RE:
Letter of Offer for The Hothouse 2005
I saw conkers fall yesterday and brassic from the demands of fresh
school uniform, I knew that September and the new Autumn term were
imminent. With Baldrick-cunning, we delayed the beginning of SIN
Cru teaching term to accept the offer from The Place Artist Development
Manager, Nao Black, to take part in The Hothouse 2005.
We had applied to the project and been called for interview back
in July. The Hothouse promised ten days intensive coaching, designed
specifically to support the artistic development of Hiphop choreographers.
In my jumble-sale brain, The Place is home to London Contemporary
Dance School and Richard Alston. With balconies soaked in natural
light and beautiful refurbished studios, I wondered what ancient
Chinese torture methods of persuasion were in force to risk Hiphop
past the congenial, suited and booted security....
The answer was in German but although I only lasted two weeks in
my German class, I didn’t need that GCSE to understand why.
I put it down to a personality clash with the teacher - the
letter home said it was bad attitude, and then my Dad told me a
not very funny joke about a man in a bar who has his hat chewed.
Language, accent and the right salt in your soup.
Berlin-based Storm has been an important and constant
part of the european Breakin’ scene for time, blowing up to
international recognition with his performance at Battle
of the Year ‘95. In recent years there have been
many rumours on the graffiti’d gossip columns that, plagued
by injury, Storm was no longer breakin’. Although Storm has
succumbed to several medical mishaps, including a very close call
with his neck, he is still breakin’ and is also locking and
poppin’, aswell as researching the roots of these dance styles.
Storm’s energy is currently directed from battles to the theatre,
and with a history of Hiphop Theatre shows and tours successfully
under his name buckle, he is here, leading The Hothouse 05’s
investigation.
Standing at the bus stop with cocoa
buttered south London rude-gal-school-girls, my pencil case and
exercise book, I reread the letter from Nao; SIN Cru had been invited
to attend The Hothouse 05 theory sessions and we were expected to
participate in discussion to question ourselves and the other participants.
We had a timetable and everything - forget Jack Black and School
of Rock, I was going to study Hiphop! “BRAP!”
Storm looked different to what I expected -
I think that was because he was
in real life and sitting opposite me at a table rather than spinning
around my tv screen with all the tracking interference you get on
old videos. Remady had been waiting for this moment
ever since she met Storm when he judged her battle in Berlin, August
2004. Posing for a sneaky paparazzi shot, Ben Jammin’
noticed that Remady and Storm have the same teeth.
I had to abort my dentist disguise
to join the introductions alongside Jonzi-D and
his collaborator K.T.P, Frank Wilson,
Nikki Geismar, and Zoo Nation.
We spent Monday morning sharing experiences of the creation process,
and Artist/Audience communication.
The Familiar v. Invention
Dance technique is learnt through copying and imitation but the
style (and dancer) only survives through re-invention.
As an artist, you have to contribute
with something new otherwise you become nothing more than a biter
and the style stagnates. Here Storm compares dance to language,
as a living reflection, a documentary on development and growth.
To ensure that everyone understands your vernacular, there has to
be an element of familiarity, a historical and recognisable skeleton
upon which to hang your personalised Dappa Dan sweatsuit. Storm
suggests we create work which discusses where we have come from,
but does not define where we are going to. We revisit the foundations
from which we innovate.
The task for the day was to create a piece of work from a theme
of our own.
  
As we had only been invited to
take part in the theory sessions, we did not have access to studio
space; however, we had been invited to present work at the showing
later on in the course. So undeterred, via Pizza Express and Damon
Albarn inspired, we navigated our way through David Bellamy’s
undergrowth to find a grass stained rehearsal pitch at Regents Park(life).
Rather than revisiting existing
themes and material from our repertoire, I wanted to use Hothouse
to challenge our working procedures and explore new practices. Together
we decided on “Ladders” as our theme which developed
into a game of Snakes and Ladders. Lise led some contact improvisation
exercises using the Snakes and Ladders structure of under/over,
sliding/climbing, which in retrospect, and much much Stain Devil
later, probably wasn’t the best on a lawn, in Evisu and Nikes!
