Mask Making

During October 2014, as part of the Doxey Arts Experience, Merv ran some mask workshops.  We made masks out of some very simple and cheap materials, that ultimately looked rather good (we thought).

Previously we have made masks using our faces as moulds.  This is great because the masks fit perfectly, and it makes the creator of the mask feel very connected to it.  The problems with this are that some people feel rather uncomfortable sitting still and having wet paper applied in layers to their face.  Also, once you have taken the mask off, it is less easy to work on as it doesn't have a base to sit on and keep it in shape.

Therefore this time we used polystyrene heads as the base.  The masks were kept on the heads throughout the making process.  We decided that they would be decorative rather than functional, which meant we didn't have to worry about fitting into the masks.

Before you start with the instructions I've written, here are a couple of tips, as I've made masks a few times now, and have learned some valuable lessons.

1. Little and often:  Leave a gap of a day between each layer of work you put onto the mask.  The materials you use are quite wet, and often piled up to create exaggerated features.  This is important for the look of the mask, as the dramatic effect is increased through this exaggeration.  If you try to do too much in one go, you will not get as good a finish as you could, or worst case scenario, ruin it altogether.

2.  Patient, careful application.  Set yourself up in a comfortable area, with enough space to do whatever you want to.  Have all your materials on hand.  Switch mobile phones off.  Put some nice music on.  Go into the zone.  The more patient and careful your application, the better your result will be.

3.  Build up gradually.  Think about how you will support the mask whilst wet so that it doesn't lose it's shape or come apart whilst drying.  You can be quite ambitious with the shape but planning is essential.

Ok, so.  Materials you will need to start:

Polystyrene heads (about £16 per pack of 4, you can get them from the internet easily)

Brown paper sticking tape - get from post office or stationary shops.

Kitchen Paper towels

PVA glue

Newspaper

Water (lots, in pots)

Paint (poster or acrylic paints)

Other items to decorate

Tools:

scissors

paint/glue brushes

1.  1st layer: Brown paper sticky side up

The head needs to have bands of sticky tape fixed round it, stuck together so it is sticky side up.  Use the water - you will have lots and lots of sticking to do!

The bands are connected together with shorter strips of sticky paper, also sticky side up.  Keep going until you have covered the whole area that you want to make the mask of.  This will result in a brown sticky shell encasing the front of the head.  This is the most fiddly bit. but stick with it, the process gets more fun once this bit is over and done with.

This mask was made with eye holes. Others were made without.  If a mask is going to be worn, breathing holes are very important.  Also the eye holes can literally be pin sized, as the wearer will still be able to see out of them, but it means that you can decorate the eyes however you like.  Alternatively an opaque or gauze material could be used.

Onto the sticky side up shell, add about 4 ore 5 more layers of paper tape, sticky side down.  This one here will become tulip, the vampire flower.  One of the challenges of working with the paper tape is that it tends to leave very sharp raised bits all overthe mask.  This can be combatted by cutting the tape down the middle, lengthwise, before sticking, thus meaning that the strips are thinner and raised up less.  Also, as you build up the layers, you can make it very tight, smoothing it down as you go.  Layers of newspaper and tissue paper will also act to make the finish smoother.  Finally, once it is completely dry, your mask can be sanded.  But first, you need to build it up more.

Swampy the bog monster and Lizzy the alien lizard cat, were built up using kitchen paper soaked in a mix of pva glue and water (about 50/50).  Once the features are built up, they need to completely dry before continuing.  Lizzie was made in two sittings, with a day to dry between each layer of features.  this ensured that the tissue paper will retain it's shape.  Once it is dry, it can be built on, with more sticky paper or with layers of newspaper, or magazine sheets.

Tulip is having petals added, and these needed to be done in several stages, so that they would stay intact.  Again, leaving them to dry thoroughly between each stage.

Mr Punch has a very large chin and nose - these were held in place with brown paper to keep them attached.

 Lizzy was covered in newspaper over the features, as her features are very contoured, and the edges on the brown paper would make them lose their shape.  

