Demystifying the Dance making process has always been an important goal for me. Students wishing to acquire choreographic ‘know how’ often have to rely on books for their research.  Whilst these probably contain philosophical articles on various aspects of composition they provide little practical help for a situation such as… "I am in the studio with the dancers, where do I start and then what do I do next?"

It is immensely satisfying to me when I can see the mystical choreographic barriers being swept aside and replaced with sound and practical composition elements that can not only be grasped successfully by 6 and 7 years olds but enable these same children to productively compose a bite size piece of choreography with a beginning, middle and end in the time of a single lesson period!

Children and students of all ages whom I teach each week have the obvious advantage of assimilating the various composition techniques over time, which as with acquiring ballet, jazz, drama or music skills is the ideal arrangement. However, how would children and students respond to practical choreographic techniques taught in one single lesson?

This question was neatly answered when I was invited by Jacqui Dumont to teach ChoreoCraft at the International Summer School in January this year to a number of children and students from all over Australia, divided by age into separate classes.  In every class there was an enthusiastic response to dance making. Each group was given an assignment based on one of the method’s colourful ‘stars’ which made the exercise not only immediately understandable but also fun.  In the time of a single lesson period each age group had successfully composed a short group dance to music.

Visionary Choreographer
This month it will be exactly 100 years since Antony Tudor was born. However for many in the dance profession he is still vividly remembered as one of the great visionary choreographers of the 20th century.
Tudor did not have the advantage of growing up in an artistic or upper class environment. Instead he grew up in Finsbury - a working class district of London.  Nevertheless his artistic disposition was recognised by his father, who took him to music shows and by his mother, who taught him the piano.
During his teenage years he spent his evenings in London’s theatre district. He discovered Ballet accidentally and credits Anna Pavlova and Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes as the main influences that led him to make a decision to become a dancer and choreographer.

Tudor’s real name was William Cook. He decided that if he was going to move in artistic circles “Bill Cook” would not be a good name, so for his stage name, he adopted a name synonymous with royalty … Tudor! 

At the age of 19 he began his ballet training with Marie Rambert and then studied with Harold Turner and Margaret Craske. His earliest professional ballets were created for Madame Rambert at London’s Mercury Theatre and he later became general assistant for her Ballet Club.

Tudor was a true ‘visionary’ choreographer.  He wasn't interested in stories about princesses and fairies. Tudor’s ballets were about people and their problems. It was for his development of the “psychological ballet” that he is chiefly remembered, in this, he continued the genre previously initiated by Michael Fokine in “Petroushka”. His ballets are works that display a psychological depth previously unexplored and deal with themes such as grief, jealousy, and rejection. To this end he adapted the classical vocabulary and eschewed the tricks that were so popular at the time.

Through Agnes de Mille, Tudor was encouraged to go to the United States to dance and choreograph for the new ballet company, Ballet Theatre (now known as American Ballet Theatre). Tudor's ballet “Pillar of Fire” (1942) was considered his masterpiece and placed him with the great choreographers Leonide Massine, George Balanchine and Mikhail Fokine.  However in Britain “Dark Elegies” will always be treasured as his greatest work.

Leonie Leahy who was a member of American Ballet Theatre during the 60’s (and later a founder member of The Australian Ballet) remembers Tudor as an ‘austere’ man, in dance classes given by him in the old Metropolitan Opera House New York. His classes, however, were very special in that he usually developed a theme for each particular lesson. Leonie enjoyed the experience of being rehearsed and coached by Tudor in a number of his famous ballets, including “Gala Performance” and “Offenbach in the Underworld”. 

It is interesting for young emerging choreographers to note that Tudor evolved a unique approach to his choreography believing that ballet was a fusion of ideas and movements.

1. He set out with a concept for a ballet -- a mood, a situation, or story.
2. Then he would work out the type of movement which expressed his ideas.
3. Next the steps were created that would bring it all together.
4. Finally he would include the costumes and décor to complete the whole framework.
5. Subsequent performances then provided opportunities for further creative refinement.

