seen performance in process

Landing - performance at green space

noreply@blogger.com (Seen Performance) — Mon, 04 May 2009 02:40:00 +0000

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Here's our tech run for the Green Space Blooms festival, enjoy!

talking walls that sing

noreply@blogger.com (Seen Performance) — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 02:06:00 +0000

Working on These Walls Sing is for lack of a better word, surprising. I'm learning quickly how little I know about music and "built space." My perspective on everything (just about) is from within the moving/still body - and my solo work is designed to structure that experience, hopefully bringing others into it on their own terms.

These Walls Sing has not yet been about those things (but wait! the project is still young). What we as a group have discovered is that we are not quite yet on the same page as to what we're trying to create. Even among artists on the same project, clarity of idea and its description is difficult and essential.

But, as we laughed about at last week's meeting, if any of us wanted to work out our ideas in the written word, we wouldn't need to be making them into a performance. And some ideas simply do not translate, which is why we DO NEED to create in the medium of the idea/concept/inspiration.

-esther

Upcoming Performances

noreply@blogger.com (Seen Performance) — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 12:21:00 +0000

The slinkys have landed!

Landing performs its debut on Saturday, May 2nd @ 8pm as part of the Green Space Blooms Festival. David will be performing along with three of our talented guest dancers, Lydia Bell, Christie Newman, and Angela Salvetti.

Green Space Blooms is an annual festival of contemporary dance (most of it from local companies and choreographers) produced by Valerie Green/Dance Entropy at the company's studio Green Space. Festival details and advance tickets are available here.

Green Space is at 37-24 24th Street in LIC, and you can get directions here.

We will be performing Landing again on June 5 at 8pm as part of the Queens Academy of Arts and Dance ([QuAAD]) Marathon at Queens Theatre in the Park (oi, that's a mouthful), so mark your calendars and keep an eye out for details next month.

And then on June 20 at 4pm, on the other side of the glass plate, she wore nothing takes over Socrates Sculpture Park. It will be a whole new experience from our previous showings of other side, so don't miss it!

Seen at Composer's Voice

noreply@blogger.com (Seen Performance) — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 16:27:00 +0000

We're venturing out of Astoria into the big city... do join us!

Seen Performance is performing this Sunday, March 29, in Vox Novus's "Composer's Voice" concert, a series for contemporary composers to express the musical, aesthetic, and personal "voice" created in their compositions.

Our own David Morneau curated the March program and included Box Shy, the first work in our Party Project series, which takes performance out of the black box and into party environments, challenging where and how we see performance. This short work considers the dual function of frames to shape and contain.

So come visit with us and enjoy a great hour of contemporary music + performance!

Sunday, March 29 @ 1pm (it's free!)
Jan Hus Church - 351 E 74th St

FOH ladies rehearsal

noreply@blogger.com (Seen Performance) — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 03:37:00 +0000

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The famed FOH ladies from on the other side of the glass plate, she wore nothing! We're finally getting this role realized.

The lovely dancers are Meredith Blouin, Chelsea Retzloff, and Anna Wueller.

seen open a success!

noreply@blogger.com (Seen Performance) — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 18:32:00 +0000

Friends!
David, Shana, and I want to thank you for coming out to celebrate seen performance's first year! We were so excited to bring new and old friends alike into our performance, and were rewarded by everyone's ready questions and your readiness to share them. Some of you were asking about the original video from Box Shy -- you can see the original "complete" version that includes Shana's animation and David's composition, here.

The evening garnered a little bit of press attention, and you can read about us in the LIC Journal "On the Record" and on LiQ City.

Thank you the generous donations, which mean so very much to our budding performance collective. When our new website is up and running (soon!), we'll be thanking all our donors publicly and into perpetuity!

Most importantly, we had a blast and are looking forward to another great year with you!

Yours,
seenperformance

photo by the lovely lindsey wolkowicz

Seen Open - celebrate one year with us!

noreply@blogger.com (Seen Performance) — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 13:34:00 +0000

March 2009 will mark the one-year anniversary of Seen Performance's first performance together and our beginnings as a performance collective.

To celebrate, we will be gathering at Rèst Âü Ránt, a local favorite in Astoria, for drinks and cheer (which we could all use more of these days!). We'll perform a work from The Party Project (it is a party after all) and be open for questions about Seen Performance, our work and visions. We'll also be selling some artwork to help raise funds for our project These Walls Sing.

Please save the date and join us when it comes around!

Seen Open - Annual Anniversary + Benefit Party
Tuesday, March 10, 2009 7-10p
Rèst Âü Ránt
30-01 35th Ave in Astoria
Free with donations to support the creation of new work warmly accepted.

Rèst Âü Ránt has a rich wine and beer menu, and their food is fantastic. They'll be doing beer flights for us, so come ready to try 'em all!

