Metronome is clicking and giving the pulse to the square format stage. Lights are on. 4 dancers are given rules to move with the cycle of light. The lights go off and the dancers are moving. As the lights go on again they stop. The sound of their movements is recorded with contact microphones attached to the floor. With delay the sounds form different rhythms still all under the continuous rhythm of the metronome. As we don’t see the dancers movements, we start to imagine the movements as we only see their expressions on non-moving moments. What we left to see and do, is to create understanding and contribution to their efforts and actions.

My Research Goals:

My Goal is to develop my project AFTERMATH, which is a contemporary dance work, but I also consider it as a method. Aftermath was first shown in 2012 as a work in progress in PLATAFORMA BERLIN Festival, where I was representing Brazil. The duration of the work was 10 min, but I would like to, together with my group, develop, investigate and to find a final format for this project.

Aftermath as a method:

To have simple rules or regulations creates a certain frame and space to play, but the variety of topics and themes bring all the possibilities to play and reflect with. Still as the method: Aftermath, the research has to be played to the end before we can analyze the results.

When we have to go back in mind to understand something in present is normally referred as aftermath, recalculations on something that took place. History also changes everyday and so does our relation to it. Aftermath investigates through times and tempos to create moments where something is hidden or silenced so that we only see the “half” other “half” we hear. Our connotations and assumptions create the story and aftermath is actually to understand that itʼs always our reflection that creates our view.

Our technical elements, sound, tempo and rhythm with light and darkness also remotely controlled by rhythm, gives us a metaphorical platform to create a great variety of different re-enactments of life through contemporary dance.

Beginning of the project was mostly getting aware of the technical possibilities, recording the floor and the sounds through contact microphones and also recording the sounds of the lights when they go on and off. We created different scores to create group choreographs, with the sounds and lights also reacting on time. I would like to grow the process and the challenges and create more as a narrative, group of scenes carried through using these technical elements andaftermath method. The group already understand the method the metaphorical possibilities and different scenes and choreographs can be invented through research and improvisations.

Nice reflexion from Laura-Maria Heinz (Berlin Germany)

_170422_Hausarbeit_Das Phänomen Nähe und die Überbrückung von Distanz_Laura-Maria Heinz