“I feel that I am struggling with my creative solo process because it is the first time I am choreographing a three-minute solo without any restrictions.” This statement was very true at the start of my process on April 5, 2018. I created only 10 seconds of movement and I felt overwhelmed by the assignment that was ahead of me. From the start of taking the course, I always felt that I was behind relative to my peers. I am the only student in the class who had no experience with choreographing or structuring a creative process. When I was confronted with the final study assignment, I was nervous and daunted, however I also realized how far I’d come as a mover and a choreographer.

 

I found that the beginning of my process was the most difficult part for me. Starting to create a three-minute solo with no restrictions left me feeling lost and unsure of my direction. What grounded me was the music and my inspiration, Split Second by David Baldacci. I quickly found that I am a very chronological thinker and I produce most efficiently when I am working linearly. While it did take me the full three weeks to produce my full study, it was easy to let the music drive me and to connect with motifs and focus from Split Second to help me create material. On April 12, 2018 I stated, “I have been choreographing based on what the music tells me to do, and then when I get stuck, I pick a moment in the book Split Second and use that as inspiration for my following movements.” My motifs stemmed from key moments that stood out to me in Split Second. For example, when I connect my hands together in fists and then send energy through my fingers once my fists touch, it represents the evil mastermind meticulously connecting wires for a bomb.

 

I chose the title “The Look” for my piece because it embodies not only the most significant motif that I created, but also the main premise of Split Second. In the book, a Secret Service agent gets distracted downstage left corner of the room allowing the presidential candidate he was guarding to get murdered. I felt that this moment in the book was crucial, so it ultimately drove my focus throughout my entire solo. I constantly look to the downstage left corner of the stage to mimic the distracting moment that occurred in the book.

 

I truly feel that I have learned an immense amount about myself through this challenging assignment and through the course of the semester. I learned that my strengths lay in my clear and direct focus, my embodiment of movement with music, and my development and use of space. I believe that each of those qualities truly connect back to how my mind is wired in that I am a very thoughtful choreographer and work chronologically through my ideas and through the space and time that I am given. I am a much more confident choreographer and mover now that this course has made me more aware of my tendencies and preferences. However, I did learn that there are still many areas that I can improve in. My goals for the future in choreography entail remaining curious and finding new explorations of my body. I want to explore my back space, the full depth of my plié, risk taking, and use of breath. I know that these aspects will come with time and experience as a choreographer and as my technique and performance vocabulary broadens.

 

I am proud of what I created this semester and ultimately what I created for my final study. I have learned to value that having time to choreograph and be creative is a privilege and a rarity. While I never thought that I saw myself as a choreographer, I now see that being thrown into the position of a choreographer helped me grow more than I ever could have foreseen. I have learned to value my peers’ opinions and my teachers’ opinions. Having an outside perspective on your work is not only important but extremely helpful in a creative process. I have learned that no one else is judging you during your creative process. Your creative process is time for you to explore and to make mistakes. If you don’t make mistakes or use trial and error, you will never learn what you think works best at that moment and time in your piece. I have experienced a new feeling of gratification from dance because I was able to take full responsibility for the movement I created and for the process that I went through. Once again, I have been surprised with how much the dance world has to offer and how multifaceted and capable my body is. “The Look” is hopefully the beginning of a long journey of exploration, learning, and experiencing dance from a new lens.

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View excerpts of my creative process below.