We're looking forward to celebrating with you - see you March 10!

Seen Open is, you guessed it, open to all and free with donations warmly accepted. All donations support the creation of new work. Not in town? Show your love for Seen Performance with a donation of any size, here.

Seen Performance is a sponsored project of Fractured Atlas, a non-profit arts service organization. Contributions in behalf of Seen Performance may be made payable to Fractured Atlas and are tax deductible to the extent permitted by law.

Landing - rehearsal 2

noreply@blogger.com (Seen Performance) — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 04:11:00 +0000

Tonight we had a small Landing rehearsal, with Lydia, Angela, Danita, and myself.

Rehearsing with David's music is always a truer experience for the dancers (and me), but we did our best to work with the howling wind and some ambient Aphex Twin.

I failed to capture any video because I was wrapped up in watching -- and considering which nuances to take hold of and shape. The choreography component in this work is surprisingly fragile. It tinkers precariously between thoughtful and elegant and just a big ol' mess. While performing, the dancers make several choices within the parameters I've set up, and in rehearsal we get to see what works and what doesn't. They continually reinvestigate the movement for themselves, and I stay on the outside making notes on how things "read."

Today, for example, the dancers's choices kept spreading them out in space, which dilutes the effect of the cannon (they perform the base choreography in cannon) and makes the space feel alienating. Not to mention that they would have been falling out of the edges of the slinky "forest". We got the piece back to a tight, intimate spacing. The dancers start in the same triangle with roughly three-foot spacing, but with the focus on the small space, they navigate through each other as much as they do through the slinkys and this draws the eye into little moments of unison, intimacy, and solitude. It is delightful to see the choreography shape up in this way. There are definitely choices that work and choices that don't, nonetheless, we will continue to play with the choreography existing only as a structure to explore in performance, rather than a strictly set piece.

Landing - rehearsal

noreply@blogger.com (Seen Performance) — Mon, 19 Jan 2009 23:13:00 +0000

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Here's our first full rehearsal with the dancers - Lydia Bell, Christie Newman, and Angela Salvetti. The noise of the heater in the space was so horrible, you couldn't hear David's playing on the video, so I put in a recorded sketch to accompanying the visual. In performance, he'll play live.

We'll be performing Landing on May 2nd as part of the Green Space Blooms Festival, produced by Dance Entropy to highlight Queens artists alongside the company. More info to follow in Spring!

Thanks for watching!

Box Shy - feedback

noreply@blogger.com (Seen Performance) — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 04:59:00 +0000

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The choreography for Box Shy is new, so I asked David and Shana for some feedback. This short clip shows you a little bit of that. We also talked about how it can be challenging to jump into performing a work like Box Shy - our run-throughs felt gradually more authentic and refined each time. It will be difficult to find the right mood and energy when performing this at a party where we've been mingling and chatting rather than introspective. David suggested that I take a few minutes to listen to the music before hand, but then we both learned that it is in the performance of it that his music really starts to have that transformative experience, rather than just sitting and listening.

That's an aspect to performance work that excites us, me in particular. Performance asks for a different kind of paying attention (I am intrigued by what that different kind is and why it's useful to our interaction with the greater world around us). For example, other side is only worth watching if the viewer commits to it, meaning that you have to give over to the state of observation that it brings you into.

We'll keep bringing you notes from the field as we investigate how we watch, observe, and see differently.

Box Shy - Esther + David rehearsal

noreply@blogger.com (Seen Performance) — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 04:16:00 +0000

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Here's a clip from our recent rehearsal of "Box Shy". David's "on the stage" in this scenario --what's missing is the scroll that creates it.

Check out some of our feedback to each other in the video to follow, "Box Shy notes".

Thanks for watching!

Landing - Party Project, #2

noreply@blogger.com (Seen Performance) — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 21:42:00 +0000

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Here's a sketch of the choreography that will get developed with three dancers in a forest of slinkys...

more thoughts at http://seenperformance.org/blog

Box Shy - Esther rehearsal

noreply@blogger.com (Seen Performance) — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 21:28:00 +0000

Party Project #2 is on hold a bit, as we are preparing Box Shy (Party Project #1) for a party/performance.

After our test run of Box Shy, we worked on shaping up the structure and decided to let the unscrolling of Shana's painting occur in its own time, without me dancing in and out of the box as it was taking shape. This, and I got back in the studio to work with David's music some more, and the movement is taking a new shape. Here is what I choreographed today:

Click to Play

I wanted to retain the importance of the frame from my initial effort which kept me largely on the edges. There's also the confining nature of the box. I prefer to experience it as protective, and in that regard, I decided to emphasize details - small shifts of weight and gesture that can be absorbed from a few feet away.

