Groove-y 'ish...guerrilla performance

just put together a Kickstarter page, right here. Working on a new piece/show for August 11th, at 9pm. Probably gonna be at Gooddale by the playground or by the tennis court, or downtown by Gay and Long - near Tip Top.

a short description of what's going on from my kickstarter page:

"Use the curves, flow, introversion, and general style of "grooving" at a club or party situation, and combine that with the rough, quick twitch, wild type of dancing I might do on stage. Then take the focus, zoom, and speed attributes of filmmaking, and the splice, paste, and fade, nature of film editing and use those ideas to drive choreographic choices that will focus an audiences' gaze (like the lens of a camera) as they attempt to take in all this information. All of this would make the performance even more engaging, bringing the audience in one step closer to the movement.

What would come out? A volatile yet entertaining microscope-like plunge into the world of intensely crafted grooving. All of which would be set in a cobble-stoned alleyway of downtown Columbus, OH - using only large heavy duty flashlights as lighting sources."

gonna put together a videodance as a sort of sister work. Check out a video of the work in progress...right here.

Definitely come and check out the performance, watch the videodance online, or get involved on Kickstarter and send some support this way. Either way, I'd love to communicate a bit with all of you, in one form or another. :)

(London) Guerrilla Dance Project

My sister Rebekah recently turned me on to this little happening over in our neighboring, Europe. Guerrilla Dance Project, based out of London, England, is a group that creates monthly performances around the city and has performed internationally in Zagreb, Croatia. Their material is generally set, and focuses on object manipulation to guide their movement and aid in being able to "appear and disappear." From what I've seen, they vary from sitting at a table in a cafe and dancing from that spot, or having seven people against a wall in a line, and slowly breaking out from reading a paper, all the way to slowly rolling down an entire staircase.

A short trailer of what GDP does is right here, and a longer video and interview with the leader of this group Laura Kriefman can be found here.

Check out their website for touring dates, more info about the group, and a list of on-stage performances they do/have done.

JR - Street Artist/TED Talk

While on Hulu today, I came across a talk by JR, a street artist from France. Feel free to check out those links to get a low down on JR, who's doing some really potent work around the world. I really appreciate how insistent he is on his acts/art creating a connection between people on a very everyday level.

A really nice example of this was in Brazil where he posted prints of women who had been raped/killed by militant groups, in an area frequented by violence. When members of these groups confronted JR and his crew about their activity and the cameras they were using, he explained that their desire was not to show others the violence of what was happening - much like journalists/members of the media that would usually come through. Instead he was looking simply to highlight those who lived in the area, and the depth with which their lives held. They were not stopped from putting up their prints or taking pictures/video.

For a broad overview of JR's career, check out good ol' Wikipedia.

norms

...this is a reference to this post.

Alright, norms can be described in a few different ways. I like to think of norms (normal, normality) as the product of someone telling another or him/herself to "do this," and for that person to respond by following and/or accepting the order/suggestion. As the process repeats (with one, or a large number of people) it eventually is seen as something that happens. As it becomes something that happens more and more, this something is logged in one individual's/group's mind as a part of his/her/their life/lives, as part of something that dictates the way in which they approach their life, and how a decision(s) are made...one might call it a style of living that dictates what types of choices are made.

As generations pass, and styles are passed down via instruction/talking/music/movies/books/other forms of expression on an individual and broad level, these styles become norms that build societies and cultures. Some of these norms change over time, while others stay stable for many years. While I cannot say that this is universally the process in which this creation of norms take, this is how I currently understand it and what I will be referencing when I talk about norms from this point on.

...next time, I'll start talking about some applications/reasons for these norms, then I'll probably follow it up with why they're created at all. soon, somewhere along the way I'll actually get back to talking about guerrilla a little more directly.

a loaded act

this is a follow up to this post.

so let me see here, the issue of the loaded act...an issue that stems from the societal/cultural creation of a norm - what is deemed by any given society as normal.

Here's why normality is related go gdance.
Someone is walking down the middle of downtown, they see a space that looks particularly inviting and this person has the urge to dance in that spot.  Like a child wanting to play with a new toy, this desire is innocent. The person moves towards the spot, and a pang finds her stomach. All these people walking to and from work will notice me (hesitation) that'll be weird; I'm not gonna do that.

