing our work the first time you get an impression, seeing it a second time you have a comparison, and on the third time you get a perspective.

Impression. Comparsion. Perspective.

The other thing that happened in the forum tonight is that one woman who was asking about the nature of the improvisation had a different struggle. She was saying that she was battling with the need to know how improvised the work was. With the information that it is improvised she wanted to know, and was questioning why she needed to know instead of just accepting that the work she saw was the work. This also led into a conversation about Jazz and music improvisation – where it is accepted that you listen/see the work as it appears without needing to question it.

Leave your comments here

Tuesday, May 16th, 2006

As part of the performance season in Canberra, May 2006 we are handing out business cards with our website on them.  This is to encourage people to leave their comments about the performance (or performances) they saw. We’re interested in hearing about what people saw, about the stories, about the responses and feelings evoked, and any other comments/thoughts there may be.

Click on the comment link below – go for your life!

Inert

Sunday, May 7th, 2006

Opening at Dancehouse this coming week is Inert. First developed in 2004 this collaborative work is having it’s first run as part of the ReelDance season in connection with Dancehouse. David has been responsible for the composition and audio design and worked with videographer Cormac Lally on the video section of the work.

From the Inert website:

It is a short work – approximately 15 minutes long – in which the audience is taken on a sort of performance ride : an intimate tour of the (micro)worlds of two people; a psychological game whereby the viewers are unusually accountable for how they relate to the performers. It is also ambiguous as to who are the protagonists of the relationships that emerge within Inert – the two dancers? The audience? Or perhaps both?

Inert
How close is too close?


Photograph: Natalie Cursio

A performance installation developed by Simon Ellis (performance/choreography), Scott Mitchell (sculpture/design), Cormac Lally (videography), Shannon Bott (performance/choreography) and David Corbet (composition/audio design).

10 – 13 & 17 – 21 May 2006
Dancehouse, 150 Princes St, North Carlton VIC 3054 AUSTRALIA
$20 AUD, Entry by booking only: +61 3 9347 2860 email info@dancehouse.com.au

Australian Contact Improvisation Convergence

Friday, May 5th, 2006

We will be facillitating the second Australian Contact Improvisation Convergence. This is a four and a half day event for experienced practioners and also those new to the form. The first two days will be a laboratory for those who wish to engage further with their dancing practise, the second two days will be made up of classes by teachers from around Australia as well as jams.
Thurs 8 – Mon 12 June, 2006
Durrumbul Hall, Byron Shire, NSW
CI Lab *Jams * Workshops * Performance

Following the success of last year’s gathering we would like to invite you to register for Australian Contact Improvisation Convergence (ACIC) # 2! Set in a beautiful hall in the lush hinterland of Byron Bay, NSW, the convergence brings together experienced facilitators and practicing contact improvisers to delve into the infinite possibilities of CI dance.

Facilitators David Corbet and Jacob Lehrer, from the former Melbourne-based CI performance group State of Flux, will be joined by other teachers to run 5 days of workshops, discussions, jams, live music, and performance.

CI Laboratory: 10am Thurs 8 June to 5pm Fri 9 June
A gathering for those wishing to advance skills and deepen their exploration of CI
Thurs night: Welcome dinner at a local restaurant included

Convergence Weekend: 5pm Fri 9 June to 2pm Mon 12 June
Workshops, jams and discussions for practicing contact improvisers
Fri night: Opening jam
Sat night: Live music jam
Sun night: Performance with an improvisation focus, open to public

Cost:
The Whole Convergence (CI Lab + Convergence Weekend):
$ 385/ 350con (early bird* $345 / $310con)
The Convergence Weekend:
$290 / $265con (early bird* $250 / $225con)
Single Day (Fri 5pm to Saturday night):
$115 / $100con
*Early Bird due May 17

Presented by NORPA Dance Action
Contact: Paula Williams or Emma Newman:
61 2 6622 3279; convergence2006@norpa.org.au

Download PDF flyer – pdf document ACIC flyer
Flux Fellas
David, Jacob and Martin Hughes in performance at the 2005 ACIC.

the world’s greatest shave

Thursday, April 27th, 2006

On Sunday 30th April The Boys will be performing at the second last (ever) Conundrum.
Because many of the men in The Boys have an abundance of facial hair we are going to participate in the world’s greatest shave. Basically this means people will sponsor us to shave our beards and/or heads to help raise money for The Leukaemia Foundation of Australia.

Full details and online donations here.

If you want to come along on the night it’s at:

Cecil Street Studio,
66 Cecil Street, Fitzroy
7pm start, $8 entry

Also performing will be:

Regulars: Five Square Metres and State of Flux

Fabulous guests:

The Boys
Lyndesay Dresdon
Madeleine Flynn
Sally Smith

    Photo of hairy men coming soon.

    what’s this about?

    Saturday, April 8th, 2006

    At the end of 2005 Jacob saw a short choreographed work made by two of his VCA students, Amber Haines and Lily Paskas. The work is called (may need to correct the spelling of this!) She Behebegeebee. We approached Amber and Lily with the idea of reworking the piece for a short film. Part of this process will involve inserting Jacob into the work and ‘butchering’ the choreography that Amber and Lily have already been developing.

    We are currently writing a storyboard and finding locations. The shoot is planned for the end of Sept.

    it’s the end

    Wednesday, March 15th, 2006

    Conundrum will be celebrating both it’s 10th anniversary and it’s final show on May 28th.