  Here is Mr Punch.The shape of his face is now completed and you can see that there were a few layers added.  He is very front heavy and needs to be supported.  Hence being held in place with someone's hand.   This was a problematic feature of the construction and decorating processes for all of the masks.  Eventually we stuck them to boards with tape to prevent them falling over.

Getting the large petals right on Tulip was very tricky, and needed several layers of sticking.  If too many layers had been added in one go, the petals would have got too wet and fallen off.  during the final layer of drying, circular pieces of foam rubber were inserted between the smaller and larger petals to keep the rear petals from falling onto the front ones.  Once it was all done and dried properly, the petals were very firmly fixed in place.

Once the mask is firm, smooth and dry, the base paint layer can be added.  Use poster or acrylic paint, with added pva glue.  This makes the paint harder wearing and the colour more reflective, hence brighter.  Have a think about what you want your final piece to be like.  It may need two layers of base paint to cover the brown paper, newspaper or whatever your construction is made out of.

Already, we can see the different characters coming out in the masks.  The character is defined by the shape of the features, and the colour added.  These are all very distinctive from each other in the examples shown.

When the base layer is dry, further layers of paint, or other decorative media can be applied.  

 Be adventurous, paint on its own, even with the advantage of having PVA glue added, can look very flat.  Using other materials, some 3d, some reflective, adds interest, character and dynamic effect to your final piece.

 Once it's done, you can put it on the side still attached to the head base, as we have with these, or take it off and hang it on the wall.

The Unseeing I & the Machine

Merv here.

I've never blogged on a workshop before so bear with me here.

A two part workshop today - first we looked at the soon to be refurbished machine. Then we continued our exploration of communication & relationship through touch with the Unseeing I.

The New Machine -

Drama circle. Four. Me, Nicky & Damon - the grizzled Konnektiv hardcore- & Bonnie. We're rebuilding the machine from the elements - air, earth, fire & water. Spirit isn't here today.

We talk about the relationship between the elements.

We do "elemental" warm up moves. Earth (coal?) fuels the fire. Fire blazes then burns low then blazes up again. Damon has lots of fiery energy today! Fire heats water. It bubbles, boils & steams. Air regulates the action - stops overheating & exploding.

We move around the circle in sequence. Next we move it round the room - an elemental chain of machine parts. Water leaks away a little but an interesting experiment.

We're excited about the potential for the new eco steampunk faerie machine & talk costume & backstory. Imaginations explode with fireworks of ideas.

This is going to be fun.

The Unseeing I -

Today I was the Unseeing I for the whole workshop. Before we have swapped roles with our partners or there has been a break to make notes between each condition. I felt that the experience of being the Unseeing I would be different if I could go through each condition in sequence with no break & no "seeing". I thought the experience would be deeper & more powerful. Today was my chance to find out.

Me & Damon were to be the Unseeing Is & Nicky would be my touch, Bonnie Damon's. We would all perform at the same time. Damon was concerned that there might be collisions during condition 3 but we persuaded him that all would be well.

Condition 1 -

Relax into neutral. Eyes closed. Nicky set the timer.

Waiting calm & aware. I've been here before. Gentle touch & respond: move. Slow. The gentleness of the touch evoked a slow controlled movement. Very slow. Feeling every fraction of an inch of travel.

Feeling quiet. Sensitised. Trying to understand the touch.

Complicated touches now. Multiple joint. More complex messages. Nicky's experimenting. Just respond. Try to think with my brain just leads to confusion. Think with the body. Nerves & muscles. Joints & ligaments. I forget the rules sometimes but without thought the movements feel "right".

The timer sounds. 5 minutes is over in a flash. Back to neutral. Relaxed. Eyes stay closed.

Timer set again.

Condition 2 -

Off we go. Where are you taking me? Who cares? When we first experimented with the darkness I used to try to sense where I was in the space - changes of light near the window - or remember the twists & turns of the journey. Now, a veteran of the dark, I trust the touch & give myself to the experience. Trust increased? Or is the dark more homely? I can hear Damon's trousers rustling as we pass. A couple of missed (or were they?) communications as thought intrudes into my instinctive reactions. Again 5 minutes is gone. Neutral. Relaxed. Eyes wide shut. Waiting.

