Expressing Emotion in the Arts

 

What would you rather see? Fourteen well executed pirouettes by an eight year old? A fixed grin
plastered on each rotation, on top of an athletic posture. Abdominals bulging at the seams.
Or a dancer moving to the music because they simply could not do anything else in that moment?
Picture Gene Kelly overcome with joyous infatuation as he springs across the floor. The subtle
breath you witness, as Ballerina Francesca Hayward as Juliet feels the skin of Romeo for the first
time.
To me- there is no comparison. There are certain performances which are etched on one’s heart as an audience member. The kind of displays which appear so authentic, you can practically adopt the emotive thoughts of each dancer. I believe such artistry is a tacit kind of knowledge which only the finest performers can carry. You may be able to teach a human to find their physical centre of alignment, but you can’t teach a human to feel.

This got me thinking as a teacher, about how to emphasise this message to my students. I admit I
am guilty of loosing perspective at times as I mull over the syllabus notes, determined to clarify
where the head should be facing on count 5. Not to deny the importance of physical precision in
training of course, but it’s all too easy to forget that dancing above anything else- is an art.
I fear that in recent times the American trend of elitist competitions has churned out prodigal
robots. Machines of technique who can master the moves when directed, but of whom are ‘dead’
behind the eyes. It seems that the prime aim of many performances is to impress, not to imprint.
Create envy rather than connection. Raise the game rather than share an unspoken experience.
So I question what it takes to inhabit this ability to touch an audience. 

Perhaps this kind of tacit knowledge is natural, or can it indeed be practiced? Is there a way to tap into our own emotions as
we dance? In other words, dance evolving FROM an emotional experience, rather than dance
evolving out of of technical instruction?

However, I must be honest with myself. Not only do I tend to prioritise technique in class as a
teacher- which is incredibly hypocritical! But I also fear I have lost that connection within myself. Over the years I became more focused with performing for the approval of others. The obsession with portraying the perfect mask not only detached my emotions from my movements in dance, but also in my every day life. How I felt- how I feel is numbed out by keeping busy, setting goals, making negative assumptions. Sometimes these are an antidote to the pain of feeling something.
From facing reality.

But creativity is a channel where one can express those words which cannot be spoken. And what
could be better than sharing that with others?
A secret language of the soul.

I will leave now with the inclusion of one of my favourite dances I have witnessed over the years. IfI ever feel that hollow numbness which incapacitates me, I know I can watch this piece- and feelsomething. I hope you feel something too.

‘Fix you’: So you think you can dance duet: Robert and Alisson

References

Lythgoe, N. (Director). (2012). Fix You (Contemporary)- Robert and Alisson (All Stars) [Video file].

USA: Fox. Retrieved January 31, 2021, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?

v=do2vmsmdwlk.

Into the Unknown...

Not only does the title of this blog make me want to channel my inner Elsa in an attempt to hit

those high notes (which are never hit), but it also fills me with a sense of dread.

The unknown. What does that mean? Why is the utterance of it saturated with fear? I think the fact that there is no answer……is the answer in itself.

There is no doubt that 2020 cast great uncertainty over the entire world. The onset of a global

pandemic no one could have predicted which genuinely threw normality into disarray. I still have those moments of strange realisation as I see deserted streets, a few hushed mask wearers

drifting by. This is our new normal. The real life Shaun of the Dead (without the humour). Where

one can only rely on the government to assign our fate- whatever they say goes and quite frankly

that changes on a day to day basis.

During the last wave of the pandemic (Dec 2020) it was reported that 50% of UK adults expressed extreme worry as a result of the uncertainty associated with Covid. (YouGov Plc, 2020). A statistic in defence of the notion that human beings like certainty.

I can certainly relate to this and as a performer I acknowledge that the unpredictable industry was a contributing factor to my ‘downfall’.

This got me thinking about the dichotomy of training in the dance world. Ultimately, in the dance studio there tends to be a desire to control. Whether that be a student attaining mastery of their body, the tutor dictating control over their dancers, or an attempt to manipulate a subsequent reaction. This could be something as simple as seeking praise from a teacher. I envisage the process much like a formula- if you stretch more, work hard- you’ll get better. Get better? Be good. Be good? = Get a job.

