Flow is referred to as either free flow or bound flow.
Effort Movement analyst Rudolph Laban (1879 - 1858) developed a unique model for understanding the quality, dynamics or color of body movement, referred to as Effort, the title of Laban's (1947) book, or sometimes referred with the earlier term Eukinetics. He defined four Effort Factors, each ranging across two opposite.
Effort Elements:
Space Effort considers focus or awareness, ranging from direct to indirect or flexible;
Weight Effort considers pressure, force, or sensitivity, ranging from strength to lightness;
Time Effort considers speed or slowing of the pace, ranging from quick to sustained.
Flow Effort considers the control of movement, ranging from bound or controlled to free or released.
Psychologically
Mihály Csíkszentmihályi defines flow as a mental state of complete focus, that merges action and awareness, while losing the self-consciousness.
Further, he describes flow as an activity in which a person has
personal control, which includes a subjective distortion of time and
that flow is intrinsically rewarding. This concept has been in Asian
cultures like Buddhism, Hinduism and Taoism for millennia as the concept
of being whole and one with yourself. This moment can be experienced by
anyone in any activity when they feel like their body and mind are
highly focused. Many people would liken this to someone being “in the
zone”.
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Exercise
Students were given a very lightweight piece of fabric we called scarf.
They through the the scarf into the space and grabbed it before it would touch the floor.
The alternating of the hands as they threw and grabbed the scarf created a sense of arm flow.
This sense of flow is necessary for the student to embody the quality of free flow.
The second part of the exercise, they would let go of the scarf and now throw an imaginary scarf.
That reference made them continue throwing and grabbing the imaginary scarf as they alternated arms.
The result was a noticeable increase in arm movement with a sense of free flow they never experienced before.
Who was Isadora Duncan? Isadora Duncan Dances and Dance Technique
Who was Isadora Duncan? Episode 2 - Isadora's Loves
Who was Isadora Duncan? Isadora's Political Dances
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Steps Explored in Class
Listening to Waltzs
Walk with focus
Walk with focus in different directions
Say "I am a king"
Use of metatarsus
Waltz step
Beauty prayer (inner focus)
arms above
beneath
solar
before me
behind me
all around
figure eight with arms
arms with walk
arms with waltz step
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Choreographing
Male students observed the Revolutionary Study and the female students observed the piece Water Study in order to take some movement vocabulary and incorporate it into their own phrases.
When working with focus and concentration, we always reference Indian dance and the codification of eye movement as a reference on how many eye movements we can make.
The first part of the exercise after creating a circle, involves just the eyes. This kind of focal training is simple but functional.
First, to the professors clapping, students in the circle move their eyes and focus on a point in space. Every clap the switch focus; just the eyes.
Second they look at that point using the movement of the head/neck. Every clap the y focus on a different point. Claps are random and unexpected. They name the point mentally.
Third, they face that point as they hold their gaze until the next clap. The move in place, facing the point is space, using their own axis.
Fourth, they walk to that focal point, until the next clap; changes are sudden and quick.
Fifth, the move to the point in space using levels and directions in order to integrate what learned before.
Focus in Dance: a central point or focus of attention in the
movement space; the concentration, attention, or specific energy given
to movement in space.
Concentration in Dance
Concentration is perhaps the single most misunderstood
psychological factor in dance. In fact, in a recent conversation, an
elite dancer indicated that she improved her concentration by staring at
the second-hand of a watch for an extended period of time. Though she
may think she did, most of the theory and research to date suggests that
is not the case. That exercise may work if the activity she
participated in required her to stare at one thing for a long time.
Dance, however, is not such a activity. Dance requires the ability to
concentrate on a variety of changing things at once. Another
misconception about concentration is that it is an arduous, effortful
process. Yet anyone who has danced “in the zone”, that period when a
dancer is at his or her peak and is dancing without thought or conscious
control, knows that ideal concentration is an effortless experience of
total awareness.
What then is concentration and how can it be improved? In order to
explain concentration, it will be useful to introduce a term, define it,
then apply it to concentration in dance. Dr. Robert Nideffer, a leading
researcher in concentration, suggests that the foundation of
concentration is the “attentional field”. The attentional field is
everything outside of people that their senses could pick up plus
everything inside of them, such as thoughts, emotions, and physical
responses, that they could focus on at one time.