Condition 3 -

Music begins. I feel flowing & turning & the touch is there. We turn together. I reach out & there's the touch.

We dance. We've talked about dance in connection with condition 3 throughout but the more work we do the more authentically dance-like it feels.

Emotion. Lots. The music is beautiful, fitting my mood of the day. The movement feels authentic: no contrived performance here just a genuine engagement with the sound & the touch & the space.

I felt a sense of communion with the touch. Effortless & intuitive. Moving. Very moving.

Too soon the music was over. We sat down in our pairs to reflect on our experiences. Nicky & I cried. We both felt something meaningful & potent. I don't have the words ( awkward as I'm writing a blog) but I will remember & cherish this experience for a long time.

The Blind-I and the Touch

Once again I have changed the name of this technique I am developing with the help of collaborators Merv and Damon.

Choosing names for things is difficult, and also represents changes in the way that I am percieving what we are doing.

In yesterdays session, something strange happened.  For the first time we had a workshop attendee who did not find the processes that we are looking at relaxing or therapeutic in any way.  On the contrary, she found that she felt sick and dizzy, in either of the two roles.

This is useful as we are doing each of the three conditions for 10 minutes each, however when workshopping with others, perhaps I need to stick to 2 or 3 minutes per condition initially.  I considered starting with the Blind-I having their eyes open, however I don't think this would work.  Maybe initially, I may try this as an experiment.

In two weeks we will be workshopping this for the first time with a naive group (by naive I mean they won't have any previous experience or knowledge of the method), so this will be a good learning experience.


Back to this weeks session.

Having lost the person who felt sick and dizzy (she went off to stick booklets together instead), I quickly thought of a way that the group could incorporate all three of us.  As I had already brought some paper for people to write responses to the processes and experiences on, this gave a new opportunity for an 'observer' role.  As the two actors engaged in the processes of the task, the observer watched and wrote their responses onto a piece of paper.  After, the two actors also wrote their own responses.  Each condition was replayed 3 times, so that each person got a go at each role.

The written responses are all copied below.  As you will see, in the first condition, there is no observer.  This is because there were four people in this condition, so we didn't have an oserver, just two Blind-I's and two Touches.

Condition 1 - rooted

Blind-I

Interesting arm movememtn; complex arm positions/sequences.  Bendy, lop sided, bouncing back, light, dynamic equilibruim, interesting, light, strange, felt dizzy; what on earth am I doing now?  noisy breathing, waves, interpretaions, off-balance, movemet in stillness, unsure, pleasant, fabric rustling, relaxing, "Thing on a spring"; Holding the space

Touch

Locus of control; centre puppet; automaton; trust, responsiblity, caution, directing strings; Economy, swaying, mirror, sensitive, fun, frustration, gentlem movement, balance

Condition 2 - travelling

Observer
travel, finger move, traction, hard-prodding, off balance, moourous, playful/fun; flexion, statics v dynamics; flow --> point of attraction/retraction; joined, spirals; parting/complex; preparedness to touch, experimenter/focus balance; dance; thinking; noisy clothes; cautious mover; legs? measuring; footwork early on meandering and later on; stepping :) turning; damon looking confused at times? perturbed? pondering; finer/gradual changes; extra movements (too many steps)

Blind-I

Unnerving; off balance; unexpected; confused; interesting; mime-touch; confused; static or movement?  3 hands?  unsure of what to do!  how to interpret static or movemement; bit confused

Touch

Complex movements; mirroring; touching with various bodyparts (ooer); experimenting; balance; trying; frustration; responsible; inventive; experimental; playful

Condition 3 - dancing

Observer

Playful, dynamic, open, uplift, light floppy, jaunty (Pictures of You Pictures of Me song) play, footwork, faces, abandon in a good way ("Bewitched Carousel - dark music for creepy carnival"  Lloyd Mitchell)

Blind-I

Fun funny confusing, am I doing it right?  energy, playful bounce, toy

Touch

Fast, jerky, asynchronous, feeling your way , fun, fun, arhythmic, discovery


My dramatherapy supervisor has recommended I look up Laban and Gretowski.  I also have a book on Authentic Movement which I feel an urge to look at when time allows.  This is more dance/movement than drama strictly speaking, but given my own theory that drama is a catch all that incorporates all art form, especially the body based arts, then it can still come under dramatherapy.

