Rehearsal notes from March 2, 7

I've been working with Eve on movement for the version of the circle piece that we'll perform in transmodern. Here are some notes from rehearsals:

March 2
Finally, a bit of direction in movement terms. Before rehearsal started I played enjoyable music and danced in a carefree and energetic manner. When Eve arrived we started talking about a dance show that we had seen. The work in the show had been promoted as 'experimental' but I couldn't see anything experimental within it. It was a standard approach to choreography by stringing steps together and drew on a range of pop influences. The level of execution was mediocre at best, perhaps that was what made it experimental? Anyway, we talked about how the young women seemed to be in a conflicted stage of understanding their bodies - drawn to performing as sex objects but also not comfortable with this.
After this conversation it felt strange to ask Eve to dance in a 'pop' way to the music as I had been doing before she arrived. As she put it, she started to feel it was too 'pretty'. But I was interested in this uncomfortable place and started to play around with deconstructing the movement. There was definitely something there - stopping in awkward places, changing rhythm and becoming obsessive with a body part.
Eve said Bill T. Jones said all dance begins with an act of seduction. I'd like to question this. I also thought about telling stories conversationally in the moments when we are not dancing (I'm imagining we'll be taking turns dancing in the circle). Or perhaps it is better to ask questions than tell stories?

March 7
We started with a writing exercise and created two stories each. Mine were about fantasizing about my talent being recognized and about learning how to swing my hips. Eve's were about being watched in Damascus and being asked out after a master class.
It felt right telling each other these stories and laughing and then going back to dancing in slightly seductive ways interrupted by other associations. The stories seem to be coming more easily than the movement at this point but at least there is a clear direction. We focused some on using breath and awareness as a way to interrupt the music-driven movement.
I think we need three sound environments: 1. private music tracks for us to dance to using ipods. 2. conversational space to tell stories to small groups of the audience 3. headphones that are somehow mixing both of those together.