Research into Contemporary Dances.

I decided to take the time to do research into contemporary dances. The reason for this is because us as a group seem to be really confident and comfortable with using movement such as this into our pieces and it is interesting to see and gain inspiration from existing pieces.
I went straight on to YouTube and researched duets, solos and group numbers to see how they differed from each other and whether they all still captured the same emotion even if there were more or less people involved.

Firstly, here are some examples I found of duet numbers:

Duets:




This video striked me a lot because it's very different from all the other contemporary dances I've ever seen. It is very creative and imaginative and for me this is what captivates the audience. The versions I am used to watching are usually a male and female conveying a love/hate relationship, however, to me this dance shows a really valuable friendship and how they're there for each other. 
I really enjoyed watching all the techniques and movement and most importantly, how they used the space they had. When it comes to our site specific piece I feel that space is what is going to matter most as we have to be careful with what we are allowed to do and how. 



As soon as I saw that someone had use this song to create a contemporary dance I did not hesitate to look at how they generated this piece. I strongly feel that the lyrics to this song are strong and you can really tell a story with it and this is exactly what this duo have done. I really like their incorporation of the water which could be seen as symbolism. For me, as both of the dancers use the water individually and together the symbolism creates the idea that they are both trying to wash away an event that has caused them conflict, this conflict is revealed when both of them use the water together and use harsh and strong movements.

Secondly, here are videos of solo pieces:

Solos:

Whilst Mr.Langley was on his work experience with us in our school he told me about a certain solo dancer called, Lukas McFarlene who appeared on the TV Show 'Got To Dance'. As soon as I saw this man I couldn't believe how talented he was and how he captivates the audience with the emotion and effort he puts into every movement. 



Here are two different videos of Lukas that are my favourite, the one above was his audition and the one below was when he got through into the live shows.



Being able to engage an audience as a soloist is extremely difficult but looking at how Lukas puts all of his energy and determination into making every single move clean and effortless is what has inspired me most. Although we have no solo dance pieces in our performance we still have solo pieces within music so hopefully we will be able to put the amount of emotion Lukas puts into his dancing into our performance. 

Finally, here are some group numbers, one being the winners of this years Britain's Got Talent, 'Attraction'.
 
Groups:





It was interesting to see a duet use this song to then see a large group use it as well. Using a large group must of been hard and challenging but this piece in my opinion is beautiful. They all really work as a group and you can tell as at various points they all use each other to create an image, for example, a tree. I really liked the use of cannon within the piece as it looked effective and collective as well. Furthermore, when it looks like they've all become shadows was also my favourite as it showed diversity from how it first started to how it is now ending. 



As soon as I saw this act on Britain's Got Talent I knew they could get very far within the competition. I think there idea of telling a story through dance AND through silhouette was creative, emotional and effective and really struck people with the narrative and emotion that was put through their movement.
I think that this is a really strong and powerful piece and you can do a lot with it, and this was conveyed each time they cam on stage, every week it was different so it left you keen to see/know what they would be producing. Lastly, it also holds audiences attention and keeps them engaged throughout which sometimes is difficult to do.