North West | The Dance Project

in collaboration with Tasdance

Dance Marinara: Dance then and now and what it means to the people on the NW Coast of Tasmania.

The project aims to engage people of all ages in thinking about dance and its significance in their lives, initially through remembering and talking and then through participation in a series of workshops that will transform these movements, into a shared dance experience. The workshop process will be used to distill a performance group who are keen willing and able to work with the two choreographer, Sarah and Malcolm to develop a performance for sharing with the communities in the North West.

This project will be documented through photography and recorded conversations in audio and video, and will form part of the performance visual and sound score.

“Tasdance worked with ten different groups in the North West, we created each workshop to suit the individuals we were working with and the level of dance they are currently at (from beginner to advanced). Using creative tasks, we encouraged the participants to create their own movement and have the confidence to show their creations to the rest of the group. Each workshop started with a series of warm up exercises then moved into creative tasks. The movement was created entirely by the participants fed from their own ideas and inspirations. Setting creative tasks, giving a brief demonstration, allowing the groups time to play with their ideas and providing a positive environment allowed the participants to create a movement phrase they were satisfied with. We then put them in groups to share, teach and abstract the phrases they had created and each group shared their outcomes with the rest of us. The beautiful thing to witness was the confidence that grew in each participant and the freedom to express themselves and their ideas through movement which became stronger each week. As the informal outcome of each workshop was created by the participants, both solo and in groups, the sharing at the end of each session was purely from the heart of each person involved, we provided a supportive, fun and positive environment from which they created amazing dance phrases that were relevant and reflective of their lives and feelings”. M. McMillan

Location

Devonport , Ulverstone, Burnie

Project Staff

Artistic Director: Annie Greig

Workshop Facilitators: Sarah Fiddaman and Malcolm McMillan

Media Artist & Story Catcher: Jen Brown

NW Local Engagement Co-Ordinator: Hayley Crawford

Local Engagement Group

Eunice Horne (TRA), Hayley Crawford (Barefeet Dance Group), Damien Collins (Devonport City Council), David Coy (Central Coast Council), other teachers in schools and local dance teachers.

LOCAL PARTICIPATING GROUPS

Barefeet, Shazadi, Sheffield High School, Ulverstone High School, Tango Argentino, B Boys, Caroline Small School of Dance, NW Academy of Ballet, Reflextions Dance Studio and other workshop participants.

PROJECT PARTNER