In this series we will follow the creative process of DJD company dancer Kaja Irwin for her piece in the Dancer Choreographed show Velocity. Velocity is on stage at the DJD Dance Centre from November 16-26, 2017.

September 17, 2017  – Revealing the Chimera

First rehearsal. The seed of an idea finally starts to take shape on bodies instead of just inside my mind. To choose where to begin can always be a struggle. I have an inspirational image that is extreme in both shape and meaning. I have to make the choice to either mimic the visual inspiration or use the idea of a chimera and develop something more abstract. During our first rehearsal, I experimented with both paths. I started with creating a singular being made up of four bodies, but since it’s still experimentation time, I would prefer not to set anything. I also explored an abstract path by taking the chimera shape and investigating moving backwards from it. What happens before the beast manifests? What happens before that? This is how the idea of four separate entities turning into the singular chimera developed. Next rehearsal I hope to delve into these ideas further and see what else can be explored before the full chimera image is revealed. Who are these separate beings and why do they come together as one?

September 26, 2017

The second rehearsal was very exciting. After listening to the music more, a loose storyline revealed itself to me. I found this helpful as there needs to be some sort of obstacle to overcome/ a reason for the chimera move. Uncovering the journey of the chimera allowed me to decide how to proceed with the shape of the dance. Secondly, I scrapped my initial shape of 4-person chimera because it looked too symmetrical and reminded me of an actual animal; I wanted to develop something a little bit more far out. I had my four dancers pair up and make different multi headed beasts that could travel around the space. From there, I mixed and matched to find different permutations of 2 person beasts, which ultimately created the most exciting chimera shape. I feel that rehearsal was a success.

October 3, 2017

During this week’s rehearsal I came across the issue of how the chimera moves. Since I have made the beast out of two partner shapes, I struggled to find a way to make the chimera move as one animal versus it moving as two separate pieces. We experimented with moving sideways, backwards and forwards. Forwards seemed to be the most successful but I think it will take some more experimentation for it to really read as a single animal. I’m looking forward to my next rehearsal when I will start playing with how the beast turns on itself and what it means to have 4 different minds in the same “body” working with and against itself. I have found two descriptive phrases about the chimera that I love, “child of chaotic powers” and “infinite horizons of fantasy”. I want to continue to work with both of these ideas in mind to see where the chimera and its story will take me!

October 10, 2017

This week was exciting because the groove of the music really starts to come into play. The beginning of the song is a little more ambient/sets the tone for the piece but from this point in the music onwards, the trumpet plays with an interesting groove and really dictates where the dramatic shifts will happen. I still haven’t totally figured out how the chimera moves without it looking like two separate entities but hopefully that will come in time. We also experimented with how one of the heads shifts the group identity and the physical shape of the chimera. Taking inspiration from one of the descriptive phrases “child of chaotic powers” I think of both the 4-headed chimera and each one of the heads as a “child of chaotic powers”. Therefore it has both autonomous and connected thoughts/decisions. I look forward to developing this idea and seeing what journey it takes each of the heads on.

October 17, 2017

It’s amazing to work with the dancers creating interesting ways to attach to each other. For example, after Catherine turns on the group chimera, it breaks up into two animals built out of partners. At this point, I asked the dancers to create a double-headed animal that is more mobile. This was best accomplished when the dancers are not lifting each other’s weight completely but they are still attached somehow. Both sets of partners came up with totally different shapes, which affects how they can move and what the new personality of their animal could be. The partner shapes opened up new possibilities for simple movement patterns that are very effective by keeping cohesion while approaching the movement differently. Next to work on is what the difference is between each of the chimera “heads” in a double-headed animal. When are they having the same thoughts and when are they only within their own minds? I think by clarifying and exploring this, the piece will have more depth and the dancers will experience more of a journey.

October 24, 2017

This rehearsal started the development of the “fight” sequence. It is very difficult for me to create ways or ask the dancers to create ways to keep the momentum during the fight while staying attached to their partner. The attachments are physically restrictive and creating movements within these restrictions is a struggle. For example, Tasha and Shayne have their heads attached together during most of this sequence, so the movement options and ways to travel are limited. They have to be so aware of their connection and think as one dancer instead of two.

During this rehearsal, I was also finding it difficult to communicate to the dancers exactly how I wanted to attach the movement to the trumpet soloist. The trumpet plays these intricate rhythms that are very hard to count musically for me so I end up asking the dancers to listen to the music  (and/or my singing) and ask them if they can hit “that note” with “this movement”, which is an added challenge.

I also have to clarify why they are fighting and what the “child of chaotic powers” is thinking. What are their relationships towards one another? At what point are they thinking only of themselves or as the group mind? Why does Catherine decide to turn against the collective? These are all questions I need to have a clear answer for in order for my piece to say what I want it to say.

October 31, 2017

I have two rehearsals left and am feeling the pressure of time. This process is very quick and with that come both challenges and benefits. My preparation for each rehearsal is difficult as the dancers either work in pairs or as a group so far and creating material by myself doesn’t always turn out the way I’m hoping it will when in rehearsal attached to other bodies. I will often think a movement might work well or easily but then when put into motion, sometimes it won’t work and I will have to experiment with a new connection or movement. Sometimes not having too much time for a rehearsal process forces a choreographer to make decisions though, which I find relieving at times. Sometimes that decision can be solely based on your mood that day. Another day during a different rehearsal, I might have made a completely different decision.

After Kim came to watch the run through of the show and part of one of my rehearsals, she had some important Outside Eye questions for me. Sometimes as a choreographer you can’t see the full picture of the piece because in your mind, the story line and choices made are clear. But are they clear to the audience? Are the connections clear? Does the story line make sense? Or as a choreographer, are you making assumptions that people will understand the reason as to why the dancers are moving in certain ways. Currently, I am very excited to revisit some sections of my piece to change them to hopefully become more effective and clear.

November 7, 2017

This rehearsal I finished my piece! I set an ending for the dancers, which I am happy with, as well as edited some of my earlier movement. The edited section makes so much more sense as it adds clarity to both the character of the chimera and its journey.  There is still one section I am not completely happy with and am having a hard time fixing. As I mentioned in a previous post, sometimes I come across a challenge in having the dancers so physically connected at all times. During a climactic point in the music, the partnerships are all very close together spatially and the dancers are having difficulty maneuvering within the close quarters to accomplish the choreography (which means that it is bad choreography on my part). This takes away from a moment that the music has really been building towards and I am feeling a drop in the momentum of the piece when instead I should feel it continuing to build. Hopefully I will have enough time to revisit that moment this week.

Since we’re entering into our tech days, I am very excited to start working with our lighting designer Graham Frampton. In our first discussions together, he has some very exciting ideas regarding the use of moving lights to really set the tone of the piece. I can’t wait to see what sort of world we build together for the chimera. I am looking forward to opening this week and seeing how the dancers really explore our chimera and bring its story to life!