Vienna Diary

By Julie McLachlan


I planned my trip to Vienna not really knowing what to expect at ImpulsTanz. All I knew was that this was an incredible chance to push myself outside of my very comfy comfort zone and be thrown into a foreign culture and a new dance community.

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Since graduating from York University I have collaborated with other dance artists to present work in the Toronto Fringe Festival and Fresh Blood. I currently work as a dance teacher specializing in teaching young dancers gymnastics and acrobatic skills. And I continue to train and work as an emerging dance performer and choreographer in Toronto. Being out of school for almost three years now, I have found it hard to maintain the balance between my working life and my dance life. Too many times I have put my dance life on the back burner while my work life becomes the main priority. I knew I needed a break to immerse myself full time into a dance environment where I could be challenged technically and stimulated creatively and artistically. I could have done an intensive workshop closer to home to achieve this but I wanted to get myself as far away from familiar territory as possible.

Many Canadian dancers flock to ImpulsTanz every summer because there is no festival in North America that has the number of internationally renowned teachers, dance companies and dance artists congregating for five intensive weeks. In that time, there are multiple performances daily, ImpulsTanz parties every night, discussions, seminars and unique workshops covering all areas of dance. ImpulsTanz offers something unique for every single dancer regardless of level, age and ability. The festival gives Canadian dancers a chance to network with other artists from all over the world, be introduced to amazing dance companies and choreographers and gain knowledge of dance outside North America. In my short stay in Vienna, I made life-long friends and refreshed my vision of who I am as an artist, performer and teacher. Even so, I only got a taste of what ImpulsTanz has to offer.

Julie with Hannah Simmons from Boston and Becky Sawdon from Winnipeg

Since I had planned this trip so far in advance, it felt almost like a dream when I first arrived in Vienna. My host made me feel right at home when he greeted me at the arrival gate holding a sign with my name in large bold letters. He then took me on a very comprehensive car tour of the city followed by a classic Viennese dinner. Living with locals is by far the best way to truly experience a new city and grasp the culture. The generosity of my Viennese hosts and their friends was incredible. I didn’t come empty handed. I brought them a gift of good old Canadian maple syrup along with a Canadian mug! A bit clichéd I know, but they actually seemed excited about the maple syrup. During my first three days in Vienna, I settled into my new room (a couch in the living room), got to know my two Austrian roommates, and was a tourist in Vienna before the craziness of ImpulsTanz began.

On the Sunday before the workshops, there were opening speeches where all the teachers of the first week gave a brief description of their courses. As soon as I arrived at the Arsenal (ImpulsTanz headquarters), I could feel a buzz in the air and a ball of excitement/nerves in the pit of my stomach. It felt like first-day-of-school nerves. I arrived early to pick up my workshop package and explore the venue. There are ten studios in total, each immensely spacious with angled floor-to-ceiling windows where the sunlight pours in. Walking from studio to studio I was just itching to get started! The opening speeches were very interesting, informative and a great introduction to ImpulsTanz. It was very inspiring to see a room full of artists all there for the same reason – to celebrate the joy of movement. Young/old, professional/beginner, able/disabled - ImpulsTanz offers workshops for everyone with absolutely no barriers. With 100 performances from over fifty artists and companies showcasing their newest works, 214 workshops from more than 100 teachers excited to share their knowledge, and more than 3000 students coming from all over the world, ImpulsTanz is one of the largest dance festivals in Europe. Just sitting in the studio listening to the speeches, I was overwhelmed by the thought of how much there is to see and do in this festival. I did not want to miss anything during my short stay in Vienna.