However it may also be of interest to dance/movement therapists.

The I that does not see (The Blind I and the Other)

Just the two of us today - tho a different two as Merv doing his day job.  This is Damon's first time after a long absence.  He's just finishing the accounts.

It's been a hectic afternoon, meetings, notes, phonecalls, endless to do lists and an eternity playing catch-up.

And this is why I do it all.  This funky little expressive movement/physical drama group.

I had expected about 6 people at this workshop.

There are 2 (including me).  Or will be when Damon gets in.

Drag heart out of shoes.  Place back in chest.  Survey the empty room.

I'm holding the space.  I'm holding the space for England. Cue national anthem.  Tears of gratitude and pride.  Or are those tears of rejection and disappointment?

Damon comes in.  He is dismayed at this lack of people.  How could they not come?  How could they not appreciate all of this great stuff we are doing?

I don't know either.

Anyway, we'd better get on.

As soon as I start to explain what I am working on, I am transported from the place of rejection and disappointment to a place of excited focus.  Am I mad?

Inside us all there is a blind I.  The I that does not see.  This is (are) the I that hears, smells, tastes, and feels.  These I's are often unnoticed.

In these workshops we attune ourselves to our other I's.  And to the other, you.  Mainly through touch.  But the other senses also have their place.  We hear people's clothing rustle, their bones suddenly click, sometimes a cough.  Sometimes we might smell them, depending if the have bathed or wear deodorant.  Taste ... no ... that's for another workshop.

So, with feet rooted firmly to the floor, and body in a neutral state of readiness, the Blind-I prepares to respond to gentle touch of the Other.

We negotiate our way through a series of touches, once the arm, then the shoulder, twice the back, front of the head.  The Other touches, and the Blind-I, eyes closed, feet rooted, sways gently.  Always returning back to neutral as soon as the touch is released.

We do this for 10 minutes each.  Yes, 10 minutes.  We use a timer.

As a guide, it's tempting to think you have to do lots of different interesting things, choices initially seem limited.  But the first condition, the rooted position, isn't about being interesting, it's about becoming attuned.  Same as when you are being the blind-I, you literally just kind of sway a bit, and move your arms up and down.  Maybe tilt your head.  But all the time you are attuning yourself to the touch of the Other, until you are so sensitive that it is barely necessary to make contact at all.

It's important to remember that this first bit isn't about being expressive.

It's about learning to feel, and to respond, so no cognitive thought is involved.  Stimulus, Response. Rest.  Stimulus Response Stimulus Response Rest.

As we discovered before, several factors interplay; expectation, intention, comprehension, interpretation, range of possible response, choice of responses.  And a deep feeling of focus, it's meditative, very relaxing.

We thought about tai chi.  Apparently people can touch people with chi, without actually touching them.  I know this is true because I've experienced it first hand.  However I understand that people have to train for years to be able to do this, so we aren't going to try here.  Well we did try a bit but it backfired, because the trying got in the way of succeeding.  As is the way with many of these spiritual pursuits.  Like trying to recover from mental illness.

Anyway, back to the subject.

We decided, in order to test our sensitivity (attunement) that the Other would move their touch slowly to the Blind-I, before baking contact.  We amused ourselves by wondering if it was possible to sense the approaching touch before contact, and once or twice, this did seem to happen.

Differences in touch included whether to touch with flat of hand, combined fingers or tip of one finger.  The experience of being touched was very different in each case.  The quality of the movement was different in response.

In the second, travelling condition, this was even more apparent.  the range of dynamics is greater, and the availability of complex responses increases.

At the end of each cycle, I felt my body brain coming to life and my head brain quietening.  It was deeply relaxing.  Very peaceful.

