Friday, February 25, 2011

The Concept of Breath & Energy Flow

Oftentimes there is a theme that occurs in my dance classes that mirrors that of my life outside of it. Whether this synchronicity is sparked first from outside of dance, inside of it, none or both simultaneously, like a reoccurring theme, there begs an investigation. Though some select occultists would say that everything is a personal message, synchronicities themselves appear to be these too, but the very obvious ones. For the past two weeks, there has been a reoccurring theme relating to breath and energy flow.

Though the concept of letting energy flow (e.g., through the arms) has been mentioned ever since starting dance instruction last year, within the last two weeks, it has started to click more and more. The subject is not new to me, but what good is a particular knowledge in something if one does not know when to pull it out of one's pocket? We learn in order to have resources to utilize. We utilize whenever we find associations with that tool learned in the past. Intelligence is the ability to parallel unlike things. In other words, pattern-finding, where patterns were thought to be nonexistent. The quicker a person is able to group and parallel, the quicker one can fulfill his or her wishes. Ultimately, intelligence is looked high upon because of its association with getting that which one desires.

So, this theme about breathwork and energy flow has been huge for me lately. In my youth, I was involved in two types of martial arts--Kung Fu (which was short-lived) and Tae Kwon Do (which I was involved in for approximately 4 1/2 years). One of the very first things learned in Kung Fu was breathwork in accordance with arm and hand movements. As mentioned often in class, breath livens movement. This is so fundamental that drilling this reminder over and over should never be downplayed. Breath is like a base that if not kept constant will fog or imbalance anything and everything one does.

Energy flow is guided from breathwork. Energy is a very real phenomenon and goes by many names (prana, ki, chi). The most proficient in movement arts have intelligence on how to manipulate energy flow from a combination of grounding and breathwork. More so, the most proficient in healing arts (e.g. Reiki), has this very wisdom. The most fine-tuned of movement masters/artists appear to have such control of their energy that they may begin to manipulate the energy beyond their body, around them (as does Reiki). I like to visualize breath manipulation as being the weather manipulator of the body--the breathing may even sound like wind! The steam engine may be another interesting visualization one can use. Audible breath has its uses even, from trance-induction to reminding one that breath is indeed being used.



An intriguing detail in those whom venture into energy manipulation is the nuance and detail placed at their very fingertips. If one observers a Tai Chi, Kundalini or Falun Gong master, one will notice energy-engaged fingertips. This is noticed with proficient ballet dancers even. Why is this? Fingertips seem to be like one of the biggest gateways to one's will. Energy does come from outside, then within, then back out again. Releasing from the fingertips causes "the great artist" to emerge--a mover. When we fine tune energy and release it from our fingertips, we are undergoing a creative act. Moreover, when one realizes one is doing a creative act, this serves to enhance the creative act even more (Interesting note: in select Magick circles, thinking about thinking itself, etc.--or meta-thought--is seen as a very powerful tool). There is no mistake that animal charming or even human mesmerism is associated with peculiar hand and finger movements. In Neuro Linguistic Programming even, gesture tagged alongside with breathwork is seen as a very powerful tool.



As there is always a push in me to use what I know already to enhance what I undertake, dance is not any different. I will strive to pull out of my pocket the past knowledge that is associated with movement.

Friday, February 18, 2011

Weight Shift in Butoh Dance

Having a fascination with the Japanese contemporary dance style Butoh, I have come to write about this interesting dance form once more. Butoh most certainly makes extensive use of weight shift. Being that the dance tends to be more on the detailed and slow side, there is a lot of nuance that must happen with weight. In this video here, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ms7MGs2Nh8, one can see the amount of body intelligence one has to have to be able to pull of this strange, yet slow artform.

I see Butoh as a form of intentional unbalancing and balancing back again. In the video, the dancer throws himself off balance to show that he still has balance. In the video, it appears that every single muscle (or most of them) are contracted. The body is doing so much and the weight shifts are constantly shifting even though the movement through space is limited. The performer appears to be hyper-conscious of his body from his feet up to his head. This is certainly a style of dance I value.

