When I began the project, I knew I wanted to do a dance from West Africa. We hadn’t had an African dance in our productions for several years and I thought the style might be challenging for this particular student group. Well, I was wrong. In no less than three rehearsals, they had it! The students had an opportunity to name the dance, which they called The Ghana Dance Tradition. Several students choreographed solos and performed them beautifully. Their effort and application was just amazing, and they made me so proud to be their dance teacher.

Students perform The Ghana Dance Tradition at the Young at Art Festival

The second dance the students performed was to be their biggest test. As educators, we always talk about life-themes and teaching important paradigms. Well, this was to be one of the most important lessons I’ve taught in years. One day, as I was lecturing the students on respecting each other’s differences, I was struck with the idea of teaching a second dance in a whole new language. How is that a dance you might ask? The idea was to have the students learn enough sign language that they would be able to perform to a song, as a “dance of gestures.” We talked about all kinds of people who have physical differences. The students asked lots of questions and came to respect others differences, through the frustrating experience of learning to sign.

In the final stage of the Performance Project, we performed for their school. The students and teachers were impressed with the performers hard work and focus. They students performed admirably and during the show a lot of people cried. I felt a sense of pride knowing we had done something cool and that it had such an emotional impact on people.

A glorious ending to the West African dance at the Koret Auditorium

Our May 8 performance for the Young at Art Children’s Festival at the Koret Auditorium (in the de Young Museum), was a dream. We were able to add a lot of interesting multimedia sound, images, and video to the production, which served to enhance the show in ways we never expected. As a result, I feel that it was one of the best student performances we’ve ever produced.

Stacey Blakeman and I worked hard on this project. For me, producing, directing, hosting, and choreographing for a children’s show (with almost 100 students), was a very daunting task. But, it was a labor of love. This project has served to remind me of why I do what I do. I love children and I love dance. Even more than that, I still love to learn. I love to teach. I love to evolve, and guide young people through experiences that help them to evolve too. My hope is that one day, they will each reach their full potential. I want them all to become the incredible artists and human beings I know they can become. I am very blessed…and very tired.

Our main performance composition is based on traditional West African Ghanaian dance. This is an upbeat rhythmic dance with some rather sophisticated choreography for young students. Luckily though, the children seem to really like it, as they are challenged by the intricacies of the staging. In this dance, there is a section where selected students will perform a solo they have choreographed themselves. For several, it will be their first time dancing on a stage alone.

Our second composition is exciting in an entirely different way. We will be performing a sign language dance based on American Sign Language (ASL). For this “dance”, the students get to receive coaching from a trained sign language interpreter, who is also a performing artist. We will be performing to Ben E. King’s “Stand By Me”, a wonderful musical standard, full of emotion and compassion.

As a normal part of our preparation for performances, the students learn background about the origins and historical connections of the dances. So, just as they’ll earn a little about life and culture in Ghana, they will also learn about the non-hearing world, and what being deaf can be like for other children. My hope is that through these kinds of experiences, my students will become more sensitive and respectful about other cultures, and those with special needs.

We have yet to name the dances we will perform, but we usually save that until near the end of the rehearsal process. I will let the students select the names.

Stay tuned to see what they come up with!

Students practice a victorious ending to our Ghanaian dance.

Here I am demonstrating a basic African dance step for the students.

Students are struggling to learn a new step; the pivot turn.

This young boy is working on choreography for his solo.

This is the final installment of my Scotland adventure.

After 72 hours of continuous rain in Edinburgh, the sun has come out! Following weeks of work, I have two days all to myself. I’ll see a few museums and do a bit of shopping. The project was a success and everyone involved seems pleased, as am I. However, I have to admit that I’m homesick. Though I’m ready to leave, I know I’ll return again someday because Edinburgh is sort of a “home away from home” for me.

Thank you for following me on this amazing project. I hoped you learned a little bit about me, a little about Scotland, and something about the work of an arts educator. The San Francisco Ballet Center for Dance Education takes part in a lot of interesting projects, so I hope you’ll also follow me in the future, on a new adventure.

Included here a some final views of this great city.

St. Cuthbert’s Church

Greyfriars Graveyard

Dolly, the first cloned mammal, as she looked (preserved) in the National Museum of Scotland

A final image of Edinburgh Castle and Old Town, as viewed from Arthur's Seat, an extinct volcano

The students appear fascinated by what I teach, and the educators are amazed at what is possible in the dance class. The days are long and difficult at times, but ultimately satisfying. I am so happy to find our rhythm, both literally and figuratively.

