Richard Alston | Named Practitioner

Question 1

Name and Date Soda Lake

Answer 1

Richard Alston, 1981

Question 2

how many dancers are there in Soda Lake

Answer 2

1 male - can be female but has to be selected by alston
Has to be trained in Cunningham Technqiue - abstract

Question 3

Describe the aural setting in Soda Lake

Answer 3

Silence - Nigel Osborne created music but then Alston and Osborne colaborativly decided that the music would retract from the movment
Audible sound of dance - loud stamp of left foot, people would be able to here the animals in the vast desert and scurry sounds

Question 4

Describe the set in Soda Lake

Answer 4

Suspended virtical of the floor black think pole
Diagonal thin role attached to elipse
Contribution
Ocassional Markets
Contrasts the white back drop
dancers able to show the shape of set through the movement and audience see the connection

Question 5

Describe the costume in Soda Lake

Answer 5

Form fitted trousers with a slight flair
black vest top
barefoot
Women = long sleve top style
Contribution
Ease of movement
can see clear lines
contrast the backdrop

Question 6

Describe the lighting in Soda Lake

Answer 6

Bright White Wash - so can see dancers
White Backdrop

Question 7

What is the Performace envirment in Soda Lake

Answer 7

White Box

Question 8

What is the starting points for Soda Lake

Answer 8

1. Sculpture, Soda Lake, Nigel Hall of the statue in 1968
2. Soda Lake meaning dry lake in mojave desert in Nevada

Question 9

Name and Date Wildlife

Answer 9

Richard Alston, 1984

Question 10

What was the starting point for Wildlife

Answer 10

• The colaboration with music, design in Dance
  Nigel Osbourne - Music
  Richard Alston - Dance
  Richard Smith - Art
• very contempory modern art, music and movement - whcih was important for the devlopment and change for audience and dancers

Question 11

What is the set in Wildlife

Answer 11

Has big suspended kites in the air that are angular and geometric
the kites are moved around but doesnt always go in the same place so dancers had to adapt to the new location of kites
The Kites go up, down and rotate

Question 12

What inspires the movement in Wildlife

Answer 12

Angular ideas

Question 13

What colour are the kites in Wildlife

Answer 13

Red and White

Question 14

What are the costume
in Wildlife

Answer 14

a tight lycra long sleave unitard with patterns of blue, yellow white and geometric shapes

Question 15

Describe the music in Wildlife?

Answer 15

layers of music
loud
birds chirping
Car horns
sterophonic sounds

Question 16

Describe some of the movement components in Wildlife

Answer 16

In Phrase 1 - uses 5th position, arabesque

Question 17

Name and Date Roughcut

Answer 17

Richard Alston, 1990

Question 18

Name the stimulus for Roughcut

Answer 18

The music by Steve Reich
- New York Counterpoint 1985
- Electric Counterpoint 1987

Question 19

How many dancers does Roughcut have

Answer 19

10 dancers - 5 male, 5 female
trained in Cunningham technique, Graham + Ballet
strong and muscular physical strength

Question 20

What is the Performance Environment for Roughcut

Answer 20

Proscenium Arch

Question 21

Analyse the Aural Setting in Roughcut

Answer 21

clear beats, repeated melody, Steve Reich:
New York Counterpoint 1985
Electric Counterpoint 1887
complex overlapping rhythems

allows for music vicualisation, allows the movement to be complemented by music using the high notes, helps to identify the stimulus of the peice

Question 22

Analyse the movement in Roughcut

Answer 22

from stage right quick jump on the left foot and cut left elbow to the side with right arm horizontal to the side. 3 little steps across each other and raise up both arms horizontally body, twisiting in another direction

*shows the uses Cunnigham technique of clean lines which Alston is influenced by in training, Shows alstons styliscic feature of creating an abstarct theme *

Question 23

Analyse the Set in Roughcut

Answer 23

plain stage
set of metal pipes from the cealing

helps to convay simple minimalistic and focus on the movement itself

Question 23

Analyse the Costume in Roughcut

Answer 23

Men - black trousers, braces + bare chest
Female - white blouse with sleaves rolled up white lose trousers

ease of movement, abstract and minamalistic

Question 24

Analyse the Lighting in Roughcut

Answer 24

start in darkeness, the duet + brighten up bright white wash - S1 S2 - darker blue wash *dynamics + aural setting changes Sudden, identifys new section*

Question 25

Describe the costume interpretation in Soda Lake

Answer 25

the use of the form fitting clothing helps to see the clean lines of the dancer for example clear contractions. ease of movement the contrast created as the set is white with slight black accents ( the sculpture and vertical thin pole) the costume is in all black helping to highlight the main points of focus showing the starting point.

Question 26

Describe the set interpretation in Soda Lake

Answer 26

helps to communicate occassoinal markers the black sculptures helps to contrast the white back drop the dancer is able to show the shape through the movement because the audience can visually see the shape physically portrayed.

Question 27

Describe the aural setting interpretation in Soda Lake

Answer 27

the collaboration decided would take away from the focus upon the music so there was a clear decision upon why Nigel Osborne and Alston decided music would not suit this peice audial - vast desert, surry sounds = animal

Question 28

Describe the lighting interpretation in Soda Lake

Answer 28

dancers can easily been seen so movement is clear. light, light within a desert within hot country?

Question 29

Describe some Key Motifs in Soda Lake

Answer 29

**Sentinal** - to the front on the front of knees hands flat infront with slow and control raise right arm to slowly rise up to reach forward upon a low level **Pitch over attitude @ end** - In a turn out in a tilit arms in 2nd and slowly tilt towards right side with left leg slowly reaching attitude behind. **Big Bird** - In a turn out facing forward weight on right foot, left leg slowly go back into arabesque with arm infront curved and hand infront **Stillness** - lying straight with knees tucked behind in straight line. **Trace Elipse ** in a parallel with weight on right foot infront with left on point right arm straight infront then circle around in shape of elipse having weight on front right foot.

Question 30

Describe the Costume interpretation in Wildlife

Answer 30

the shapes are very angular which complements the movement.

Question 31

Describe a key motif

Answer 31

starting on stage right left using left leg swipe to right on low level then twist to the right diagonal shaply left leg in Forward attitude with arms in attitude then 2 quick step to a hop on left leg then right Sharly flicks up to hit bumb wh right arm Up left horizontauy behind then Step into right leg Straight Infront medium level with back curved over right arm honzontaly infront directly like foot. then Jump feet to 5th position in Feet to the corner then Jump to an arabesque to Face the SL corner to shift weight to face the front with right arm straight up then left amm out to side to plié on left Foot with right foot in flexed around knee of supporting foot, on right foot on a piche wch right arm cuved down waras, other arm behund stright to step unfrot on left leg then run to right split leap.

Question 32

Describe the aural setting interpretation in Wildlife

Answer 32

develops genre of moden by having some varity within theme of abrstact music inspired by kites made specifically for the peice