Monday, July 18, 2011
More Photos of Lucy and the Dancers
Hi. This is Lucy's Dad again. I will be posting some more pictures here, in no particular order. If I have time I will go back to the facebook album and capture some of the captions too.
up in the trees
Adventures under African Skies
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
Bongi
Woo-hoo. Lucy and I just skyped and I got to see her and talk to her for the first time in what seems like forever. She sent me this picture of Bongi, one of the boys in her workshop, who apparently took a while to warm up to the idea of dancing with the Americans.
In PE
Saturday, July 9, 2011
What an amazing show!!!
I would never have been able to foresee the huge abilities that these kids are capable of. Yesterday they had their show…a full evening production of individual pieces for each level; group dances choreographed by the teachers, choreography workshop, and repertory by the well known choreographers Mark Morris. Not only did all these kids learn and memorize everything they had to do, but for the show they all rose to the challenge and performed beautifully!
I’ll need a little more time before I describe the process of working with the yellow group. At first some of them were hesitant or timid, and I think disappointed that my “Caterpillar” piece wasn’t classical ballet movement (most of them love ballet.) I think some were hesitant of adults because they wouldn’t make eye contact with me, and didn’t want to answer questions. This all changed when I taught their class, and I began to see their motivation come alive. I am so proud at how they tackled the difficult John Adams music, and how they wound up counting some sections out loud, as a group. They looked like they really enjoyed dancing for an audience.
I’m rushing because we have another show today and I still need to eat breakfast and shower. I just wanted to describe that it hit me last night that I will be leaving after today, and that I won’t get to see these beautiful kid’s shining faces again, probably for a long time. I think about the connections I’ve made to so many of them: Bongi, Tasneem, Nosipiwe, Nuruneesa, Akosa, Odwa, Lwando, Phatiswa, and so many more….and a sadness washes over me and I cry on the spot. I have never been so sad to leave somewhere in my life. I think this is a sign that I’ll need to make an effort to come back as soon as possible. It means something profound for me to be in this place, and I’ll need time to figure out exactly what that means. For now, I have loved being here, working with these beautiful talented people, and I hope that I can return before too long.
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Photos from Cape Town
Hello everyone. This is Lucy's Dad. Lucy asked me to download some of her Facebook photos from South Africa into my computer, and then upload them again onto the blog as a separate entry, so that you can all look at them here. We don't want the wide exposure of Facebook, and yet we want the excellent photos for Lucy's friends to see. You can get a kind of caption for each photo by looking at the file name. So, here goes:
Putting the Pieces Together
Yesterday was a pretty incredible day. After meeting with each group once or twice over the last two weeks, we had an hour and fifteen minutes to put the pieces together, help each group decide how they wanted to end their piece, and get all of the groups’ dances to fit within the music they had chosen. I had been looking forward to this day since getting here, but was nervous to see if everything could actually come together.
We never could have done it without the other teachers. With two of us working with each group, we all led the dancers through the layout of their piece, helped them clarify and connect sections, and helped them fit their piece into the music. I had only worked with the green group, the youngest kids, one time, so I spent the majority of the time helping them put their piece together. Marty also came to the studio and took photos during this time, so I do have some amazing ones to share with you.
The process wasn’t without it’s fair share of drama. Some of the older dancers would get in arguments and refuse to work together. The middle group disagreed on music…half wanted salsa and the other half wanted lyrical. The youngest group kept changing their choreography and even wanted to switch music right before they presented. As long as I kept some basic guidelines in order: you have to stay in your groups, you have to keep the music you originally picked, you can dance however you want to but everybody has to participate…each group came up with an amazing piece.
After 45 minutes of this work, believe it or not, they were ready to present their dances. Even though the show isn’t until Friday, I wanted all of the groups to see each other dance, so that they could see that they were all a part of this amazing creative process. So, the youngest group led the way, and they all showed their pieces to each other. You have never heard a supportive crowd until you have seen African kids watch each other dance. They were cheering, clapping, and hooting for each other, and it was very exciting.
I had explained that this was just a rehearsal, but was important because they needed to see that their creations were just as substantial as everything else in the show on Friday. I think they were pretty overwhelmed by the opportunity to express themselves as a group. When I told them what a great job they had done, they cheered and howled around me like you wouldn’t believe. It really was a fun day.
In a very quick contrast, I led the cool down on this day. I had selected really beautiful music, from Slumdog Millionaire, another movie called War Dance, and the beautiful pas de deux from Chris Wheeldon’s “After the Rain.” I led the whole room through half an hour of stretching and my favorite yoga practices…mainly breathing exercises. The whole room was quiet, listening to their breath, and it was very calming compared to the hour before. I ended by massaging the neck and head of each dancer who wanted to be touched (the ones who didn’t put their hand on their heart.) The physical contact was something that none of the other teachers had tried in the cool downs. I think it was a nice way to end the day, but I guess you’d have to ask the kids if you wanted to know for sure.
