some final musings on deuxieme partie….

Taryn Javier

Taryn Javier - Project Creation & Development | Production | Artistic Direction & Choreography

Here are some of my final thoughts on how inlayers – deuxieme partie went.x

It has been a full month since the close of the show and I still feel as though I have not adequately grasped all that has happened. It seems so odd because this project was worked on and talked about a full two years before we began to execute the plans….and still….once it got going it was over in a flash.

I feel like there has not been enough time for me to absorb what happened and reflect adequately. But…I also have a feeling it might be like that for some time for me.

A couple of things happened to me as a choreographer within this process. It was such an interesting way of working because I opened myself up to feedback from the public, all the while encouraging conversation in hopes of affecting the creative process.  I was also lucky enough to have quite a few strong creative heads involved in the physical daily mix of rehearsal.  It was an interesting practice weighing out everyone’s thoughts, opinions and views. I wanted to give equal value to all commentary and question, weigh out where it needed to be placed and act accordingly.  When I write act accordingly, I am saying the choice that was made really needed to be in the direction of what I felt the piece was calling for.

I went through a great deal of doubt and confusion because I knew that the opinions being brought forth from inside and outside of the piece were most definitely valid. It became foggy for me where I was in the piece – that is to say – I wondered at times if I was still making the piece.

I was in a place that seemed to be neither here nor there.  I have taken a lot of time looking back and thinking…oh yes…that is the decision I made…and oh yes….that is what I said or how I felt…or what I thought.

It really was rather crazy. I felt rather crazy! 🙂

To add further to this mix, I have noticed that my creative process seems to be going through some sort of a shift. I noticed this a bit with the last piece I did for DSW’s Artist in Residency program but it became more evident to me with this process.  This shift I have been feeling also includes this type of “fogginess” I have described. I found it quite worrisome and I spoke with several friends who have been “playing the choreographers game” longer than I in an effort to understand it.  Although this place I’m in is not exactly what I would call comfortable, I do feel it is because the work and how it is developed or discovered is maturing.  This is encouraging and I feel extremely blessed I was able to have so much artistic stimuli to push this out faster and further.

As for the project as a whole (the webisodes and inclusion of our website) I feel like each thread took on a life of its own and became the work of its master. (Kaelen as the filmmaker and Mo as the Website Designer/Social Media Advisor) It is an interesting practice to see how each person works within their own knowledge and strengths to bring a unique perspective to the project.  I would say each developed their own artistic contribution.

For the inlayers project,  I wanted to reveal the artistic process of a dance piece to the public for several reasons. I wanted to educate the public about contemporary dance.  I wanted to give the participants a chance to see how a movement phrase develops in rehearsal on film. I wanted to give them a greater understanding of why and how those movements came to be through inclusion into artistic discussion on the blogs.  I wanted to show through both the discussions between the artists and the work done in rehearsal, how the artistic process becomes a living organism that each artist involved feeds in order for the piece of work to become what it needs to be. I wanted to show the interacting public through experience what it felt like to be involved in the development of such a piece.  And let us all be honest, weekly episodes, daily discussions….it’s promotion. I wanted to promote our project and to promote contemporary dance by demystifying it a bit.

I feel like attendance at the two final showings of the piece showed us that we reached beyond what was written on the website and the social media outlets.  Our house was quite full both nights. What thrilled me more was that our audience was diverse and people were receptive. The dancers created their moment with absolute strength and conviction and I felt humbled watching them.  The amount of time and work both Mo and Kaelen put in minding their own monsters left me awestruck…and again humbled. Our cast was so very lucky to have the support and advice of Natalie throughout the process.  Jenn’s work as a producer was unremarkable and I feel like we all could see what happens when someone who is thorough and professional takes on a project with passion.  I feel like the show that happened was professional, unique…and strong.

I still have trouble believing it happened! That fog is strong. The thing I find interesting is that I have gone out to a few dance shows since then and have since run into several members of the community. People have reached out to me on a personal level via phone calls or emails.  The show left an impression…and people seemed to really enjoy it. The feedback has been positive. I remember one dancer saying to me she read every single blog entry and she checked inlayers.ca every day.  I asked her why she didn’t respond or write in…..she couldn’t answer that question and said she would.

I feel like letting all of you reading this know….we really want to create a space that is safe for people so we can chat with them here and learn from what they have to say.  Every opinion is valid.  Everyone has something to offer and something can be learned from almost all exchanges. How can we do this? Please feel free to email/facebook message me with suggestions if you do not feel comfortable writing or responding to me here.

….of course ….I strongly encourage you to take the plunge and post here.

<3  Taryn

About Taryn Javier

Javier has received European, national, and provincial funding for both her training and work. With or without funding, Taryn has created and shown work across Canada, producing work in Montreal and now here in Calgary. She has been shown at the University of Calgary’s Dance Montage, Aleatoires 48 heures, Alberta Dance Explosions, plink plink plink, c.a.k.e.’s midway at the High Performance Rodeo, Spark in the Fluid Festival and most recently completed Dancers’ Studio West’s Artist in Residence. Currently, Taryn runs a community Class Towards Creation. The class examines and practices methods in refining how and where movement can be developed with a focus on producing statements of substance holding strong personal reference. She searches to find the place where we can all connect to one another, through movement and self expression. Javier has taught actors, contemporary dancers, athletes, voice and visual artists and urban movers alike. Recently, Javier began her own company entitled, lookworks. At present, Taryn is constructing a piece for the Site Specific Tours in the 2012 High Performance Rodeo, in addition to this second installment of inlayers.

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