Learn Their Language

We all know how arts companies guard their secrets. We know performers rehearse; we see rehearsals translated to the stage. But how the precious magic happens has, so far, been a mystery. Until now. This fall, one prominent Philadelphia dance company is ready to open up its closed-door process and speak to us -- through movement.

Group Motion Dance Company has always credited workshops for providing the backbone of their rehearsal process: As a result, every season is packed with pieces developed through sophisticated techniques of improvisation, by its company members (Megan Bridge, Emily Hubler, David Konyk, Katie McNamara and new addition Lesya Popil) or by visiting collaborators. Artistic Director Manfred Fischbeck admits that these "structures" of working are unique, developed by the company over its 30 years. Yet he believes that, for many viewers, the inner workings are not apparent. "[The confusion] comes from the fact that people are not growing up with the literacy of dance; they know more about music, theater, even visual art than dance. So many people wonder, when they leave a performance, what it all meant, what they're supposed to have understood from it."

So little communication, Fischbeck believes, needlessly conceals the process, and could even be damaging dance. "We felt we could and should offer the chance for people to see more than just the finished product," he explains. All these intentions culminate this month in a new kind of performance workshop, "Inside Dance," led by Group Motion company members. Unlike their traditional improvisation workshops, "Inside Dance" has an audacious goal: To deconstruct an existing piece of dance.

Fischbeck sees this as a natural development in his company's effort to connect with their audience. Following a straightforward performance with a discussion led by the choreographer gives a forum for voiced reaction to the dance; by adding the further stage of participation, says Fischbeck, participants can begin to experience Group Motion's way of working -- which relies on types of dialogue that are sometimes wordless.

"We understand ... and approach dance as a language, not so much as a style or a technique, although of course we do concentrate on techniques," Fischbeck says. Rather than teaching people standard steps, dance workshops succeed, he says, when the emphasis rests on free expression, not conformity, through movement. That's good news, above all, for the wary: There's room not only for differing ideas of what the dance is saying, but for contribution from new performers who feel they don't know where to start. "This format will show perfectly how there's not just one way of producing dance. Each piece requires something different," Fischbeck explains.

Stripping down a completed dance to its workings involves an important first step: making sure everyone is -- seriously -- speaking the same language. For Group Motion's dancers, interactions in movement are treated, on some level, as conversations. This is reflected in certain company techniques, used periodically to kick off choreography through instinct rather than intellect. One, developed by Fischbeck, is to create a "wave of movement," a process described as like stringing words into a sentence; another sort relies on the building of dialogue between two performers, where constant reaction to one another retains the sense that there are two creative impulses at play, not just one.

Pinning down the sources of inspiration -- where the genius is meant to start -- is an aspect Fischbeck is perhaps most pleased to reveal. Though the first workshop, stretched over a weekend, will scrutinize two pieces of dance yet to be determined, Fischbeck mentions a pair of company works that were created this year, based on two paintings by Cypriot painter Yiorgos Skotinos. "In those cases, we derived certain images from the artworks, but then had to work to develop a story for the dance -- a story not literally speaking -- that would reflect the paintings." Achieving inspiration from other art is, it seems, fair game -- although, of course, real life is usually the source: another work that might get "Inside Dance" treatment is entitled "Tango: Topography of a Date," a highly stylized look at one couple's night out.

The strength of the company's philosophy rests in the reassessed relationship between the performers and the viewers: Fischbeck explains that the metaphor of language "implies that people are actually communicating and speaking to each other, rather than just presenting, or representing, to the audience." Rather than downplaying the observers' importance, it aims to restore people's faith in their own interpretations. A taste of experience should do much to persuade theater-goers not to watch dance in search of answers, but "for its own workings, its own self." After all, using dance as a medium capable of expression of almost linguistic height still allows for performers to pick up different vocabularies. Not only does that perspective glorify variety in performance style, but it ensures that there are no wrong answers to the rephrased Big Questions: What does the dance mean becomes, instead, how would you have done it differently?

“Inside Dance” performance workshop, Sat., Sept. 21, 8-10 p.m. and Sun, Sept. 22, 2-4 p.m.; Nov. 9 8-10 p.m. and Nov. 10, 2-4 p.m, $15/single day, $25/both days, Kumquat Dance Center, 3500 Lancaster Ave., 215-387-9895.

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