Today we finalized everything for the show tomorrow. I’ll tell you about my piece for the yellows, and about how everything goes, once we get on with it.
new kind of 4th of July
Monday, July 4th, was a big day for me. I went with Olivia into Khayalische to teach a ballet class in an old run down class room. There were about 12 boys and 3 girls, all about 8 years old. They stripped out of their pants and put their holy tights right over their underwear, proudly standing, ready for their class. I led them through a ballet warmup on the cold concrete floor, and showed them how to do some fun ballet jumps. Then Olivia helped them remember the dance they had been working on for our end-of-session show, and I taught them the new section. I was so amazed at how interested they were in learning ballet, and how they paid such close attention to what I was doing. They had such an enthusiasm for moving their bodies, especially getting to jump and run in their class room!
I went back to the Dance For All studio but with an opened heart. The kids who get to work in this beautiful facility are really just a lucky few of the many who learn ballet through Dance for All. The far greater majority of kids in the townships don’t get to do anything of the kind. I feel such an appreciation for this gift that I have been given, to dance and express myself with my body, and to get to teach this to other people.
I am determined that outreach will be a big part of my life forever. There are so many kids, all over the world, who I know would rise to the occasion if ever given the chance to dance. If I can ever see the smiles again that I got to experience on Monday morning, I will always be a happy and fulfilled person.
I've had a few conversations with the other LEAP teachers, and the year round teachers, in an effort to learn from their experience teaching the kids at Dance for All. Sometimes it's really defeating to think that many of the kids didn't eat breakfast, or go home to abusive families, or don't even have a family at all. Many of the kids won't ever be professional dancers, and most of them will never leave their township lives. It seems that what keeps everyone going is to remember to be empathetic and not sympathetic. I am uplifted when I think what an amazing blessing it is for anyone to be able to have an outlet for expression. I will never forget the people who encouraged my passion to dance, and I hope that these kids will always be happy when they think about dancing.
I hope I get more of a chance to discuss this, but a handful of the kids are hugely talented and have incredible potential, even to become professionals. A few of the older ones, one boy in particular, would be best in a contemporary company. Some of the younger ones could be ballet dancers if they had the right training, and kept up the motivation to work for it. We are discussing the possibility of encouraging a few of these kids to come to the states next summer to do some kind of summer program where some of us could house them or be their mentors. This is a huge undertaking...these kids need visas, and some don't even have birth certificates. If they wanted to, I think it could be so cool to help make this opportunity possible.
We celebrated 4th of July at Mama Africa, an African restaurant in downtown Cape Town. I ate crocodile, kudu, and springbok! Mark Baird, the director of LEAP, came to support us for our last week, and it was great to welcome him.
Rugby, penguins, and weekend fun
On Saturday Marty and Hilton took me to a rugby match, the Stormers (South Africa) vs. the Crusaders (New Zealand.) Before the game we went to a beer garden outside a brewery where I tried Castle lager. We had time to take a drive, and even though it was cloudy, the coastline is so incredibly beautiful that it still looked nice. We also went to Rose Memorial, near the University of Cape Town on the way up Table Mountain, where we had tea and scones looking over the City.
At the game, I finally got to have a borevors roll (2 actually,) and the game was fantastic. Well, let me rephrase. Even though it rained, the stadium was completely packed, and it was fun to watch the game. It was definitely the South African thing to do that day. In fact, I was thrilled because it was the first time since being here that I really got a glimpse of the “rainbow nation.” All races and ages were sitting together in my section rooting for the Stormers. Even when they started losing, the feeling of defeat and disappointment came over everyone as a group. After we lost, we all rose together and solemnly trudged to the pub, where we drank a beer practically in silence.
We saw more of the cape on Sunday, and it was a much nicer day for sight seeing. Hilt drove us all along the coast, to see the penguins on the rocks by the ocean (who were avoiding the great whites.) We also stopped by an ostrich farm, and kept an eye out in the coast towns for baboons (but didn’t see any, unfortunately.) Some of the beaches were completely beautiful, with houses right near the water. I have some amazing pictures if I could ever load any of them on our geriatric internet. We ended the day at Halk bay, where I had the best fish and chips of my life “27 secons fresh," as Hilt joked.) I couldn’t stop saying that I’m pretty sure I can never have fish and chips again because it was so amazing that I know it can never be that good again.
