Thomas Michael Voss, Choreographer and long standing member of Dance UK and the UKCD, shares his recent project experience with Sally…

Tell us about the project you involved in, in Leicester?

It's called Ballare: to Dance. It is collaboration between the composer Philip Herbert, moving image artist Dave Soden and myself.
The overall idea is to celebrate internationalism and to bring dance and music from different cultures together with visuals, to create a whole new unit and to interweave all the different elements. That doesn't sound all that new and different you might think now, but the way we are hoping to do it will be quite unique, different and very exciting - I hope.
Philip has composed, and still is composing, some of the music specifically for this project, so it's all new, all fresh and original.
At the moment we are still in the research and development phase, meeting with the Arts Council and other funders, trying to get enough money together to go 'big time'.
It all started with Philip and David contacting me last year, asking me to join them. I fell in love with the concept and idea and it already was along the lines of a similar project I had done for Oxfam in the past.
We had several meetings, created a google discussion group to discuss ideas and exchange research results and progress.
We created a 7 min long taster extract featuring some of the concept and ideas for demonstration purposes. In this completed piece, a suite for solo steel pan and strings, there will be 5 movements modelled on the old Baroque dance suite including an introductory Prelude which will be processional exploring play parallels between Venetian/Caribbean Carnival, a Courante (a court dance), a Juba dance from West Africa (foot stomping, thigh slapping energetic plantation dance), Zamacueca ( a flirtatious dance for couples from Peru)  and Zouk (which is a festive celebratory dance from Guadeloupe).

We have shown the Courante extract to an invited audience to enable us to apply for bigger funding.

In the full 90 min Ballare: to Dance show, there will also be a fandango (mix of Spanish flamenco, Tango elements, and so on) accompanied by the music of Luigi Boccherini (Guitar Quintet), a Guacuango from Cuba accompanied by the music of Guido Lopez Gavilan, and a Mexican dance accompanied by the music of Arturo Marquez. There will also will be another newly composed piece by Philip, entitled ‘Mantra for an Athlete’, which explores parallels between a Hindu mantra (prayer - ritual) which is recited and repeated until one reaches spiritual enlightenment: alongside the rituals an athlete must repeat daily to aspire to levels of sporting excellence.

The work so far already includes African Dance, Capoeira, Court Dance with a hint of Ballet elements, Contemporary Dance, Physical Theatre and Salsa. A definite addition in future will be Stick Fighting, Flamenco, Indian Dance, Paso Doble, Tango, Zouk and … who knows what else will inspire me.

The piece we have created and shown on 28th February was based and inspired on the Courante (Court Dance). It was Philip's intention to demonstrate how Western Culture was already evident and influential in the Caribbean around the 16th century. We show how slaves at first mocked the court dance, while having their own dances and festivals/balls/competitions and then later on genuinely mixed and took it on into their own culture.
Philip has specifically written this piece of music mixing the Western strings with the Caribbean steel drum. The two sound worlds are symbolic of two different cultural worlds: the strings -the European and the steel pan - the African. The steel pan is part of the long lineage of percussion instruments such as the drum, from the African diaspora: which was feared by slave owners, for its ability to communicate secret signals amongst slaves, to engage in a revolt. The dance is reflecting and echoing the mix and conflict and merges the styles. I used African dance and capoeira against/with court dance and ballet, which later on develops into contemporary, salsa and physical theatre. As well as dealing with music and dance I am also dealing with the social clashes of that time, black /white and male /female issues.

What groups of people are you working with? How does this differ to working with professional dancers in regards to you being a choreographer and your creative vision?

I am using dancers of mixed ages , so far for this project they are between 11 and 38 years old, but I very much would like to extend the range.
I did audition the main corps of the group in Leicester and I took 8 dancers I had worked with in the past from London up to Leicester. We only had 4 Sundays (including auditions and performance) to pull it all together.
Some of the dancers are from different backgrounds, professions or different dance genres like Street dance, Martial Arts and Ballroom dancing. Some are so young they haven't even trained yet. The main body of dancers are in training at the De Montfort University Leicester and others have been dancers for a long time and have been dancing principal roles in Ballets.
 
