The One Clap and Other Mudras 5/31/7

Thursday 5/31/7
MORNING
“THE ONE CLAP AND OTHER MUDRAS”
Beginning Structure: meditation, personal awareness practice, open space. Introductions and structure set up. Handout AUNTS manifesto.

Quadrants Exercise w/ Eric Lacossa soundscape
All ensemble
Space divided into four equal quadrants (ensemble seated in proscenium format)
A participant can choose to enter and take a solo in a quad w/ beginning middle and end declared by solo performer (optional working w/ others influence). Soloists entering and exiting must do so along the edge of the playing space
A quad may be left empty
A soloist may choose to read or recite text, but with no movement. There may be two quads with active text at a time.
Quadrants may be done with a pre-recorded sound-scape.
At the end of the quads AUNT ensemble gives a ‘one-clap.

Discussion
Q What are the values of the culture that have been established so far?

Listening, internal eye, stillness, personal response, enter space in silence, lab structure, breath, softness, focus, self aware, presence, patience, not afraid to leave space empty, alone/together, playfulness, proscenium viewing, support, beauty, influence is optional, process is fore-fronted to product, listening to the space and responding; letting space tell you what to do. Being present and connected with each other, following the stream of your internal impulse/freedom, rigor.

Q What are the disciplines that allow fir the broadest freedom for research – an honorific.

The way space is shaped determines where energies are formed. Both permission and specific instructions.
Aesthetic of indeterminate sound score – Cageian. A collage aesthetic.
Meditation is a support for being alone/together. What values will allow us to co-create performance.
Length of performance five hours; well that allows for a shamanistic type temporal shift.
Learning to wait.


AFTERNOOON
“SPACE IS FULL OF STORIES”
Or “If Everyone Wasn’t Here, These Things Wouldn’t Have Arisen”.

Joan’s Three Umbrellas Menu w/ music score
Laurie, Barbara, Damaris performers
Two people each with a parasol
Formatted in lines or diagonal, no curves
Open and close parasol carefully

Laurie’s Faces Menu, Laurie calls beginning, & end
Victoria, Joan, Mary, Damaris, Carol
Five on a grid
Walking or stillness
Happy or sad facial expressions ONLY

Christa’s Desire Menu, Christa calls beginning, & end
Laurie, Mary, Victoria
Space split in two sections (SL & SR)
One side, two performers, fear or resistance of desire
The other side, two performers, desire
Interacting with your desire image, finding moments to cross over to the “other side”
Working with accepting/not accepting influence from others

Barbara’s Porte-au-bras Menu w/ sound score ballet music/gypsy music
Katharine, Joan, Christa,
Barbara and Mary w/ text
Parallel corridors on diagonal 3, 4 or 5 performers
Slow motion going from one foot to another
Strong palm of the hand open, gaze is away from the palm of the hand
An open space for a movement solo, facing us, describing or telling about a dream
Barbara calls beginning, middle & end

Katharine’s The Most Excellent Heart Sutra of Longmont Menu, Katharine calls beginning, middle & end
As many participants as showed up – but not round robin 1 – 10 folks
Two predetermined pieces of text physically stayed on stage for reading in the center – you can read them as you like.
Work with up and down
Soft and hard
Don’t use the wall

Mary’s Smelly Time Menu w/ Barbara Dilley on piano, Mary calls beginning, middle & end
Katharine, Victoria, Chung-Fu
Three performers
Using grid, diagonal and half circle
Formal and extremely informal
Occasionally a whiff of a very bad smell
Props: one push broom, one book
Someone can be inspired to play the piano

Perhaps an idea to put brackets around your AUNT if you would prefer to not have others work on it further before you do.

For tomorrow – the slow motion or pause bell
Three views- director, witness, inside, Gift economy – this is a lab, not a workshop