That would not be normal, like the normal act of walking next to someone you know while you walk to Subway for lunch, or like the normal act of driving down the right side of the road in the States: an act that would be weird in somewhere like France. This is how what is normal relates to guerrilla. Normality is constantly in opposition to acting beyond the norm, and most importantly to me, can often be in opposition of someone doing what someone wants to do. Not an act that hurts anyone else, simply an innocent desire to dance in a cool place. Guerrilla dance is in the business of supporting what people want to do, and what makes them happy/feel fulfilled. Our norms can get in the way of that.

Now, before I end this post on that note, let me clarify that when I say "supporting what people want to do, and what makes them happy/feel fulfilled," I speak in relation to something that will not hurt another creature (human or otherwise.) Many people have the desire to shoot others, to take advantage of, to torture, to make fun of, to leave behind, etc. I won't even begin to reference such things. I simply don't understand the need for norms that continue to harm individuals by not allowing them to fulfill simple desires such as dancing all over.

p.s.
this is where the real meat is though. why do we think certain things, such as dancing in certain places, is weird, yet walking down a street while completely ignoring thousands of others in the course of any given week is normal? Why is going onto a stage, wearing one glove, and grabbing one's crotch seen as cool, but if I do the same thing on my street corner I get cockeyed looks? what makes a norm, who makes a norm, and why do some norms work to keep people from expressing themselves when they feel the need? lots of questions
...next time, I'll probably'll focus on the origin of norms/why norms are created in the first place.

Girl Talk/DaveyDance

Couple of friends pointed me in the direction of these projects (some that have been going on for a while.) Thanks to Lindsay Caddle-LaPointe and Kiki Williams respectively, for giving me a heads up about some pretty rad cats.

First is the Girl Walk//All Day project, which recently accrued more than enough funding on Kickstarter. Basically, the project follows a young girl as she traverses NYC, meets and battles various people around the city. The entire film will be soundtracked by the entire length of the most recent Girl Talk release "All Day." At the beginning of the trailer to the soon-to-be-made 71 minute film, Ann Marson (the lead character in the film,) eloquently states, "My dream would be...being able to dance wherever the hell I want, and making other people feel like it's okay to do that." Hmmm, I think I can get behind that train of thought.

Shooting for Girl Walk//All Day starts in March, and is currently slotted to be shown in NYC alone (unless they're able to garner even more funding.) Jacob Krupnick is the head of this film. Definitely a cool project.

Second little thing is the longstanding Davey Dance Blog, which is home to a whopping 100 videos of this guy Davey dancing all over the world: Stonehenge, Hollywood, Teotihuacan, etc. "A project started while traveling Europe during Spring 2007. Armed only with an ipod and a Canon PowerShot, Davey picks a location and a pop song. Then Davey records an improvised dance."dNot only is he a rockin' dancer, but he also has a great taste in music. You should definitely check out his blog, vimeo, and website featuring his "professional work."

Yarn Bomb/Storm

Now, when I think guerrilla anything, or something being "bombed," this is not what I think of right away. Many of the people who do this stuff talk about it as if Yarn Bombing is a nice version of the more subversive types of guerrilla art out there (ex. also known as the nicer sounding Storming in places such as London, versus the dangerous Bombing.)

Check out more pics and links to other forms of yarn bombing, below:


Albequerque knows what's up: a blog from the Fibe Squad.

International fiber artists, Magda Sayeg.

Born in Poland, Olek now resides in NYC and makes some crazy stuff.

I like these cats general sense of humor, KnittaPlease.

Work from Olek

Work from 'burque

Never seen anything quite so progressive and fluffy, all at the same time.

referencing Shen Wei post

The post immediately previous contained information about some "guerrilla" activity from the well known Shen Wei Dance Arts company. I had some thoughts that came after posting that relate pretty directly, so I thought I'd toss 'em up on the ol' blog.

It's always nice to see big time choreographers "bring it to the people." Not only does it offer a chance for individuals to experience certain types of art that often require an expensive ticket, but it also makes steps to address the lines between the artist and the viewer: the 'fourth wall,' performers outside of their usual shell as "performer on stage" raised above the audience, the definition of a performance space, etc. Many concepts that are often intentionally/unintentionally addressed in most guerrilla art (not only performance guerrilla art, but also that of stencil, graffiti, and the like.) This type of guerrilla art showcased by Shen Wei however, is interesting as it not only comes from an established creator of art - sort of a philosophical(/literal?) oxymoron to the very idea of Guerrilla - but also plays a part as promotion for a non-guerrilla showcase of art. Part of me wonders about this performance being deemed by Shen Wei himself as "guerrilla."

