Dancing to Connect: Uganda, Day 2

Day 2 of teaching...oh, but before I get into that...
So, we were told that the dance jam that took place last night would be a very informal improv jam session. We arrived at the theater in time to see the kick off dance week performance....an evening of latin dance.  As we were exiting the theater, we were told that we would need to get into costume and get our cd to the sound guy.
We performed "She loves me.." outside, on concrete, at night, in between several poles not warmed up...and we did a damn fine job.
Today, I taught a group of about 15 children...some orphans and some from very poor families.
It was definitely work....but very fulfilling.
Then Sean and I taught a joint class at makarere  University.  The floor was covered in red dirt, I think blown in from the rain earlier in the day and everyone was filthy by the end.
We worked the students very very hard, but I think they liked it.
Tonight we treated ourselves to a fancy dinner...then try to put together the DTC piece that we began on Wed.  And tomorrow night is the show...
I can hear the crickets and frogs getting loud now...so that means its evening time in Uganda.

Getting Ready for Dancing to Connect 5th German Edition

 Two important meetings took place today that set the groundwork for the first Dancing to Connect project in Frankfurt.  At the end of the day, teachers gathered from the Otto Hahn, Ernst Reuter and Theodor Heuss schools to discuss the ways and means of organizing DTC workshops in June.  They were very enthusiastic and have groups of students already set!  Earlier in the morning, Jonathan met with a great team of masters degree students from the Hochschule, organized by Kurt Koegel, an expat American who runs the program.  The goal is to guarantee the sustainability of DTC in Germany by incorporating German teachers into the program this summer. Early indications are that this group in Frankfurt will bring strong backgrounds and interest to the project!

BDC on Two Continents: Europe and Africa

From Jonathan in Frankfurt:  Having arrived at mid-day on Sunday, I met up with Kirsten Gerstner, Cultural Affairs Specialist at the U.S. Consulate General in Frankfurt, BDC's friend and advocate since 2005, for a debriefing on my program here.  We headed over to the Gallus Theater to pick up our tickets for the ZuKT_Wintertanzprojekt 2010 and then met up with Dorsey Bushnell, Assistant to William Forsythe, for supper at a Turkish Restaurant and an intensive sharing of knowledge and experiences regarding dance, outreach to youth and seniors.  Then it was time for the show.  We joined the packed audience to see students from the Hochschule fuer Musik und Darstellende Kunst Frankfurt am Main perform several pieces, highlighted by two outstanding performances of excerpts from works by William Forsythe (dance God of Frankfurt!).
Ramon John, the male dancer who performed a solo from "In the Middle, Somewhat Elevated", was absolutely incredible:  tall, thin, elastic body, perfect pirouettes that he threw away so casually that they seemed as effortless as any other step, terrific rhythm:  WOW.  And then there was a gorgeous duet from "The Loss of Small Detail" -- Ye Jin Kwon and Robin Rohmann --  both very young and unaffected, she with a very unusual full-body engagement with the movement, he very subtle, supporting her in amazing lifts as if it were all second nature.  I left regretfully at the end of the first act, victim of jet lag.

Meanwhile in Africa, Robin and Sean begin their program in Uganda.  We wait anxiously for reports, while the www is full of sublime reviews of their performances in Algiers and Oran last week.  

First Performance in Algeria -- Oran

Our day off was spent on Good Morning Algeria...as I'm sure you've seen by now....followed by a day trip to Tipaza to see the Roman ruins. They were amazing!
In the evening we were taken to what we were told would be a contemporary dance performance but was a pop concert instead:  We tried to picture you there!
Yesterday we took a very early flight to Oran for performance number one. We gave ourselves 3 hours to prepare at the theater.... But it wasn't enough. We really really needed Barry! We weren't even able to warm up. I really had to crack the whip to get what I wanted our of the tech crew. Amazingly, the show went well! Only a few technical glitches that should be smoothed out tonight. Even the projection worked. (-although it played backwards) The students performed like absolute pros. They really pulled it together... And the evening culminated in a standing ovation. Great responses from the audience after. They told us they had never seen anything like this. They can't wait for more.
So tonight... The big show in Algiers.
-Robin

