Hit a brick wall with choreography?
Need some tips?
Read on for my final set of choreo tips that will help ANYONE produce great quality choreography quickly, effortlessly and with amazing results!
- Change the world! No really! Go at your choreo thinking really big! My most recent piece of choreo aims to make a powerful statement about our studios ethos on bullying. It doesn’t aim to fill 4 minutes of music and maybe win a competition or two. All it Takes 2008 was created to make dance more accessible to guys in our region. We now have a ridiculously high percentage of male dancers in our studio. We didn’t choreograph it to win awards (although it did that too!). Think big! You may have to compromise at some point in the process, but begin with the thought of changing the world! Even if you don’t succeed that’s fine – your choreo will be a million times better for aiming high!
- Dance more think less. This should be a mantra for life, not just choreography! Students (and teachers) I’ve worked with over the years who consistently produce interesting, musical choreography (and freestyles/improv) really get this. Put on your music. Just dance. The end. If something great comes out of your feet, great – that goes in your choreo. If not, put on your music, just dance……..and so on! Just keep dancing more, thinking less, until you have enough great stuff to put together to create your piece. (Now you see why I asked you to pick music you love, cos you’ll be hearing it a LOT!)
- Students always ask how long a dance can be. We can give you guidelines of course but the only real answer is “short enough that it’s still entertaining”. If your piece is longer than three minutes try using the Golden Mean. Create a major contrast 60 to 70 percent through your choreo and just see the effect it has on your audience!
- Consider your costume. It shouldn’t matter. But it does. Dance is a visual art form so we can’t help but view the whole package. Costume can enhance your choreo in so many ways – maybe the colours highlight the emotions or characters in a piece. (Think about the two teams in All it Takes 2015 – would the division of who was on which team be as clear for the audience if the sleeves of the costumes hadn’t been different colours?) Maybe the costume will affect the movements you create – think about the phantoms! The costume covered their eyes to aid them moving in a ‘sightless’ way. Even if your piece doesn’t have a strong concept, you’ll perform better if you wear something you feel like a million bucks in. Try filming yourself performing your choreo first in your pyjamas, then your dance kit, then your costume/clothes you love if you don’t believe it’ll make a difference to how well you dance!
Feeling inspired? Tomorrow we’re holding Dancewise Studios annual choreography competition at Hanger Farm in Totton. It’s not too late to enter! Email us or call 023 8001 9845 for more info or to enter.