A question I had for myself is whether there is something edges (I am thinking of 2D edges, but that doesn't limit the thought to them) that helps us see more clearly? More clearly or with more imagination?

Landing - PARTY PROJECT, #2

noreply@blogger.com (Seen Performance) — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 02:55:00 +0000

We our now at work on our second piece in The PARTY PROJECT series. Again, we're kicking it off with round-robin collaboration. David started by passing along the following clip to Shana:

Shana's responded with a slinky design, literally:

"The type of sound David is working with made me think of (man-made) mechanical objects. I wanted to create a set that would contribute to the musical atmosphere. I considered many options (including different floor surfaces) before deciding on the use of hanging slinkys. I felt that the slinkys would add interesting movement, as well as sound to the performance."

and right now I'm working on my part, to be posted here soon!

as always, thanks for watching!

these walls sing scores - round three

noreply@blogger.com (Seen Performance) — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 03:51:00 +0000

Here's more on our progress with These Walls Sing.

With our first attempt at making scores with original graphic notation, it was clear that each of us had made a score using devices familiar to us from our own disciplines - David's relied on time and layering, Esther's relied on space and body, and Shana's relied on line and color. Therefore, challenge #3 was to do the reverse. Shana and Esther to create "time-based" scores and David a "space-based" score.

Here is Esther's attempt:

I intentionally started with what I interests me, which is the body. I have a strong association between footprints on paper and the feeling of progression and exploration. They seem mysterious - whom do they represent? where are they taking her? what are they revealing to me?

Using the hands and feet symbols helped me think about moving through time and create a pattern that could be read sonically as well as temporally.

More from Shana and David soon.

these walls sing scores - round two

noreply@blogger.com (Seen Performance) — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 03:33:00 +0000

It's been a while since we reported the status of These Walls Sing, but rest assured we've been moving forward nicely.

In our last post, we shared the scores each of us created to graphically notate David's piece Robot Dream. Well, as an exercise in Graphic Notation Scores, it was more of a warm up, since we were interpreting music rather than providing the instructions for playing it.

This brings us to round two! We each made a score that was intended to be followed. What we discovered is that David is clearly the composer in the bunch. Even though none of the examples were yet sonic in nature, his score progressed in time in a way that is familiar to music. Esther's, on the other hand, observed rather than built sound, and did so in space rather than time. Shana's score used line and color to describe expressive qualities of sound.

For now, we have a piece of David's as an example:

next, round three and more discussion of the process.

"other side" at Art Festival on Pier 36

noreply@blogger.com (Seen Performance) — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 13:46:00 +0000

Here are a few glimpses from performing on the other side of the glass plate, she wore nothing at the Art Festival on Pier 36 last saturday, 9.13.08.

Click to Play

We had a blast with all the interesting art around (look out for our hazmat suit friend who wandered into the piece unannounced). and we learned a number of things about staging it outside for small audiences so we can make some changes for next time.

Performers are Amiti Perry + Jen Painter. other side created by Seen Performance, was first performed March 2008 at Dixon Place in Soho, NY.

Thanks for watching!

Box Shy and the PARTY PROJECT

noreply@blogger.com (Seen Performance) — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 00:45:00 +0000

We are back from a brief blog-posting hiatus (somewhat recovered from the hot and sticky summer if fall would only show up for REAL!), and though we were not online much, we've still been up to our usual mischief.

You can see in the previous post that I threw up video from our test run of Box Shy (the first in a series of works that comprise The PARTY PROJECT, see earlier posts under "the party project" label).

Well, we discovered a number of things that we still needed to address in polishing up Box Shy. Our lovely test audience gave us strongly voiced feedback, and we realized that we had skipped over some big steps in our performance making process - namely self-critique.

So, we convened over the feedback and our own notes and started beefing up our little piece into something with a more stable structure. We'll be working on those changes gradually and without too much reporting until we share the piece for the first time at our own party in December (a fantastic celebration of Seen and our supporters, keep an eye out for the date!).

As we incubate Box Shy, we are embarking on the second piece in The PARTY PROJECT. David begins this round of collaborative creation. Look for his stuff in a few weeks.

We're also making great progress with our larger-scale project (and some of the donations that have been coming in are helping us to plan for this! thanks everyone!), These Walls Sing. More on that in an upcoming post to follow very soon!

and there's more... so check in again soon.

Box Shy - Party Project - Test Run

noreply@blogger.com (Seen Performance) — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 05:41:00 +0000

Click to Play

"other side" performs on pier 36

noreply@blogger.com (Seen Performance) — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 17:22:00 +0000

We're taking our show on the other side of the glass plate, she wore nothing to the water!

Performed by Amiti Perry + Jen Painter
Saturday, 9/13 at 2pm on Pier 36 --details below.

