We did so much this quarter. From dancing with energy centers, images, to Lar Lubovitch in circles and cycles. Pilates, yoga. Dancing on the beach in great outfits. He touched, lifted, listened and connected. We knew the counts and then we through them away. We danced linear choreography and circular choreography. We played red light/green light. We coordinated so that our heads lead and the rest of us followed with relaxed shoulders, ribs falling off the spine, legs dangling from the pelvis. And there were guests!As a student, I know that somethings that I learned in college, I only came to appreciate years later. From teaching for so many years, I know it's impossible to please everyone all the time. So, I taught what I was inspired to teach and you learned what you were ready to learn. What will you take with you? What ideas resonated with you now? What ideas will you grow into...if you can know something like that? How have you grown as dancers, performers, artists?
I found this quarter very inspiring. I like to push my limits even if sometimes it can be frustrating. Many of the things that I experienced in this class were in fact frustrating. For example, I really struggled with contact improv, but yet the experience was something that I really cherished. Being able to experience new aspects of dance is not only beneficial to my dancing career, but as a person that enjoys the art of movement so intensely, new experiences are what I dance for. I grew up dancing in a modern studio that offered a really strong sense of community. I loved it, but it was that same community, feeling, and style that I have been constrained to for my whole dance career. The pilates and the yoga were both practices that I have done before but I got to experience them in a new light this quarter. Instead of just taking a yoga or pilates class and then later a dance class, I haven't been able to make the connection between the two. Though dancing with the idea of my core and imprinting while I danced, I was able to explore pilates and dance through a new lens. When we did dance phrases that were much more familiar to me in terms of the dance training that I have received in the past, I was able to really get into the movement and embody it at a higher level. That will never get old for me. I love nothing more then taking a piece of choreography and embodying it to the point that it feels so natural and beautiful. At the same time, there were many times during the quarter when we would learn a new piece of choreography and it would feel wonderful to dance it, and then I would discover new ways to explore the movement. I learned so much this quarter and really valued the lessons and dancing that I was able to experience. Thanks Louie for a great quarter!!!
ReplyDelete-Jessica
This was my first modern dance class ever and my first dance class in college, and I must say that I really enjoyed it. I've only started dancing three years ago, and while I've been trained in hip hop, ballet, and jazz, I've never had the opportunity to be in a modern class before. I came into this class not really knowing what to expect but willing to take in everything that I would be taught. I remember starting off with the yoga and pilates work and, to be honest, I thought it was not that interesting. But when we started moving into actual dance, I was so surprised by some of the concepts we did. One of my favorite weeks by far was the creatures dance week. That was the week I discovered that I work well dancing by images or idea. While I was moving that week, I felt so connected to my body and the images in my mind, and I reached a point where I felt that every movement I made was perfect and portrayed my raw emotion, and I've never reached ever in my dancing before, even with hip hop which I've been doing for the longest. Another week I really enjoyed was the week we worked on dancing from energy centers. As I've mentioned before, I feel that I'm not very good with improvisation, but by focusing on energy centers and dancing with a rhythm, I finally felt like I was actually improving instead of just randomly moving. I really really appreciate that week and what I learned, and I think that will stick with me as I continue my dancing career.
