Research

Sources

The initial inspiration for this project came from the poetry of Vikram Seth. Reading his poems I was captivated by the simple, direct elegance and accessibility of the language. I wondered if it would be possible to develop a similar approach in dance. So I set out to create a work which is direct, simple, elegant and accessible. A work about human emotions and human relationships.

Since initiating the project, most of the specific ideas for themes have originated in my own experiences, either directly experienced or observed in those arouond me.

Specific sources:

• ‘All you who sleep tonight’ by Vikram Seth
• ‘The Golden Gate’ by Vikram Seth

Dance Research

We did a two week residency in August 1999 at Chats Palace in Hackney, London, to research and develop the ideas for this project. In two weeks we developed a strong trust between us, an excellent collaborative working relationship, 30 minutes of dance, and the best creative team I’ve been involved in. All in all it was a greater success than I imagined it might be. Some of the material created at that time will be used in the final production.

The presentation after the research and development period was very well received by all the audience - experienced choreographers, regular dance attendees, other artists and residents of Hackney alike. We had a lot of positive feedback including letters from Hackney residents who were enthused by the performance.