As if that wasn’t enough exercise, we chaperoned Remady, The
Amazing Walking Bag, to her hostel; The Generator. Instead of conjuring
wholesome images of girl guides and families in Leiderhosen, I imagined
a late 80s rave in some dodgy disused Carpet City warehouse, and
felt for Remady, when desperate for sleep, she is approached by
another sweaty bloke, chewing his rotten teeth as he tries to hug
her.....
But when we arrived, there was
a placid quiz in the bar and the smell of clean laundry. The only
mushrooms on offer were in photos of the hearty, homecooked english
breakfast and instead of Voodoo Ray, the speakers were pumping out
Westlife. I left confident with the knowledge that The Amazing Walking
Bag was not about to be unzipped by a guy called Gerald.
The next day we were given studio time. We were looking at staging
and spatial awareness, and teamed up with Nikki Geismar to create
dynamic formations which would lead the audience’s eye.
As bBoys and bGirls, we are conditioned to dance in quite tight
circles. Breakin’ was spawned in packed parties and jams where
you often had to use your toprocking to clear a space. The signature
rotational moves and circular footwork are synonymous with performing
in the round, therefore the big open and flat space of a traditional
theatre can be quite daunting. Storm explained that being able to
use the stage is a whole artform in itself. He advises that no matter
what ambience we are trying to create, it is important to spend
as much time on spacing as on the actual material. We should use
spacing so much that it becomes part of the dance technique.
Confessions of a Hater
By my own admission and as a Taurean, I hold grudges and am a stubborn,
argumentative fully fledged member of H.A (Haters Anonymous). Hothouse
was my therapy and my crew were proud of me, I was behaving. Nao
had requested that we enter into the project with open minds and
a sense of humour, which I was doing and although my lip was bit
on several occasions, I was grateful for this opportunity to network
with other artists. At each mini showing, we shared a different
feeder to our final story. I very much enjoyed the presentations
from the other participants and using the arena as a testing centre
for our new responses to Storm’s theory sessions, I valued
their feedback on our work.
Back at my London lodgings, I noticed
a framed collage of photos that my friend, Polly had hung in her
hall. Among these images was one of me in 1988 on the school French
exchange. This was the trip when Polly and I persuaded all them
Frenchies that we were famous rappers by reciting Jungle Bros lyrics
at the school disco, whilst our accomplice, 13yr old Baloo
(The Nextmen) span records. It made me think about history
and although, unlike many heads, I don’t think it is necessary
to have throwndown at Covent Garden (or the Roxy), or to have been
gassed at the Onyx concert, Hammersmith Palais, I do believe it
is vital to know about it. We all have a responsibilty to further
the artforms but I believe it is immature to think that this is
possible by ignoring the history and culture, la raison d’etre.
Returning to the source is also an important part of researching
particular movement quirks in terms of Story and Character. Storm
concedes that it can be sufficient to create a show from Theme only,
and that by his own admission, being a bBoy is theme enough. However
there are pitfalls: If you are only working from a theme, the audience
will look more closely at the technique, whereas if you have a story
there are many more layers for the audience to concentrate on. Thorough
research will give you, as choreographer, new ideas and inspiration
for movement vocabulary appropriate to your story and character.
It will also provide the audience with something familiar that will
help them follow and understand your expansions.
We had developed our theme of Snakes and Ladders into the story
of a Race. After sneaking into an empty studio, we decided to start
by building our characters and relationships.
  
  
The informal showings at the end
of Week 1 clearly demonstrated this need for character. As audience,
I was totally engaged by Frank Wilson’s thoroughly researched,
character-based performance. There was a story to follow rather
than just a mild anticipation of the next movement phrase. Jonzi
and K.T.P’s performance provoked discussion on meaning. It
was crystal that Jonzi was creating with a particular structure
and storyline. This started me thinking again about meaning…
1. The creator has a narrative that they are working to. Does that
narrative have to be understood by the audience for the Work to
work?
2. Is appreciation and aesthetic enjoyment enough?
3. Could narrative just be a tool for the creators to explore their
visions, and if the idea is missed by the audience, does it matter?
Tight, flawless and faceless dance routines are perfect for the
commercial industry. They provide a quick fix of neutral strength,
designed as a tool to support an “artist” (Top of the
Pops/ music videos etc), or promote a product = A visually entertaining,
low risk backdrop. However, when I go to the theatre I want that
and more. Emotional investment must come hand in clammy hand with
the dancer’s sweat, in order to provide some depth. I want
to leave the theatre with (50 sense) something to say and 21 questions.
