Dancers: Tessa Goodwin, Georgia F Moffa, Abbie Wood
Camera and streaming: Andrew Wright
Musicians: Members of Edimpro, including Yati Durant, Michael Edwards, Jillian Mathews, Daniel McGurty, Karin Schistek, Gig Thief?, Richard Worth, Chris Greive, Jack Weir and composer Andi Vincent
Project concept and direction: Sophia Lycouris
Authors: Ella Chmielewska, Mackenzie Doss, Daniel Green, Edward Hollis, Katherine Lockton, Ingrid Murray, Iolanda Foschetti
Technical coordination and direction: Barrie Barreto
Web design and website management: Martin Johnston
Many thanks to: Wendy Timmons, John Wallace, Helen Boocock, Peter Manning, Dorothy Miell, Vicky Watters, Chris Breward, Peter Nelson, Mark Daniels and Roween Suess of New Media Scotland, Rowena Arshad, Simon Coleman, Colin Campbell, Alison Fleming, Simon Christie, Kerry Mcintosh, Lorna Brain, Geoff Lee, Ian Gunn, Kevin Hay, John Williamson, Nancy McIntosh, Paul Tyers, Adam McIlwaine, Chris Willshaw, Gavin Rizza.
We would also like to thank our audience!
I was born in the beautiful countryside of Chichester, West Sussex, where I began my early steps towards my professional dancing career whilst training with the Teresita Marsden School of Dance. Aged 11 I was accepted as an Associate at The Central School of Ballet London, during this time I also had the opportunity of touring with the West Sussex Youth Dance Company. My passion for ballet and contemporary dance encouraged me to audition for professional Dance Schools, I was accepted and joined the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland in 2010.
I have had the privilege to work with Christopher Marney on his piece ‘First Encounter’ that he created for a Highlands and Islands tour, with the Scottish Ballet Education Department, for which I was chosen as one of the lead roles. I have also worked with Hubert Essakow, choreographing The Rite of Spring, for the 100th Year Anniversary Collaboration – with Glasgow School of Art and BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, in which I was given a lead role, this developed my strength and passion for dance and performance further. Whilst Scottish Ballet performed their Nutcracker season within the Theatre Royal Glasgow I was selected as a cover for the character Princess Pirlipat, this experience deepened my desire to perform for many audiences in my career.
Since graduating with a BA Degree in Modern Ballet at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland my professional path has lead me to work with City Glimpses. This project is a partnership with the University of Edinburgh and the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland in Glasgow. Working with Sophia Lycouris is a wonderful professional adventure and opened up a new world of improvisation, with the body as the only instrument of communication to an audience. I have loved this challenge of allowing the body to express emotions and feelings through movement. This fascinating improvisational world of dance has introduced me to inspiration from poems and novels, identifying the meaning of the words and reading between the lines and then translating these into the movement I perform. It is this ability to transport the message from the page through my body to an audience that is most exciting.
I believe this expression through improvisation will continue to build the foundations of my professional career, and I am looking forward to performing to the audiences of the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.
I was born on the Isle of Bute, and brought up in Rome, Italy. I began my ballet training at the Teatro Dell’ Opera di Roma for three years and other local ballet schools. At 16 I got accepted for the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland on the BA Modern Ballet Course. I have recently graduated and I am now working on the City Glimpses project, for the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.
A project involving complete improvisation, or “real time choreography”, I have learnt so much in the rehearsals with Sophia Lycouris; how the body moves without any inspiration from music except for sounds made by the movements themselves, bringing confidence to the movement of the limbs, the eyes, and the presence of the dancer when faced with an audience.
I’ve danced in partnership with the Scottish Ballet Education Department performing the Balanchine Solo from the Tchaikovsky Pas De Deux, at the Festival Theatre in Edinburgh. Touring the Scottish Highlands and Islands in the autumn 2012 with a 20 minute piece choreographed by Christopher Marney. Engaging with the community, and the other dance community groups that performed with us, is a section of dance I am very interested in, bringing ballet to the more remote areas of the world.
In the spring of 2013 I choreographed for the 100th anniversary of the Rite of Spring; choreographed to Stravinsky’s original music score for two pianos. Performed at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland with live music. A six piece choreography consisting of three group pieces, two Pas De Deuxs, and a solo.
I am a professional Argentine Tango dancer and teacher, I trained and taught in Italy for four years, before moving to Scotland to further my ballet training. I was taught and I am dance partner to Ali Namazi, founder of the Argentine Tango Dance society in Italy. I am hoping to organize an Argentine Tango Stage in Glasgow in October 2013.
I also hope to apply for an Edinburgh Fringe Festival project 2014, to perform an up and coming choreography of my own creation.
My artistic practice and academic research in the last ten years concerns the application of choreographic techniques on the dancing body and beyond it, as well as interactions between choreographic approaches and methods employed in other disciplines such as architecture, the social sciences or philosophy. The term ‘interdisciplinary choreography’ encapsulates such varied explorations.
I am interested in the experience of the urban space and the central role of the viewer and user in artistic practice and research, more specifically in the dynamics of space and how the viewer experiences dynamic changes in physical and virtual contexts. I also explore the potential of new technologies as artistic tools and collaborative practices which result in interdisciplinary work.
A large part of my work, which includes video installations, performance and installations and, more rarely, simply performances, can best be described as ‘choreographic environments’. Frequently incorporating an element of site-specificity, these environments are designed with an emphasis on the perceptual and visceral experience of the viewer. This concern springs from my desire to always develop artistic work and research which is directly relevant to the physical, social and technological environments within which my role as artist researcher continuously evolves.
Originally from Edinburgh, I studied acting and performing arts at Newcastle Performing Arts College and Northumbria University Newcastle. I am currently an MSc Dance, Science and Education student at Edinburgh University.
My final platform performance for my undergraduate degree saw me translate ancient Greek tragedy, The Oretia. Using modern dance as a key device I was able to effectively convey the main themes and issues of this text to a modern audience.
Since graduating I have lived in London, building a career in performance, working in theatre and film whilst perusing a career in dance education, which will ultimately allow me to combine my two passions.
I have been very fortunate to have been given the opportunity to work with Sophia Lycouris, she has provided a safe, accessible and inspiring environment towards improvised dance which has suited my ability as a non-professional dancer. My body moves as it wishes, responding to the space and the energy within it. The expression is not forced or contrived; the text excerpts used are integrated with the movement, resulting in an experience that is both therapeutic and inspiring.
I will also be performing in Oxygen Colours choreographed by Vincent Hantam in the 2013 Festival Fringe. Learning a new dance from scratch has been very challenging. I feel it has helped me greatly to develop as a dancer and performer, providing invaluable insight.
Best wishes and good luck to all of the lovely dancers, teachers and choreographers I have worked with over the past year.
I would also like to thank my family and friends for all your support.
The Edinburgh-based trio Gig Thief? was formed in July 2012 by three school friends who had by then the end of their first year at university.
The Gig Thief? instrument line-up is vocals, electric guitar and keyboards, with a large array of percussion, other instruments and random objects. Improvising for the second night of City Glimpses was Gig Thief?’s first public outing.
Some recordings of their music can be heard here: http://gigthief.bandcamp.com/album/singles
THE UNIVERSITY of EDINBURGH staff page