First of all, I'd like to say that The Black Keys' new album (Brothers) is amazing. I'm listening to it at the moment...thanks, Rhapsody.....and I highly recommend. Normally leaning towards a more dirty guitar bluesy sound, this album has a little more jazzy funk to it. At least in my opinion. It's definitely different from previous albums, but I have NEVER been disappointed with their work. It's kind of awesome to find a band that never ceases to amaze me even when their work expands to a different level. And live.....WOW. UNREAL! check 'em out guys. I don't think you'll be disappointed.
Sooooooo, it's been a week. Shoot. It's been a crazy week! Where do I start?
I've had loads of inspiration fired at me in very short amounts of time. I believe having loads of time to myself has lead to this. I'm finally on my own schedule. It's amazing how this freedom alone makes me feel like a different person. Somehow, I'd like to learn how to discover this contentment in the midst of a busy work-week or season.
Well, it looks like I've been given the chance to work on that next season. I was offered a job in Montreal! I think I've honestly been in denial for a week. I can't believe something is happening right now. I thought I might have to wait things out for awhile. Honestly, I was ok with that. My life has been a series of waiting games. Patience is obviously something God wants me to learn. Thanks. But seriously, this was a giant slap in the face reality check...I GOT A JOB!!! I GOT A JOB!!! what???
In the meantime, I still had one more audition to finish before I could truly settle in on this thought, this place. So I headed up to New York to visit friends and take care of business. I have to say that it took a lot for me to get excited about this trip. I've taken a few trips recently, and the thought of going to another audition when I already had something lined up seemed...secondary I suppose. However, I had plans and I intended to see them through. Besides, my handsome better half decided to accompany me on this trip. What awesome moral support he provided!
Well this decision soon proved to be yet another one of my better ones. Let me explain. Since I began this entire process of moving onto a "different" type of movement, I've been exploring many different styles and struggling to truly identify what I needed. (Leave it to New York City to provide the answers.)
There's this woman named Jill Johnson who teaches these Forsythe workshops on a regular basis in New York, usually once a month. William Forsythe (for those that don't know) is a choreographer who has developed a specific philosophy of movement/dance. By the way, I like the word movement better because it sounds more organic to me. I believe anyone can move and dance, but sometimes that word gets in the way because it has a reputation (at least for me) of meaning trained, sculptured, pretty? ANYWAYS, so Forsythe has passed his knowledge on to many of his dancers who have now gone on to teach others. So this amazing lady just so happened to be holding a workshop in New York the day before my audition. Cheers to that!
So I attended this three hour workshop that changed my life. I have finally found this freedom of movement and organic approach to dancing that I've been looking for forever! The class was based on Forsythe's fundamentals for improv. It's all about describing shapes in space. Sound abstract? You know when you do the limbo? Well take that stick away, but still imagine that line there. How would you move underneath it? Over it? How would you describe that line with your body? It's like imagining that different parts of your body have ink on them and you want to draw that line into space. You can use your hand, or your elbow, or your shoulder, knees, butt, nose, the list is endless. I know, it's really hard for me to explain this without showing you. But I bet if you looked up some of this on YouTube, I'm sure you'd find a bunch of videos. Needless to say, this class gave me a basis to jump off from and find a purpose in improv. It made me see even moreso how dancing is an artform. Instead of painting something on canvas, I'm using my body as a brush and painting shapes into space. The options are limitless! She gave us an idea, and let us go from there. It opens up this door of creativity that doesn't ever have to close again! And the best part is, YOU choose where you want to go! Almost two hours of improv was inspiring, thought provoking, curious, and humbling all at the same time. I was hooked!
And from here on out, I do have much more to say. However, I am finding that my mind is failing me. Being a true Vata type (more on that later) I wish I could just push my way through this. But Lord knows I need some sleep. So.....
To be Continued.....
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