Jerwood Bank 2008 ran from 20th October to 28th November with six experienced dancers: Lyndsey McConville, Freddie Opoku-Addaie, Joe Moran, Luisa D’Ambrosio, Sarah Dowling and Josephine Dyer. Over the course of the six weeks each of the dancers worked with Siobhan Davies Dancers exploring section from the company work, Two Quartets (2007), focusing on developing a ‘portrait’. By providing time, space and support the project aims to enable participants to challenge ingrained habits and discover new methods of initiating, creating and developing movement material.

This year’s project was led by Siobhan Davies Dancer Deborah Saxon with support from Sarah Warsop, Henry Montes and Gill Clarke, with additional input from Siobhan Davies. Two professionals from other disciplines who had worked with the company previously came in to talk to the participants: Jonathan Cole (a neurophysiologist) and Susan Hitch (a linguist). The speakers provided alternative viewpoints on communication and movement, and therefore additional resources for the participants in their own creative work.

Watch the project as it developed, navigate by weeks or dancer, or view the image and video documentation.

The Jerwood Bank Project was originally created through Siobhan Davies’ interest in the creative development of ‘mid-career’ dance artists looking to shift their practice to a new level. Watch a short introduction to the Jerwood Bank Project from Siobhan Davies.
Duration: 2 minutes.

They were asked to write a thought about breath (it could be a singular word or a sentence) which could stem from any impetus…. anatomical, emotional, situational ect.They passed this thought on to another person and this new thought became the engine for an exploration (about 20min) all the while keeping a part of themselves alert to moments that spark their curiosity and which could lead to further exploration. They recorded these moments in their own notebooks.

They were then asked to add a new thought on breath to the one they received….it could be a continuation of the previous thought or taking it on a new tangent. This was then passed on to another person in the group and the process was repeated, hopefully continuing to challenge their way of thinking.

We repeated this process three times and then the page was passed back to the original person.

Everyone then went back to their notebooks and chose one of their new thoughts to explore further. They worked on their own, in pairs with one observing and in group improvisations. Slowly more clarity of the thought was experienced and demonstrated and as they continued everyone became more precise about the intention which drove the movement.

How easy do you find it to talk about your own creative process/other people’s creative processes? Do you think you talk the same language as non-dancers when talking about movement?

Answers please!

I trained initially in theatre and went on to study dance at studios in London, New York, San Francisco and Seattle. I work as an independent dance artist in London making and presenting my own work, teaching, and curating and producing performance, workshops and a dance-in-health programme. At times, I also work in collaboration with other artists and dance for other choreographers. My choreographic and performance work is deeply informed by improvisation and somatic approaches to movement.

My interest in the Bank Project has been to undertake extended research away from my current professional commitments in order to renew and develop my practice. Specifically, I am interested to investigate the choreographic approach employed by Siobhan Davies in order to stimulate, challenge and develop my performance and making practice.

I hope to complete the project with new skills and inspiration, and a deepened understanding of the relationship between improvisation and choreography.

Feeling exposed/ uncomfortable in moving, but the movement appearing confident/ clear. This thought-conversation interested me. The state of the performer lending a particular presence/ performance quality, perhaps quite different from the felt experience.

Paring back to essence – as we explored with the breath – being a process of finding the starting point.

I realise that a new way into asking/answering this question happened for me this afternoon. This being the process we explored of identifying what is necessary in a movement and playing/ working with that. This is different from what I described this morning of being in the fluff and waiting for a shift into, or emergence of, something particular.

I trained at Laban and have been London based ever since. I am currently working with Yael Flexer’s Bedlam Dance Company as a performer and teacher. I have also performed with Kerry Nicholls, Sirens Crosing and Transitions amongst others. My teaching experience has involved working for Laban, London Contemporary Dance School, London Studio Centre, GDA and The Place.

Having worked for eight years as an independent dance artist, creating, performing, teaching, I feel that right now I need to reflect. Reflect on what I do and why I do it.

The need to reassess my creativity seems paramount. When I make material, task, flow and rhythm define what I create. It feels fairly obvious to me when I have reached a task conclusion, I don’t often go back to refine.

Maybe now it’s clear why I appled to Bank. I want to move away from the feeling ‘I’ve done that before’ and the thinking ‘I recognise that rhythm’. I want to find more within my capacity as a dancer, discover rather than re-discover. Is it possible to actually discover?

To be continued…

I did an Engish Literature and Drama degree and worked in theatre before training in dance. I currently perform – most regularly with Punchdrunk and most recently with Lost Dog. I also make my own work and teach. I come to the Bank project with a desire to follow the very clear and thorough line of movement investigation that the SDDC company have gathered in their many years of working. We will see what the results will be – alot can happen to a person in 6 weeks. Alot has happened in 3 days.

The Third Day

“When and how do we recognise what is fluff and what is particular” Debroah

What is particular about the movement you are playing with?  What is still fresh? What is absolutely essential to that ‘thing’ you are exploring ?

The particular is something  – for some reason – I avoid – this is my challenge – I’m sure of it.

There is this peculair mix needed of playfulness,  and rigour – . I forgot the play bit today and wasnt even that good at the rigour  -  to tomorrow.