Sam likes light, first and foremost. Light is his passion and on
Friday afternoon he led us through basic lighting design. In this
very condensed session, we looked at different lighting states and
discussed the importance of state changes as well as getting to
know the capabilities of various lights.
I had found the problem, the sticking point and reason why I didn’t
feel committed to our piece. We had the theme, and had an idea of
spacing and structure. But no feeling. Nothing that I could develop
emotionally. Usually when I begin to consider a show, I start with
a reason that personally means something, just as Storm finds that
there is an autonomy within his work. He discovers himself subconsciously
exploring problems and issues he has been dealing with in other
parts of his life. Jonzi is influenced by the society that hiphop
comes from and exists in, by artists such as Public Enemy and KRS-1,
by a socio-political standpoint. I realised that I needed to use
the story of a Race as the means, not the reason.
The next few days were confined to the studio, experimenting with
the theory to expand our own practice. By now we had squatter’s
rights over the supposedly haunted studio upstairs, and if served
with an eviction notice, we made the most of the beautiful balconies.
Pausing from our choreography,
we soaked up practical technique sessions led by Storm. He introduced
us to the complexities of House dancing and as I continued to tangle
my laces and trip over my kicks, Storm explained that as a concept,
House can be quite hard to grasp if you are used to Breakin’
because the House accent is up on the beat, whereas breakin’
is all down. On more familiar ground, Storm inspired our footwork
with creative text and gave Remady one to one on belly mills. Then
we all ate cake in celebration of Jonzi D’s birthday!
 
Standing in the lunch queue, once
again with my mind on my tummy and my tummy on my mind, I was cornered
by Nao to ask if we would present first at the final showing. 10
minutes later, unprepared and still chewing, I briefly introduced
our methods of working and our piece. I explained that we had decided
to translate each day’s theory teachings into our exercise
for a new way to work and that the piece we were showing was based
on snakes and ladders, within the context of a race.
We performed a series of links
which explored the relationships between the different characters
as we formed temporary alliances only to serve our goal of winning.
Storm and Ben Jammin’ demonstrated the 8Ball
technique - a footwork structure which can create exceptional floor
patterns depending on how many dancers are used at any one time.
 
Nikki Geismar followed with her
thoughts and feelings about how valuable and supportive she has
found the whole project. Undeterred by technical hitches, Zoo Nation
screened images of their work-in-progress from rehearsal footage.
It was interesting to see how Jonzi-D’s piece changed by using
Sinstar Soopa J in place of K.T.P and I wondered if the dancers’
different genders made a difference. Frank Wilson had expanded his
solo to include group work. He explained that when this piece goes
to theatre, the additional cast will be seen only on projection
but I also enjoyed the live aspect and the immediate support or
intimidation of the other dancers.
Every day the struggle up to the top of Cypress Hill got harder
as my weary legs plotted with my 90’s to try and make me miss
my bus. My pilgrimage to find fresh resources for innovation was
far too momentous to be held back by a pair of lazy chicken drumsticks
and for the first time ever, I was not late once! On the very last
day we discussed articulation with Storm and Nao. We role played
a selling exercise and revised the Business Plan as well as learning
new training procedures such as Swot and Pest Analysis. When asked
“who are your audiences?” Nao advised not to try to
appeal and reach everyone but to have faith in our artform and be
able to articulate the value of our work. We ended the two weeks
in Nandos and as pioneers for UK Hiphop Theatre, we look to innovate
and design new possibilities.
report by TrubL Roc/
Autumn 2005
www.theplace.org.uk
www.stormdance.de
www.generatorhostels.com
P.S. Since taking part in Hothouse, we have kept in touch with Storm
and met up with him at Battle of the Year in Germany. Unfortunately
Remady was unable to pass on the custard and ribena- next time.
We are also waiting to hear the result of an Arts Council bid which
will enable us to collaborate with Jonzi D in the new year, and
we have been invited to perform in a triple bill at The Robin Howard
Theatre, The Place as part of Resolution! on 17 January 2006.
Props to Nao Black, Storm, Jonzi
D, K.T.P, Frank Wilson, Nikki Geismar, Zoonation and the Maunders
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