ReplyDeleteI feel like I've grown so much as a dancer this quarter. For the last three years, I see my friends and my schoolmates who dance modern and I admire how gracefully and beautiful they look. Before, whenever I danced modern, I felt like I had no idea what I was doing or it looked bad or something. The skills and the concepts I learned through this class have begun a transformation for me, and I now have a confidence in my modern dancing that I didn't have before. And I just wanted to say thank you, thank you, thank you for everything you've taught me this quarter, and I can't wait to continue in the spring! :)
- Allyson Wang
I am really sad that this time with you is over. Your class always brightened my day and you always made me laugh or smile and I feel like all of us got to know you on a different level then we have previously gotten to know professors because we communicated during class and would get such personal feedback on a regular basis of what we can improve on from you. I have taken so much from this class like how to express my thoughts about dancing and how to move my body and how to improve. I have learned to really push myself to the limit and ride my movements and phrases. You made me want to be a better dancer by watching you and I learned how your choreography should really look. I learned that counts are not always important and listening to music can sometimes be more important then counting and that it does not always matter if you are a little off count. Most importantly I think, is that I learned that everything does not always have to be perfect and there is not always such a thing as mess-ups or a right way to do something. I learned that one teacher can make you see all that dance has to
ReplyDeleteoffer and that teachers can have the ability to make you feel like you are taking a different class every time you show up. I also learned a lot about pilates and yoga which will be very useful tools I will use for the rest of my life. I hope to someday be much better and pick up choreography quicker because that is one of my biggest weaknesses. I have learned to really move my body in ways I never have before and I learned it is okay to look a little silly and really fully express myself. I guess you could say that I learned to dance like no one is watching, which I think is one of the best things you can learn!! I have always had more of technique training in my dance classes so it was really nice to have a class that was not focused on how flexible you are or how high you can kick your leg or how many turns you can do. It was really nice to be able to watch so many great dancers in a class that I don't strive to be like any of them because of their strong technique but that I am drawn to watch because of how amazingly they do a sequence or a certain move or a certain way they move their body. I have been enticed at one time with every dancer in our class. It was such a great learning environment getting to dance with women that share such a strong love for dance with me. And everyone was always so respectful of each other and what we said and the questions we asked and how we danced it was so refreshing and amazing! I hope the rest of my dances classes can be as wonderful as this one!
Nicole
If I had to describe this modern class in one word it would be FUN! Getting to explore different ways of moving or initiating movement with modern dance made this quarter a very valuable experience and knowing that we’ll do something new each week was exciting. Some ideas resonated with me right from the beginning, thinking “this feels good, I enjoy moving like this.” While other ideas I had more difficulty with, thinking “um… this is awkward”.
ReplyDeleteI really loved dancing in great outfits on the beach. This is an idea I will definitely take with me. I get stuck in my head so often when I am dancing thinking about counts or if I’m doing the move correctly or what comes next. Dancing in a great outfit on a beach on a sine warm day tell me to stop dancing in my head and to start dancing the sensation, quality or feel of the movement. When I do this I find that the movement becomes more fluid even with staccato type movements it helps keep me focused on dancing the movement instead of thinking about the movement I’m dancing.
I also really loved being an ancient underwater creature. It allowed me to be weird, ugly, free, bizarre, creative, and to embrace the awkwardness of movement. I really enjoy dancing ugly, not doing the movement poorly so it looks ugly but doing ugly movement with such commitment that it becomes beautiful.
I think I have grown as a dancer in the class because I now have the knowledge of the skills I need to work on to get out of my head, to stay committed to every second of movement and to listen to my own body as well as other people I’m dancing with. Thank you so much for being committed to helping me figure out how to roll up. I know I haven’t done it yet but now I have something to work with and lots of ideas of how I can make it work. I have been trying to roll up for so long others have told me I’m not able to do it because my butt’s too big, or my torso is too long, or I’m just not strong enough. I really appreciate all the help you gave me so I can break the pattern and be rolling up in no time. Thank you Louie for such a wonderful quarter of dance.
I learned a lot of great things this quarter. For one, I think I'm much less strict with my movements because of the concepts that were presented in class. I'm also a bit more in tune with areas that need more work. For me, there's still a balance between learning a combination and dancing that combination a way that feels best in my body. Where before taking the class I would usually just focus on learning the combination, stay in the mirror as often as possible, and make sure my lines are nice and my toes are pointed.. Now, I know that's not what dance is all about. As the technical things become more second nature, and I become better about picking up the choreography quickly, it's important to move in a way that is fluid and feels good - it feels better for me as a dancer and the audience will enjoy watching much more. Another thing I've taken out of this course is yoga. I'm a total fan of yoga now and I recommend it to everyone! Thank - you Louie!
ReplyDelete~Casey
The things that stick out most for me from this quarter are Alexander technique, seeing and learning Lar Lubovitch and being taught by one of his Company’s members, further learning to effectively connect with a partner through contact improv, and something you told us about how some people get from one level to the next, that is by pushing themselves to work constantly at their highest limits.