We didn't get to the third condition, the dance.

Save that for next time.

I'm glad we did the workshop after all.  It's always an experience.  I know what we are doing is experimental and not everyone's cup of tea, but I do hope that soon we will have a thriving group again.  In the meantime, I'm grateful to the few who do keep coming, even if this can't be every time.

It's always a learning experience, and deeply interesting.

Going deeper into the darkness and finding warmth

Approach the Hub.  Courteous Firmness with the Young People in the Doorway.  Enter Building.

Latch on Door.

Move Tables.  Hoover Floor.  Check Time.

2 Others arrive to join in.  There are now four.  This is exciting.  And nerve racking.  It's safer when no-one comes, really.

Check in.  How are you?  I'm fine/tired/nervous/glad to be here and lots of other things besides. Stories of mud, headaches, memories ...

New people mean we take longer to warm up.  We can't just race in.  We look around the room, check out details, things we hadn't noticed before.  Nuts on the door that look like nipples...

A switch that might explode if someone turns it on.  (They it, and it didn't).

Standing circle, we enter a physical warm up.  Taking a movement, sharing it, changing it at will, playing with it.  This is a playful group.  I like this group.  The movement gets tossed back and forth, like a blustery spring breeze.  We, the leaves and empty drinks cans, rattling about, chaotic semi-conductors.

Now, we are ready to begin.  The Blind and the Guide.  Like last week, but there are more of us, so we can continue the experiment, introducing random factors.

Dependent Variable - moving in response to a touch.
Independent Variable - touching

Equipment - 4 movements artists.  Each will in turn take roles of Blind or Guide, so that the affects of 'passive/active' personality factors, characteristic movement factors, practice and individual dynamics can be experienced.

In this kind of experiment, experienced is akin to introspectively studied, its the opposite from observed.  Data can only be reliably verified through repeated replication and discourse analysis.

The Blind - a physical performer who has their eyes closed.  All movement is initially directed by the Guide.  The Blind is a passive participant, and they have two purposes.  To return to their neutral position, and to move in response to the touch of the Guide.  At first the Blind's feet are firmly rooted to the floor.  Movement is minimal.  When they reach limit of their available move, they stop.  when the Guide releases the touch, the Blind returns to neutral.

The Guide - a physical performer who has their eyes open, and can see (unless they are in real life, blind, which would be a very interesting variable!).  They instruct the Blind's movements through touch.  Not push, just a touch, as light as is possible.  They need to become aware, through practice, of the Blinds range of movement, and of the clarity of their instruction.

No Blind/Guide dyad is the same.  The rules will change with each pairing.  Control brings responsibility and requires understanding.  Control will always be limited to the available range of moves and the interpretation of purpose.  Responsiveness needs acute senstivity to the purpose of the Guide, and also an awareness of ones own range of movement - otherwise trips and falls occur!

In the first condition, the Guide is rooted to the floor.  Their movements are limited.  Each physical performer takes turns to take on each role.  They interpret the rules as they go along - where the Guide touches, how the Blind responds.  What happens when the touch is released.  What happens in the moments - sometimes long moments, between touches?

It is at times frustrating, purposes, interpretations, things getting lost in translation, not knowing what it means to 'let go' and 'give up control', making up the rules then modifying them.

It is at times beautifully relaxing and absorbing.  Entrancing.  When the pair find a rhythm, feel the rules, the flow of the rhythm, become attuned to each other, something very special happens.  The Guide - the brain, initiator, knowing, sensitively instructing; the Blind, the body, receptive and aware, feeling, sensitively responding.

Time taken - 10 minutes, then swap roles.

In the second condition, the Blind can move their legs.  This frees them up a lot, and allows for a greater range of movements, and also a greater range of interpretations of intent and sensitivity/awareness of range of movements.  Trust becomes an issue, especially when there is more than one dyad active, it is not just the room, but other people that need to be negotiated.

Time taken - 7 minutes, then swap roles.  Time is less due to the fact that the session is coming to a close and I want to fit in the dance part at the end.