My first week of workshops was a complete whirlwind! I found out quickly how overly ambitious I was signing up for three two-hour workshops back to back, leaving little to no breaks in-between. That week I literally ate, slept and danced! But that was what I came all the way to ImpulsTanz for so I had to pull my big girl socks up and attack each workshop as best I could. My morning class was called “Rock ’n’ Roll Ballet” and was taught by Elizabeth Ward. It was a fun twist on classical ballet as we did barre to unconventional music, improvised using ballet vocabulary, and touched on some human anatomy and tension release exercises. This class wasn’t too intense but was the perfect way to get my body moving and ready for my other two workshops. My second workshop was by far the most intense, the most challenging physically and mentally, and yet the most rewarding. Taught by Laura Aris, this workshop covered partnering tools related to dance vocabulary used by Wim Vendekeybus’ Ultima Vez. Aris always began the class with basic partnering exercises and games that encouraged us to trust, communicate with, and eventually take more risks with our partners. We then quickly moved on to learn long combinations. These made the class feel more like a repertory than a technique class. These long combinations were very intricate and physically demanding yet full of underlining meanings and supported by passionate music such as “Hearts a Mess” by Gotye. In every class we spent at least forty-five minutes truly dancing and performing these beautiful phrases of movement. While the movement was a lot of fun to dance, it didn’t come without its price. This class was the main cause of all my bumps, bruises and extremely sore muscles! I repeatedly walked into my partnering class not sure how I was going to survive it but always left with such a sense of accomplishment. After quickly re-nourishing my body with the delicious food offered at the ImpulsTanz Arsenal, I was off to my third and last workshop of the day, “Get Down!” taught by New Zealand–born dancer, teacher and choreographer Susanne Bentley. In this workshop we learned how to move at ground level by being able to absorb the floor with every aspect of our bodies. Moving on the floor felt very unnatural to me and, like my second workshop, it was sometimes a challenge to push through the class as new bruises and floor burns appeared every day. I had many “ah ha” moments though. Bentley was so wonderful at breaking down every movement that eventually, as the week progressed, moving on the floor became just a little easier. My first week was an overload of so many new ideas and concepts that, by the end of each day, I was tired not only physically but mentally as well.

A place to lounge between classes at ImpulsTanz

I quickly realized that just one week at ImpulsTanz was not enough time for me. So I arranged to come back to Vienna after two weeks in Spain in order to attend the last week of the festival. Luckily, my hosts weren’t completely sick of me and once again allowed me to take over their living room. In such a short time, Vienna had become like my European home base so when I arrived back from Spain, it felt like coming home from a vacation. When picking my workshops for the last week, I decided to have a calmer week and only chose two workshops, “Release Technique” taught by Brussels-based Angelique Wilkie and Limón technique taught by Juilliard faculty member Risa Steinberg, a former Limón company dancer herself. This choice allowed me more time to observe the other workshops at the Arsenal, attend some of the ImpulsTanz performances, and be able to connect with other dancers at the ImpulsTanz café while sipping on a Mélange (a proper Viennese coffee with milk). In my “Release Technique” class, we worked on moving through space as organically as possible, by using our weight and our relationship with the floor and by executing each movement with minimal muscular effort. Each exercise was the combination of freedom of movement and focussing on shaping the space with our bodies to execute each movement with power and intention. Similar to “Release Technique”, Limón technique is all about weight and suspension. I was very comfortable and familiar with it (having studied Limón at York) so could dive even deeper into each exercise. Risa Steinberg made an effort to memorize every single student’s name and to connect personally with each and every student. Obsessed with proper technique, Steinberg stressed the importance of dancing in a healthy, safe way in order to dance more efficiently while preventing injury.

Photo by Pascal Clavette

My experience at ImpulsTanz was amazing, inspiring, and exceeded my imagination. It felt so good to return to a lifestyle of living and breathing dance all day every day. I did my best to soak up every experience on offer at ImpulsTanz, from the beautiful venue to the wonderful friends I’ve made to the passionate teachers who wanted to share their tools and secrets. I’m already brainstorming a way to attend ImpulsTanz next summer, this time for the entire five weeks. I’m returning to Toronto a more open-minded dancer with a love and passion for dance that will never stop growing and deepening.

Learn more >> impulstanz.de

Julie McLachlan is a Toronto-based dance performer, choreographer and dance instructor with a BFA in dance from York University. She has had the privilege of performing for Stand Up Dance, Le Groupe Apogee and Pastel Supernova in such festivals as Nuit Blanche and Dance Ontario Weekend. Julie has presented choreography in The Chimema Project’s Fresh Blood and The Toronto Fringe Festival. As a retired competitive gymnast, Julie is also a certified gymnastics coach and specializes in teaching young dancers acrobatic skills.

Photo by Fran Band

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Feature: The Great Video Game Dance Off

Could video dance games change the way we move?
By Lys Stevens

Summary | Sommaire


Dance video (known as “rhythm”) games have experienced an exponential growth ever since Dance Dance Revolution hit video arcades at the end of the last century.

