Dance Workshop

Before I go into details, I just want to inform my readers that I've added a new widget to my blog. Using this widget, you can rate each post as "Wow!" or "Yuck :P". You can see the 2 checkboxes at the end of each post. Since I am a very black and white person, I say, you either like a post or you dont, that's why you've been given only 2 options :D If you choose the yuck option, you can choose to justify it by posting a comment so that I can use it as constructive criticism for my future posts.

Coming back to the main topic, today I attended a dance workshop organized by Hrishikesh Pawar, my contemporary dance teacher. Whenever he takes our regular classes, he always shouts at us "Move! Move in the space! Don't be so restricted!". I used to always be scared of hitting the person standing beside me (not that its a very small hall, but still) and used to dance as if someone has tied me up with ropes and then asked me to dance. Quite funny if you imagine it actually.

Today's workshop was about exploring space. A man named Dmitri conducted the workshop. He made us do many exercises which made us aware of the space we are moving in. The whole idea was to increase the awareness of the body, right upto the tips of your fingers and toes. Most of the exercises were in groups and it was amazing that without prior co-ordination, we just managed to move along with each other in the space. There was one particular exercise where we had to dance with a piece of newspaper in a pair. Each pair gave a different flavor to their chemistry. While one group showed lead and follow, another showed cat-fight, a third showed sharing, ours showed playfulness. Same music, same props, but the interpretation was vastly different. All this with absolutely no prior choreography or discussion.

During the workshop, I realized that I am too conscious while dancing and I end up holding my breath a lot. Holding up your breath, informed Dmitri, makes you smaller and a very constricted dancer. Most importantly, I danced without any inhibitions towards the end. It was all about exploring space and you can do that in any way right? This phrase "exploring space" was alien to me till today, but now I finally get it. I haven't stopped dancing since I've come back and I feel like I've got much more confidence about my body right now. I've always noticed that after such activities the body-mind connect is palpable. Its like someone has turned you inside out. You start seeing things about yourself that you never saw before. Even people who dont know dance should go in for these kind of workshops. I shall dedicate a separate post to convince you of the same :D

Most importantly, I will be performing as part of beginner's batch of contemporary dance class on 19th dec. Friends, you've been given adequate notice, so please turn up! Any other souls interested in knowing about contemporary dance, email me at the feedback address provided at the top right corner of my blog and I will let you know the TDV of the show. Tinkerty tot!