Applied to dance, good concentration involves focusing on
performance-relevant aspects of the attentional field. In other words,
concentrating only on those things in the attentional field that are
important for dancers to perform. In contrast, poor concentration
involves focusing on performance-irrelevant aspects of the attentional
field. That is, concentrating on those things that are not necessary to
dance.
What then are some performance-irrelevant things that can pop into a
dancer’s head and hurt dance performance: the audience, a mistake early
in the performance, a difficult technique at the end of the performance.
Every dancer has many distractors that have interfered with
performance.
More importantly, what are the performance-relevant things that
dancers must focus on to perform well? Most obviously, you have to
concentrate on the movement and the artistry, but there are several
others as well. You must be aware of the stage, as changes in space will
affect the performance. Also, you must focus on the other dancers
because they will influence your performance. In addition, you must
concentrate on yourself and use information obtained about the dance,
the space, and the other dancers to dictate any adjustments that must be
made. Finally, you should have the proper temporal focus. In other
words, dancers must be focused on the present not the past or the
future.
A classic example of a loss of concentration and its result is
sometimes seen in large company performance. A dancer performs
exceptionally well in the first part of the program, but falters in the
second half because he begins to anticipate the bravos and the reviews.
Returning to the notion of good concentration, the bravos and reviews
are performance-irrevelant to performing well.
Loss of concentration also affects dancers physically. When dancers
tell themselves, “I’ve done it” or “I’ve got it made”, in essence, they
are telling their body to relax. So, in addition to the difficulties in
performing caused by the inability to focus properly, the body lacks the
necessary adrenaline, oxygen, and blood flow that is essential for
dancers to perform at their peak. In other situations, loss of
concentration has the opposite effect, i.e., it creates too much
anxiety.
During a performance, a loss of concentration produces thoughts such
as “I’ve got to concentrate” and “try harder” in the belief that these
will improve concentration. However, this type of self-induced pressure
tends to increase anxiety levels, which have a twofold negative effect
on performance. First, the anxiety causes muscle tension, butterflies,
and choking, which interfere with the body’s ability to perform at a
high level. Second, concentration is hurt even more because now the
focus is on the muscle tension, breathing difficulties, and general
discomfort associated with the anxiety.
There are, fortunately, several simple techniques that may be used to
improve concentration. First, when concentration begins to wander,
cuewords may be used to refocus attention. In other words, when dancers
are distracted, they can repeat a cueword that enables them to regain
the proper concentration. One cueword that is quite popular, but, in
fact, ineffective is “concentrate”. This cueword causes dancers to
concentrate on concentrating rather than on, once again, the
performance-relevant aspects of performing. Different cuewords can be
used depending upon what the primary focus must be. For example, if a
dancer is concerned about musicality, a good cueword might be “music”.
If the steps worry a dancer, then “steps” may be helpful. Saying these
cuewords to themselves (or out loud if that helps) serves two purposes.
One, it blocks out distracting thoughts and, two, it refocuses
concentration onto something that will enable the dancer to perform
better.
Another method for improving concentration involves using a cueobject
rather than a cueword. That is, when dancers lose their concentration,
they can have an object that they can focus on. A useful cueobject might
be a prop or a spot on the stage. By focusing on these cueobjects, it
can better prepare dancers for successful completion of a difficult
aspect of the performance.
Finally, breathing can be used as a cueobject to regain
concentration. When concentration is lost, dancers can focus on their
breathing by taking deep breaths. The benefits are twofold. First, like
other cueobjects, it enables dancers to refocus their concentration.
Second, by getting more oxygen into their body, dancers will relax and
perform better.
An important part of improving concentration is developing awareness
of what can be focused on and then gaining control over what is focused
on. An exercise known as focal training can be helpful in developing
these concentration skills. The next time dancers are practicing, they
can take fifteen minutes for the exercise. The first five minutes they
should concentrate entirely on the steps. Dancers will find that they
are very aware of the steps, but do not respond to space changes very
well. The second five minutes they should concentrate wholly on the
space. They should not focus on the steps at all. In this case, your
movement may not be very good, but you will adjust to space changes
well. The third five minutes they should concentrate solely on
themselves, their movement, their technique. They will find that they
have a keen sense of what you are doing on the choreography.
This exercise teaches dancers an awareness of and control over what
can be concentrated on. What must be done next is to determine the
appropriate balance between the three. This can be accomplished by,
first, having dancers figure out their personal concentrational style.
For example, some dancers don’t focus on the technique enough, others
don’t focus on the artistry enough. Second, while rehearsing, they can
redirect some of their concentration onto the neglected object.
