May 9, 2022

From the Theatre to Studio with 2Faced Dance Company

On Thursday 5th May, the Dance Department were treated to a stimulating evening of contemporary dance from all-male company, 2Faced. Following the triple bill of what has been described as ‘emotionally charged, lung-busting physicality’, Beth Butler, Dance Teacher, reflected “It really helped us understand how many hours you need in the studio to prepare and rehearse dance pieces so they are polished for an audience. They made it look so easy and we are really looking forward to the workshop with Will tomorrow. We can’t wait to ask him questions about the work we saw.”

“I left feeling so inspired” commented Cali. “It was so good to see male dominance in the dance industry as that is something we don’t come across very much.” Anna added, “I loved the final piece ‘7.0 Reduxed’ because some of the tricks they performed made me sit on the edge of my seat.”

Beth continued, “The first piece ‘The Qualies’ used tennis as a stimulus and it was useful for us to see how dancers might work with prop and spoken word. We all agreed that the lighting design used in ‘Hollow in a World Too Full’ was incredible. The use of side lighting and hanging bulbs on stage helped see the movement in different ways and really brought home to us how lighting is an integral part of dance performance. Our favourite piece was the final piece, encompassing all five dancers ‘7.0 Reduxed’. It explored the aftermath of the Haiti disaster and was clearly challenging for the dancers. There were so many lifts and they never stopped moving.”

The next day, inspired to enter the studio with Dance Artist, Will Hodson, the Year 10 GCSE group were eager to learn repertoire from ‘7.0 Reduxed’ in an all-day workshop, before developing the movement material as soloists and duets.

“After watching Will dance in the theatre visit last night it was so exciting to have an opportunity to be taught by him all day in the studio. We were able to ask questions about the show and talk to him about his career. It was really inspiring.” enthused one student.

The opportunity to work on choreographic skills that has to be performed with sharp and strong dynamics was cited as the perfect preparation for the groups GCSE choreography exam; “The technique class was helpful in getting us to reflect on our physical skills and how we need to ensure correct posture, placement and alignment for instance. We really liked how he gave individual feedback to us to help us improve our work. One thing we noticed was how he kept talking about the use of projection and communicating with an audience.”

“This workshop has really given me the confidence to know I can really succeed in GCSE Dance.” commented Jemima. “It was so much fun and I really enjoyed learning contemporary movement.” added Marianne.

The day of dance ended on a high with an audience of students and staff gathered to watch their performance and a rendition of Happy Birthday for Will.

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