ReplyDeleteAlexander technique has been so helpful. It improved and is still helping my posture, and it has helped me dance more efficiently. I also remember to use it when I need to relax and take a breath before a performance, even as small as a showing. And it helps every time. I feel like a new person, because in the past I would always tense up due to nerves and not do as good as I could’ve.
The Lar Lubovitch weeks were really fun and I’m glad we did his choreography for the showing. I like the way it flows in waves. It’s also very different dancing in a circle than just in an open space. I realized how important it is to watch and listen to each other at that moment so that the circle can move smoothly. This I further learned by practicing contact improvisation again. I had good times and not so good times with that. I noticed that it was really fun and easy when my partner really gave me their weight and we followed the point of contact and the weight shifts wherever they went. But when the weight was barely there, or it was kind of a hesitant contact, when the weight given varied from more to less, not as much happened because the contact wouldn’t always follow.
I also learned from your class that we need to always be pushing ourselves and working on the outer limits of our abilities if we want to get to the next level. I’ve made it my goal to do that from then on and into infinity! Hehe.
I enjoyed having you as my teacher again, Louis. I feel like I learned a lot from you this quarter. I was always curious what you were going to teach us next and I was never bored. Thank you so much!
This class has been really interesting over the past quarter; there has been so much that we have learned that I don’t even know where to start. I really enjoyed beginning the class with Pilates and Yoga; it allowed me to stretch out after ballet class, improve my strength and stamina, and just get my body and mind prepared for modern class. I really liked learning about Alexander technique; I have only done a little bit before in other classes. It is an interesting concept that allows the body and neck to relax, and it is strange that allowing my neck to relax has allowed me to find ease in moving my body and doing choreography. One thing I had a really hard time working on and understanding was when, we worked on moving from specific parts of the body, such as the head, heart and pelvis. I have a hard time isolating parts of my body to create movement and it is strange to allow the movement to resonate throughout my body. I really enjoyed the contact improvisation that we did; it was fun following points with our eyes closed and reacting to touches. I found that it is difficult to trust your partner with your weight and allow the movement to happen. Overall, there is a lot that I gained from this class, and all of it I can use in the future. There are many tools that I can use to produce choreography that I did not consider before. This was my first modern class at the UW and it was a good way to start the year off. I look forward to next quarter! Thank you to everyone in the class for making it enjoyable!
ReplyDelete-Katelynn C.
There was so much content in this class. I want to try and take all that I learned and expand on it through every day dancing life packet. One of the things that really impacted me this quarter was the idea of leading with just one body part. I really enjoyed experiencing the different movements that came from different body parts leading. It has been amazing to see how these exercises can really stretch ones dancing skills and bring out new ideas for choreography. This creative energy was equally true of dancing from energy centers and images. I loved how we did so many different exercises to inspire our creative flow and release our inhibitions.
ReplyDeleteAnother favorite experience that will forever remain with me is my personal growth regarding improv work. For the first time, I actually felt the whole “Wow” experience of improv that comes from letting ones mind relax and just move. I also think that my enjoyment and understanding of contact improv was greatly enhanced. I learned so much from attending my first improv jam, and even more from having one dance with Louis. It was an amazing experience to dance in a space as partners that are thinking of nothing but connecting with each other. I cannot wait to go to another improv jam.
On a less exciting, but equally important area, this class and the Somatics class have helped me improve my posture. I will forever be thinking of the Alexander Technique, not only when feeling tension in dance classes but also as a permanent part of my everyday life. All in all, I loved all my dance classes this quarter. This class was my third technique class with Louis, and it was definitely my favorite. I really feel I was able to break out of my shell of reserve this quarter. It feels great to let my guard down and experience freer movement. Thanks Louis!
