Alstons works Flashcards
How would you describe Soda lake?
Soda Lake (1981) an abstract solo based on a minimalist sculpture of the same name by Nigel Hall. Hall’s piece is a sculptural interpretation of a dry lake in the Mojave desert and the dance evokes the heat and stillness of the sculptures subject.
What year was Soda Lake made/performed?
1981
Influence of music in wildlife?
Influence of music:
the score by Nigel Osborne consists of an
Explosively exotic, Small ensemble of wind,
percussion and strings with a sound projectionist
adding in stereophonic effects.
Balletic style actions in wildlife?
Balletic style actions:
Triple turn en dehors with the right arm in fifth and
the other placed in front the torso. We can see ballet vocab both through the position of the arms and the turns.
Use of Cunningham in Wildlife?
Use of Cunningham:
Feet placed in fifth with the front foot on demi-pointe.
Upper back is curved while arms are in an
exaggerated second .
In what year was Wildlife performed?
1984
Use of Cunningham in pulcinella?
Use of Cunningham Technique – a male dancer turns into a tilt with the back leg raised and the arms tilted downwards. The movement is slow and sustained.
Balletic style actions found in Pulcinella?
Balletic style actions – here we see a series of leaps, which build up by accumulation. Starting with two dancers performing a leap to stage right and another pair go followed by another in canon. To further add, while leaping their arms rotate which one does a sweep over the head will the other is in a arabesque line. The ballet element here is the elevated jump of a leap.
Use of music within Pulcinella?
Use of music– this aural setting in this part is ‘classic’ ballet music, e.g. instrumental. This works for the piece because it sets the scene for the audience that they are at a ballet. It also helps add to the narrative of the ballet (Commedia dell arte).
Where can the Cunningham influence be seen in soda lake
Can be seen in the spine Led movement where the dancer performs an attitude position with a tilt into the attitude arms or straight out forwards and are reaching upwards due to tilt the focus is down towards the bottom hand tipping forward with spine leading.
Where can the dancer be seen in soda lake to be mirroring the sculpture?
Dancer in our best line under the hoop back foot pointed oil line slash focus upwards with back slightly tilted. Arm is also drawn upwards. This motif is then developed as the arm draws a circle similar to the structure of the sculpture.
