CHOREOGRAPHY ON THE FLY

Creativity is a funny sort of friend.  It disappears when we are desperate for its wisdom…then appears suddenly when we least expect to see it.    When I left for a month-long trip, I told my colleagues that I will return with two pieces of choreography.  At the time, the promise did not seem unreasonable.  After all, I had at least four full weeks of time on my own to work on the projects.  I had access to space, music, and free time.  Easy beans, I told myself.

Interesting how quickly those four weeks flew by. I listened to the music daily, awaiting the arrival of creativity…but inspiration was silent. I worked on other tasks, but my mind kept looking…hoping that choreographic answers would appear in a bright flash of light before me. Panic started to set in.  I wondered whether I had the ability to really create dance pieces!  I prepared to return without any semblance of concrete choreography.   No amount of sighing and hands-wringing helped. 

I boarded the plane and settled into the cramped middle seat. (Apparently, aisle seats can be had for an additional $40, but that’s a topic for another article!)   As the journey began, I did what I always do to relax when forced to sit for hours on end…I plugged into my mp3 player.   I am never without my music.  I sat back, closed my eyes, and allowed my mind to go blank.

Almost immediately, unbidden, visions of movement began to stream behind my eyelids…as if I was watching a movie.  Yikes!  Creativity found me…but I was stuck in a seat thousands of miles in the air.  Undaunted, I began furiously writing notations…notes of rhythmic counts and their accompanying movements, notes on musical marks, notes of formations. My feet were tapping, my hands danced, my head nodding to the beats.  From the corner of my eyes, I noticed my seatmates edging a little away from me….as much as possible within the confines of an economy airline seat.  Ha ha….I must have looked quite the sight. 

Ah..but one can not allow creative vision to dissipate without honoring its presence.  I realized that my earlier attempts failed because I was seeking answers outside of myself.  Answers do not exist out there in the stratosphere somewhere.  They do not rain down upon me. The “Ah Ha” moment isn’t an “out-of-body” experience. It seemed kind of obvious at that point…I was looking so hard for an answer to be given to me that I did not allow the openness of heart necessary for creative inspiration. 

By the time my flight touched down, I had notations for two pieces…my first choreographic attempts!  I am unsure whether my movement ideas will make sense when actually danced…but that’s the second step of the process.   I will be working with friends who will generously give me their time and experience as we bring my scribbled notes off the paper and onto the dance floor.  I look forward to their ideas and know that the pieces will change and evolve.  After all, dance is a collaborative endeavor…where the finished piece can be completely different from the original vision.  That is the excitement of dance.  Besides, what can be better than dancing with friends?  

Now…I wonder if I have to get on another plane in order to choreograph another piece.  Choreography on the fly can be an expensive creative process!