Especially considering the fact that guerilla is often as a type of subversion of the greater society/culture, rather than a perpetuation of it - which could be seen here (promotion for a very non-guerrilla proscenium stage performance, and created by an organization (Shen Wei Dance Arts) that finds great amounts of support from the greater institution of society/culture.)

P.S. 

this is a huge topic...one that I think it pretty vital to my own thoughts about Guerrilla-ness, but something that can't fully be covered in this single post. I'll definitely come back to this. and for the record, this blog in no way means to downplay how much I support any type of guerrilla or guerrilla-esque act. My questioning and analyzation is merely for the sake of attempting to understand this monster of a subject.

Shen Wei: "RE-(III) THRU OUT NYC"

Shen Wei Dance Arts, a prominent contemporary choreographer in the field of dance (involved in the Olympic opening ceremonies a few years back) held some "guerrilla" performances in NYC back in October of 2010. While working on his most recent major work, he held some unannounced performances around the city (sort of a promotional tool I'm assuming. Not sure how supplemental these performances are meant to be, or separate from his final stage work.)

Check out a lengthy video, to see this in action.

gdance video #5

just posted a new video on Vimeo. Check it out.

The Marlow Knows.

Bodies in Urban Spaces

A while ago someone alerted me to this really cool group. It is led by Willi Dorner (head of Cie. Willi Dorner) and Rashana Smith recently directed me to speak with someone who has worked with the group. Lisa del Rosario was kind enough to lend me a few words about her personal experience with the group:

"The choreographer, Willi Dorner, traveled from Austria and auditioned dancers for this project 2 months earlier before the project began. Then 2 months later, we worked for 8 days straight working 9-5pm building a 2 mile trail of body sculptures. It was freaking strenuous. I felt like I got beat up by a bat at the end of the day...[and] I had to sleep on my belly one night after trying to squeeze between an electric pole and an electric box upside down several times. Lots of trials and errors, and very, very precise positioning.

The show consisted of about 20 pieces. We ran from one to another and had to hold it for 5 min or longer as the audience walked by. It really changed me--I'm still inspired by it because it fucking toughened me up."

Definitely google BIUS and check out the plethora of photos of Dorner's work.

a few links in that vein:

Wall Street Journal photo blog

Nice little description, and showing of presentational format, fi;af's Crossing the Line

watch it in action, and get a feel for the process of building some of these formations (2:47 is nice).

Dorner's site

...till next post

a(nother) beginning to guerrilla talk

a while back I wrote about how I tend to look at guerrilla (dancing in this case.) For those who may have interest in anything I say, I definitely would redirect you to take a look at that to see some of where I am coming from when I talk about this (fairly expansive) thing. it's a good base to bounce off of

alright, so guerrilla dance

what exactly happens when one guerrilla dances? "about a zillion things" would be my answer - not exactly a zillion mind you, only approximately seeing as this is definitely not an exact science. at a very basic level, one who is 'guerrilla dancing' tends to enter a space where dancing is not often normal (i.e. a street corner, a cafe, a bookstore, a lecture hall, a library, etc.) and begins to dance. as is probably already obvious (though I will soon elaborate on it anyway) each person who does this act of guerrilla dancing, is doing so for his/her own reasons.

Some people do it to bring dance to people who rarely see it; I've known some who use it as a way to perform grand acts that impress others...in other words, to show off; some people have done it simply because, "Oh! that looks like fun. I think I'll do that;" others do it as a way to say "fuck you" to the man, "this is a free fuckin' country and I do what I want, where I want it!!!!!!!!!;" while even others do it just because it's fun to dance somewhere other than the studio - a place in which contemporary 'dancers' spend the majority of their time training/dancing. I've never met one person who dances for only one reason, but instead a mix of these (and other) ideas.
My own personal reasons for gdancing. it's fun to dance in varied landscapes with various textures; it's exhilarating to pay as little attention as possible to the social codes that tell me, "this is not a normal dance space! it's weird for you to dance here!" and lastly (and quite prominent a reason) to find a sense of meditation in such a loaded act.
There are several more (conscious) reasons I do this act of gdancing, but their complexity and vagueness are better suited for another time. These are the most straightforward, and prominent reasons I gdance.

p.s.
I really like the idea of "meditation in such a loaded act." I think that speaks pretty directly to the idea I brought up that gdancing is dancing in "a space where dancing is not normal." what normal has to do with all this, and why that creates a senses of a "loaded act"...hmmmm, I think I'll talk about those in my next post.