Dance Diplomacy on the Airwaves in Algeria

Robin and Sean hit the t.v. news in a big way in Algeria today:   

Check out this clip from today’s Bonjour D’Algerie (national morning news show in Algeria):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b139uTLRAzw

Algeria Update from Robin

Today was the last day of workshops, and my piece is finished....

Barely!

We were interrupted mid day by a press conference, and a camera crew and interview at day's end.
Everyone asks pretty much the same question: what style of dance will you be presenting?
I've learned that it's almost useless to answer since "modern" or "contemporary" seem to mean completely different things depending on what part of the world you're coming from.
Tomorrow we have a much needed day off... But only after we appear on Good Morning Algeria!
We've decided to go with "Moonbeam", "Body Morphic" and "She Loves Me" for our repertoire here. The director was not enthusiastic about our minimal costuming for "Black and White". In fact, he offered to let Sean wear traditional Algerian garb for the piece. Sean respectfully declined.

Sean's workshop - finding a happy medium between hip hop and folk dance!

Sean reported:
Sunday went well!  I had a great time with my group. I had 15 adults in my workshop (none of whom speak English.) Half guys, half women. The guys were breakers but some of them had ballet and jazz training  (surprise) The women are all folk dancers with some ballet. We had a good time together and I hope all of them come back tomorrow. One of the women spoke to me through Fatma from the Embassy Public Affairs Section who was acting as translator. She said that she was scared at first because none of the girls had taken hip hop before and looking at the guys in the beginning flipping around and doing all of these crazy tricks, she thought that it was going to be like that throughout the whole day.  But I was able to encourage the guys to explore beyond their breaking habit and now we have what looks like a modern/contemporary piece so far. So everyone can join in!

Algeria, Day 3

Robin reports:  I had a conversation with one of the dancers yesterday. He told me that he aims very high, but often in this environment, the higher you reach, the more likely someone will be there to knock you down. My group agreed that this was an interesting theme for a dance  piece. They were very excited to get to work on it today. They threw in lots of emotion. I'm proud. We finish up tomorrow. Wish us luck.

Farid is the featured dancer in the second photo. He is exceptional!

Dancing to Connect: ALGERIA!

Robin and Sean arrived in Algiers on Saturday and work started on Sunday.  They are already into the thick of the Dancing to Connect project with two different groups of dancers.  This is BDC's first time back in North Africa after our phenomenal experience back in 2004.

From the photos that Robin sent over today, it looks as if the work is going beautifully.  More soon!

Summing it all up: Dancing to Connect in Ghana

This is a last program note before I do the official reporting in the State Department system.  Thank you, again, for making available to us an absolutely wonderful program with Sean Scantlebury and Robin Cantrell.  They achieved a tremendous body  of work during their short stay, and they touched many lives to inspire and encourage dancers, teachers and supporters of dance. They had a very high caliber of dancers overall to work with, which made possible the rather astounding achievement of practically a new dance a day culminate in flawless performances yesterday.  With only one quick run-through yesterday morning (including lighting and sound),  the performance went as smoothly as if it had been months in planning.  This is a tribute to everyone involved.  The result—a perfect cultural exchange program.  Everyone participating was very happy, there were some life-changing moments for some, and, hopefully, some new collaborations were created.  

Again, this was a wonderful collaboration between Battery Dance, ARS/Paris, PAS Accra and the University of Ghana at Legon, whose brilliant, dedicated leader, Prof. Oh!Nii Kwei Sowah, brought together Ghana’s key dance companies in a first-time ever collaboration. 

All the best,

Ellen Irvine

Cultural Affairs Officer

Updates from Africa!

