I recently had the opportunity to work with 8 emerging artists from Adelaide to research the beginnings of a new work. Six of the dancers are currently studying at the Adelaide College of the Arts and two are members of the Restless Dance Theatre Youth Ensemble.

inPerspective was born out of conversations with Dr. Margit Breunner and Ebony James Chow from the Architect and Design department at the Adelaide University. We discovered there is a similar language that we share when approaching our work and began investigating possibilities to kick-start our new collaboration. Teaming up with costume designer Sean Campbell, we presented a short 10 minute work at the Australian Dance Theatre’s Rough Draft and Choreolab In-Theatre season 4 – 6 October 2012.

I asked the dancers to reflect on their experience working together and have posted their comments below.

Jianna Georgiou (Restless dancer with a disability)

What was it like working with Philip?

Philip is funny. The dancers are great and asked me how I’m feeling, how you going, did you have fun? It was hard work coz it was different learning…too much information. I enjoyed dancing and talking with everyone and going out to lunch. I enjoyed learning the techniques and the studies and talking to everyone and learning new dance phrases. Choreolab was good and Rough Draft was good too.

Can you explain the creative process?

We did some architecture and blindfolds and then we did some solos all about architecture and then we did duets about asymmetircal and symmetrical and the tree connection duet and then we flapped our arms up and walked across. I did my solo in the beginning and then I did a trio with Emma and Ellen which was about construction. We listened to some music, we followed the music, we danced to the music. The process was good.

What was the highlight of inPerspective #1?

The blindfold work was so good coz I like trusting and connecting to people and I loved following them around when they were blindfolded.  The music was good too. I liked the duet and I enjoyed talking to my friends. I love dancing with them.

Was there anything in particular that challenged you?

Probably the solos because I cant think of an idea for my solo coz I kept playing with my hair and Philip told me to stop playing with my hair.

Did you learn anything?

I learnt about talking to my friends, dancing with them, the techniques, I learnt the studies, I learnt the creative dance phrase, I learnt the warming up with the music.

What will you take away with you and remember most?

I’ll remember Philip from Restless as the main thing and I’ll remember dancing with my friends.

Would you like to work with Philip again in the future?

Yes please!! Hell yeah because I want to see him all the time (when he’s busy or not).

Any other comments….

No comment

Ruby Dolman (1st year dancer AC Arts)

What was it like working with Philip? 

He is a tough director but I think that we all benefited from this process.

Can you explain the creative process? 

The creative process was really enjoyable, Philip gave us a lot of tasks to explore our own ideas. These tasks included creating phrases based on architecture, open house inspection (inspection of your body/muscles), and creating intricate movements with the hands, shoulders and arms based on a writing task where we listened to the music chosen for inPerspective #1. Another task we completed involved one member of the group putting on a blind fold, and using falling movements to work with the dancers around the space.

What was the highlight of inPerspective #1? 

The highlight for me was definitely getting on stage each night and performing the work with our wonderful group dancers at Choreolab.

Was there anything in particular that challenged you? 

I found the biggest challenge for me was the partner work, we had to find everybody’s strengths and work together as a group, which at times was a challenge. In the end I feel as though we worked really well together.

Did you learn anything? 

I gained so much from this production, mainly working to the strengths of the people around you and that you must always be ready to work hard, and make changes when needed.

What will you take away with you and remember most? 

What I will remember the most is performing the duo with Jianna, she is so inspiring, and I enjoyed working through the challenges that we faced.

Would you like to work with Philip again in the future? 

Philip was really enjoyable to work with especially throughout the creative process. He had some really interesting ways of helping us come up with movement and made rehearsing fun while still working us hard.

Any other comments….

This whole production was such a great experience and I am so glad I got the chance to work with Philip and the other dancers and perform at both Rough Draft and Chore-lab.

Emma Watkins (1st year dancer AC Arts)

What was it like working with Philip?

Working with Philip was an amazing yet sometimes challenging experience. As this was my first professional experience I found the whole concept brand new. Philip’s way of working and developing ideas is somewhat unique and I found this really engaging and something which kept me wanting to work harder. Exploring not so much primarily the display of performing but the discovery of bonding and relationships between dancers, providing the audience with a dancer to dancer connection instead of just a ‘dance’ picture. Philip has an urge to work with peoples strengths as well as being able to develop and improve each individuals weaknesses. The feedback which he provided was extremely helpful and made
me go by achieving phrases and movement in a different way.