Near Future

I have been fairly absent from the online presence of guerrilla, especially when it comes to this blog. Obviously I have still been dancing all over (including in Michigan. a first that happened over Christmas time, with my sister Kathryn) no worries about this. In my stead from blog writing, I have been working on something else.

I am starting work on creation of a sort of hub-like web presence for gdance. You may already know this in the skeleton-like form of our FB, Twitter, Blogger, and Dance in Columbus page. I am going to work to interconnect these parts to a greater extent, which will form to become a web-place that contains a wealth of information for all things guerrilla, and to facilitate information/guerrilla meeting-ups between individuals.

I have begun creating the meat for this skeleton, most recently in the form of short little videocast blurbs. Those which I have created so far showcase how I and others experience gdance, as well as the exploration of ideas that have come up in my mind/discussions with others in relation to dancin' around town. Feel free to peruse this vast library:


Roofin' it -
http://www.vimeo.com/17643599

Tide Collage-
http://www.vimeo.com/17854171

Messy-
http://www.vimeo.com/18607860

Mango Troubles-
http://www.vimeo.com/18721647

I will continue posting these little films on a weekly/bi-weekly basis. You can also find these videos, and keep up to date with weekly postings of "official" guerrilla times (an oxymoron?) on our FB group page. Also, don't forget our Twitter page as a great/quick way to keep up with all things guerrilla.

Keep an eye out for all future happenings, and if you miss a couple of such events don't worry, a continuous flow will be the name of the game.

new twitter account

http://twitter.com/Guerrilladance/

flow... ... . . . ... . . . . .

I was in one of my favorite parts of Columbus, leaving a coffee shop walking to my car when it started to rain. I quickly threw my bags into my car, dropped off some valuables, threw off my shirt and lept out into the storm (and I mean storm...raindrops the size of tennis rackets, people.) I ran around the little cobblestone village for a fair amount of time until the rain died down. I continued my walk, away from the car, until it started to pour even harder. This was getting pretty ridiculous, it was getting late, and I was getting to a not as nice part of town. I speedily turned to head back, badgered by the intense amount of water hitting my face. About half way to my car I fell upon a spot. I was drenched, the cobblestone lay unevenly below my feet, and little surrounded me other than the brick houses that sheltered all others from the rain. I stopped. I looked around. and I danced...I danced for quite some time. I did just that, doing little more than simply letting all my senses activate...

Raindrops fell like gravity was turned up times two, the lampposts burned as glowing spheres ignorant to the downward flow of water, the houses that lined the alleyway sat as unique as anything that is born in its natural environment, and the cobblestone...the cobblestone was the best part! The cobblestone jutted in every direction, refusing to be stagnant and predictable. I constantly had to reevaluate my footing while taking in my surroundings (both internal and external) and whipping through it all while I flew between over thinking my movement and finding moments of flow. The kind of flow that negotiated all that was being experienced without much consciously directed thought. I was surrounded by energy of all kinds, and was having a damn good time.

change of titles

I recently changed the title of this blog to "Guerrilla ________" instead of "The Scarecrow" as it was previously. The Scarecrow was originally my personal "artist" blog name, and I just used it to start writing about gdance. But now I'd like to have a separate blog for non-guerrilla musings/whatever, and so the url for this blog (notice above) is different to reflect this change.

please change your rss or links to this site accordingly. Thanks!!

gdance, set to A Few words

The other day someone was asking me about how I personally approach gdance (seeing as there are surely infinite ways of doing it.) A couple things came to mind that I thought I'd share.

When I think of guerrilla dance, what comes to mind as the most important factor is the individual. The individual dancing. Right there is all you need to gdance - a human body. You have one of those, and you're golden.
Although I don't think these are always necessary, having set times or places can be helpful. Creating a schedule of when a group can get together is extremely beneficial when people are busy (as we all know.) But hey, you can just have a set time and no set place, or a set place and no set time...or sometimes it's even more fun to just call some friends up and go boogy in a nearby mall *shrug* up to you and your posse.
Don't get hung up on what gdance "should" be. It should be whatever the hell you want it to be: large choreographed routine, the same act over and over, walking slow, dancing your heart out, salsa, ballet, Caribbean, club dancing, and the list goes on and on. The manifestation of guerrilla dance is very dependent on who is doing it.