Sean and Robin have just finished up a whirlwind week of programs in Ghana--check out a few photos below!

Dancing to Connect students performing in Accra, Ghana

Dancing to Connect Review

Yesterday's performance of the 2 Dancing to Connect groups went very well. Your TA's did a wonderful job with 2 very different groups. Even though Sharon's dancers are beginners I thought they showed up very well AS dancers. Each one tried to put her whole body behind a gesture and dared to really GO to the floor whenever the choreography called for it. I could see that the Gramercy Arts kids were not necessarily performing arts majors and that their abilities were best used in the stop-motion tableaux at the start of the dance. But then individual movers would stand out: the 2 tall boys who could jump like deer and Chris Rivas' running and somersaulting hand in hand with an amazing girl wearing black leotard and tights.

I was reminded, watching these groups of well-rehearsed kids, of the dance intensive that Jaan Freeman (former BDC teaching artist) did with my George Washington HS dancers years ago. The week-long dance intensive draws the kids in very powerfully and the quality of their performance is far beyond what anyone is usually expecting. Suzanne remarked to me afterwards that the dances were alike in their serious and upsetting subject matter, that the kids were dealing with some hard things in their lives. And it's Battery Dance that gives them an outlet.
                            
                             In admiration,
                              Leslie Zema

Ghana Day 6: We swallow dance, because chewing takes too long

Today we hit the Noyam African Dance Institute.

It's located up in the mountains, way out of town....and we got pretty lost trying to get there.

We ended up driving basically through people's yards, surrounded by goats and chickens. It was a really interesting way to see a real village up close.

Their space is really lovely -- sort of looks like a giant yurt. 

We were told that it's the only privately run modern dance company in Ghana. Professor Yarty is the director.Actually, we also found out that a handful of students (including Jackson) who were involved in the university workshop don't go to the university at all. They are members of the Noyam company who are so hungry for dance that they requested to participate in both sessions. as they put it "We swallow dance, because chewing takes too long"

 

They performed for us. It was such a great melding of African and modern dance. They are really exceptional. It would be amazing if we could figure out a way to get them to NY....maybe to perform in the Downtown Dance Festival.

 

We managed to put together a 6 min. piece in about 2 hours. Amazing! This one is to jazz music.

Then we had lunch which ran way over time as it usually does. Now I really understand what African time is. 

And after that, we worked with the little ones.

Tiny adorable little Ghanaians, age 9 to 15.

They haven't been dancing long, so the Noyam members came to the rescue to help with exercises.

We couldn't have done it without them.

The little ones performed.

The company members performed -- a fantastic piece! (with no music, since the power had gone out)

Then we ate sugar cane and coconut.

Probably the best day yet.

 

Ghana Day 4

Today we sat through a grueling traffic jam before arriving at the National Theater. Once there, we were greeted with another high energy performance....this time with costumes and props.It was fantastic!

After I taught a master class, we picked about half of the dancers from the National Dance Theatre and put their piece together   They were much more focused, and came up with something pretty fantastic in about 30min. The piece is about 5 min. long and lovely. So, yeah...we just have to do that 3 more times, and we're good to go.We also hit the market today. It was totally overwhelming!

Sean needed a nap after. Phew!  Robin

Ghana - Day 3

Today we visited Cape Coast with Mr. Quay.....a castle where slaves from all over Africa were held (in unbelievably horrid conditions) before being shipped to the U.S.  We also visited Kakum Rain Forest where we walked a precarious suspension bridge over the forest canopy.A great day!  Robin

Day Two - from Robin and Sean's Dancing to Connect in Accra

Today we put the student piece together. It's kind of hard to believe but it's about 13min. long.
What they've made in 2 days is really impressive. I believe it's not quite like anything they've ever done before. We showed it to the professors, and everyone seemed pleased....but critical of the dancers. They work them very hard and expect perfection. I'm amazed that Sean and I pulled it off!  So tomorrow we relax and visit Cape Coast and go walking on the forrest canopy. The pictures I'm enclosing are of the dance room where we've been rehearsing at the University, and Jackson (not sure of the spelling), one of the best dancers in the group. They call the piece Mozozo. It means "The Journey" in Ghanaian.
In it, they trace the history of Ghana through the colors of the flag.
Red=bloodshead for independence
gold=mineral wealth
green=rich forests
black= the star, african power
They served us a really authentic African lunch. I ate kenkey (cornmeal) with my fingers and dipped it in various spicy things.