Can you explain the creative process?

The creative process began from a conversation between Philip and his dancers about the relationship between architecture and dance. We played with many choreographic tasks which lead to movement phrases. Using the blindfold task we were required to be moved around the space blindfold in complete trust of our colleagues and after a few minutes of this we were asked to create a solo based upon 6 sensations which we can remember that we felt from this. We completed several other tasks such as:
universal writing the word ‘architecture’, open house inspection, writing tasks in response to emotions/thoughts/feelings we felt from listening to a 7 minute piece and many more. Once we had all done these tasks we often had learnt each other’s material and in total this left us with about 2 hours’ worth of material for our 7 minute piece. Philip offered many suggestions for our material as well as allowing us to continue developing these by adding in a variety of dynamics. We then planned a structure for the piece and we labeled each section so we could remember each and ordered them. Once we had ordered them correctly we placed the piece to music. Our first run was different for me, because we had been working mostly to no music and suddenly had introduced sound we had to try and fit the piece to suite the music, which in the end we did successfully. Philip invited several people from the dance industry such as:
Kristina Chan, Lisa Heaven and Peter Sheedy to critique our work to see if there were ways of improving our piece, from this feedback in collaboration with Philip I feel the piece drastically changed within days from what it started of as to where we ended up.

What was the highlight of inPerspective #1? Was there anything in particular that challenged you?

Being given the opportunity to work with Philip was one of the highlights on its own. By being given this opportunity I was able to work with dancers that I had not worked with before which sometimes was challenging. I found it difficult at times to explain exactly what my movement was, but from this I feel my communication skills and acceptance of others has greatly improved. Working with people who have a disability was such a beautiful and inspiring experience and I feel this is something which I will always remember.

Did you learn anything?

Of course. I have learnt so much about the creative processes of pieces and what sort of process occurs during the creation of a work. I will also walk away with a new perspective of explaining movement to others, using the idea of ‘teaching someone who is blind’ so the movement is precise and clean and almost exact. Something I found really important and useful is the awareness of being open to other people’s ideas without saying no to others. Even if the idea is unsuccessful, Philip has taught me to always say ‘yes’ first instead of blocking out creative ideas which might be useful. Philip was very open to suggestions and often reassured to us that this was ‘our’ work as a group not necessarily his, although he is directing. Working closely with partners was another thing I have learnt. Being there for your partner in the right positions, strong and balanced is something important when working in large groups of people.

What will you take away with you and remember most? Would you like to work with Philip again in the future?

I will remember Philip’s high interest in his dancers and the significance each of us have to him individually. His ability to combine dancers from a wide variety of backgrounds is something I find really special and his way of working with us all independently. I have very much appreciated the experience which has been offered to me and would like to work with Philip again if given to the opportunity. I feel so honored to have worked with Philip, especially considering I am only in first year.

Matthew Shilcock (Youth Ensemble dancer)

What was it like working with Philip?

Working with Philip is a good mix of creative experiment and regimented practice. Philip is great at pushing you to achieve things that you may not have realised you are capable of. Philip is approachable, able to receive feedback and always gives the opportunity to ask questions. This makes for a process that ensures that everyone can be up to speed and on the same page.

Can you explain the creative process?

Having come on board the development of the work relatively late, I haven’t had as much to do with the creative development. However, tasks that I received had me listen to a bizarre soundscape titled ‘Sue’ and write my reactions to it. I was then asked to translate those reactions into movement.

What was the highlight of inPerspective #1? Was there anything in particular that challenged you?

My highlight of this show would have to be also the most challenging parts, because of my lack of dance training, and that is the partner and quintet work. There is a preciseness and technical aspect that I’m not yet used to, and I like being challenged in that way. Being an artist with a disability, I often encounter an attitude of “oh, you didn’t get that move? Don’t worry about it and just do something else.” What I like about inPerspective, and working with Philip in general, is that there is no mollycoddling and I am encouraged to perform at a level that brings all of us on stage to the same level. That makes me really feel part of a team.

What will you take away with you and remember most? Would you like to work with Philip again in the future?

I have learned a lot about the technical aspects of lifting and counter balancing and I look forward to exploring that further. Again, being a performing with a disability, there is a stigma about partner work that often lands me in the ‘too hard’ basket in the eyes of others.

