i started to work on the remounting of i’d rather be at home in December 2020 and is currently ongoing.
[in continuing a work, i attempt to bring forward the artists who helped develop the previous iterations. in this case, Will Hamilton has been able to move into the stage of creation with this work. along with him, i cast Hayley Ng (Hamilton-based), Alten Wilmot (Unwrap Theatre, Kitchener-Waterloo), and i will be dancing again. Vennie Tu joined the project to create music. no, i was not going back to using the classical music the work was originally set to (see previous post), so a new sound score was necessary.]
in revisiting i’d rather be at home, i first wanted to have a deeper understanding of what this work was about and why i am interested in making it (holy shit...am i answering grant questions for fun now?). the work refers to ‘home’ as a place (physical, mental, or imagined, found or yet to be discovered,) where we (all people) have the chance to be honest. to see ourselves with clarity and to admit our deepest fears, if only here, only for a moment.
i only admitted i am absolutely in love with fantasy less than a year ago. i’m not sure what i was doing before that...trying to be a serious artist but always using LOTR references when trying to describe an emotional state to collaborating artists. embracing the desire to delve into fantasy, i also know that the work i make has roots in the human experience. in my experience. and then there is movement. for the remounting of this work, i decided to talk about the piece with the performers in this way:
PART 1 >>> reality/real-world character+connection
zoom rehearsal dec 29.2020
in the video above i’m describing both the physical direction/design of the space layered with the “real world” experience. i found in this process, figuring out what this is for each character provided a strong base to begin to explore and abstract from, especially since all of the solos are crafted improvisations.
following Will’s solo, and now knowing the world he exists in, his thought process, and experience of the world around him. next, we layered on movement that stems from his narrative and grows out from what is ‘realistic’ to a larger expression.
PART 2 >>> MOVEMENT
zoom rehearsal dec 29.2020
[^^^ just dance on zoom they say. i mean it worked for our purposes, but seriously, stfu.]
Part 3 >>> Fantasy
in creating the solos during this remount, the element of fantasy came to me just before the second rehearsal with each performer (i worked with each performer for two 1.5hrs on zoom individually to create their solos). i’m not sure how exactly, but i think by having the initial information and movement established, my imagination was available and began to contribute other elements of what could be.
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REFLECTION
in deciding to write about creative process i realized that this means writing about what is happening, while it is happening. i think in the past i told myself i would write about the creative process of a piece “when i had more time” aka, not actually in process anymore. but then, it is just summary. the creation is done and the writing serves no purpose for me, but exists as a product for people (or no one, let’s be real) to consume. well luckily i don’t seem to have enough motivation to create that product.
two ideas to move ahead with:
reality // movement // fantasy character cards for each performer + solo arcs
fantasy character…images/profiles? …something here