Grasshoppa Dance Exchange - Hop Reflections

11-30-04 - US President Bush in town, Ottawa.

"As I sit here after the very dynamic hop this evening, I can still hear the helicopters circling overhead. They've been circling all day."

"The hop began outside Dance Network, literally. The police on Rideau Street wanted to see a cartwheel. Ok, then. I was curious about doing what they asked- here was an audience (they were also in uniform and almost all men which brought up questions about power dynamics for me)- why not do what we were going to do anyway? So they stopped traffic and got what they asked for. They were pleased."

"From there we danced through the Rideau Centre and over Mackenzie King Bridge to Elgin. Amy, Anne, Krista and Jason and myself. All of the dancers were wearing shades of red and orange. The score was simple:

1. One person says "Follow the Leader" and everyone follows them (as the protests were all about the 'Leaders' meeting- I chose this format. One person on Elgin said, "Which leader?" Good question. It was important for me in this part of the score to allow the leader to have their movement 'voiced' and affirmed if only for a short while...)
2. As soon as one decides to do their own dance, everyone does their own dance (practicing autonomy and choice)
3. As soon as one freezes, everyone freezes (practicing listening to each other)
4. When everyone is frozen, everyone falls down one after the other like dominoes (as a group, all of our actions effect everyone else in the group-and beyond: the butterfly effect- whether we're aware of it or not.)
5. We begin again as soon as someone says, 'Follow the Leader'"

"Accompanied by Jason's drum and flute, we brought some attention to ourselves in the mall- I thought each of us had some great listening moments. I noticed I was sometimes far ahead and this was because I wanted to keep it moving and get to the Hill. Once I realized this, I made an effort to slow down and see what was happening behind me (note to self: if I'm always looking forward and I am dependent on the people behind me for cues, I better turn around once in a while and be directly involved with them). Many passerbys made comments at us- a mix of support and surprise and saying what they were seeing: "Now they're dead!". I got a high-five on the bridge from a young man that I wasn't expecting."

"I thought the moments against the wall at the NAC were particularly striking visually. And later, near Wellington, as Krista and I lay down at the end of the score, a couple of young women ran up to us and asked, "Are you ok?", to which I responded, "I'm great! Follow the Leader". And I got up and skipped towards the Hill (as we were lying, Krista said: "I've got to stop soon!", we were quite out of breath and Amy had just left- we've all been in different stages of this flu/cold bug that's going around. Sorry, Krista, that I began again so energetically- didn't mean to be disrespectful- it just felt like the thing to do)."

"The Hill was another story altogether. A man in a kilt and playing bagpipes joined Jason and we found our way to a bit of road on the Hill just north of the Metcalfe Street gate. Other musicians joined in and then other people (Lainie!) and I shouted out the score when we were lying and invited people to join. A big crowd formed around us. Everytime we fell down, people cheered- it felt like a very clear end. A lot of young adults joined in as well as some some older adults and one very little girl with her Mom. We danced for about 45 minutes- at the most there were a couple of dozen dancers and I'd say hundreds of onlookers. It was magical when everyone froze and then when everyone fell down. I found it an interesting challenge to see if the score could continue with such a big group who had not rehearsed it previously. Mostly, people seemed to enjoy being part of it. I loved the anonymity of it and at the same time the intimacy that was created with listening and watching for each other. There seemed to be a natural end when the crowd on the Hill began to march towards Gatineau. Some people stayed to dance to the drums. On the news the journalists said the crowd was about 5000."

"On my way back to my bike, I passed hundreds of police waiting to take OC Transpo buses away from downtown. I was surprised to see so much litter on the streets and broken glass. A few disrespectful officers made some mildly lewd comments at me which made me stop and look back at them in the eyes. A whole group of police passed me on the sidewalk and they shouted out: 'Hey! Grasshoppa Dance Exchange! Yay!' (they were the Rideau Street group) and I got high fives from some of the very large men in uniform."

by Maureen Shea

11-30-04 - US President Bush in town, Ottawa.

"Since I haven't done much dancing of late, I think the best way for me to describe the protest dance is FUN! I had so much fun! I wasn't sure how I would deal with the fact that I was dancing through the streets... would I be nervous? Would I feel intimidated? Embarrassed? As it turned out, none of my fears were realized. I think it was in large part to do with the fact that you guys were so committed to what you were doing. I felt as though I could completely enter into a new character, and I did so."

"When we warmed up in the studio, I really enjoyed getting a sense of how each one of us moved. Subsequently, the challenge was to find a way to collaborate with each unique body language. The more I felt comfortable with each person, the more I felt I could interact and play off hers (or his) movements and energy."

"Then... we took to the streets. I thought it was a bit of a rough beginning the way the police were taunting us, but I think we sort of surprised them. They were the first. I think the highlight of the evening was dancing through Rideau Centre. I think for me, the protest symbolized breaking down barriers, and that is exactly what I felt we were doing by dancing through the mall. People were generally very receptive, and I think they understood what we were about. Especially with the commercial Christmas vibe in the air, I thought it was so suiting to dance for the shoppers. I am sure we stimulated conversation at very least!"