I will remember most the quality of work that can be put together in such a short time. What I will take from this experience is to not be too precious with time and to let the process flow organically, because that is when the art comes out. I would very much like to work with Philip again.

Ellen Worley (1st year dancer AC Arts)

What was it like working with Philip?

I found it a very interesting experience working with Philip. It was my first semi-professional work I have completed. Philip’s nature is very inquisitive and accepting. He is not interested in only using his dancers purely to perform; rather he has a lot of time for developing relationships with the people he works with. This to me was extremely helpful as I was able to relate to him, and had the confidence to share about my memories and ideas without being afraid. He interest in us allowed him to use our own identities, personalities and experiences throughout the piece. Philip was very precise when we were in the final rehearsal stages which helped immensely with allowing the piece to develop as a whole and look neat and clean. He was looking for clarity in direction, movement and spacing. This precision is very important especially when working with a large group. However at the same time he was also extremely open to suggestions, and often reminded us that each of our ideas would not be ‘shut down’ but rather be explored and considered. I found this to give me a lot more confidence in suggesting my thoughts.

Can you explain the creative process?

Philip started by conversing with his collaborators, together gaining some topics of interest to explore further in the dance studio. He gave the dancers certain tasks on these topics or themes. One task was blindfolding one dancer at a time and asking the other dancers to push the blindfolded person around the space. The blindfold was taken off and the dancer was asked to create a phrase recalling 6 of the sensations felt while being blindfolded. A lot of the time everyone was given the same task and each of the dancers learnt each other’s material and we joined them together to form one large phrase. This meant that eventually we had over 2 hours of material to draw from. Philip was very experimental and spontaneous with the material and he asked us to perform the material in different positions in the space, with different speeds and different directions. He would ask us to repeat movement many time but with varying dynamics and spatial directions until he found one that pleased him. Philip then thought more about the structure of the piece by himself and came to rehearsal with a rough order of the phrases we had created. A lot of the time it was up to the dancers to discover ways of transitioning between the phrases. To make this process more precise and easy to remember, Philip gave each phrase a name and placed each name on a different sheet of paper. From there, the dancers placed these pieces of paper in order of which they were performed. From here, we rehearsed the piece with the music, refining places of pausing, correcting areas of confusion and further develop each phrase to be different of the next. Throughout this process Philip consistently encouraged the dancers to contribute to the piece and give feedback. Nearing the end of the process, Philip asked people in the dance industry he respected to watch the piece and give critique. He was very open to their suggestions and this developed the piece further.

What was the highlight of inPerspective #1? Was there anything in particular that challenged you?

I really enjoyed being given the opportunity to collaborate with dancers I had not worked with before. Although this was challenging at times, I have found that my communication skills have improved as has my understanding and acceptance of people with a disability. From the initial stages I was very interested in Philip’s interactions with everyone, and the way he wanted us to work together. Sometimes I found that he assumed that we would know, however, this was a new experience for me and I had a lot to learn. By the end of the process, I was able to understand Philip more as a person, his desires for us as dancers, and his passion for integrating people into the dance community.

Did you learn anything?

I learnt a lot about what it is like to create a piece from task-based exercises and grew in my ability to give my own opinions and collaborate with the choreographer rather than just be told what to do. Philip constantly challenged me as a dancer to critique the material in content, relevance and creativity. I discovered more about contemporary dance aesthetics and I think I am now more open to ‘creative’ arts, not just in the art form of dance. I was inspired by his interest in the world and how he brings this into his piece. He was very open to our memories and experiences.

What will you take away with you and remember most? Would you like to work with Philip again in the future?

I will mostly remember Philip’s interest in his dancers, his ability to integrate dancer’s from all backgrounds into one piece, and his good use of time in the process of making a work. I would like to work with Philip again given the opportunity and have very much valued the experiences and advice he has passed on to me. I appreciate being given the opportunity to work with such a highly regarded person as Philip, especially only during my first year at college!

Annabelle Clough (3rd year dancer AC Arts)

What was it like working with Philip?

Working with Philip was a great experience as he has great passion and new ideas. Philip has a positive attitude and always encourages dancers to be challenged.

Can you explain the creative process?