In the evenings, we teach more adult dance workshops.

The students range in age from 11-15 years old. Most have little dance experience outside of Scottish traditional dance. The classes are long, about 90 minutes each. We usually work in the gym and will teach 2 or 3 classes each day, for the rest of the week. Some of the neighborhoods we work in are wealthy, and others clearly disenfranchised. Some schools are brand new (opened this year), while others are old and decrepit. But we teach with the same zeal no matter what!

I love teaching, and I love teaching teachers. It’s extremely satisfying. Thanks to our sponsor, the Bank of Scotland! The Edinburgh Festival is pleased and I tell the team, “well done!”

Students of Royal High School in Edinburgh explore "dance space." “

Here I'm directing students to make shapes.

A group of students from Royal High School rehearse a short dance.

A final (partial) class photo at Royal High School, Edinburgh Scotland.

After a week of training, mentoring, rehearsing, and lesson planning, we are all ready to teach. Our first event is a community dance workshop for the public. About 45 people gather at the Hub in the Main Hall, the home of Edinburgh International Festival.

Finally, we can put into use the arts education best practices and refined teaching techniques that we’ve been developing. The participants are nervous and excited, and so are we, but dance has a way of bringing people together and creating a sense of community. It’s such a relief to finally get started (dancers always love it when rehearsal is over and the performance begins).

The class is a great success and the participants are truly engaged. They take risks, learn something new, and all seem to have fun. We know we’ve achieved our goals when the overall sentiment is: “when are you coming back?”

A few images from the public dance workshop at the Hub, home of Edinburgh International Festival.

Me teaching the community dance workshop.

The class in motion!

The class loosens up.

]]> http://www.sfballetblog.org/2009/09/the-teaching-begins/feed/ 0 http://www.sfballetblog.org/2009/08/observations-from-the-cobblestones/ http://www.sfballetblog.org/2009/08/observations-from-the-cobblestones/#comments Fri, 28 Aug 2009 21:47:39 +0000 Charles Chip Mc Neal http://www.sfballetblog.org/?p=1063 Wednesday and Thursday have come and gone quickly. Lots of rain. I was soaked much of the time. Since I was training teachers mostly for the last two days, I thought it more interesting to share with you some random thoughts and musings on Scottish life.

• It rains a lot in Edinburgh.
• There is a pub/bar on nearly EVERY corner. Really.
• Cobblestones are really hard to walk on, and you have to be very careful not to twist your ankle.
• The traffic flow is confusing. They drive on the opposite side of the street than the U.S. I have always have to look both ways, twice, then do it again.
• Scottish people are really, really nice, but don’t smile a lot, at first. If you smile, they will smile back.
• People say that in San Francisco, every view is like a picture postcard. Edinburgh is the same way.
• It can get so dark when it rains that the Scottish refer to it as “daytime darkness”.
• Scottish people love all kinds of art and they have a lot of museums in Edinburgh.
• Edinburgh Castle is so cool, it’s beyond words. I just love it. How could humans create something so glorious?
• I love Scotland.

Last but not least, here are more pictures of Edinburgh, as I walk to work each day…. with more to come in another installment.

As I leave for my walk to work... lots of cobblestones.

A view of Haymarket Square, a large public area for hanging out.

Another view from Haymarket, but here you can see Edinburgh Castle in the background.

The HUB. This is the home offices for Edinburgh International Festival. It's actually right down the road from the castle!

Today, I was in Glasgow. I had a chance to visit the new home of Scottish Ballet and see a bit of this famous city. The company works in an old abandoned building that has been transformed from a former train station into a magnificent marvel of glass and wood. They only moved in two months ago and it has the smell of a new car.

A view of the Scottish Ballet building as I head to Queen Street Train Station.

A view of the Scottish Ballet building from the courtyard while having lunch with my workshop percussionist, Signy Jakobsdottir

The dance instructors and I have been working hard designing community workshops. I met lots of marvelous people, including my counterpart: Associate Director of Education Ailsa-Mary Gold.

