A travelling workshop in contemporary dance technique and choreographic composition, led by Stefano Mazzotta

Despite every effort we may make to remain neutral, the body communicates incessantly. It draws on a vocabulary of forms adopted through every experience we have lived—especially those we love most and in which we recognise ourselves most deeply. We can consciously gather these “signs” and use them to construct our own language. We can then learn to recognise its mechanisms: its “lexicon”, its “syntax”. In this way, we can find an exact correspondence between what we intend to say and what our being or doing continuously expresses.

The first responsibility of anyone preparing to step onto the stage and to use choreographic language as a means of communication is to know their instrument—the body—in all its most subtle nuances. Although its structure may appear relatively simple, and despite its many limitations of weight, form and function, the body can express an extraordinary range of colours, infinitely multiplied when they mix to create ever new and singular shades.

To know one’s body and the infinite meanings of which it can be a potential bearer means to be consciously present in every stillness and every movement, with a clear awareness of their dramaturgical implications. It means being present in every smallest part of oneself, and knowing how to articulate those parts in the service and construction of a clear, conscious message.

To “compose” the phrases through which we give voice to our bodies—to dance—will be like painting a landscape before the eyes of our interlocutor: understanding and conveying its forms and dimensions, its space and distances, its intensity of colour and its nuances. Once we have embarked on this process of analysis, we will have taken the first step towards the honesty required of us on stage, while embracing the inevitable and precious variables inherent in every living thing.

TEACHING APPROACH

These intermediate-to-advanced study sessions are intended for professional dancers, actors and performers aged 16 and over, who have already undertaken a course of training and wish to explore, practise and refine further aspects of physical theatre and dance techniques.

Movement technique training and compositional work include:

• Technical development: movement and dance techniques

• Choreographic writing: movement analysis and compositional exercises

• Creative workshop: staging processes developed around specific themes or theatrical texts proposed by the teachers