In the third condition, a second independent variable is introduced.  Music.  The movement, which has already been modified to accomodate travel, becomes a dance.  The Blind is allowed greater release, and not just freedom to interpret in a more individual way, but freedom to become more expressive.  The music gives a different energy.  The role of the Guide is now not to control, but to enable.  The Guide also participates in the dance.  However they still have a position of responsibility.

Experimenter bias - I deliberately made the larger performers (who happened to be male) the Guides, and the smaller performers ( who happened to be female) the Blinds.  This is because we only had time to do this once, and wouldn't be able to swap roles.  Due to having previous experience at this procedure, I know that I personally prefer it this way round.

Music - We played Steve Reich.  Minimalist.  Moody.

As the Blind, I felt wonderfully released.  I am sensitised by taking part in the previous conditions, and I am tuned in to the touch of the Guide, who I have partnered with several times before.  I have my eyes closed.  Like a pre-toddler, I feel that if I can't see anyone else, they can't see me.  I am released from inhibition.  I smile uncontrollably as I allow my body to move under the guidance of gentle touches, bending, swaying, turning, waving ... sometimes I stand still, untouched, anticipating the next move.  I am smiling.  Occasionally I trip over myself. I stand on my guides foot.  I haven't got a clue where I am in the room, and I don't really care.  It all comes to an end far too soon.

Results & conclusion
Are two experiences ever the same?  Our interpretations, our responses, our interactions with the processes that we have gone through are all very individual.  Each dyad experienced sense of self and other, and the partnership of these two elements, differently.  Buber may be relevant here.My anxiety levels have decreased, and I am experiencing relaxation and satisfaction.  I feel a closeness to my fellow participant-experimenters.  I have partnered with each of them in one way or another and feel grateful to them for sharing this experience with me.
The others in the group say that they feel relaxed.  It has been entrancing.

It is stripped back, basic stuff, and has endless possiblities.

We have reached the end.

We pick up our things and say our goodbyes.  We turn down the heating and off the lights.  Everyone leaves the building while I set the alarm.  The Young People are Gone.  It is silent.  The odd empty drink can and crisp packed has been undisturbed by the evening breeze.








'

Interactive sensitivity, communication, body awareness.

Where do we begin?

We begin by remembering.  We want a bit of structure for this.  We don't need much, not like building a wall, where everything needs to be solid, well grounded and measured.

We are building an idea.

We need a few whispy strands of purpose.  Anything more definite would be limiting.

We are after all researchers in drama.  Everything we do and feel is physical, but physical laws would sentence us to imprisonment.  Cells formed of the very categories we would strive to define.

So, for now, we ask for a web to catch memories, and on which we may hang new ideas, to see how well they fit together.

Two spiders, in a room.  Want to build a web to catch memories.

What do we remember?  As we remember, we build, the web begins to become sticky, and structure emerges.

We remember touching, and responding. creating simple rules for a game of feeling (a touch) and responding (through movement).  One is blind - eyes shut.  They are the body.  The other guides.  They are the mind.  They can see, but this is irrelevant for anything but basic health and safety requirements of the session. 

The blind stands neutral, feet rooted.  The guide touches the blind, gently.  the blind feels the touch and moves in the direction of the touch, until they can move no more without losing balance.

Already we are bringing in new rules - "finding the game".

the blind can only move with a straight body if the guide uses only one hand.  If the guide brings in the other hand, then the blind can bend, bringing in a whole new array of movement.

Guiding the arms is nice, a light, very free and expressive array of movements.  Both arms moved independently but at the same time takes a lot of concentration, and the blind must focus hard to prevent themself trying to predict what the guide will tell them to do.

The guide uses the gentlest of touches, at times only the fingertips.  This takes practice - at first the guide is tempted to try to force the movement, but this may knock the blind off balance. The guide has to feel when the blind has reached the full extent of their movement, and they need to trust the blind to communicate this to them.

And the blind needs to be aware when they reach the full extent of their movement, or they lose balance.