Here I am having a "cup-o-tea" with Associate Director of Education Ailsa-Mary Gold

I also spent some quality time with Artistic Director Ashley Page. He is energetic, dynamic, gracious, and informative and we spent about an hour together. We talk about choreography, repertoire, and dance-makers like William Forsythe and Christopher Wheeldon. I loved it. But, imagine my surprise when I came across a familiar face while touring the facility: Nicolas Blanc, former principal dancer with SF Ballet, who has just retired from dancing! Just two weeks ago or so, he was named ballet master for Scottish Ballet, and he now resides in Glasgow. I adore Nicolas, and got to watch him teach a bit of class before I was invited by choreographer Iain Spink to watch a rehearsal of his new world premiere of Petrushka (They spell it differently than we do). Dance is everywhere you go, and it’s a small world after all.

Here I am coaching dance instructors from Scottish Ballet and Scottish Dance Theatre (L-R, Dawn Hartley, Emma-Jane McHenry, me, Lorraine Jamieson, Kate Pringle, and Catarina Lappin)

It rains a lot in Scotland… I’ll tell you more about this later.

Scottish Ballet interior view of the Dancers’ Lounge with Dance Instructor Catarina Lappin posing for the camera

St Giles Cathedral

Finally, it’s time to begin my teacher training workshops. The teachers are from Scottish Ballet and Scottish Dance Theater. They are all experienced and my job will be just to give them an opportunity for professional development; to build on the skills they already have.

The first day of workshops went well. The space we’re working in is located at a nearby facility called theRoyal Society of Edinburgh. It’s kind of like a historical society that seeks to preserve and share Scottish history and culture. We’re in a small, but clean, quiet room and we are able to get a lot done.

An office building in Old Town Edinburgh

I have to say, it’s really amazing to be at one of the most culturally supportive environments in the world! Edinburgh is like no other city. It IS the city of festivals, and currently there are eight going on all at once!

Here is a list:

• Edinburgh International Festival (this is who I’m working with)
• Edinburgh International Film Festival
• Edinburgh Jazz Festival
• Edinburgh Art Festival
• Edinburgh Military Tattoo
• Edinburgh Festival Fringe
• Edinburgh Festival of Spirituality and Peace
• Edinburgh International Book Festival

There are literally thousands and thousands of people here attending the festivals. There is art and street performers everywhere. Lots of art is cheap or free, and there’s a lot of it! It’s really fun and exciting and tiring. I can enjoy some, but I’m working.

People strolling on Edinburgh's famous "Royal Mile"

Altogether I’ve been here five times before. It’s amazing in so many ways. There is something to be said for being in a city where daily, you walk by a sixth-century castle! But I’m getting ahead of myself.

Spotted: a double-decker bus!

The flight here was very nice actually: smooth ride, the food wasn’t too bad, lots of leg room (so important for dancers), and fairly on-time. It’s always daunting to arrive in London’s Heathrow airport, one of the largest in the world. After my 10-hour flight, it took no less than an hour to get through the airport and to my connecting flight. But, I made it. The flight to Edinburgh was swift and easy. I was met by a driver who took me to my apartment/hotel and was soon where “home” would be for the next two weeks.

My apartment for the next two weeks in Edinburgh

So, actually, this will be my fourth trip to Scotland. On three separate occasions I have been invited to come to Edinburgh to work with the Edinburgh International Festival (EIF), as an artist-in-residence. Each time (1995, 1999, 2003), I took a team of dancers and teaching artists with me. It was quite fun really. We taught workshops in schools throughout greater Edinburgh, as well as public dance workshops and special lecture demonstrations. Traveling with a team is great because it gives you a built-in social network. When we were there, we lived, taught and socialized together (in a rented apartment). The work is always intense, and it’s really nice to have others who understand exactly what you’re going through. Besides, dancers are always fun to hang out with, right!?

This time will be different; I’m going alone. It’s so flattering to be asked to return again, based on past successes. However, this time, there will be new challenges, like coaching teachers I’m never met, teaching middle school-age students, and of course, more public workshops and lectures. I have been preparing for this residency for many weeks: selecting music to use for teaching, preparing lesson plans and instructional materials for the artist–educators I’ll mentor, and much more. What makes this trip most exciting of all, is that I’ll be there during the festival itself, which has not always been the case. I’ll see a lot of dance and music and theater, and no doubt meet lots of interesting, talented people.

Last but not least, will be the spectacular views of the city. I love Edinburgh.

The picture here is one of my favorites. This is a an image looking up at Edinburgh castle from the central fountain on Princes Street downtown.

OK, I may be a wee bit tired, but me next post will be from Scotland! (Read with Scottish brogue)