    Because there are only 120 or so seats at Dancehouse you will need to book. It’s going to be a good one!

    Dancehouse (03) 9347 2860

    The venue of choice has now changed – Conundrum will be ending it’s days at:

    Cecil Street Studio,
    66 Cecil Street, Fitzroy
    7pm start, $10 entry

    It’s been 10 good years and we’re bloody excited to have made it this far.  There are very few ongoing forums for improvisational practice that have lasted 10 years.  Look out for the full list of people who have performed in Conundrum over the last decade.

    making contact @ dancehouse April 2006

    Wednesday, March 15th, 2006

    In April David and Jacob will be performing as part of the Making Contact season at Dancehouse.

    From the Dancehouse website:

    An international contact improvisation collaboration, featuring Andrew de Lotbinière Harwood (Canada), Judit Keri (Hungary), David Corbet (VIC) and Jacob Lehrer (VIC), with live sound by Rae Howell (Sunwrae Ensemble) and Tamil Rogeon.

    Dates: April 26-30, 2006
    Tickets: Member $15, non-member $20
    Venue: Dancehouse, 150 Princes St, North Carlton VIC
    Bookings: 03 9347 2860 or info@dancehouse.com.au

    There is now some footage on the Media pages from this performance season. We were also given a review in InPress magazine by Stephanie Glickman.

    REVIEW
    Making Contact
    Where and when: Dancehouse, 26-30 April
    Reviewer: Stephanie Glickman

    This collaborative dance performance event was the culmination of a residency of four leading contact improvisation dancers. Two of these, David Corbet and Jacob Lehrer live and work in Melbourne, while the others, Andrew Harwood and Judit Keri hail from Canada and Hungary, respectively. Contact improvisation is a dance technique that builds movement sequences by using multiple bodies to give and take weight, release into and out of the floor and create infinite kineasthetic interactions. Music, lighting and text can play important roles in building material.

    The highly experienced quartet, joined by Alies Sluiter, an improvising violinist, and Rae Howell, a piano and vibraphone player, built a well-developed exploration on Sunday night. Movable wooden panels created multiple ways to divide and arrange the space, building some of the most interesting and dynamic moments in the performance. Initially placed in a straight line up the back of the space, they eventually became everything from hiding places to partitions between duets and opening and closing doors.

    Being improvisation, each performance has a very different feel. In this one, the dancers played off distinct personalities. Harwood emerged as the mentor, often telling the Australian boys to be careful with their rambunctious maneuvers. Keri spoke directly to the audience, telling us what Harwood was aiming for artistically while Corbet and Lehrer’s contributions ran the gamut of tender, confused, funny and beautiful movement. While a sense of individuality of dancers emerged, the crucial essence of working as an ensemble was never lost. The musicians were sensitive to the actions and built in sounds that both responded to the physicalizations around them, but also provided much aural scope for the quartet to work with. At points, Keri joined Sluiter and Howell, adding her own verbal contributions.

    Often used as an experiential practice or to generate choreography, contact improvisation is a difficult movement form to make into engaging extended performance in its own rite. These artists managed to do that, testament to both their on-going dedication to the form and the three weeks resourced by Dancehouse to allow such in-depth analysis.

    Ausdance fellow

    Friday, March 3rd, 2006

    I’ve just finished a week at the National Library of Australia. I’ve been working in the Music and Dance branch of the library and more specifically working with a collection of video material contributed to the Library by Meryl Tankard.

    This project has been part of a new Ausdance Fellowship, aimed at assisting dance researchers to visit Canberra and access the collections. Originally Shona Erskine was to spend a fortnight working with Dance Curator Dr Michelle Potter, as a pilot fellowship, but couldn’t continue with the project.

    As the National Library doesn’t house dance video materials part of the project has been to begin devising some strategies and proposals for dealing with moving image information. When I’ve finished I’ll post the information I put together for access/development/information! It’s been a great week and i’ve covered a lot of ground – it’s been a little overwhelming. Great to have access to the materials here as well.

    You can download the final documents I wrote here:

    dance video acquisitions – Word Doc
    data sheet demo – Excel spreadsheet

    If these are of any use to you please feel free to use them but let me know what you’re doing.
    David

    week two of Culture Lab

    Sunday, February 26th, 2006

    We’ve just finished the second week of our three week residency at the Meat Market in North Melboure.

    As part of our practice we performed each night from Tues – Sat at 5.30pm

    These performances were a chance for us to be observed in our process and also to have discussion with the people who came afterwards. More details on this soon.

    On the Wednesday we worked with photographer George Kyriacou. Some of the images he captured are below. Click on an image for a larger version. If you are using a recent browser (get Firefox) clicking an image will open it in the lightbox. You’ll be able to browse the images using your keyboard, [P]revious image, [N]ext image, e[X]it.

    Excavate Floorwall - Photograph by George Kyriacou Excavate Headhold - Photograph by George KyriacouExcavate Jawbone - Photograph by George KyriacouExcavate Perspective - Photograph by George Kyriacou

    Trace Brokeback - Photograph by George KyriacouTrace Foot - Photograph by George KyriacouTrace Dance - Photograph by George Kyriacou

    City of Melbourne, Living the Arts
    arts house logo

    Supported by Arts House developed in the Culture LAB