Well wouldn’t it be wonderful if it were that simple? I think if dancers were rewarded in proportion to their level of work ethic, there would be a lot more success stories out there. I’m not denying that commitment does play a huge part in career success, but what about that other factor? That mythical ingredient; Luck.

I think many like to ignore the existence of luck. After all, common phrases such as ‘you create

your own luck’ are often disputed, as though credit is deducted from anyone who has grafted in

order to achieve. But surely both luck and dedication can play a part?

Maybe it’s not so much about luck, but being in the right place at the right time. Having a face

which fits the part- something which I learnt often holds more weight than talent itself. Knowing the right people. Just having the right vibe. Maybe a dancer reminds a casting director of when they were young themselves? There can be so many reasons why someone gets the golden job offer how committed you are to the cause can only go so far.

I found this frankly, quite devastating. I didn’t realise how much I pinned my hopes on the idea that input would be related to output. But sometimes, there is only so much you can do. If i went for an audition and they were looking for a 5’2 brunette, no amount of sit ups were going to get me that job. This introduced the overwhelming sense of not having control over anything. I could never be enough, ever. The destructive road I proceeded down of subtly controlling my food and body weight perhaps counteracted this anxiety- proving the illusion that I could still have certainty over something.

Anyway- that went down a deep hole.

My point is, performers have to deal with this level of stress on an everyday basis. It may be a fairly novel concept to the rest of the world- to the Barbershop owner who awaits the briefings, waiting for the green light to reopen the salon To the retired Mother who fears that she’ll be unable to meet her due granddaughter until the cessation of the next wave. Or more significantly, to every person who dreads the day they get news of a positive Covid result. A virus which doesn’t discriminate and which navigates it’s path of destruction in no predictable manner.

No wonder our mental wellbeing is compromised.

So what is the answer? Well, I don’t think it’s nearly that simple but I do like the following quote,

spoken by John Allen Paulo:

“Uncertainty is the only certainty there is.” (Paulo, 1945 as cited in Hayes 2020)

A quote which for myself prompts an air of acceptance. We know what we resist persists and the

struggle to fix, correct or control is almost a pointless pursuit.

I must reference a conversation I had with a fellow ex performer, who only yesterday described that they were starting to feel more at peace than they had done in years. They account this relief to the acceptance that things just are just as they are. What can we do about it? For my friend, each day previously was spent scouring auditions and comparing success to others in the rat race of theatre.

Perhaps the fact that work is so scarce for EVERYONE in fact takes away that torture of human

comparison, thus enforcing the reassessment of our priorities.

Could it be a possibility that this pandemic could support the rediscovery of one’s values? I can say with certainty I will for one never take for granted being able to teach in a studio, where I can

actually SEE my students in the flesh. Many have expressed that it has emphasised the

importance of human connection, and I guess there’s nothing like a global pandemic to invite unity amongst us.

At this point as I transition from my BAPP student role, I don’t so much view it as a voyage into a

new uncertainty, because the unknown has always been and always will be a philosophy of life.

All I can use is the tools from my experiences gone by to help steer that ship into the days ahead.

And predictability is ‘boring’ right?

I shall look upon the introduction to the Dancestrong community with excitement, curiosity, and

possibility. 

I shall aim to revel into the UNKNOWN!

References

Hayes, J (2020, June 28). 20 Inspiring Quotes About Embracing Uncertainty. Retrieved January

29, 2021, from https://www.jenhayes.me/20-inspiring-quotes-about-embracing-uncertainty/

Wave 9: Pre-Christmas 2020. (2021, January 26). Retrieved January 29, 2021, from https://

www.mentalhealth.org.uk/wave-9-pre-christmas-2020 All figures are from YouGov Plc.

Total sample size was 4,277 UK adults 18+. Fieldwork was undertaken between 21st andthe 23rd December 2020. The survey was carried out online.