Moving different parts of the body gives very different styles, intensity and quality of movement.  The arms free flowing, light.  The body strong, more restricted, mechanical.  Head movements are odd for the guide, as they are difficult to predict.  For the blind, head movements are destabilising, taking away sense of direction and place.  This could be very pleasant and relaxing.  Or it could be unnerving.  

For no doubt many different reasons.

The two spiders take it in turns.  Swapping the roles of blind and guide.  Each time discussing what has happened.  5 minutes for each turn.  After all, this is a scientific experiment.

Part two.  Blind Dancing

We move on to the next stage of the game.  Blind dancing.

We each give ourselves a task, based on what we found difficult last week.  Be more fluid when dancing is one, the other is to be more aware of the other (empathic) when guiding.

The feet become unrooted, and the blind is given permission to interpret, and, within the direction set by the guide, to respond not robotically, as in part one, but as a creative partner.  Here a balance is needed, between being guided, and following ones own "wanting" in terms of movement.  Or as a guide the balance is between giving safety and direction, and allowing freedom of expression.

It's a bit like a real life relationship where people negotiate their way through the many roles and purposes that come to us.

For me, being a guide was a enjoyable when the dancer correctly interpreted my purpose.  If they tried to take more control than I was comfortable with, I found myself getting frustrating, and trying o force my will onto them.  This reflects my constant battle with my need to be in control. I should do more of this, and maybe learn to enjoy the feeling of watching the dancer dance their own dance, with me just giving a little touch here, and there, and keeping safety.  This is like the role of a parent.

Being the blind dancer was exhilarating.  I felt very safe with my guide, who was much bigger than me and very patient.  I could move very freely, spinning, turning, bending, back and forth, with my eyes closed the whole time and not once did I worry that I may collide with a piece of furniture or a wall.  

And indeed I didn't.

At the end of the session, I felt very relaxed and peaceful.  I still do now, writing about it.  It felt very therapeutic.

My fellow researcher/dramaturge agreed.  

It also felt like a journey for our personal relationship.  One of getting to know each other through the body and movement, and through the themes of trust, responsibility, compliance, expressiveness, leadership, safety ...

And the second part of the session differed from the first in that the blind became uprooted; allowing a greater freedom of movement and thus expression and also a greater risk, and also increasing the responsibility of the guide, and also the potentiality of purpose of the guide.

A question comes to mind ... is greater movement necessary for greater expressivity?  Maybe this is something for future explorations.

Building Physical and Emotional Awareness of Self and Other

Two people in a room.  They each focus their awareness on their centre of weight and balance. Feet slightly apart, back straight, bum slightly tucked in, you know the drill.

A conversation ensues about whether it is relaxing to hold the arms as if one is hugging a tree.  One thinks it is.  The other thinks it induces stress.

After a while they agree to differ.

The Brain/Body Game
They play a touching game.  The aim is to work the body around the centre, becoming very aware and sensitive to each part, and aware to outside forces working on the body.

One stands in this neutral (minus tree hugging) position.  They close their eyes.  The other, gently, touches the first and slowly pushes their body.  The first person doesn't know which part of their body will be pushed, but must respond by moving in the direction of the push, as much as they can, without going off balance.  This is done many times, the hips, legs, arms, bottom, back, shoulders, legs, neck, face and head are all moved by the first person, in response to the gentle push by the second.  At the end of each movement the body is returned to rest position.  In a sense, they second person acts as the brain that orders the movement of the first person.  The more sensitive and responsive the first person is to the touch of the second person, the freer, easier, and smoother is the movement.

This is building several things; body awareness, other awareness and sensitivity, complicite, balance and focus in movement, trust, co-operation and communication of purpose (as the second person must be clear in their instruction).  It is also extremely relaxing, as after a while the pair learn each others rhythm, range of movement and style of purpose.

It will be interesting to watch others doing this when we have the full group.

Variations of this included moving different parts of the body at one time, for instance both arms, or shoulder and hip, or the second person touching the first person with different parts of their own body, e.g., the head or the hips.

We found that the instruction was clearer when the second person started the movement before the touch occurred.  Also when both participants, focussed on the whole body, and was prepared to move the whole body in response to the touch, rather than just the immediate part that was touched.  it was important for the knees to be relaxed and the feet to be firmly rooted.

