We decided to flesh out 3 avenues to complete our theory-choreography loop investigations.
1. deconstruction, Goode-style.
Repeat same movement phrase (femme) several times, changing the sound/text each time.
2. gat bhav
Create a pantomimed story to a rhythmic background about an intersex nayika
3. padam/thumri
Create a critical, gender-subverting padam that uses repeating lines of poetic text and abhinaya. Incorporate non-Indian, autobiographical material.
1. Deconstruction, Goode-style:
We spent the longest time on creating various variations for this.
Below are 3 versions of this with differing orders.
a. includes all 6 of our variations. Password "loop"
Password "loop"
29 loop 6 variations from Shyamala Moorty on Vimeo.
b. includes only the variations that directly relate to Joe Goode's 5 variations. Password "loop"
29 loop 5 goode variations from Shyamala Moorty on Vimeo.
c. Shy remixed the order of almost all of the variations for a different feeling. Password "loop"
29 loop padam first from Shyamala Moorty on Vimeo.
2. Gat Bhav, intersex nayika
We felt we had already explored this one sufficiently in our last study. Here it is again.
note, we realized the this stragy doesn't acknowledge or address Cyn’s body/identity as non-India.
Password: "loop"
Gender morphing study take 2 from Shyamala Moorty on Vimeo.
3. Padam/thumri
Create a critical, gender-subverting padam that uses repeating lines of poetic text and abhinaya. Incorporate non-Indian, autobiographical material.
Password: loop
Not Enough Padam from Shyamala Moorty on Vimeo.
QUESTIONS:
1. which elements from any of the three studies stand out to you the most?
2. what is the main concept and/or feeling you get from each study?
3. do you imagine any of the three studies intersecting or combinging in any way or do you feel they are three distinct approaches?
1. deconstruction, Goode-style.
Repeat same movement phrase (femme) several times, changing the sound/text each time.
2. gat bhav
Create a pantomimed story to a rhythmic background about an intersex nayika
3. padam/thumri
Create a critical, gender-subverting padam that uses repeating lines of poetic text and abhinaya. Incorporate non-Indian, autobiographical material.
1. Deconstruction, Goode-style:
We spent the longest time on creating various variations for this.
Below are 3 versions of this with differing orders.
a. includes all 6 of our variations. Password "loop"
Password "loop"
29 loop 6 variations from Shyamala Moorty on Vimeo.
b. includes only the variations that directly relate to Joe Goode's 5 variations. Password "loop"
29 loop 5 goode variations from Shyamala Moorty on Vimeo.
c. Shy remixed the order of almost all of the variations for a different feeling. Password "loop"
29 loop padam first from Shyamala Moorty on Vimeo.
2. Gat Bhav, intersex nayika
We felt we had already explored this one sufficiently in our last study. Here it is again.
note, we realized the this stragy doesn't acknowledge or address Cyn’s body/identity as non-India.
Password: "loop"
Gender morphing study take 2 from Shyamala Moorty on Vimeo.
3. Padam/thumri
Create a critical, gender-subverting padam that uses repeating lines of poetic text and abhinaya. Incorporate non-Indian, autobiographical material.
Password: loop
Not Enough Padam from Shyamala Moorty on Vimeo.
QUESTIONS:
1. which elements from any of the three studies stand out to you the most?
2. what is the main concept and/or feeling you get from each study?
3. do you imagine any of the three studies intersecting or combinging in any way or do you feel they are three distinct approaches?
1. which elements from any of the three studies stand out to you the most?
ReplyDeleteFemme phrase with autobiographical text (variation 1)
Femme phrase with “not enough” Text (variation 2)
Femme phrase variation 3: looking in the mirror saying : ohhhhhh
Femme phrase variation 4: -looking in mirror with text : nationalist pride
tracing breast talking about patriarchal lineage
intersex Nayika:
going back and forth between braid and bear (0:19 -0:33) especially the details of flinging the braid to the back and caressing the beard between finger tips at the end
dice shaking (2:14-2:55)-- particularly the moment of closing the legs in between, and then reopening.
In the final section of the repetition, hitting chest, holding chin, opening and closing legs, I feel that the closing legs parts could be emphasized more-- maybe through pausing with closed legs. The other parts right now seem to take over, where the opening, closing legs has really really strong effect, if emphasized.
Not enough Padam: repetitions of “I was a foreigner in your world,” rhythm section at the end
2. what is the main concept and/or feeling you get from each study?
Study 1: deconstruction; recontextualization. More cerebral. Satifying.
Study 2: a satisfyingly confusing, somewhat abstract angika abhinaya narrative, where its difficult to figure out the “type” of the nayik/a
Study 3: sorrow
3. do you imagine any of the three studies intersecting or combining in any way or do you feel they are three distinct approaches?
The first study has such a clear focus and in a sense multiple connected, clear narratives. The second study is much more abstract because no text. Because of this imbalance I am unsure how these two in particular could intersect. Unless text of text fragments were added to intersex nayika, which i could picture especially at moments where movements from study 1 recur.
I could see the padam intersecting with Study 1 “not enough” variation. But I think study 1 has so much potential also for building up that I would be careful about maintaining that build in the first place. I could possibly see the padam as a opener (beginning to 3:44), then linking to study 1, where “not enough” variation comes early enough for audience to be able to make a connection
4. General remarks:
the variations with different text of femme phrase all work for me ! We could play with order.... especially the last one seems a bit rushed. I could see pauses and variation in tempo. Also, the final image of Cyn sitting and breathing heavily is strong and could be included in the choreography, even if for this video it was maybe not intended
Padam: variations of same line flow into each other too much, I think. The different interpretations of same line do not become clear when they flow into each other.
