The tensions of opposites makes me think of balance, and even more specifically, the fleetingness of balance in dance. Chapter seven of Fraleigh’s Dance and the Lived Body deals with the balance or tension between Expressionistic and Formalistic dance. Upon reading this the first time around I instantly said in my mind that I am an expressionist. This seemed obvious to me and I was almost appalled to even think of myself as a formalist. I felt as if being an expressionist meant that I was a free dancer and being a formalist meant that I would always have to work under the confines of a particular technique. As I took the reading forward I began to see that my views of expression were correct but not complete. A formalist can be expressive and an expressionist can be formal. One house of dance can exist while the other exists simultaneously.
I found relativeness with this in my choreography and in my approach to technique. In modern I feel more expressive in that I am free to interpret the movement more variably than I would in a ballet class, however, this does not denote that there are no formalistic qualities. In a grand battement in modern the energy of the leg should come from the brush of the foot plantar flexing against the floor. This is formalistic and objective because it is in keeping with the archetype of a grand battement in ballet. In the Limone technique the body swings and the arms swing and float. This is an example of expression coexisting with formalism.
In my choreography I find that I enjoy seeing both abstract and direct symbols of my concept. For my Junior Choreography Project, my concept image is of eddies in the water. I have made movement for my dancers that is very close to the movement of an eddie, and I have also made movement that is an abstraction of the movement of an eddie. I feel that this is important because I feel that in this setting of mixed audience, it is crucial to create a dance that is accessible by the majority of the audience. The abstract movements fit more under the roof of expressionism as the qualities of the movement are attributed by the watcher and this fact makes the movement subjectively (or individually) symbolic. The more direct or denotative symbols fit more under the roof of formalism as the movement is very similar to the archetype or symbol, but it contains a degree of difference that leaves room for possibility. Fraleigh describes the beliefs of Nelson Goodman and Susanne Langer that solidified my belief in the importance of the coexistence and balance of formalism and expressionism. “Goodman and Susanne Langer...hold that art does function symbolically--that it refers us beyond its immediate material.” (Page 115).
The balancing of Expressionism and Formalism also brings into question the material of Chapter 8: Mythic Polarity and Feminine and Masculine Archetypes. This whole balancing act of femininity and masculinity is especially present in my solo. I feel like I want to be masculine because I will be a solo man on the stage in front of an audience. This is of course my ego talking. What I am beginning to understand from Dance and the Lived Body is that dancing masculine or feminine does not necessarily mean dancing like a man or woman. Maculinity is associated with objective dance and femininity is associated with expressive subjective dance.
I am a shape oriented choreographer. I like for my movement to objectively look a certain way which is very formalistic. In my piece, To the Rivermouth, it was important for me to get all of the material out quickly so that I could get the objective shape of the dance. As rehearsals progressed and my dancers assumed the shape of the dance we began to talk about the feeling and emotion of the piece. This took a lot of practice because I do not think the underclassmen are experienced with this kind of subjective and expressive approach to performance. So the piece started out masculine and has now balanced out with a good degree of femininity.
The discoveries of this chapter have been really helpful in allowing me to understand this conflict I have had with shape oriented dance versus expressive dance. I also feel like I have a better hold on my identity as a dancer and choreographer which has always been a high priority of mine. Now that I have found this idea of balancing the two houses of dance I am excited to experiment with the amount of the presence of each one in my choreography. I feel that this would get me out of my comfort zone and allow for unlimited possibilities.