I have a creative vision, but that changes and develops as I go along and as I work with the dancers. It keeps it organic if you like and keeps it pliable opposed to being rigid and stiff. Therefore, I can see who can do what and what their characters and personalities are like, which I find immensely important. I use their potential and try to push it a lot further. Some dancers then surprise me and do a lot more than I thought they were able to or what they thought they were capable off, others hold back. Some prefer staying where they are, which I respect, but not always accept.

I pick up a lot from the vibe a group gives off and I go from there. Generally, I can be very traditional and gemanic(lol) and prefer the dancers do what I tell them to do. It is very efficient that way, yet I love input conversation and exchange if it isn't to waste time.

What have been the tricky points?

Coach B on a Sunday morning, lol! On our 9am (!!!) journey from London to Leicester on East Midland trains it happened twice that there was no Coach B, even though we had 9 numbered seats reserved on coach B which you would expect being placed between coach A and C,D,E and the restaurant!
It was a miracle to us and we took it upon ourselves to sit first class which was spacious and quiet (until we arrived). They might want to sponsor us next time to make up for it maybe...?
On a more serious note:   
Time and Money I would say. It worked for the 7 min sample, but I only had time to scratch the surface of each topic that we wanted to explore and demonstrate. I had to introduce the dance styles rather fast and short, I had to have a loose narrative and structure, show the contrasts and social clashes, involve the steel pan musician, and the visuals (crackling sugar cane fires), and all only started to get going, before I already had to move on to the next. All that having to make sure it doesn't all become bitty or random -maybe even falling apart as a piece.
Creatively, that was very limiting and artistically it was a little frustrating since I had all those talented dancers and the beautiful space and millions of ideas and couldn't really go into depth with anything.  

What has been the best bit?

Working with all the people. I always really enjoy that very much, especially when the group consists of very different personalities and ages. There were a few extremely talented dancers who I am dying to use again hopefully on the big BALLARE project or on other projects to their full potential - which I was able to with one dancer from Leicester already, who I asked to work with me at London Fashion Week, where I choreographed a very special and unusual catwalk for Henrietta Ludgate for her Spring / Summer 2010 collection with 19 models /dancers.
It was very nice and interesting to go to Leicester and work with fresh and enthusiastic dancers.

Do you hope to take this project any further or develop on from?

Oh yes. Besides the money of course (it is boring to always talk about the lack of money), we are really hoping to create a big scale 90 min production with a real orchestra/ solo musicians, a solid dance troupe and big screens for the projections.
Then we would love to show it to real people, big audiences in a big theatre and then hopefully show it in London (The Big Dance would be perfect!) as well as well as maybe even going on a national and then international tour.
Does that sound ambitious enough for you? That's me.
Do I believe the project has got the potential? definitely YES.

What other projects do you have up your sleeve?

As I already mentioned above I have worked on London Fashion Week again this year which I always enjoy. It is normally very creative and fun and I get such a buzz from it. I had fantastic models who were up to do anything and the collection was very pretty with a touch of futurism. The theme was “Secret Garden“, mysterious and dark, but fairy, nymph like. Great! The photographic footage we have as a result from it taken by Adam Holtrop is just incredible and reflects the mood very well.

I have three workshops coming up for elderly people which I am looking forward to. I will offer a Latin/jazz/swing workshop and two Bollywood workshops. It’s part of the Age Concern organisation and will happen in Mottingham, Eltham and at the Greenwich Dance Agency.

On Wednesday 7th April I am teaching a  Ballroom and Latin Masterclass at Dance Works from 7pm-9pm For anyone who is interested
An ongoing project and a baby of mine is a Latin and Ballroom Formation Team which consist of amateur/community people with ‘normal’ daytime jobs who just love to dance and are willing to put up with me in their spare time, lol. We are having the odd performance here and there, but I am secretly hoping that I will be able to show it as part of “The Big Dance” this year, in Hammersmith and Fulham in the beginning of July, that would be great and such an opportunity for the dancers.

Apart from all this I am teaching my Ballroom and Latin American Dance classes at the Dance Attic in Fulham which is great fun and keeps me going on rainy days.

Wow! A very interesting and eclectic sounding project, Thank you Michael for sharing the experience.

Be sure to catch one of his classes!

To find out more informaiton on Thomas Michael Voss visit his website... www.tmvoss.com