Wow! I learned so much from you this quarter Louis! Thank you!! Learning about Alexander technique is already improving my life. It is constantly on my mind now to keep my head moving forward and up from my spine ... it's a great feeling though. You exposed me to so many different aspects of dance which is helping me grow as a dancer. It's really important to be able to do a lot of different things within dance. Some things, like contact improv and improv in general, you taught in class made me nervous to do; however, I am glad that you taught these things because it's helping me to overcome my fears. Thank you for being so understanding about everything! My favorite days were the days when we just danced non stop. You always spoke about how important it is to have an experience when you dance and no teacher had ever really put it like that to me and it really made me think about it. Since that day I have attempted to always put everything I have into my classes and attain that experience. I was successful most days, but I still have bead days that take away from my ability to concentrate. I have had a great time with you and am looking forward to class with you next quarter. Thanks Louis!
ReplyDelete*Kali
I have learned so much this quarter. The things that I learned the most from were the Alexander technique, the creature dances, contact improv (gaining a better understanding of it), improving my ability to learn material more quickly, using a-rhythm in my body, and learning about Lar Lubovitch in such a multi-faceted way.
ReplyDeleteI loved that we learned something new everyday, and that I never knew what to expect in class.
The Alexander technique was such an important concept for me to learn. It has helped me to relax my body before dancing, and I know that I need to continue practicing it. Dancing like creatures was something that was a challenge in certain ways for me, but it also helped me realize all of the different ways the body can be used. It helped me to think about body design and movement in a natural way, in relation to living creatures, or magical ones :). Another experience similar to this was when we used improvisation, utilizing every part of our bodies- head, heart, hips, and everything that follows. Letting my body completely dictate my movements, rather than having my mind tell my body where it should go and what will look the best, was absolutely freeing, and one of my favorite classes.
During this class I also actually felt comfortable with contact improvisation, and understood how to listen to the point of contact and to my partner fully. I am so glad that we worked on this again after I learned it for the first time last quarter.
I think that learning different types of dances, with varying degrees of precise movements helped me to pick up steps and concepts much more quickly. Talking about goals, professional dancing, pushing the limits in dance, and taking every opportunity to improve and extend beyond the expectations really helped me realize why I dance, and what I want to do with dance in the future.
It was extremely informative and interesting to gain a variety of perspectives regarding exactly what goes into choreographing, performing, and auditioning for a prestigious dance company like Lar Lubovitch's. This will, and has, changed the way that I view other dance companies, and I am so glad we had the opportunity to experience this process (and perform it! :) )
Thank you so much for everything, Louis! I am so glad that I was able to take my first modern classes with you. Everything that I learned has helped me grow as a person and as a dancer.
I don’t even know where to begin! I wanted to say that this quarter was one big learning experience, but that’s a lie. What I REALLY mean is that this quarter consisted of NUMEROUS learning experiences that I believe have contributed to my approach to dancing and a greater understanding of… well, myself =]
ReplyDeleteI’ve taken a couple of other modern technique classes at the UW with Kory and Jamie. Last quarter, Jamie told us that every modern class we take has the potential to be very different but you can learn a lot of different things from each of them. She proceeded to suggest taking a class with Louis. So I went home and saw that he was teaching during winter quarter.
At first, I was a little intimidated by the small class size. Being able to be seen the WHOLE time made me want to have everything I did in class be perfect ALL THE TIME. That idea was shot down within the first few class days. In a good way, of course. I realized that I didn’t have to constantly worry about being “perfect.” I never really thought about how dance could be viewed that way. It was mentioned in my other classes, but even then, we still did things in a canon or were given a more rigid movement structure than what we were provided in this class. It was hard for me to accept at first, especially because I was extremely uncomfortable with improvising my own dances. I wanted to be sure that every move I made was either technically “correct” or what would be considered aesthetically pleasing by the general public (or the “untrained eye”). But after delving into the idea of exploration and experimentation, and feeling the difference between moving while thinking about the moves and moving with less inhibiting thoughts was very… enlightening. Also, it helped to be around such a supportive and respectful group of people. I was always okay with trying new things and adding moves to my dance vocabulary, but now I’m much more comfortable with allowing my body to move in ways I’ve never tried before. I feel I am a stronger dancer for letting myself get to that place.
And I have this class to thank for that! So thank you Louis for opening up our awareness and giving us the tools to become better dancers. And thank you everyone else for helping make this learning experience a positive one. I hope to see you all around every once in a while =]
~Jennifer