Le jeu vidéo de danse (ou de rythme) connaît une croissance exponentielle depuis que Dance Dance Revolution est introduit dans les arcades à la fin du dernier siècle.

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Dance video (known as “rhythm”) games have experienced an exponential growth ever since Dance Dance Revolution hit video arcades at the end of the last century. Here game-controls shifted from the hands to the feet, thereby lifting gamers off their butts and into movement. The rhythm game market continues to expand, thanks in a large part to danced-based games such as Just Dance and Dance Central, more recently incorporating the use of camera-based controls such as Kinect. Kinect has potentially powerful repercussions on the world of dance even beyond the gaming community. The system captures, processes and digitally reproduces movement in real time, making it possible for the computer to evaluate how accurately the body meets its spatial and rhythmic goal. No more need for a touch-responsive controller: the player is the joystick. Writer Lys Stevens explores the ramifications of this popular new virtual technology on the real world of dance.


Le jeu vidéo de danse (ou de rythme) connaît une croissance exponentielle depuis que Dance Dance Revolution est introduit dans les arcades à la fin du dernier siècle. Ici, les contrôles du jeu passent des mains aux pieds ; le joueur sort de son fauteuil et commence à bouger. Le marché du jeu de rythme continue à prendre de l’ampleur, en grande partie grâce aux jeux de danse tels que Just Dance et Dance Central et, dernièrement, aux contrôles caméras comme Kinect. Il est possible que Kinect ait des répercussions sérieuses dans le milieu de la danse au-delà de la communauté du jeu vidéo. Le système capte, lit et reproduit le mouvement en temps réel. L’ordinateur peut évaluer avec quel succès le corps vivant exécute des objectifs spatiaux et rythmiques. Nul besoin d’une manette sensible au toucher : le joueur devient la manette. La rédactrice Lys Stevens explore les ramifications de cette nouvelle technologie populaire virtuelle dans le monde réel de la danse.



Read the full article in the September/October 2012 issue of The Dance Current print magazine. | Lisez l'article intégral dans l’édition imprimée de septembre/octobre 2012 du Dance Current.

In Conversation: Julia Sasso and Eve Egoyan

Summary | Sommaire

Irvin Chow, Susan Lee and Jesse Dell in SLoE by Julia Sasso / Photo by John Lauener

SLoE pays tribute to the late Ann Southam who wrote the piano score with Egoyan in mind and then invited Sasso to make a dance to it.

SLoE est un hommage à feue Ann Southam qui a composé la partition piano pour Egoyan, et qui a ensuite invité Sasso à créer une danse sur la musique.

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On September 27th, Julia Sasso Dances, in association with Harbourfront Centre, will present the world premiere of SLoE – Simple Lines of Enquiry, running until September 30th at the Enwave Theatre at Harbourfront Centre in Toronto. Choreographed and directed by Sasso, the new work features pianist Eve Egoyan and dancers Angela Blumberg, Irvin Chow, Jesse Dell, Vanessa Goodman, Susan Lee and Deanna Peters. SLoE pays tribute to the late Ann Southam who wrote the piano score with Egoyan in mind and then invited Sasso to make a dance to it. Sasso says of Southam’s work and its provocative title, “It’s so related to my personal dance aesthetic. I love simplicity, I love purity, I love line in space. And I love questions.” The production celebrates femaleness, women’s work and the feminine perspective in dance, music and design. Articulating their respective feelings about working with music and dance, Sasso and Egoyan sat down for a conversation about their work on SLoE this past summer.

En association avec le Harbourfront Centre, Julia Sasso Dances présente la première de SLoE – Simple Lines of Enquiry au Enwave Theatre à Toronto, du 27 au 30 septembre 2012. La chorégraphie de Sasso met en vedette la pianiste Eve Egoyan et les interprètes Angela Blumberg, Irvin Chow, Jesse Dell, Vanessa Goodman, Susan Lee et Deanna Peters. SLoE est un hommage à feue Ann Southam qui a composé la partition piano pour Egoyan, et qui a ensuite invité Sasso à créer une danse sur la musique. « C’est tellement lié à mon esthétique personnelle en danse », explique Sasso, en parlant de la pièce et du titre évocateur de Southam. « J’aime la simplicité, j’aime la pureté, j’aime les lignes dans l’espace. Et j’aime les questions », ajoute-t-elle. La production célèbre la féminité, l’œuvre des femmes et la perspective des femmes en danse, en musique et en conception visuelle. Sasso et Egoyan articulent leurs sentiments sur le travail en musique et en danse lors d’une discussion sur leur travail dans le cadre de SLoE à l’été 2012.

