Joy in Motion

The Recession, Swine Flu & Argentine Tango

The popularity of dance has always been closely tied to the state of the economy as well as culture and current events. The Los Angeles Times published an article this week on the effect of the recession and swine flu on Argentine tango and tourism in Buenos Aires. This article indirectly highlights the importance of supporting dance as much as possible within your means. Click the link below to read the article.

Global Recession to a Tango Beat (Veronica Smink)

“This I Believe”: Experiences With Dance

The following are a few short essays written for NPR’s This I Believe series. This first one was written by a young lady under the age of 18, the second by a middle-aged woman, and the third one was written by a man between the ages of 50 and 65. It’s interesting to see how people of both genders, all ages, and various backgrounds find commonalities through dance.

When I Dance (Elissa from Ohio)

This I Believe (Phyllis from Texas)

This I Believe (Charley from North Carolina)

Last year I also posted a link to author Robert Fulghum’s essay for the This I Believe series, as well as one by Martha Graham that was broadcast back in the 1950s. Dancer and choreographer Judith Jamison also wrote an essay in 2007. Here they are again in case you missed them:

Dancing All the Dances As Long As I Can (Robert Fulghum)

An Athlete of God (Martha Graham)

To Thine Own Self Be True (Judith Jamison)

Enjoy!

Free Play: A Review

Copyright © 2009 Karin Norgard

Improvisation seems to be a black hole in the social dance world. It is one of those skills that oftentimes seems underdeveloped, overdone, misunderstood, or ignored altogether. I have seen salsa instructors teach entire routines based on their own improvisations, only to have them repeated by their students step-by-step on the social dance floor without a thought given to the dynamics of the music or relationship with one’s partner. All social dances suffer from a lack of understanding and lack of confidence among its participants when it comes to improvisation. And it seems there isn’t really a clear path for learning how to break away from the structure and attain that beautiful – and skillful – quality of spontaneous creativity.

Stephen Nachmanovitch’s beautiful book, Free Play: Improvisation in Life and Art, offers enriching reflections for any dancer to meditate on. The author himself is a musician and a poet, but he approaches improvisation and creativity in a way that is accessible to devotees of all art forms and every discipline in life that prizes being in the moment. He offers a number of examples from the worlds of art and music, but my dancer’s perspective did not have to make great leaps to apply these concepts to the skills required to improvise and express oneself on the dance floor.

What I found so refreshing about the book was how rich his thoughts are on the topic. After reading several books on mastery and creativity that seemed superficial, fluffy, and more like self-help literature than deep reflection and analysis, Nachmanovitch’s book was a true pleasure to delve into. His writing manages to be at once intellectual and inspiring while covering concepts such as the power of limits and mistakes, the value of inspiration and judgment, and the tension and reward of creative collaboration. These topics touch not only on musicality and improvisation but on technique and partnering as well. Though he never directly refers to the concept, a number of his thoughts seem to coincide perfectly with the conditions and characteristics of flow (see my series of articles on flow for more information), and I finished his book with a more well-rounded appreciation of flow in social dance. I found it interesting to read in the author’s biography that he holds a PhD in the History of Consciousness.

Nachmanovitch’s own introduction offers great insight into his vision for Free Play: “I began writing this book as an exploration of the inner dimensions of improvisation. I found it inescapably fascinating that the conception, composition, practice, and performance of a piece of music could blossom in a single moment, and come out whole and satisfying. When I first found myself improvising, I felt with great excitement that I was onto something, a kind of spiritual connectedness that went far beyond the scope of music making. At the same time, improvisation extended the scope and relevance of music making until the artificial boundary between art and life disintegrated. I had found a freedom that was both exhilarating and exacting. Looking into the moment of improvisation, I was uncovering patterns related to every kind of creativity; uncovering clues as well to living a life that is self-creating, self-organizing, and authentic. I came to see improvisation as a master key to creativity.”

I always try to balance my reviews by offering constructive criticism and areas for improvement. However, this book did not really allow me room to do so. While some chapters were more interesting and applicable to the world of dance than others, I found so many gems throughout the book and have returned to it often since. While reading it will not directly improve one’s improvisation on the dance floor, for many dancers I believe it can provide the mental shift required to open oneself up to inner creativity, outward expression, and meaningful improvisation. 

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