PARALLEL PLAY:
A COMPOSITIONAL PRACTICUM
IN MOVEMENT & WRITING
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DESCRIPTION:
The act of composition is common to all art forms.
In this class, students (who needn’t be expert in any discipline) will be asked
to create work across mediums. By juxtaposing two art forms that are seldom
paired (movement and writing), the class will spark both exploration and
discussion about the merits and drawbacks of genre separation in this
multi-modal, mash-up era. By starting with two practices that involve tools
most of us possess—our own language-use and our bodies—we will be able to
create work that pushes at boundaries and defies expectations. Artists, actors,
musicians, and athletes of all types welcome.
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MATERIALS
AND MUSINGS:
The materials of the course arrive from several
vectors. Some are art products created
by artists outside of the medium they are most known for (Bourgeois,
Nijinsky). Some are reflections on
hybridity or examples of works that exhibit hybrid characteristics (DaVinci,
Simic, and Cornell, Munoz). And some deal with philosophical issues of the
choice of artistic medium (Pollock, Langer, Lorca). This triad of materials will encourage
students to experience the workshop on both process-oriented and philosophical
levels and will offer them models of cross-artistic engagement. All these materials were chosen for their
ability to not only explain or model some facet of the course, but for their
potential to inspire; in other words, I chose these materials not only to
illustrate strategies and theories that I desired to include in the course, but
because as art-products and essays they have moved me.
Dime
Store Alchemy, Charles Simic (on
the work of Joseph Cornell)
In Search
of Duende, Federico Garcia Lorca
OUR BLOG—(review it every Wed and Fri morning)
Online (or provided by me throughout the term):
The complete text and drawings of Leonardo DaVinci
as translated by Richter, 1883
Pages from Drawings
and Observations, Louise Bourgeois
“The Task of the Translator” Walter Benjamin
Sections of the Diary of Vaslav Nijinsky, ed. Romola Nijinsky
TED talk (meditations
on humor, media, and evolution with Vik Munoz)
“Deceptive
Analogies: Species and Real Relationships Among the Arts” from Problems of Art
by Susanne K. Langer
by Susanne K. Langer
Jackson
51 (Hans Namuth’s 1950 short
documentary on Jackson Pollock’s painting process)
Kenneth Branagh’s Hamlet, reciting the monologue
“What a piece of work is man…”
GOALS: This course is meant to facilitate the
exploration of compositional strategies in dance and in writing (music? video?
photography? theater? painting? sculpture?), to foster analogical thinking
across disciplines, to encourage both theoretical and historical interest in
the arts, and to spark a desire for further explorations and studies of both
the fields of dance and literature, ultimately promoting a fuller engagement
with and attention to the world.
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GRADES: Because of the workshop nature and
experiential/discussion nature of this course, no absences are preferable. Two
absences will be permitted without penalty. A third absence will lower your
grade by .5. A fourth absence will result in failing grade. Plan your illnesses
accordingly.
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WEEKLY
THEMES & IMPORTANT DATES:
WEEK 1: JAN 21 & 23 / INTRODUCTION AND
LIMITATION
Syllabus
and Intro and Day to Day Life of the Class
Discussion
of the NOTEBOOK
First
Exercises—Limited Vocabulary
WEEK
2: JAN 28 & 30 / PARTNERSHIPS AND REPETITION
On
Thursday the 30th meet with Kerri Canedy’s class in Noble Center
WEEK
3: FEB 4 & 6 / SILENCE
AND PRESENCE
Thursday
the 6th – Workshop #1 – all groups
WEEK
4: FEB 11 & 13 / PERSONA AND POSSIBILITY
Wednesday
the 12th PK Hall Studio Matejka Performance 7:30PM
Thursday
the 13th Meet with Studio Matejka—Black Box
Sunday
the 16th 3-6PM Master Class with Studio Matejka (limited space)
WEEK
5: FEB 18 & 20 / PREPARE FINAL WORK
PROPOSALS
Monday
the 17th 4PM Interdisciplinary discussion with SM (limited space)
Tuesday
the 18th meet in Groups to Create Proposal
Thursday
the 20th meet with Kerri Canedy’s class in Noble Center
WEEK
6: Feb 25 & 27 / MONOLOGUE & DIALOGUE
Tuesday
the 25th all groups present the written
proposal to the class
Thursday
the 27th – feel free to support your teacher at her reading in Sykes
WEEK 7: MAR 4 & 6 / DIALOGUE OF SELF AND SOUL
Thursday
the 6th meet with KC’s class in NC
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Spring Break!
Spring Break!
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WEEK
8: MAR 18 & 20 / YOU & I, ME & YOU, NEGOTIATIONS
Thursday
the 20th – Workshop #2 all groups
WEEK
9: MAR 25 & 27 / HALF-WAY AND WAY
OUT THERE
Thursday
the 27th meet with KC’s class in NC
WEEK
10: APR 1 & 3 / MINE AND YOURS AND OURS AND NO ONE’S
Thursday
the 3rd – Workshop #3 all groups
WEEK
11: APR 8 & 10 COLLECTION AND OBSESSION
Thursday
the 3rd – In-class rehearsal time and troubleshooting
WEEK
12: APR 15 &17 / TRANSLATION AND TRANSFORMATION
Thursday
the 17th – On stage in the NC (adjudication for performance)
WEEK
13: APR 22 & 24 / PROJECT AND PORTFOLIO
Show
week, arrangements made for installation
WEEK
14: APR 29 & MAY 1 / SHOW & TELL
April
29th— PILOBILOS IN POTSDAM!!!!
Notebooks
DUE – Public Installation and Reception
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