Prior to the fifties Tudor performed in many of his own ballets as well as in works of other choreographers. In 1950, he gave up performing to become head of facu1ty at the Metropolitan Opera Ballet School.

In 1968 at the age of 60 he was presented with the Handel Medallion, New York City's highest cultural honour. At age 72 He was made Choreographer Emeritus of ABT and in 1986 he was presented with the Capezio Dance Award.

Tudor died aged 79 on April 19, 1987 in New York. His influence on contemporary ballet can be attributed in the main to his creation of psychological ballets, which explored the depth of his characters.
Antony Tudor’s contribution to the world of ballet ensures his inclusion in the ranks of true visionary choreographers.

Timely Tips
The ChoreoCraft 'Classical Element STAR' (upper right) is an excellent reminder that all art forms should be about communication and if the communication is successful then the creator/choreographer will have a ‘work’ that should be both engaging and entertaining.

The ‘STAR’ displays the four classical Greek worldly elements as described by the ancient Greek philosopher Empedocles, plus the ‘highest’ element, spirit. The classical elements in the ‘STAR’ have been intuitively linked to the ‘rules’ for dramatic expression as written down by the classical Greek philosopher Aristotle who believed that ‘drama’ had educational value.
For characters in a drama he described the four following rules:-

1. The portrayal of the Character shall be expressive.
   A woman acting “fright” should express this emotion convincingly
2. There should be a fitting portrayal of the character.
   It is fitting for a Captain to act with authority not insecurity
3. The Character shall be realistically portrayed.
   A Nurse should realistically display a sympathetic and caring manner
4. The  portrayal of the Character shall be consistent.
    A jealous competitor should consistently display an envious attitude

The quote “to go forward we must look back” is as relevant to choreographers today as ever. If we admire Tudor and others from the past that have crossed over the ‘line’ from abstract strings of steps to meaningful movements, then it is important for choreographers striving for greater depth in their works to stimulate the emotions of both dancers and audience.

The classical Greek word ‘drama’ means “to do” This I believe leads to the fifth rule that drama aims for, “to do with sincerity”.

5. The portrayal of the character should be sincere.  Whether the traits of the character are appealing or un-appealing, it should nonetheless be portrayed with complete sincerity.

Backstage
Kenneth Norman A.R.A.D.  L.I.S.T.D.  A.N.E.A.

Choreocraft Starlet Puzzles!

A great tool for helping to children choreograph exciting routines

These puzzles are not only a mathematical brain teaser, but they can help you to choreograph an interesting dance, and give you a map to navigate with...

PART 1
Fill the Starlet with all of the numbers 1,2,3 and 4, which may be used more than once, so that each line connects four numbers to total 8. Each of the numbers in the boxes at the five points of the Starlet must also total 8.
See the example above - in the example each line must total 10, by only using the numbers 2 and 3.

Starlet numbers 1, 2, 3, 4.

When you have finished, add all the numbers together, going around the star from the top point.
It should total exactly 32.
(not recounting the top point)

A ChoreoCraft Competition for Children and Students will be held in a university theatre in Adelaide in June 2008. The competitors, (all of whom having studied the ChoreoCraft method), will be judged by three professional dance adjudicators.

Kenneth received his dance education at the Royal Ballet School, London and subsequently performed in dance companies, musicals, revues and T.V. In Australia Kenneth has been Director of Tenison College of Dance for 40 years, Administrator for the I.S.T.D. South Pacific Region for 30 years, Registered Teacher S.A. Edu. Dept. for 35 years, Choreographer/Director for Stage and T.V. productions in both the U.K. and Australia.
 
ChoreoCraft – Making dances made easy
Researched and developed since 1960.
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For further information on ChoreoCraft contact the author at dances@choreocraft.com