Content/Behavior

When looking at choreography, I hardly ever look at the content, as in, the material, the movements, or what it’s trying to say. But rather at how it behaves.

The HOW, not the WHAT.

The manner in which a choreography behaves, as in, the way in which decision making manifests through the actions of the dancers, is all you need to know in order to ‘understand’ the nature, as well as the artistic value of the work.

The HOW, in itself, is content.

Any form of choreographic work that tries to bypass the HOW, in order to control the WHAT, is nothing more than a poster.

Performance art

Performance art, is probably the worse thing that happened to the art of choreography. It’s what fast food has done to cooking, or what tv realities have done to screen plays.

It’s a door wide open to perverted ambition, hiding absolute lack of talent, valuable content or craft.

What’s needed

One way to look at the choreographic thing, is through the relentless questioning of “what’s needed”. At every single moment, in regards to every aspect of the thing happening.

Looking through the lens of “what’s needed’, is a simple and efficient manner to navigate the artistic process. It’s also the hardest one to stick to, not to deviate from, identify and put into practice.

Demise

The demise of any artistic form, occurs when talent and craftsmanship are no longer indispensable values. The reasons to why such a destructive attitude has become fashionable, are multiple. They reside way beyond the artistic realm.

A society which praises and encourages such vison, is a suicidal one. Art trends are a litmus test for the health of a society. Our societies are sick, and the tendencies of the current art world, are the proof.

Me Me Me!!!

Mediocracy, not to say downright absolute lack of competence, is the norm in the contemporary dance world. When it comes to choreography as an art form, the frantic escape from craftsmanship, towards the reassuring, self affirming, self indulgent and all welcoming shores of performance art, has become a plague.

Also, if it screams Me Me Me, it can’t be good. Ever.

Talking

The choreographic process, as well as the dancing of it, doesn’t react well to talking. It requires looking, listening, being and doing as its main developing, examining and reflecting tools. Talking creates cracks in the perception of the choreographic/dancing thing (not the ones from where the light shines through, but rather those who fragilise the whole) and therefor, should be used with caution and moderation.

Drafts

A choreographic work, as well as all of its components, must remain a permanent draft. Being a living thing, carried out by living beings, and happening through real time, it can never be a ‘finished’ entity.

Nothing which is finished, is alive.

Wound/Heal

Art is made with either the intention to wound, or to heal. The participants, as well as the audience.

Execution/Creation

If there’s an aim, a goal, a plan, then it’s EXECUTION.

CREATION happens when non of these are in the way.

What it is

At the end of the day, after everything else has been stripped down, the only two things to choreograph, the only two substances at play, are FEAR and LOVE. All the rest is noise. That’s why dance, like music, is mostly a religious endeavour.

The craft thought, is a whole separate thing.

Music

Some Music works cause it’s insanely good. Some, cause it’s so stupid it just works.

Also, good music is truth measured in sound waves.

Readership

The absolute majority of people who come in contact with a choreographic work (And that includes most professionals of the field), are like people hearing a novel being read to them out loud in a foreign language they do not speak. Lack of readership into the choreographic medium, is a given. The pressure this puts on makers to make the work readable at any cost, is immense. Resulting most of the time with work that departs completely from the full potential of the art form.

Eventually, good work, finds its readers.

Resist.

Creativity/thought/fear/time

The root of artistic creativity, lies in the elimination of fear from the equation, which in its turn, has to do with the halting of thought. Thinking, stops when past and future become non issues.

Means to effect

Choreography should be a mean of enhancing attention. Heightened attention, in its turn, enables acute presence. Presence, is the doorway to high states of consciousness.

Politics/Art

The politics of the art world, are probably the main force to consider, protect oneself from and push against when making art.

Driving forces

If the choreographic structure, in itself, before even looking at the dancing, isn’t a central force driving the work, then we’re left with the dancers’ sheer will power, charisma, engagement, performative qualities etc.

It’s a valid option of course, but one that can turn out to be very fragile with works running for a long time,. As with the novelty of the whole thing naturally fading away through repetition, it becomes much harder for dancers to tune into that zone of acute excitement, danger, freshness etc required in order to easily produce this driving energy.

When the choreographic structure/mechanism is made in a way, which in itself, produces driving qualities, it tends to help balance the (occasional) drop in dancers energy and engagement, and is also a way to regenerate and facilitate the emergence of the performative energy of the dancing itself.

Let’s talk about it

It is much easier (and way more rewarding and beneficial to the ones doing it) to discuss, analyze, dissect and theorize upon, bad or average art works and artists, than it is to do so with good ones.

Poorly made art, leaves a lot of empty spaces around and inside it, thus leaving ample free room for interpretation. Good art on the other hand, does most of the talking internally, charging the space with questions and answers, creating a densely structured reality, which resist external interpretations making them redundant.

Nevertheless, it is a worthy challenge to engage with, making the rare ones able to discuss good work, precious allies.

Also, artists with an average talent, are the most ambitious. Always.

Becoming

A choreography can’t become what it needs to be, by remaining what it is.

Thinking

You can’t think while creating. Creativity is the opposite of thinking. The thinking comes after. Creating is a living experience. Thinking gets in the way of living. Thinking is an act of reflecting or analyzing, while what creating requiers, is a living experience.

Dancing (as well as performing), works pretty much the same.

I think it has something to do with how meaning is produced or generated. It’s impossible to think your way into meaning. Meaning isn’t the result of thinking, but rather an essence emanating from doing and being. Thinking happens too far from where being is, it arrives late to the party somehow, it can only have a reflective quality, never a generative one.