Thinking about the first 3 weeks

I'm officially three weeks in with rehearsals and I haven't been posting much here because it's been a lot of throwing material out there and seeing what comes out. I'm finding the most difficult thing right now is the fact that I am at the "starting line" with multiple dances and it is hard to switch gears so quickly from one rehearsal to the next. I am having thoughts about the entirety of my concert now that I have seen the beginnings of everything and I'm reminding myself everyday that I don't have to make HUGE decisions about my concert TODAY. I have a hard time with uncertainty and any issues that come up, I want to be fixed ASAP. This is completely unnecessary and I have found people to continue reminding me of this!

So, where am I on everything?

1. I have decided for the time being to treat the first half of my concert as one "piece" with various sections, rather than three separate dances. There are three elements I am playing with (lights, rhythm/tap, and musical interaction) but I've realized that these things don't need to be separate. I'm still working with the idea of memory and how a memory or memories exist/work/change/get remembered and I've found a way to connect this with the use of lights... but why can't the other elements be an extension of this? So, now I have one larger piece. Currently, I have completed a draft of what I'm calling section 1, or the introduction to my concert. I've expanded the idea of using flashlights to include lamps and other means of lighting beyond what the theater has to offer. The rough draft of section 1 currently is running about 6 minutes and has a transition leading into section 2, which will begin the work with the flashlights and multiple dancers. The sensors are still being worked out and I have met with my composer friend, Ned Emerson, to talk about this section a few times. We hope to have decided upon an interface by October 1st. There is a possibility that Ned will actually compose or at least compile the music for the entirety of the first half of the concert. With the tap/contemporary fused section, rehearsals are underway, but still building material. I have ideas for how it will fit in, but for now, I am just working on the movement content.
2. My "communication" duet is going fine - I had to replace a dancer, but I found someone already in the cast who was a good fit. I have two small movement sections that I am currently working on - they will be the first and last sections of the piece, so I am working from the bookends and coming inward. I have plans for the first section of this piece to be filmed outside as a dance for the camera to be projected, and then segue into the live dancing portion of the piece. I'm having a difficult time figuring out how I want this piece to appear, but again... this isn't a decision I have to make right now! I'm currently gathering old cell phones and other devices for use in this piece. There will definitely be a large number of props in use.
3. The re-working of "___ism" is proving difficult but I have decided to take the piece from a big-picture-survey of how humans organize themselves to change into a view into my own experiences as a human in this society. I'm not connecting to the larger-picture because I haven't lived it... but I certainly have plenty of my own experiences to choose from. I'm still teaching a lot of movement, but we have had the opportunity to start structuring some in rehearsals. I'm finding a few elements from the original piece surviving, but its in different context, which is exciting to me. I'm really enjoying seeing the male bodies move and the two women are holding their own - its 5 men & 2 women - definitely is speaking to me about the ways in which there are still inequalities for women.. even in dance! Men are rare enough in dance that it always seems like one step forward and two steps back for the girls... not that men don't have their own difficulties but they are often given more opportunities simply because of numbers (odds, ratios, etc.)
4. "Habits" is going well. We're still just learning and re-setting, but we've been adding in new gestures along the way. There isn't a lot to say here, except that I'm finding myself loving this dance more and more every day.

Thats all for now.