Friday, February 11, 2011

Dance Summer Intensives

As great as the intensives sound, I certainly lack the funds available for such an undertaking (especially to out of state). Though not exactly an "intensive" dance course, I stumbled into a circus arts training studio in Orlando and they offer aerial silk and hoops up to 4 times a week. Then there is another studio in Miami (South Florida Circus Arts School) which offers even more. Trainers there come from various backgrounds, including one trainer from Cirque Du Soleil. Here is a link to a video of the school: South Florida Circus Arts School | miami.com

More locally, there is another circus arts school, a 3,600-square foot studio in Clearwater called Dance and Circus Arts of Tampa Bay. From June 13th to July 1st, they have a three-week intensive called "Summer Cirque Camp".


I started learning circus arts (mainly unicycling and different types of juggling tricks) at the end of 2009, and have been practicing on my skills ever since. I would like to get acquainted, however, with other circus-related things that may be too expensive or impractical for me to learn by myself (tight rope, aerial dance, german wheel, large walking globe). Dance merges perfectly with circus arts because both depend on center of gravity, strength, and kinesthetic memory.

That aside, there is something that is not impossible for me to attend that is out of state. There is a 14-hour (4 day) workshop of Butoh taught by a Butoh master from Japan in Brooklyn, NYC from June 24th through 27th. Here is a link to the website: Butoh Workshop with Butoh master Katsura Kan.I love anything that is related to that artform because of its out-of-this-world aesthetic.

a Butoh dancer

Still, I am going to keep an eye out on various programs of ballet and modern dance. I am as serious as ever in doing anything in my power to advance in both ballet and modern dance. I am relatively good at keeping myself busy. There will surely be something movenent and strength-related for me to attend this summer.

Saturday, February 5, 2011

Learning in Dance

Learning itself is a major subject for me, so much that I often investigate learning techniques. Neuro Linguistic Programming uses many techniques in ways of learning, and so they may have an influence in the way in which I learn. As mentioned in the earlier blog, I gravitate more towards touch/experience learning. When the instructor mentions that I am in a right position or when I feel a sort of on-top-of-it feeling, I try to remember that feeling and to instead of trying to "get" to that position, I try to get to that "feeling". This is the same type of learning I do while learning new juggling techniques.

There are various techniques in specific I employ--shutting down the chatter of mind, being in third person, focusing on the collective movements of the rest of the class, focusing on the music played, and focusing on breathing. My ability to not be afraid to try what seems intimidating serves to also increase my learning ability. At the very same time, just so long as I do the movements and get corrected, I have faith that I am developing muscle memory.

In the future, I certainly want to incorporate meditation visualization techniques of dance, as well as generally being open to other techniques I stumble upon. In Ballet, as Richard says, one just needs to be able to count to eight. Well, as funny as that is, sometimes, I do lose count. A solution to this is to really anticipate the numbers at the beginning (thinking of them as extremely fundamental bits of information that will then make me feel confident with forgetting about the count and focusing more on technique). The most difficult is oftentimes the most simple. I feel that just "not" thinking and just "doing" (as is condoned always) is probably the best way to learn. Reminds me of Zen in a way. Stop thinking about the what or why the tree is, and just see it there.


At the very same time, all of this needs to be thought of as incredibly pleasant. Associating modern dance and ballet with pleasantness, increases desire to actually learn, which then increases the ability to learn at a faster rate. What are the prerequisites? Health and a positive attitude in life. All is a learning experience, so off I go to learn again and again.

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Improving Alignment & Receiving this Instruction

Responding from an article "Improving Alignment" by Peter Brandenhoff from Dance Magazine, I get reminded once more how much alignment is important in dance. I am quite sure that the techniques mentioned there will be experimented by me in class, if not consciously, then subconsciously. Sometimes the metaphors used via dance instructors don't quite click to students (immediately), so it is quite important to use various types of explanations. Personally, I respond better with physical locations than metaphor. So, instruction such as keeping the 5th metatarsal contacting the floor is generally something more I am accustomed to fine tuning into. Though, that changes when the activity is switched to more of a "fun" mode than a super serious "practice" mode, not to say I do not view Ballet class as "fun" because I certainly do. (Though, I will not even go into what in the world "fun" is to begin with).

