Spreadsheets - 11/07/18 to 24/07/18

Head to Head P1

Head to Head P2

As mentioned in my previous blog post, my last meeting with Andrew resulted in having lots to do in order to prepare for the next meeting. I was instructed to put together detailed spreadsheets with a list of every single movement I want the drone to do in the piece, this includes height, distance, time, rotation and speed. I am more than happy to do this, as it forces me to think about the choreography I want to include in each section. So, not including the first section as that is a film, I began with the second section. This was relatively easy as I had already choreographed this when I planned the sections, it was just the case of putting it into a spreadsheet. 

Head to Head P3

The third section, Head to Head, is proving to be extremely difficult and is taking me a long time to complete. The difficulty is that I'm trying to choreograph a duet that would arise from contact improvisation, without having done any contact improvisation yet. Improvisation is impossible to plan, otherwise it isn't improvisation. I've tried to guess how I would react to the drone and how the drone might react to me without being able to experience it. Even if I were to try and remotely control the drone whilst moving with it, that still isn't improvisation as I'm telling the drone what to do, and then as I have the controller in my hand I am then unable to move as freely as I would like.

Head to Head P4

Another difficulty is getting the timing precise. The drone is programmed by seconds, however myself as a dancer I am more used to working with counts and beats in music. I had already picked out a couple of songs I liked a couple of weeks back and I'd began assigning them to particular sections, however its becoming harder to resist choreographing to the music and ultimately I may end up doing so. Yet how on earth I'm going to get a drone to perform alongside counts in the music I have no idea!

And so I'm already doubtful this will work even before my meeting with Andrew, but I guess I shall carry on until our next meeting and see what he says.