Community Board Three presents: ART FESTIVAL on Pier 36!!!

Pier 36 is located off of Montgomery Street on the East River. With a view of old Brooklyn warehouses, the Brooklyn and Manhattan Bridges and the Statue of Liberty, Pier 36 is one of NYC's best kept secrets!

Saturday, September 13, 2008 2-6pm
Come join us for a day of art, performance and expression, featuring:

Aris Ziagos, Shoot the Messenger, Masala Jam, Jami Jacskson, Elise Knudson and Second Life, Carolyn Ota, Lydia Bell, Seen Performance, El Grito de Poetas, Alexa Benoit, Alexis Liston, Aguila Marrero and Reina Miranda, Ze'ev Willy Neumann, Michelle Hunter, Permanent Parade and Spilt Milk Productions, The New York City Street Players, Brian Starkey and more...!

Directions to the Pier: Take the F Train to the East Broadway stop, make a right when you exit subway and walk to Montgomery Street, then walk as far East as possible, all the way to the river and you will find Pier 36.

For more information on our artists, schedule and location, please check the blog: www.artsonpier36.blogspot.com

why do we perform?

noreply@blogger.com (Seen Performance) — Sat, 09 Aug 2008 22:47:00 +0000

There are many reasons why we at Seen Performance make performances - here are just a few of them. Enjoy!

Graphic Music Notation

noreply@blogger.com (Seen Performance) — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 04:14:00 +0000

We've been examining graphic music notation in preparation for our upcoming project, These Walls Sing. Graphic notation developed as a way to express musical ideas not possible in conventional notation. Composers created all manner of symbols and designs to describe music on paper.

Our interest in it is all about relating music to design (initially in graphic design and eventually in architectural design). This exploration will also allow all three of us to visualize musical ideas without needing to master conventional notation. Eventually we will use our graphic music to create the sound, space, and design for our project.

For now we are creating a series of graphic scores from existing music as a group exercise. We are attempting not to interpret the music, but to design a score that might be used to re-create the music in question. Our first set of scores is based on a piece called Robot Dream.

David's score:

Esther's score:

Shana's score:

Do you want to try your hand at making a graphic score? Use the music we did, and the send us what you make. At some point we'll post them on the blog.

These Walls Sing

noreply@blogger.com (Seen Performance) — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 03:32:00 +0000

Architecture and music differ in their relationships to time and space. Though time and space are inherent in both disciplines, architecture creates patterns and forms in space where music creates patterns and forms in time. With These Walls Sing, Seen Performance will explore this difference by thawing the "frozen music" of architectural design to create a physical space inside of music. The audience will listen to the music not by sitting in one place while it passes them in time, but, as performers, by moving through a designed space containing the music. As they pass through each part of the space, they will hear a different layer of sound. Since moving through space also means moving through time, when they arrive at the exit they will have heard the entire piece of music. The speed at which they move and subtle variations in each person's route through the space will give everyone a different, personalized experience of the piece.

We will be developing These Walls Sing through the end of the year, announcing show dates + venues in early 2009. Please visit here often to follow the process of getting from here to there.

An update

noreply@blogger.com (Seen Performance) — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 21:50:00 +0000

Hi friends, after all the videos of our process we've been posting here's a quick update on Box Shy, our first piece in The PARTY PROJECT.

We started this piece layering ideas on one another's through media we could put online. To remind folks, I started the round, sending to Shana without commentary a video that explores themes that I often return to when I don't know where to start with a piece -playing with being seen, being still, playing with taking charge of a limited space.

Shana ran with the idea of "graphic" representation that we're using in our process for These Walls Sing - transforming my movement in the video frame into lines --frozen and alive at the same time.

David worked from Shana's animation (without the video) to create a score that he can perform live, making additional composition choices in the moment.

So with the "piece" at this stage we came together to discuss how to turn this into a performance off the internet, since the idea is to bring you into it at the next party you invite us to!

The conversation kinda started all over the place and suggestions and solution and new problems were tossed about until we had scrolls of paper and a studio date. The clip in the previous post is from our rehearsal where we put it all together. What you don't see here are the audience (you) giving shape to our performance space and unrolling 50' of Shana's drawings as David and I also play with time and moment.

Thanks for watching!

Box Shy rehearsal

noreply@blogger.com (Seen Performance) — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 21:46:00 +0000

Here's an excerpt from our rehearsal for Box Shy of The PARTY PROJECT. We added an "audience" since the full set up for this piece has the audience surrounding a box performing area --with four volunteers unscrolling Shana's painting (which you don't see here - check out the "Shana adds a layer" videos for her sketches). David and Esther are both making their performance/composition choices live, though the structure is set.

Click to Play