The creative process involved getting, creating and learning material so that it could be edited to create the final product. Philip would throw ideas to us and he would want to hear and see how each of us responding to different ideas. For example we listened to music and wrote as we listened. We then shared what we had wrote and worked on material from here. Philip would always encourage us to go further or find that special moment. I found that I would create some material and Philip would be able to watch and observe. He would then maybe ask me to strip it back by doing the same material but standing on the spot. Philip has a keen eye and able to tweak material taking it to a more interesting and special place. ‘inPerspective’ could be described as a construction in itself. As we laid foundations, set plans, built on ideas became stronger and produced the final product.

What was the highlight of inPerspective #1? Was there anything in particular that challenged you?

The highlight would be working with the group of enthusiastic artists who all had different backgrounds with the same goal. Philip was a great leader and deserves credit for getting this work up and running in the short time we had. I really enjoyed performing the work in the theatre as well.

I was challenged as we all had different backgrounds and different abilities. Philip was able to find the balance between all our different skills.

Did you learn anything?

I have never worked with anyone with disabilities before so I learnt a lot from this and found the experience valuable and fun.

What will you take away with you and remember most? Would you like to work with Philip again in the future?

I will remember working with Jianna and how beautiful it was to dance with her and watch her dance with no worries in the world.

I would definitely enjoy the chance to work with Phillip again the future.

Vincent Peter Vayne (2nd year dancer AC Arts)

What was it like working with Philip?

I found the entire process enjoyable and the tasks we were involved in, including yoga, ballet, contemporary and jazz warm-up exercises were beneficial to my dance training. Philip’s interest in the relationship between dance and architecture presented a lot of opportunities for creative collaboration: sharing thoughts, ideas and material. I felt we had an excellent starting point, as Philip was self-driven and passionate about this subject, which made it easy to want to work with him.

Can you explain the creative process?

We began by asking ourselves some important questions: What is architecture? How does it relate to dance? What is a structure? We also browsed a collection of contemporary paintings and sculptures to draw inspiration from the art subject’s composition, shape and colours. There was also a mysterious piece of music: an abstract cacophony of sounds which we remade choreographically with our own interpretations. All of these ideas were added to the pool of material we were collecting (about an hour’s worth in the end) and were tweaked and developed later to create inPerspective #1.

What was the highlight of inPerspective #1?

I loved the opportunity to keep dancing during the holidays. During semester/school term breaks it can be hard to find places to dance at and very expensive to take so many classes, so this project gave me the motivation to keep dancing and staying fit with a task requiring a lot of work fitting into two weeks. I also enjoyed collaborating with the dancers from Restless and many of the AC Arts dancers who we’d never have the opportunity to work with necessarily.

Was there anything in particular that challenged you?

I found that we had to be composing things constantly from the ideas we’d discussed, but often also to one of Philip’s sudden tasking-brainwaves. It was challenging for me to squish fresh ideas into one ear and instantaneously scoop chunks of movement out from my head and onto my body. I found remembering so much material took a lot of memory and I was quite glad that it was converted into only 10 mins in the end.

Did you learn anything?

I developed a lot of my dance skills, my social collaborations with other dancers and artists and improved my partnering abilities. I learnt to appear as confident as possible when working with other artists. All those clichés like “go for it”, “put in 110%” and “get as much as you can out of it” constitute acceptable thoughts to keep yourself in the right headspace. If something you do doesn’t look or feel right and seems ridiculous to you, just go with it and trust that the director knows what they want and will tell you if it’s good or not.

What will you take away with you and remember most?

Probably the entire experience, working with a gradually increasing cast over the two weeks was fun and quite memorable. It was just Philip, Jianna and Annabelle to begin with I think, and then me, Chris, Ruby, Emma, Ellen and Matt joined later throughout the week. I’ll never forget Matt’s effort to learn 10 minutes of material in three rehearsals, he was brilliant! Each time you work with other people in a dance work, I find you (hopefully) develop a sort of connection with them, which is a standard thing during productions, but I loved how the collaborative doors were left open for other people to join in our process.

Would you like to work with Philip again in the future?

Definitely, if he still wants to have anything to do with me after I took so long to respond to this questionnaire! I like Philip’s passion for art and how he isn’t afraid who to bring together to work on dance. Art demands interpretation and inspiration on so many levels and it should be acceptable for people from all different walks of life to have the freedom and opportunity to enjoy it.

Photograph: Sean Campbell