Reading, talking to my colleagues and observing my routine, I began to be
able to formulate the main idea of my inquiry. What has been catching my
attention is the exercise of stimulating creativity which has been bringing
crucial changes on my points of view, training and perspectives as a dancer. My
researches for literature and bibliography focused on the main idea I began to
have for my inquiry: How creativity dance related practices can be crucial for
dancers’ artistic and technical development. I am quite glad to have found so
many interesting papers that can be related with my inquiry. During this first
process of research, I focused on looking for materials which aimed on
personality/individuality/singularity of dancers, improvisations methodologies,
dance creation processes, body expression/therapies methods and their effects
on dance training. It didn’t surprise me that I found great academic
researches, books, and inquiries from ones who have a similar point of view as
me. Here, I will show some and relate them with what I am planning to focus on
my inquiry.
The
first one was an article from Andreas Fink and Silke Woschnjak from University
of Graz, Institute of Psychology, Austria, compared modern/contemporary
dancers, classical ballet dancers and jazz/musical dancers on levels of
creativity, general mental ability and different facets of personality:
“(…) designed to
investigate personality characterises of professional dancers of varying dance
disciplines in order to learn more about the manifold facets of personality
specifically involved in outstanding creative individuals.” (“Creativity and
Personality in Professional Dancers”, published on “Personality and Individual
Differences 51 (2011), 754-758)
Through tests of
creativity, personality, motivation and environmental and social variables the
authors concluded that modern/contemporary dancers have a considerably higher level
of creative expression than classical ballet dancers. They mentioned that this
is due the fact that modern dancers are often required to freely improvised,
share their experiences and explore their creative potential instead of
following well-structure and rigid choreographies and scripts. In other
questionnaire, Ballet dancers scored higher levels of conscientiousness compared
to modern/contemporary dancers and jazz/musical dancers which maybe can be a
result from the training and routine given as well. This study reveals
important conclusions and what I thought would be interesting to my inquiry, is
to bring those studies as a key on how different activities are able to bring
different types of qualities/personalities/manners, and how could the exercise
of them help on turning an artist more creative and on this path, develop identity
and artistic quality as a dancer.
When
researching about Improvisation methodologies, I found an article on Dance
Magazine (August 2008, Volume 82) from Rachael Strauss called “Teaching
Improvisation” and a book from Eric Franklin called “Dance Imagery for
Technique and Performance”. Both of them brought great descriptions on how
Improvisation is crucial in dance education:
“Improvisation
is no longer just an outpost of experimental dance. Choreographers are asking
dancers to develop/improvise to help generate movement. It’s also an essential
tool to develop a command of one’s instrument. Forward-thinking instructors are
incorporating improvisation into their lesson plans to foster creativity,
intellectual independence and courage” (“Teaching Improvisation” Strauss,
Rachel; Dance Magazine. Aug, 2008, Vol. 82, Issue 8, P.74-75)
“Improvisation
will improve your dance technique. You will develop an infinite variety of options
for dealing with a given moment in motion-time. In an interview I conducted
with ZviGotheiner, a New York-based choreographer, he pointed out: “After doing
ballet for so long, going into an improvisation class was refreshing. To
initiate movement in a different way, experience texture in a different way,
and to explore the psychology of the behaviour created by the image was
extremely enriching.” While improvising you forget about dance technique, and
yet your technique ultimately improves. You forget alignment rules and
anatomical reference points, and yet your alignment improves. Improvising is an
opportunity to clarify and accumulate a repertoire of sensations which then be
transferred to the performance of specific shapes and movement sequences.” (“Dance
Imagery for Technique and Performance, Franklin, Eric N. Published by Human
Kinetics, 1996)
There are many
methodologies of improvisation and what I found interesting was this deep
research that happens on the dancers’ body and how this is beneficial for the
artist to reach better and different qualities and discover it owns
singularity. I particularly found improvisation extremely beneficial for me and
I would like to show the importance of this methodology
on the dance training.
Another piece of
literature I found has a focus on the significance emotions and feelings have
in a collaborative dance-making process. However as the research was done
during a creation process, I analysed interesting points which I believe would
be important for my inquiry. The article “Emotions and Feelings in a
Collaborative Dance-Making Process” by Leena Rouhianinen and Soili Hämäläinen
(Theater Academy Helsinki, Finland) published at International Journal of
Education & the Arts was a study written by the observation of a specific
case study from a second-year MA student in dance pedagogy at the Theatre
Academy Helsinki who final work was an experiment with cross-artistic work that
originated from the interests of the collaborative group members (Rouhiainen &
Hämäläinen: Collaborative dance-making process; IJEA Vol.14, Number 6, Pag 3).
I could relate some of the discussions brought by the study with the importance
of stimulating creativity:
“Through
conversations with our dance colleagues, we have learned that what motivates
many dance artists to work collaboratively is the chance to produce something
novel, the opportunity to explore new ways of working as well as the
possibility of sharing the inherent uncertainty of the creative process with
others (…). Creativity not only transforms objective materials into creative
products, it also transforms the creator (Moran & John Steiner, 2004).
Overtime, creative collaboration can become a vehicle for identity development.
However successful collaboration is challenging and requires skill to be
accomplished fruitfully.” (Rouhiainen & Hämäläinen: Collaborative
dance-making process; IJEA Vol.14, Number 6, Pag 2)
“Creativity is
understood to require psychological safety, freedom, high internal motivation,
lack of external evaluation, surveillance, reward, competition and time
pressure. That being said, creativity also requires a certain level of
confrontation and group tensions (Parviainen 2006, Sauer 2005, p.80). (…)
creative processes thrive on a sufficient level of difference within the
group.” (Rouhiainen & Hämäläinen: Collaborative dance-making process; IJEA
Vol.14, Number 6, Pag 6).
I
found important how the idea of creativity is brought so many times during this
process of dance making and how the differences between the dancers (which I
believe it is the singularity of each one) are also necessary during this
process as well. Many choreographers nowadays work on a collaborative manner so
the creation process requires creativity from the whole group as well as
showing their own personality/identity.
Others pieces of
literature were found on the past days, but I chose those three to expose primarily
here. Books from body expression methods
as well the classes I have been taking and workshops with choreographers such
as Anne Teresa Keersmaeker (Artistic Director from Rosas Dance Company) and
David Mambouch (Dancer from Compagnie Maguy Marin) have been also part of my
research process.
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