Battery Dance Company Across the River (Hudson, that is!)

Last week, a new relationship was forged between BDC and MCCC - Mercer County Community College in New Jersey.  BDC Teaching Artists Bafana Matea and Mayuna Shimizu led a combined group of college and performing arts high school students in an abridged 3-day Dancing to Connect workshop.  What resulted was anything but abridged:  an 8 minute original dance piece that highlighted the skills, talents and creativity of the students themselves.  Follow this link for a full report:  http://www.mccc.edu/~humphrew/whatsnew/BDCperformance.htm

Follow Robin and Sean as they Dance to Connect in Ghana

Update to date from Robin Cantrell:

Today was our first full day of teaching.

The students are absolutely amazing. We packed almost a weeks worth of material into one day since we only have 2 1/2 days to work with them.There are over 30 students....mostly in their late teens and early twenties. Lots of guys.They're extremely focused and well behaved....and they LOVE TO DANCE. After a 4-hour morning in 90 degree weather, most of them danced through their lunch break.

The professors are all very supportive and kind, and Ellen is helpful and lovely.

We had a meeting with the teachers, and discovered that the're expecting a dance performance with new material from all 4 groups.....but don't mind if it's extremely informal.

Sean and I have decided to do uber-mini dancing to connects at 3 other locations next week, and let the students present what they come up with in one day.

If they work as well as the kids we had today, then it could be quite a bit.

I tried to transfer some pics from my camera to this computer in the business center, but it's too old to deal with it, so I'll try on Sean's later tonight.

It's very very hot and humid....everyone (especially Sean) was sweaty and filthy by the end of the day.

but the atmosphere is so positive.

We're having a great time so far.

Ghana meets Battery Dance Company

BDC Teaching Artists Robin Cantrell and Sean Scantlebury touched down in Accra yesterday and from Ellen Irvine, Cultural Affairs Officer at the U.S. Embassy in Ghana, we received this report: Their flight arrived on time this morning.  We went directly to their hotel, dropped them to rest, then back at 2:00 p.m. to go to the University, where the faculty and members of the Ghana Dance Ensemble and senior students (40-or so) were assembled to meet them.  Following introductions, there was a high-energy welcome performance (Sean and Robin were pulled in at the end and did well despite fatigue from not having slept during the flight).  Following that, we moved to the Department Head’s office to meet the Director of the School of Performing Arts and to review the program plan with faculty members.   Robin and Sean were back at the hotel by 4:30.   Everyone very satisfied and happy and ready to begin tomorrow morning.
Stay tuned for more!  

DTC Sneak Preview!

Washington Irving and Gramercy Arts High School students performed two stunning pieces on Friday, January 29, the culmination of their week-long Dancing to Connect workshop, generously sponsored by Con Edison.  They'll be performing their work for fellow students and members of the community on three separate occasions this month.  Tues.  Feb 9th  -Spring Semester Celebration at 1:00pm   and 1:55pm;  Thurs. Feb 25th (Black History Month Celebration)  1:00pm and 1:55pm and  Friday, Feb 26th  (Gramercy Arts Dance Concert)  6:00pm.  All of the performances take place in the Washington Irving HS auditorium, Irving Place between 16th & 17th Streets (enter through the left-most red door in front of the building).  Identify yourself with Battery Dance Company.  Admission is free!