Blog 7 - Process update

 Where am I in my process?

This whole experience of creating my own piece of choreography for the first time has been enlightening and very exciting to say the least. I never thought that so many variables could exist in threading different ideas together, but along the way I got used to putting time and thought behind each movement, so it could make sense when referring back to my stimulus.

   

Link - Monarch Butterfly

While I was working on my choreography, I found my thoughts on my stimulus almost going through a domino effect and expanding. This journey led me to researching butterflies. I know it might seem very random, and quite off-topic, but what I really focused on was what they might symbolise. In movies, usually animations, I have noticed that they are usually used as a sign of optimism, but also, they tend to lead the characters to a trip down memory lane. As we all know, butterflies go through many changes during their lifetime. They handle these transitions with grace, and that is why they can be a role model to us when our own stories have twists and turns we might not know how to handle. I want to use the idea of being drowned in a swirl of memories, when eventually, a butterfly emerges through the chaos, to lead you to the light.

 "Caterpillars undergo a total metamorphosis into a completely different adult form. © Ralph A. Clevenger/Getty"

Discover Wildlife, (n.d.)

The art piece I chose is called insomnias, so maybe all this time, the person was in a deep sleep. Maybe they were just dreaming of what their end would be like. And maybe, they decided to take a step back, take a breath, and transition back into reality. I showed said transition by ending the piece with a big breath as soon as the ending chord strikes, and that breath can be interpreted as the awakening from a dreamful sleep you didn’t expect would ever take you under.

 Even though the whole piece is part of a group project, we still gave each other the freedom of changing things and integrating our own combinations to follow our own thoughts on our chosen stimulus. No two people look at a painting in the same way, and I think that this assignment is proof of that statement. The feelings I wanted to project throughout the dance where those of being unsettled, that you exist but simultaneously you don't. The mind is going through a chaotic presentation of memories pushing back to back and is doesn't realise where the body is. I used more circular and fluid movements to symbolise the circle of life, and how history repeats itself, even if it doesn't seem so at the time. Repetition of a movement and then adding it in retrograde gave the essence of familiarity, and by using dynamic accents during the a repeated motif helped me alter it enough to still be familiar and different. I tried to play around with different dynamics, as life is not plain and flat, it has twists, turns and some peaceful moments.

Link- https://f4.bcbits.com/img/a2283184033_10.jpg 

The piece of music we ended up choosing was 'Circle - Reprise' by Phil France (2018). I think the title alone was enough for me to link it with my stimulus, but as I listened to the music, I found that the main melody was quite straight forward, which gave me the freedom of creativity, but as it built up and progressed, the different levels within the piece helped me explore the different states of mind that a person can go through within a day, a week, or even a lifetime.

Word Count: 584

Bibliography:

Circle - Reprise, 2021, Phil France - Theme, Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xaYevf11mSc (Album cover: https://f4.bcbits.com/img/a2283184033_10.jpg )

Monarch butterfly picture: https://news.uoguelph.ca/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/Jessica-Linton-4.jpg 

"Caterpillars undergo a total metamorphosis into a completely different adult form. © Ralph A. Clevenger/Getty", (n.d.), Discover Wildlife. Available at: https://www.discoverwildlife.com/animal-facts/insects-invertebrates/how-does-a-caterpillar-turn-into-a-butterfly/