Blind Dancing
In a second game, the first person closed their eyes, and was led in a dance around the room by the first person.  Involved a lot of trust, as unlike the first game, in which the first person was firmly rooted, this one involved travel.  Again the body should be relaxed, to give the appearance of a smoothly flowing dance.  It involves body awareness over a larger distance, and a greater variety of movements is possible.  Again, this can be very relaxing, as long as the two participants are very aware of each other, the second is able to give clear and reasonable instruction and the first is able to be sensitive to the instruction and trusting.

Can be a challenge, but worth working on this one.

Mirroring
finally, and to end the session, the two play the mirroring game.  Taking it in turns, in a non-pre-defined format, they each lead and follow in the mirroring.  occasionally, they each manage to lead with one body part, and follow with another, simultaneously.

Messages are communicated and themes shift in travel as a voiceless story is told through the actions of the mirroring, the pair are having a conversation, responding to each others lead by offering their own interpretation and response.  Themes are around comprehension, communication (non-verbal), clarity and focus.  Awareness of whole body of self and other.  Reflecting levels of tension, and themes of emotion, comedy, intrigue, horror, suspense, being prepared for whatever may happen next.

These three activities took place over a 2 hour period.  It was a much needed and deeply relaxing session.

I am looking forward to working more with these themes of building physical and emotional awareness of self and other in future group sessions.

Revisiting the Body

I am not facilitating.

Konnektiv is being reborn once again.

We have a new facilitator - at least for now.  One of the regular members, Merv.

Thanks Merv.  I'm off the hook.  And you are on it.  Ha!

We have a new place - Doxey Hub.  This has been a huge part of the last few months of proceedings, and partly why I haven't been blogging.

We have lost our website.  We have lost a committee member, two drama group members, gained some friends, some collaborators, and now we are rebirthing ourselves, as a new and returning to our core values, at the same time.

Wednesday is drama technique night.  We learned about breathing into our tummy's, relaxing through tensing the body, and feeling the contrast when releasing the tension.

We played with moving different parts of the body, using simple movements, but very concentrated, so that every little millimeter of the move was deliberate and held tension.  Like the old Japanese actors, focussing the intensity.  It felt nice.  Difficult when moving fast.  It's nice to really think about a movement.  Moving becomes a pleasing experience, not just bumbling around thoughtlessly.  And to really think about breathing.

I find myself remembering to appreciate the incredibleness of life, and the miracle of breath and movement.  I don't know how I do these things.  It makes me feel a little bit crazy if I think about it too much, but I do like to be reminded, so life doesn't become too humdrum, and I start taking things for granted.

Part of the holding tension game involved balance.  We couldn't swing, jump or hop, in that sense, weight is fixed to the floor, and must shift through the bodily movement very deliberately.  That was a bit tough to get back into at first.  Then as I worked with a simple sideways leg movement, raising and lowering in turn, repeatedly, it became smoother and more fluid.  The rest of my body learned to stay focussed and still.  Then it became more like fun.  Like a child learning a new trick.  As I got better at it, I started to feel quite proud of myself, in a small way.

Later, walking around the room, we experimented with having 2 different levels of tension in our bodies, apparently this is what Charlie Chaplin did.  I held my lower body tense and upper body more relaxed, it was interesting,  forcing a very strange walk indeed.  I held my torso stiff and tense, and allowed my legs and arms to be fluid, flapping my arms and bending my legs.  This was great, it made me laugh.  

Later still, we played invisible tennis.  We are starting to get the hang of this now.  It is better, we found, to quite rigidly stick to the rule of turn taking.  One person does a move, the other 'returns it', then has it returned back to them, this carries on for some time.  Everyone has their own style of movement and response, sometimes one person will lead for some time, the other tending to react to them, then the second person will decide to do something different, to change the story.  Two people together have a different style of movmement again.  So each pairing developed their own unique characters and story.

All of these games and activities are designed for two purposes - to increase body awareness and control, and to increase inter person sensitivity within the group.