Sunday night two board members had the whole LEAP faculty to their home for dinner. They gave us a traditional South African meal with a roast, potatos, salad, and merangue and trifle for dessert. It was nice to get to know people who support Dance for All on a regular basis. They really believe in the program and the opportunities it provides for its students. These people are so gracious to have us at the school. I felt a little out of the loop at the dinner because the LEAP people had been sight seeing all weekend together, and I wasn't involved. But, I think it was also good to have a break from the intensity of the program. It was nice to meet again on Sunday night, catch up, and swap stories. With the amazement of week one settled in, we prepared ourselves for the second week to come.
End of Week 1, Through July 1
I met with the yellows on Wednesday and the green, youngest level on Thursday. I was so amazed that each of the three groups, ranging in age from 8 years old to 19, responded to the layout, guidelines, and open-endedness of the choreography workshop. There was never a lack of creativity or ideas…Some of the young teenagers who prefer to dance ballet were not thrilled to do contemporary, but I explained that even doing ballet was fine. Each kid could literally do whatever he or she wanted. In the first hour and fifteen minutes for each group, they created a phrase, tweaked it with levels and directional changes, and played with order and dynamics. Each time I ran the workshop, I learned new things to help the process along. Music has to be picked in the first five minutes, and once it’s been decided, it can’t be changed. When the groups congregate to show their tweaked phrases, they should show the original phrase first in order to keep track of what they’ve done. Overall, it was an exciting and rewarding process every time.
Watching Alejandro and Olivia stage Petit Mort has been so inspiring and amazing. These two amazing dancers come from different companies, ABT/Hubbard Street Chicago and Smuin Ballet in San Francisco. They’ve never met, but they have such an attachment and appreciation for the experience of learning this amazing Kilian ballet that they each sing the movement through their bodies. It is as if the choreography, and the Mozart music, was written for their bodies to express it. These two people, who have never met before this program, get together to teach this incredible piece, and when they dance the duets together, it’s as if they’ve known each other their whole lives. Alejandro is soft spoken and kind, and Olivia is sweet and genuine. All of the Reds respond to their connection too. They have instilled such an appreciation for the piece. The foils, or swords that the men use, symbolize nobility, power, sensuality, and masculinity. They are used in such a way that they are an extension of the mens bodies, that connect them to the music, and to the women. When I watch the boys work with the foils, I see how Alejandro and Olivia’s work is paying off. You could hear a pin drop in that studio, and the boys pay such a close attention to each detail; they have such a respect for the movement.
Through watching these rehearsals, and taking class with this oldest level, I have learned all their names and had a chance to get to know them. I am so amazed at the raw talent, natural rhythem, and hunger for movement that these people, especially the boys, have. Odwa is my favorite, with his gorgeous face, intense eyes, and long expressive arms. The one photo I have managed to post on my idisk folder is of Odwa and his partner Setu. I am always so impressed with how he makes each movement a whole body experience, and he commits to everything that he does. Even for an 18 year old, his is a very mature way of working.
Phatiswa is the most outgoing girl. She helped me learn all the others names, and taught me the African warmup that we saw the students dance on the first day. She told me about the amazing delicacy at her home of eating sheeps head, and described exactly how it’s prepared. She told me that she loves meeting new people, and she wanted to know all about my life back home, and how long I’ve been dancing, etc.
Well, that about sums up week one. Last weekend and this week to come!!
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Letter from a parent
I would like to thank your dance company about the voucher I received last
night from my daughter, I appreciate with all my heart and I also want to
thank the eight dance teachers that visited the DFA for keeping our children
busy during these school holidays, when im at work im stress free because I
don't have to worry thinking about my child if she is safe or not? I know
that she is in the safe place at DFA doing what she like and that is
dancing, again I say thanks to you Claire Sheridan,Kristine Elliot,
Garen Scribner,Lucy van Cleef,Olivia Ramsay,David Tamaki,Annie Lolbeck and
Aljandro Piris Nino not forgetting the Principal of Dance For All Phillip
Boyd,phillip you must always know that what you are doing for our kids is
Ayoba,Ooh how can I forget my friend the coordinator of Dance For all Hope
Nongqongqo thanks guys thanks very much though I fight with Thembisa because
her school work is behind please also encourage them to study as much as I
like her to continue dancing I also want her to concentrate at school,to her
its all about dancing she is neglecting her books,and to Margie Sims thanks
Thembisa's teacher I got the dvd your good work is appreciated Margie please
speak to your student Thembisa explain to her if she doesn't have matric she
cant go overseas to dance there as she is always telling me that she will be
a professional dancer and dance overseas,I think that will motivate her to
concentrate on her school work.Lets help eachother in grooming these
children.