Initially, this will take some effort, but with practice, like
developing a technical skill, these concentration skills will become
natural and instinctive.
The result of dancers developing their concentration skills are
simple and practical. When they are in a performance, they will possess
the ability to maintain their concentration. However, as often happens,
if they begin to lose their concentration, they will have mastered the
skills necessary to regain it. Lastly, this newfound ability will enable
dancers to perform at a consistently high level, which will result in
greater satisfaction and fun for them when performing.
Episode 10 - Breathing During Dance - Perfect Form Physiotherapy - MDM Dance
Students were invited to move on the inhale and the exhale. The first part of the exercise was to move on the inhale and make a stop on the exhale.
The second part of the exercise was to move on the exhale and make a stop of the inhale.
The third part of the exercise invited students to move on the inhale or the exhale as they wished.
To conclude, students were invited to gather in groups of 4 and use their breath (inhale and exhale) to create eight moves.
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IN CLASS ACTIVITY
GROUP 1
Anastasia Cafatti, Estela Perez-Somamba, Aliyah Cofer, Sofia Nelles Relaxing breaking makes movement more free and allows us to relax more in order to get out of our heads and have movement be more fluid. GROUP 2
Alexandra Chavez, Isabella, Tico, DJ, Ivey Breath gives you rhythm; it helps smoother movement; it helps release your body's natural movement; it helps air flows. GROUP 3
Brent Engel, Seisimo Olali, Jimmy Cohen, Armando Caceres Breathing helped us open up more and improve our tempo and flexibility. We were able to move with more controlled and comfortable movements because of our breathing. GROUP 4
Breathing helps us navigate our moves to be clear and energetic. ---------------------- GROUP 5
Teresa Deng, Manyun Chen, Gonzhu Zhao, Zechao Zhao, Kemeng Zhai
Breathing in important for dance. We combined Tai Chi and ballet moves as we breathed. --------------------- GROUP 6
Jiahui Rao, Hianxiao (Chloe) Lin, Yu Zhang, Yingjie Wu Inhales make our movement extend more. Also, when we move with breathing, breathing helps us connect movements . Breath makes our movements smooth. ----------------- GROUP 7
Kenza, Yazmin, Kelsey, MJ Being able to control our breathing and being connected with our partner. ---------------- GROUP 8
Xueyi (/Bonnie) He, Wenyuan Ma, Shanglin Li, Jie Sun We feel connections in our body through breath. It makes us feel peaceful. Our friendships were connected and improved through our dancing.
Using levels and directions being aware of "space"
SPACE
Students were made aware of the outer space defined by the studio's walls. They were also made aware of the studio as their collective space, as opposed to their own personal and individual space, also called kinesphere.
The term 'kinesphere'
was coined by choreographer Rudolf Laban and is defined as: the sphere
around the body whose periphery can be reached by easily extended limbs
without stepping away from that place which is the point of support when
standing on one foot.
By reducing the studio space to one half, one fourth and one eighth, students began to understand how space affects body awareness, body interpersonal relations, pathways, size and focus.
As the space was reduced, interactions became more playful, students began to laugh, let go, relax with each other and free themselves. In the process of exploring space they became playful, they accessed their inner child. This sense of awe a little child has, which we forget about as we become adults, is necessary to be creative, wondrous, make mistakes without feeling guilty or self conscious, learn without worries, take risks without fear of failing.
Concepts to remember
directions
levels
space
kinesphere
Resources
The Elements of Dance. https://www.elementsofdance.org/space.html
Space and Relationship. https://thespaceintherelationship.wordpress.com/kinesphere/
Pedestrian movement: Itis
a major component in contemporary dance that takes everyday common
movements and incorporates them into the choreography. For instance directions, (forward, backward, sideways, up and down) begin to give students basic vocabulary that they are already familiar with through their everyday life.
Students' exploration of pedestrian
movement, by just walking forward, backwards, left and right, up and down, even though is part of post-modern dance, also gives them the confidence needed to become modern dancers.
They were led by Professor Morejon into exploring levels (high, medium and low), which added another layer to the kinetic understanding of their instrument or body. Movement of their bodies in four directions changed when added to different levels.
Finally, students were able to combine directions and levels by organizing themselves in groups in order to put together an 8 moves phrase. Each ensemble shared with the rest of the class what each was able to choreograph. The atmosphere during class was that of collaboration, support and admiration.