Learn more >> www.harbourfrontcentre.com


Read the full interview in the September/October 2012 issue of The Dance Current print magazine. | Lisez l'article intégral dans l’édition imprimée de septembre/octobre 2012 du Dance Current.

Report: Teaching Dance Using the Internet: will it catch on?

By Chick Snipper

Summary | Sommaire


Google any physical practice and Internet surfers can find tons of stuff, from written descriptions and diagrams to instructional films with voiceovers and music. It’s all there to consume, much of it in bits and pieces - the Internet excels at the “sound bite” approach to learning and education.

Cherchez n’importe quelle pratique physique dans Google. Internet regorge de contenu, de textes descriptifs et de diagrammes à des vidéos d’instructions avec des voix hors champ et de la musique. Tout est là pour consommation, souvent par bribe, puisque le média se distingue par une approche fragmentaire à l’apprentissage et à l’enseignement.

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Google any physical practice and Internet surfers can find tons of stuff, from written descriptions and diagrams to instructional films with voiceovers and music. It’s all there to consume, much of it in bits and pieces - the Internet excels at the “sound bite” approach to learning and education. But is it an appropriate tool when training the body in a specialized physical technique such as dance? Can a student learn complicated moves, the mechanics of a jeté for example, from a disembodied teacher? As the National Ballet School’s Laurel Toto puts it: “…The creativity, dialogue, detail and intimacy required in learning the art form? [Dancers] can only get these crucial elements when teaching and learning live in the studio.” But that’s only one side of the story. From Master Woo’s online TaeKwonDo tutorials to adventures in new technology from the venerable Royal Academy of Dance, writer Chick Snipper explores the brave new world of online dance instruction.

Cherchez n’importe quelle pratique physique dans Google. Internet regorge de contenu, de textes descriptifs et de diagrammes à des vidéos d’instructions avec des voix hors champ et de la musique. Tout est là pour consommation, souvent par bribe, puisque le média se distingue par une approche fragmentaire à l’apprentissage et à l’enseignement. Cependant, est-ce un outil adapté pour entraîner le corps dans une technique spécialisée telle que la danse ? Un élève peut-il apprendre des gestes complexes, par exemple, la mécanique d’un jeté, d’un enseignant désincarné ? Selon Laurel Toto de l’École nationale de ballet, « … la créativité, le dialogue, le détail et l’intimité requis pour l’apprentissage de l’art ? Le danseur peut seulement accéder à ces éléments incontournables avec l’enseignement et l’apprentissage en studio. » Mais l’histoire ne s’arrête pas là. Des interventions éducatives de Taekwondo en ligne par Master Woo aux aventures en nouvelles technologies de la vénérable Royal Academy of Dance, la rédactrice Chick Snipper explore le meilleur des mondes de l’enseignement Web en danse.

Learn more >>

http://youtube/AwnrWqwvTH0

www.sharingdance.ca

http://www.radcanada.org/courses.htm



Read the full report in the September/October 2012 issue of The Dance Current print magazine. | Lisez l'article intégral dans l’édition imprimée de septembre/octobre 2012 du Dance Current.

Photo Essay: Flight of Fancy / Un peu de fantaisie

The Magic of Cirque du Soleil / La magie du Cirque du Soleil

Artists of Cirque du Soleil in Amaluna / Photos by Laurence Labat, costumes by Mérédith Caron


Cirque du Soleil began as a group of Quebec street performers in 1984. Today it is the acclaimed producer of multiple circus-theatre spectacles touring the world. Cirque’s newest creation is Amaluna, an exploration of female perspectives in mythology.

Au départ, en 1984, le Cirque du Soleil est une troupe québécoise de théâtre de rue. Aujourd’hui, c’est un producteur acclamé de multiples spectacles de cirque théâtral qui tournent partout dans le monde.

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Written and directed by Diane Paulus with choreography by Karole Armitage, Caitlin Maggs and Debra Brown and acrobatic performance design by Rob Bollinger, the show is full of fast-paced tumbling and aerial routines. Amaluna’s acrobatic coach Stacy Clark (who co-founded High Strung Aerial Dance in 2000 and has been an acrobatic talent scout for Cirque since 2008) points out that working with such a roomful of established movement talent pushed the young cast of athletes to “dig deep within their artistic and creative selves”. This photo essay gives a taste of the enchanted world of Amaluna, the athleticism and the artistry that goes into making magic.

