How to..
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Monday, June 5, 2006
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How to.. do contemporary dance
Duncan tries a range of moves with the rest of the class. (6AS0525422) Pictures: ALAN STORER
I HAVE long held that the main reason my editor wanted me to do the How To column was to see how ridiculous she could make me look.
Some may call it paranoia, but when the idea was first sold to me it was illustrated with a picture of a ballet dancer – and I have been frequently asked when I am going to don a tutu.
With Jo Barben’s contemporary dance class I have got a step nearer to achieving my boss’s goal.
The class, which meets at The Cresset on a Thursday evening, takes ballet as one of its starting points, mixing in expressive dance and movement, so it is not just about looking pretty, but also about expressing ideas and movement.
As ever, I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect, but I was surprised to see such a mixed range of ages taking the class – ranging from people in their 20s to in their 70s – and I wasn’t the only bloke either.
Everyone dressed to be comfortable, and we were all told to take our shoes and socks off – not a pleasant experience for anyone near me after a long day at work I’m sad to say.
As a discipline, contemporary dance uses all of your body, so Jo ensured we fully warmed up our muscles with a series of stretches and gentle movements to start with.
Much of the movement used ballet terms from starting foot positions to plies and arabesques, but the movements on the floor and travelling across the room soon moved away from that, incorporating turns and twists and spins you would not see at the Sadler’s Wells.
And the music was quite a jump from Tchaikovsky, using modern contemporary pieces by the likes of Moby, The Prodigy and The Chemical Brothers to give a much more upbeat feel to the movement.
From some initial self-consciousness and mis-givings, coupled with my old coordination problem of telling my left from my right, I soon found myself getting into the movement and really enjoying it.
Each dance was slowly walked through with Jo at the front, and the class imitating her moves, before the music came on and you could really see how it was put together.
Jo worked as a dancer with the Random Dance Company before moving back to Peterborough 10 years ago to work in Cambridgeshire.
She now teaches at secondary schools a couple of days a week, as well as running her Thursday night classes.
Speaking before the class, Jo said her main aim was to get people moving, and worry about perfecting technique later. She said: “The more you do it, the easier it gets.
“You are working your whole body. For me it makes it more interesting than going to a gym.
“You are doing something you can care about – it is artistic and creative, you have to engage with it.”