In general feels a bit long.
addition to general remarks about study 2: I was not always sure if it was 1 performer switching roles between one female and one male character, or if it was 1 CHARACTER slipping between differently gendered movement
ReplyDeleteInstead of answering the feedback questions, I’m offering my take on what each study accomplishes as choreographic methodology, suggestions for further development (with attention to costuming and sound), and thoughts about audience. I don’t see an obvious way that the 3 studies could intersect, though I could imagine them being developed as separate sketches that might comment on each other, perhaps shown in sections throughout a show as shorter snippets rather than as one continuous work.
ReplyDelete1. The deconstruction/Goode methodology offers clear information, is more cerebral, engaging the intellect. It seems like abhinaya serves as signifier of Indianness here, though as Sandra mentioned, it could also be thought of as a reverse padam. Except for the variation with the padam fragments, I don’t feel my personal investment in the movement – Goode’s work has an emotional rawness and range, from humorous to tragic, that I don’t feel here. The stance of critical commentary and clear relation to Goode’s piece makes me think that the piece would most directly address English-speaking folks, possibly with an academic grounding, familiar with Goode’s piece.
I enjoy the revelation of multiple layers of information, but the movement sequence gets boring after 3 repetitions. The base sequence could be more developed so that it feels like a more complete idea by itself. It would be great to examine the trajectory of each variation more closely, as the tempo/rhythm remains pretty constant (except the “not enough” variation that speeds up, which I find effective). I think that, within each movement sequence, we could play more with the speed, timing, emotion, dynamic, texture, movement quality, spatial directions, much as a singer might play with poetic text – especially after the first couple of variations. It would be nice to think of each variation as a “musical” phrase in and of itself, but also in relation to the dynamic range of the larger arc of the work. Attention could also be paid to transitions and costuming, especially given all the theory on drag and gender performance that we’ve been reading. I also think the kavita section could be fuller-bodied and more dynamic.
In sequence 1, I find the silent version a little thin/in need of support (perhaps a thumri or some Hindustani instrumental music could be played?), but I like how the meaning of the gestures unfolds through the “not enough” and “sound consequences” variations. In the mixed up sequence, I like the tone of starting with the padam, but lose a little of the feeling of the meaning unfolding.
2. Intersex nayika:
ReplyDeleteThe morphing and cutting between genders is fun and a little confusing (but not in a way that irks me). Probably the most fun for me to perform.
One question is how transparent we want to make our narrative to the audience, and which audience (one familiar with Indian classical conventions or not) we’re choreographing for. A classical viewer would probably tend to read me as switching between gendered characters, and providing a text voiceover or some kind of narrative might clarify that this is not the case. A non-rasika viewer might simply see a single body moving through different gendered formulations. The costume is a satisfying indication of a male kathak dancer.
I have a few different sound ideas:
(1) I could imagine adding fragmented sound from the deconstruction sequence: snippets of “ow!” “not enough,” historical lecture, bols, etc.
(2) Textual voiceover clarifying narrative (either the script we wrote, or something along those lines)
(3) Traditional tabla accompaniment for gat bhav, with accents for particular dramatic moments.
3.
The padam, in its current state of development, uses conventional poetic abhinaya techniques to create a sense of love-in-separation, longing, sadness, and mourning, in which the beloved is a female teacher rather than a male lover/god. It also transfers these emotions from the mythological or “universal” sphere that abhinaya usually operates in to the autobiographical. Because unfinished, the work has not fully realized the structure of the study, which asks the body to become more disruptive, androgynous, and less Indian as the piece progresses, as per Butler’s formulation of the hyperfeminine emerging from sublimated same-sex desire. The poetry creates nuanced variations on the theme of “not enough” that reveal the complexities of the guru-shisya relationship.
Surprisingly, the pedestrian bodily interruptions were less striking that I thought they would be. I’d like a slightly larger eruption to fit the meaning of the poetry. Perhaps it’s just a matter of putting more repetition and dynamism into the moment of breakage. I’d also love some thought to be put into the costuming, as the premise of the study would require me to switch from hyper-femme Indian to something more culturally hybrid and androgynous. Maybe as the piece progresses, there might be some parts where I just change in a pedestrian (or theatrical) way while the poetry is being spoken, rather than doing your typical gesture and facial expressions.
In terms of audience, the work “translates” abhinaya techniques to an English-speaking audience, so that they can be “in” on the unfolding meanings, while staying true to abhinaya compositional/improvisational tradition. Because the subject matter is unfamiliar, the text also provides useful clarification to classical audiences. Sound-wise, I could imagine finding a way for the text to be sung improvisationally. It might sound weird to have English sung Hindustani-style. I’m remembering a rendition of Maya Angelou’s “Phenomenal Women” that Mythili had translated into either Tamil or Telugu, then sung Carnatic style. Perhaps it could make sense for the poem to be translated into Hindi, to start out Hindustani (perhaps in super high pitched light classical feminine style) and then to erupt with fragments of English, as well as other cultural sound references and a more masculine and/or gender-neutral sound as the work progresses.
Additional ideas about music for "deconstruction" version:
ReplyDelete1. silent: could use some Hindustani musical support
2. not enough: a cappella ok
3. sounds: a cappella ok
4. lecture: a cappella ok
5. kavita: tabla would be nice
6. padam: singing version? something to bring more sound variety and emotional juice