Practitioner Study

 Although Francis Rings has heavily inspired me in terms of her motivation to create and our aligning themes of indigenous people within our choreography, it is leading on from my previous post that I have become keen to study Richard Mailphant's movement style and performance. Rings will continue to influence my work ethic with her devotion to creation, however it is the breath-taking, swirling shapes and liquid contortion in Maliphant's 'Afterlight (Part 1) (7min14-14min22) that has given me a fresh and intriguing area to develop in my own work.

Inspired by photographs of Russian dancer Vaslav Nijinksky during his time with Ballet Russes, Afterlight  (Part 1) is a stunning 15 minute solo created for the the 2009 Sadler's Wells program 'In the Spirit of Diaghilev'. Beguiling and atmospheric for the audience, Maliphant and designer Michael Hulls experiment with lighting to emulate the monochromic and faded quality of the photographs (RMDC Digital Archive, 2020). As 'bodies in perpetual motion come into the light and then vanish again almost as quickly', the audience are left with their imaginations filling in the details that are merely glimpsed in half-light, creating an endearing element of unknown to the piece (Clarke, 2020).

(Nijinsky in Le Spectre de la Rose, 1911)

(Russell Maliphant Dance Company, 2009)

 Russell Maliphant also used Nijinksy's geometric drawings and paintings to influence the flow and energy of the movement, which can be see through the dancer's arcing torso and intertwining arms, 'exploring space to the very fingertips like fluttering butterflies' (Liber, 2010).

(Nijinsky, n.d.)

Sweeping across the stage, the liquid quality of the dancer reminds me of ink oozing through water, meandering expansively and flowing effortlessly at the same pace as the notes from the piano that accompany it. Erik Satie's 'Gnossiness 1-4' beautifully echoes the choreography, as its' cyclical nature projects 'feelings of timelessness and infinity', due to a beginning and end of the compositions never being found if played one after the other on repeat (Green, 2019). Similarly to the everlasting swirls of arms and spiralling contortion of the dancer, the outpouring melody seamlessly evolves with the performance, allowing my attention to be completely immersed with the 'ethereal but grounded' movement blooming before me, rather than becoming a distraction (Liber, 2020). This harmony between movement and music is definitely something I would like within my work, as I admire how flawlessly connected they are, making the art forms seem as though they were made to be as one. Kenneth Hesketh describes this harmony in a similar way: 'Music and dance share material moving together through time; moulding each other whilst expanding our perception' (Flatt, 2019)

(Frazier.Shuttersock.com, n.d.)

                                                            

Video of Ink in Water 

(CyberWebFX, 2016)

The way in which the dancer's body unwraps and spirals before melting into the ground again, is similar to the way I observed the dancers emerge from the floor in Ring's Terriain, reminiscent of nature growing from the earth. Moving forward with my choreography, I intend to incorporate this expressive expansion of the body and arms to enhance the imagery of the marshland, wildlife and landscape that has inspired me in 'Where the Crawdad's Sing'. Using my previous research of Maliphant dedicating time for his dancers to find sensations within the body when moving, I intend to create some statue-like positions, with the use of my arms and body reflecting the curves and extension of the trees and marshland. Without watching in the mirror, I will connect these positions with different pathways, exploring use of levels and varying pace. Through this experimentation, I hope to document which transitions felt most seamless and complementary for my personal movement style and could therefore 'apply knowledge of the body for efficiency and fluidity' (Pickard, 2020).

(Vaslav Nijinksky in Schenherazade)

(MacMillan, 2010)

References:

RMDC Digital Archive, 2020. AfterLight (Part One) by Russell Maliphant. [video] Available at: <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1D1tnuJbF3g&t=541s> [Accessed 28 October 2021].

Clarke, A., 2020. Russell Maliphant moves dance out of the shadows into the light. [online] East Anglian Daily Times. Available at: <https://www.eadt.co.uk/things-to-do/russell-maliphant-moves-dance-out-of-the-shadows-into-the-2106638> [Accessed 28 October 2021].

1911. Nijinsky in Le Spectre de la Rose. [image] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vaslav_Nijinsky#/media/File:Vaslav_Nijinsky_in_Le_spectre_de_la_rose_1911_Royal_Opera_House.jpg> [Accessed 28 October 2021].

Russell Maliphant Dance Company, 2009. Daniel Proietto in Afterlight. [image] Available at: <https://www.russellmaliphantdancecompany.com/performances/blog-post-title-one-e8t37-7gccb-mdbm7> [Accessed 28 October 2021].

Nijinsky, V., n.d. Vaslav Nijinsky - the unknown paintings / drawings. Available at: https://artfoundout.blogspot.com/2014/05/vaslav-nijinsky-unknown-paintings.html

Green, A., 2019. Erik Satie's 6 Gnossiennes. [online] liveaboutdotcom. Available at: <https://www.liveabout.com/erik-saties-6-gnossiennes-724391> [Accessed 31 October 2021].

Liber, V., 2010. AfterLight at Sadler's Wells. [online] British Theatre Guide. Available at: <https://www.britishtheatreguide.info/reviews/afterlight-rev> [Accessed 28 October 2021].

Flatt, K., 2019. Choreography : Creating and Developing Dance for Performance. Chapter 5: Choosing and Working with Music. Ramsbury: The Crowood Press, pp.119-120.

Frazier, D./Shutterstock.com, n.d. Ink in Water. [image] Available at: <https://www.shutterstock.com/video/clip-681826-ink-water> [Accessed 28 October 2021].

CyberWebFX, 2016. HD Ink Drop in water 'Black60FPS_005' - Free Stock Footage. [video] Available at: <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YW4nPaUPVo0> [Accessed 28 October 2021].

Pickard, A 2020, Investigating Professional Dancers with RMDC: Experiences and Perceptions of Dancers’ Body Sense and Potential, case study, viewed 19 October 2021 <https://www.russellmaliphantdancecompany.com/researchprogramme/study1>

Vaslav Nikinsky in Schenherazade, between ca. 1910 and ca. 1915 [Photograph] At: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA, Bain Collection

MacMillan, C., 2010. Holy light: Daniel Proietto as a creature evoking ghosts of Nijinsky. [image] Available at: <https://theartsdesk.com/dance/russell-maliphant-company-afterlight-sadlers-wells> [Accessed 28 October 2021].