To begin your choreography you need to start brainstorming what your piece will be about. It may end up changing, but it is important you have a place to begin evolving your work from.

Stimuli

Task 1: Choose
Below are a range of quotes from significant figures in history.
Choose a handful that you like and then move on to task 2.

“A person who never made a mistake never tried anything new.” — Albert Einstein

“You get a strange feeling when you leave a place, like you’ll not only miss the people you love, but you’ll also miss the person you are at this time and place because you’ll never be this way ever again.” — Azar Nafisi

“To travel is to take a journey into yourself.” — Danny Kaye

“You will never be completely at home again, because part of your heart will always be elsewhere.” — Miriam Adeney

“Every artist was first an amateur.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson

“Creativity takes courage.” — Henri Matisse

“You can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have.” — Maya Angelou

“Art is the only way to run away without leaving home.” — Twyla Tharp

“Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson

“We must be willing to let go of the life we planned so as to have the life that is waiting for us.” — Joseph Campbell

“Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom.” — Aristotle

“You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.” — C.S. Lewis

“Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined.” — Henry David Thoreau

“What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson

“The beautiful thing about learning is that no one can take it away from you.” — B.B. King

“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” — Nelson Mandela

“Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever.” — Mahatma Gandhi

“Intellectual growth should commence at birth and cease only at death.” — Albert Einstein

“Develop a passion for learning. If you do, you will never cease to grow.” — Anthony J. D’Angelo

“Curiosity is the wick in the candle of learning.” — William Arthur Ward

Task 2: Brainstorm and Research.
Now you have chosen a few quotes we are going to narrow it down to one. You should choose the quote you get the most ideas/inspiration from through your brainstorm and research.

1. Brainstorm some ideas, feelings, moods and images around each quote. You may begin this by:

2.  Writing out your quotes and underlining significant words or phrases

3.  Brainstorm those words and phrases. Consider what ideas, thoughts, mood and feelings arise and include these in your brainstorm.

4. Find out about the person who said/wrote them and the context in which they were spoken/written

5. Combine your interpretation and the context together. See what links and connections you can find between the two. 

6. Looking at these connections, consider what idea, feeling, mood or image comes from these that will inspire the most effective movement for you as a choreographer. Make a list of pros and cons per each idea/feeling/mood/image that you have.

Task 3: Creating an initial choreographic intention
A choreographic intention is the aim of the dance, what it is intended to be expressed. The idea, mood, feeling or image that the choreographer is intending to convey

1. Evolve the quote in to a specific idea, mood or feeling to be your intention. Remember you are now interpreting the quote in your own way, and you will express your understanding in your dance. 

2. Submit it below for the teacher to review 

Help for writing an intention:

-Are you focused on communicating an idea, feeling, mood or image?

-Why did you choose this intention?

-Is it important or personal to you?

-What do you want the audience to understand, think, feel or take away from your performance?

-Is there a special/important message, idea or theme?
-How does your intention relate to the wider world/society?

Here is an example of a clear, simple intention:
This poem made me think of the importance of our beliefs and the unfairness of war. It made me think of the sacrifices these men made, potentially their entire spiritual beliefs and wellbeing were sacrificed. My choreographic intention is to convey the feeling of loss, and the yearning for one's home. The feeling of loss in my piece connects to the loss experienced in war, loss of identity and loss of choice.

Remember at level 3 your intention should be ‘complex’. Try to avoid the point of your dance being to tell a narrative story. Yes you can tell a story, but you want a big ‘WHY’ behind the reason for your choreographic intention. 

AS91588 Produce a dance students: Creating your concept

You have the additional step of beginning to brainstorm around your CONCEPT:

Using the bullet points below brainstorm some initial ideas around:
-genre. Explain why this is the most effective for your work.
-title. Explain how this connects to the stimuli
-number of dancers and why
-initial ideas for  costume, sound, lighting, set, make-up/hair and props. Explain how each one connects to the stimuli/intention 

Additional decisions you should begin to consider are:

• movement

• dance elements

• devices

• groupings

• choreographic processes

• structure

• venue (where the dance is performed...) 

All of which should communicate your concept somehow. 

Template for your final evidence

You need to complete this as you go, and submit it as evidence before your final performance

 Any questions or concerns? Please contact your teacher:
Miss Samuel: jsamuel@ormiston.school.nz