Being naturally an independent learner, there is a natural inclination to come up with my very own metaphor after I "feel" what it is I'm supposed to "feel". I honestly struggle sometimes to pay attention (though I've been getting better and better at this, especially after tweaking and tweaking specific food intake, herbs, and adding more meditation). The "being present" truly is important. We've possibly heard it all before--that what is, is, or, what is, is the present alone, and all else is illusion. That is something I am always working to better in this game of life we play.

As for great techniques that work for me, I find that the instructor physically positioning does wonders. For me, way more than even a picture, physical intervention and guiding me into the "correct" position, speaks a thousand words. I imagine this to be the case for most if not all of the students actually. The thing is that there is only one instructor and that instructor doesn't have 100 hands!

I also learn alignment by being aware of the alignment of somebody more upper level, or from the instructor his/herself. In Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP for short), there is a technique on mimicking. I am a mimicker. First, I'll mimic and possibly even become that "image", and if it "feels" natural, I won't stop there, but I will build from there. NLP uses the example of a public speaker. To be a public speaker, it's a great practice to go up and believe yourself to be a powerful public speaker, not the "you" that you feel "you" usually are.

Speaking of disassociation in general, As I view myself in the third person, my alignment seems to get drastically better. I unicycle personally, and that is nothing but alignment! Riding around before starting my day in class appears to better my alignment in class. Some focuses in unicycle that I use to keep me in balance involve engaging my hearing sense and blocking out everything else, focusing on one area on the road, or seeing myself in third person. Balance is everything it seems from the deepest aspects to the most superficial. Dance is intriguing in that we get ourselves in the strangest of positions and find ways in which to have proper alignment with these strange positions. When one knows the body, and develop that amazing feeling of balancing the unbalanceable, opposition, and center of gravity come natural. That is kinesthetic intelligence. That is something I am always attracted to getting better at.

Monica Bill Barnes Performance

On January 21st, Monica Bill Barnes's dance company performed at HCC. Having written a paper on this very dance, I am going to dive straight into the various techniques I saw used, and some of which I may have not mentioned on my paper.

Monica Bill Barnes was very humor-centered, all except for Here We Are which was more on the serious side. The show opened with Mostly Fanfare which opened with a dance across the room which appeared like meerkats. There was plenty of absurdism in not only Here We Are but in the last work as well, Another Parade. Could there be intelligent technique in humor itself? Very much so. There are witty ways in which to express anything, and humor is not an exception.

There was plenty of balance. Using motifs of humor, they were weaved into moves that expressed a great amount of skill. The technique at times felt quite conservative even, with legs often in turnout. They could have even went more conservative if they so wanted to because there was an intelligent mix of humor used as a contrast (though does humor really "contrast" anything? Humor is one of the strange, strange things, that may have the ability to stand by its very self, though looks great still with other things that are "not" humorous). Furthermore, the audience must have picked up that all of the dancers were very much in the present and even conscious of the audience. I always enjoy works that work hard to be "user-friendly" while at the very same time pulling off something unique and sly.

This show reminded me of cakeface from its use of humor though even more refined. These are the types of works I enjoy. Last year, the show that preceded cakeface, Meghann Snow, was an example of falling short in just about everything imaginable for me. The idea was grand, but the follow-through was horrible. This had such potential! It was wasted expressing post-modern technique of the process as the art itself. The dead horse was beaten. In contrast, Monica Bill Barnes had much change of scenery. Monica was able to express postmodern techniques such as breaking of the fourth wall and the aspect of a performance being conscious of itself as a performance, yet kept things exciting. Self-referencing is quite boring by itself, but mixed in with structured or conservative techniques becomes intriguing. It's like chocolate coating a message that may be too boring--or too meaningful for its own good in this dream world where the dreamers love to dream (even if the dream is a nightmare). If the message is gotten, great, but if not, the audience still had fun. Then if a person does "get it", it becomes a double whammy. I very much go by this philosophy on my flash fiction and poetry.

Other techniques observed include amazing moving through space and through turns. The audience loves turns, and they made sure to give these to them. There was great technique in one or more dancers intervening between their own dancers, having them dance a certain way. There was also great "glitch" technique, which reminded me of Butoh. On top of it all, there was also great use of props, body language, facial expression, gesturing, and lighting.

This was an inspiring work, and hopefully I will get to see something of this nature soon again.