It was the last Contact Improvisation class/assessment/session. Well, at least here, at Lincoln university. I guess majority of girls felt quite sad about it… We did really like this module! In my opinion, C.I. works absolutely different in comparison to our other modules. For instance, you can predict what is going to happen in technique classes or what kind of class structure we will have. I am not saying that is bad, it is just that personally, I found C.I. and jam practices much more relaxing and kind of flexible, because it helps to develop both technique and creativity skills at the same time. Of course, I had plenty of days when I was struggling to make a solid contact with another person, or sometimes I felt bored by myself, but I hope as soon as I can notice all those things, it means that there is a progression. Anyway, I wish we had contact and jam classes all year round for all three years…
Talking about this Wednesday’s class – it felt so long! I do not know whether because of Contact duet assessment or just in general. Also, knowing that we were filmed and marked added a little bit stress and we just wanted everything to be done as soon as possible…
To be completely honest, I did enjoy watching others dancing in duets, but the second part of the class was much more enjoyable for me. Even though we are assessed on contact duet choreography, I do not think that it showed what we could really do and what have we really learnt through this term. Otherwise when we went to the score, plenty of new opportunities appeared within our bodies and movements. I still believe that when we have some limits or instructions, it always helps you try and find new things. I am imagining that as breaking the rules, but instead of breaking score’s rules, you have to break your own. One of the examples here could be: do not forget to break your habitual movements. Also, this score was very long. In the end I even felt that I started to repeat some gestures, pathways, etc… On the other hand, noticing that gave me interesting question: so if I find myself doing or repeating some phrases, does that mean that everything become habitual with the time? I was running from habitual movement patterns, but then I when I found something new, after a while, it started to feel habitual again. Repetition is interesting thing to think about. Does it can become technique later? Is that how we labelling dance techniques?
Anyway… When we were in score, I found that if I have not managed to find strong contact points with some bodies in the beginning and in the middle of term, it perhaps would never happen. There are some people in class that we just do not connect. Why is that? Is that depends on how confident you feel , or it has something about the inner energy going from both people. Also, how much contact improv is related to the psychology? And why do contact improvisers look absolutely different from other dancers? And here I do not mean their physical shape, but more like what is going from inside. I felt that C.I. has a different dance philosophy, a life style. On the other hand, I also have noticed that contact improvisation has changed me. Now I appreciate people’s bodies even more than I did before. I started to value them and see a lot of things from a different perspective- starting from the human’s skin and finishing with other five human’s senses.
It is funny how much more new question I found about this dance practice in the endo of a term. And I think that this is the actual reason why I do not want to end my contact ‘journey’.