If anyone has questions about gdancing, I hope my thoughts are helpful. But hey, these are just my thoughts, in no way does this define how anything should be done. This post is more for those who have the heeby jeebies about going out and being a social outcast. ;)

and remember there are others who gdance as well. Find 'em.

Enjoy your guerrilla ways of life. :P

Guerrilla - as a part of another

Today was interesting in how we were asked to come to dance as part of someone's event. This is the first time this group has done this, and pretty cool to be noticed enough to be asked. However, it started making me wonder if we were simply a supplement to someone else's idea. Sometimes it felt a little like we were "tacked on." How should we dance "under"someone else? Especially when gdance seems so much about freedom, or at least it is fairly connected to it.
This feeling was increased by the addition of a nearby D.J. - we not only were dancing there because someone wanted us to, but we were also provided with their music...so their way of dancing? (It's interesting to note that up until recent months, whenever music was used as part of this group, I supplied it. As time has gone on, I've realized the importance of anyone using their music, partly because it's simply more fun to dance to what you know, but also because it helps to deteriorate any sense of a single individual being "in charge.") But does that really matter? Simply because gdance isn't about some agenda, some higher way of thinking, some more logical well-thought out way of approaching life - and definitely not about teaching anybody how to do anything, or higher art. Guerrilla seems less and less as a platform for revolution or telling anyone what to do, and more an opportunity to allow for actions to be taken (to be involved, or not.) So does it really matter who we work with, or in what fashion? As long as we're continuing to simply do, and not start getting greedy: as we gain more attention, not using our opportunities to make others "get" us, or attempting to influence them to become more like us. The desire to influence others is partly self-validation by way of gathering a posse of followers: changing how others think to match so that it fits with what we do. or in other words, validating ourselves and what we believe in by getting others to say "YES! I agree!" As such, gdance almost seems to fit wherever asked to go as long as we stay in line with our simple intention of dancing, unaffected by others' desire to use us to influence their surroundings. Our presence might be doing that, but we on the inside, performing the act of gdancing, not making any effort at causing such an influence.

(Is it even possible to disconnect one's self from attempting to affect others with one's actions? to simply do without agenda to influence?)

Of course, how we are perceived, how we seem to be acting in the eyes of others, that matters too? Do others perceive us to be losing ourselves/our original intention? Selling out? Does this matter if our actions and intent are the same? Will it affect us if others view us in these negative ways? Might we be hindered in some way? It seems as if none of that perception matters if our acts and intentions are in fact staying the same..."pure?"

Siting

Guerrilla dancers recently joined forces with an OSU campus group "Best Day of Your Life" and were caught on camera. Check it out:

http://www.thelantern.com/multimedia/osu-s-best-day-of-your-life-1.1484379

Club Dancing

This is a slight departure for this blog: I tend to write in direct relation to "guerrilla dancing," or rather, the times when I say "Now I'm going to dance as part of my project!!"

yet, last night something stuck out to me like a sore thumb. I took a trip to a local bar of downtown Columbus to dance with some friends of mine. While we were there doing our thing on the dance floor amidst the bumping, grinding, and awkward shifting of feet most displayed, one person stood out. There was this really short (5 footish), slightly husky, spectacled, semi-attractive guy dancing his heart out...all by himself. On a dance floor where almost everyone is either with a group, dancing with a partner, or if alone is on the side looking for another to dance with, this guy was truly outside of what seemed to be that dance floor's norm. For quite some time though, he just kept going, as if it was the last night he'd ever be able to dance again. It wasn't as if he was dancing - "like no one was watching" - but instead as if he was completely aware of his surroundings, and was simply unaffected: he wanted to dance, his way, and so he did.

Within 15-20 minutes after he began dancing, girls started to approach him. First it was just one, then another, and soon a space had been cleared, he was surrounded by a crowd, and several girls took their turn (sometimes two at a time) to dance with him. Even then, while he did seem to be enjoying himself, his face showed no sign of "yeah! look at how many girls I'm getting, and everyone is watching me!" instead his expression stayed in a place of somewhat of a solemn, internal focus. In a place where just about everyone followed a set of rules, rules that depended on others in just about every case, the one person who was gathering the most amount of positive attention was the one who had little to no dependency on the thoughts, support, or perspective of others - even when he was flooded with all those "power in numbers" social supports. He was never tempted to let it affect him; nothing seemed important except for that moment in which he was doing what he enjoyed; and this continued to be true when the crowd had dissipated and he was back to soloing again.

interesting