Amaluna, la dernière création de l’entreprise, explore les perspectives féminines en mythologie. Écrit et mit en scène par Diane Paulus avec des chorégraphies de Karole Armitage, Caitlin Maggs et Debra Brown et une conception de la performance acrobatique de Rob Bollinger, le spectacle est une série rapide de numéros de cascades et d’acrobatie aérienne. L’entraîneure acrobatique Stacy Clark (cofondatrice de High Strung Aerial Dance en 2000) est dépisteure acrobatique au Cirque depuis 2008. Travailler avec autant de maîtres reconnus en mouvement a poussé la distribution de jeunes artistes à « puiser leurs propres talents artistiques et créatifs », souligne-t-elle. Cette collection de photos offre un aperçu du royaume enchanté d’Amaluna, et de l’athlétisme et de l’art qui créent la magie.


Amaluna opens in Toronto on September 5th under the Grand Chapiteau at The Port Lands and in Vancouver on November 23rd at Concord Pacific Place.

Learn more >> www.cirquedusoleil.com

Amuluna est présenté à partir du 5 septembre à Toronto sous le Grand Chapiteau aux Port Lands et à Vancouver à partir du 23 novembre au Concord Pacific Place.

Pour en savoir plus >> www.cirquedusoleil.com

Profile: Rachel Browne's Enduring Dance

Our tribute to a trailblazer and constant mentor
By Carol Anderson

Summary | Sommaire

Rachel Browne / Photo by Robert Tinker

Call Rachel Browne a trail-blazer, a matriarch, a founder of Canadian dance – driven by her evolving artistry, political convictions and resilient tenacity, she accomplished extraordinary feats.

Rachel Browne : chef de file, matrone et une des fondatrices de la danse canadienne. Poussée par son art en évolution, ses convictions politiques et une ténacité certaine, elle a réalisé des exploits extraordinaires.

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Call Rachel Browne a trail-blazer, a matriarch, a founder of Canadian dance – driven by her evolving artistry, political convictions and resilient tenacity, she accomplished extraordinary feats. Founder of Winnipeg’s Contemporary Dancers and the School of Contemporary Dancers, a tirelessly active choreographer, performer and teacher, her achievements changed the landscape of Canadian modern dance.
Rachel Browne’s passing, on June 9th, 2012, ends her own long path through dance. It’s left to others to recall her with love and respect, and attend to the resonance of her significance in Canadian dance. Stephanie Ballard, the school archivist/artist-in-residence, notes how Winnipeg’s closely interwoven dance lineage stems from Browne’s presence: “The roots are strong, and the tree has many branches.” In fact those branches reach far and wide. Writer Carol Anderson collects memories from across the country in this loving tribute to a pioneer of Canadian dance.

Rachel Browne : chef de file, matrone et une des fondatrices de la danse canadienne. Poussée par son art en évolution, ses convictions politiques et une ténacité certaine, elle a réalisé des exploits extraordinaires. Fondatrice des Winnipeg’s Contemporary Dancers et de la School of Contemporary Dancers, et chorégraphe, interprète et enseignante active et infatigable, elle a changé le paysage de la danse moderne au Canada. Son décès le 9 juin 2012 conclut son propre parcours en danse. D’autres doivent maintenant s’en souvenir avec amour et respect, et se pencher sur sa résonance dans la danse canadienne. Stephanie Ballard, archiviste et artiste en résidence à l’école, note l’importance de Browne dans la fibre de l’héritage de la danse à Winnipeg. « Les racines sont fortes et l’arbre est fourni », décrit-elle. Et les branches de l’arbre se rendent loin. La rédactrice Carol Anderson recueille des souvenirs d’un océan à l’autre en honneur d’une pionnière de la danse canadienne.

Rachel Browne in Nothing Past The Swans (1986) by Tedd Robinson / Photo by Robert Tinker

Learn more >> www.winnipegscontemporarydancers.ca



Read the full profile in the September/October 2012 issue of The Dance Current print magazine. | Lisez l'article intégral dans l’édition imprimée de septembre/octobre 2012 du Dance Current.