"Then, off to the streets again. I really enjoyed pushing the boundaries of our dance. Physically, we couldn't go too far from each other, but it was interesting to see how far we could push and still maintain a connection. I felt that each time the piece ended (ie. melting domino effect) we were symbolising all of those people that are dying everyday because of the injustices in the world. At one point, I had a fellow come up to me and see if I was alright. Nice gesture, and it was cool that people actually took notice."

"When we entered the park, I loved the atmosphere that had already been established there. I think the candles really did a lot to create an almost a mystical air. When we danced within the circle, I liked the fact that I could interact with audience and performers alike. I chose movements that I felt captured the struggle, hope, defeat, anger, fear, and empowerment (etc.) of those that were protesting. Because I had such a huge well to draw from, I felt I could be very creative with my movements. I really enjoyed the audience participation in the dancing. It was so cool to see what moved people and how! I couldn't help but feel a little frustrated at the lack of communication between us and the ones who joined in later, though. Everyone would be completely frozen and there would still be one or two people, completely self-absorbed, not realizing that anything was different, and dancing away. However frustrating, I turned it into more inspiration! It definitely added a new and dynamic element. I also felt that once we made the circle, we were stuck there. Because it interested many people (such an incredibly supportive and captive audience!), they gravitated toward the 'performance' and, in a sense, locked us into place. Only once did I try to break out of the circle, but it was futile by that point! Why did I want to break away from the circle? I think that we (unintentionally) created a sort of competition for the speeches that were going on. I felt that instead of contributing to what had already been organized, we existed in a certain opposition to it. Thinking about it now, I am not sure that there is a way to bridge that gap."

"Despite a few reservations, I thought last night was a spectacular experience. I felt that working together as a tight-knit group, then moving to broader surroundings, and adding more people to the mix was a very stimulating process of events. Dancing about the whole thing just seemed like the right thing to do. I am so glad that I had the opportunity to be a part of it all!"

by Anne Davison

03-05-05- Staples store parking lot, Ottawa.

"I just got home and my feet are wet and my blood feels thick and I feel slow- ah, winter- even a warm winter day!. Dancing on the melting snow pile was challenging- there were big gaps and sudden descents- to move quickly and to make big movements (which is what I intended against that huge white wall with the red trim at the top and the blue sky above) was tough. The score was about the number 12: 1 musician (Mark), 2 dancers (Renata and myself)..then 12 moves going up the hill, 12 moves against the wall and then 12 moves upside down. The first time we went through it, each move was a pose, the second time we went through it the moves were continuous. It was definitely an unstable environment- very simple moves became risky. Movement clarity was a challenge. I would like to return to this wall another time- something about the sky there..."

by Maureen Shea

05-05 - Late Winter Hop in Montreal.

"I had a great time in Montreal, a complete fly-by, but such a blast. The hoppers met outside a coffee shop and walked to this park (sorry I don't remember the name of it!) that had a great big fountain in it. Ilona organized the hop and she had another dancer-friend of hers there as well, and it was the three of us that ended up performing. We also met up with five other dancers (one a teacher, and the rest, her students) who were interested in what a hop was, etc., but didn't want to participate until they had sort of seen how it went first. So, the fountain was our stage, and the score was to start close together."

"The rules were, when we were close together, we couldn't really be affected by each other's movements. Then, we dispersed and the farther away we were, the more we had to pick up on each other's movements. It was a cool idea, but very counter-intuitive! I felt as though I had to physically turn myself away from the others when I was in close proximity to them. It was also an issue for me to find a reason to separate from them and a reason why I would become more connected with them through greater distance. But, I made sense of it the best I could, and had a great time. Most of the passers-by didn't take much notice of what we were doing, but the 'prospective' hoppers made for a lovely little crowd."

by Anne Davison

06-05 - FEST-Festival, Bologna, Italy

"I've taken part in the 'One, two, three: HOP!' urban dance laboratory in Bologna (Italy) on June 2005 together with Maureen Shea and a thick bunch of funky and arty people from all over Italy (and beyond: Croatia, ScotlandÉ). Neither I nor almost all of us are professional dancers, but we've been working very well with our bodies (not only), trying to get the best out, each of us in their own peculiar way, sometimes clumsy and clownish, but expressive and communicative. We've gone through some "classic" scores of Maureen's repertoire (and of the contemporary dance repertoire too), and we've worked a lot on weights and contacts. It's also been an individual work, although the group parts have been more impressive. It's been awesome, and we've incredibly managed to build a performance in a while: I guess it looked pretty staid and serious from outside, but it was almost totally improvised, fruit of instant emotions and excitement. This lab's been one of the most electrifying things I've ever done in Bologna! After the lab (and Maureen's departure, sigh!) we've met once again, dancing at a traffic light on the main boulevard of Bologna. I think we've clinged to Maureen's teachings but we've also been very creative, and she'd have been proud of us. We'd like to find a place, in autumn, where we can practice and we plan to thrill and upset the city with our performances from time to time. Why not be the Italian Grasshoppa Dance Exchange team?"

by Debora Stenta

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