Right: Natalie Thomas
supervising class
By Carrie Stern
Courtesy of Dancewave, Photos by
Tom Rawe
Bringing William Forsythe’s
“Improvisation Technologies”
to a New Generation
68 ~
~ December 2009
S
even teens, all novice
improvisers, were recently
introduced to the work of
influential choreographer William
Forsythe in a workshop at Dancewave, a Brooklyn-based dance
organization. According to the
workshop leader, dancer Natalie
Thomas, the children “investigate personal relationships” to:
space, the journey between two
body points (distance, direction,
motion), one another, and “to
imaginary circumstances.” They
begin with simple movements—
knee-to-elbow, développés and
twisting motions. Later, they
begin experimenting with tork and
extension, moving two points of
the body towards and away from
each other. Slowly, the children
explore other options—what
changes if they lay on the floor?
“Try a little finger and a big toe,”
Thomas calls out. One discovers
falling and rolling, others explore
odd locomotion— pulling their
body with one hand and walking
like a crab.
“Pretend one part of your body
is a hook attached to a truck. If the
driver puts on the gas, what happens?” A sudden flurry of bodies leaning and stumbling fills the
stage. Thomas builds the idea,
asking the students to speed up
at their discretion. New suggestions fly out: “Look for extremes
in your movement,” says Thomas.
“Switch to an usual point—inside
thigh and collar bone,” she continues. “Remember the space
behind you!” She demonstrates
one of the Forsythe technique’s
necessities: “loose hips.” Gently
pushing each dancer, they fall,
releasing their backs, hips and
heads; they begin to work deeply
in their bodies, finding back spins
and big sweeping movements fol-
M a s t e r c l a s s
lowed by tiny finger circles.
The final exploration designates a “puppeteer” who conducts
his or her partner’s movement by
performing movements of their
own. Some puppeteers are shy
waving only a single arm. Others
direct with spins and jumps. The
partners interpret the gestures and
respond. At times, the impromptu
duet comes powerfully close to
choreography. In the final iteration, together, the dancers create
“a synchronicity” that Thomas
finds “quite magical.”
discovering one’s own physical
metaphors and ways of moving. Thomas, a former member
of Forsythe’s Ballett Frankfurt
and a choreographer, explains:
“The work promotes openness
and receptivity. Students discover
their ability to be non-judgmental
catalogers, moving away from,
and beyond, constructed performance—dancing in ways never
imagined.” Thomas has adapted
Forsythe’s approach to her own
“Improvisational Movement” for
actors and dancers.
The Lesson: The space
between the two points
Initiate movement between two
specific points of the body. How
far apart can you move them?
How close together can you bring
them? In how many different
directions? How many ways can
you travel the distance between the
two points?
• Try two far away points.
• Insert “truck.” (above)
• Switch to two unusual points.
(Additional suggestions in text.)
• Awareness of relationship with
others:
o Duets—puppeteer and dancer.
o Invisible puppeteer.
Q: Describe William Forsythe’s “innovative
dance technologies.”
A: It’s based on systems rather
than form and technique. That’s
why it’s called technologies, not
technique. It uses geometry,
spatial orientation—concepts in
which, when you dance, you live
through them and invent them in
real time. For example, instead
of saying “passé,” one might say
“investigate the space between
your knee and your ankle.” Or,
“draw a diagonal line with your
knee towards the upstage corner.”
It’s the task rather than the result.
This is Natalie Thomas’ Choreolab III: Improvisational Movement,
part of Brooklyn’s Dancewave’s
teen program. A certified teacher
of “William Forsythe Improvisation
Technologies,” Thomas’ hopes,
above all, to help the budding
dancers “surprise themselves.”
Forsythe, a classically trained
dancer often described as “reorienting the practice of ballet,”
developed a choreographic physical language and process Thomas
describes as “modalities of physical translation.” It encourages
M a s t e r c l a s s
Q: What are “modalities of physical
translation?”
A: A modality is a way of moving.
Modality of physical translation
is a system for taking the information that’s given by one body
and translating it into your own
(physical) language, and how you
bridge the gap (in-between).
Q: How do you impart Forsythe’s style?
A: The systems of Forsythe’s “Technologies” creates new systems, which
is the point. So I’ve invented my
own way of teaching, my version of
what I learned with Bill [Forsythe]
and my experience since I left.
Every group has limitations that
can be great to work around, or
work through. I start with what’s
available in the room—the individuals, their experience, their energy.
A lot of my techniques— tools and
structures—developed when I translated Forsythe for the actors in the
Wooster Group’s “Hamlet.”* Bill’s
work uses a lot of acting and text,
voice work. I incorporate that to
free-up participants as people and
artists, to connect breath to body,
to make them more receptive. I created exercises dealing with range of
motion, things that for dancers are
no problem.
With these kids, I’m developing
warm-ups to get them playful, fearless. It’s important to get them in a
zone where they are willing to investigate. I tell them not to think you
have to look like something. But
it’s been ingrained in us—in me as a
ballet dancer. You look at yourself
in a mirror eight hours a day.
Q: How do you translate the complexity and
layering of Forsythe’s work into something
children can grasp and perform?
A: Due to time, I rarely get to
as many layers as Bill commonly
works with. I have this group until
June, but I won’t rush them. When
too many ideas are given, and
you’re not ready to receive them, it
gets diluted. I’d rather see one or
two specific ideas developed. The
layers come from the history you
have in your body, a history with
movement, and with a group.
Q: What are some of the challenges of doing
this?
A: This was only the fifth class.
At a simple level, they’re going to
need to learn to move in a different way, to build new coordinations. To isolate a pinky toe and a
collarbone—to be that specific, it
December 2009 ~
~ 69
Right: Natalie Thomas
supervising class
By Carrie Stern
Courtesy of Dancewave, Photos by
Tom Rawe
Bringing William Forsythe’s
“Improvisation Technologies”
to a New Generation
68 ~
~ December 2009
S
even teens, all novice
improvisers, were recently
introduced to the work of
influential choreographer William
Forsythe in a workshop at Dancewave, a Brooklyn-based dance
organization. According to the
workshop leader, dancer Natalie
Thomas, the children “investigate personal relationships” to:
space, the journey between two
body points (distance, direction,
motion), one another, and “to
imaginary circumstances.” They
begin with simple movements—
knee-to-elbow, développés and
twisting motions. Later, they
begin experimenting with tork and
extension, moving two points of
the body towards and away from
each other. Slowly, the children
explore other options—what
changes if they lay on the floor?
“Try a little finger and a big toe,”
Thomas calls out. One discovers
falling and rolling, others explore
odd locomotion— pulling their
body with one hand and walking
like a crab.
“Pretend one part of your body
is a hook attached to a truck. If the
driver puts on the gas, what happens?” A sudden flurry of bodies leaning and stumbling fills the
stage. Thomas builds the idea,
asking the students to speed up
at their discretion. New suggestions fly out: “Look for extremes
in your movement,” says Thomas.
“Switch to an usual point—inside
thigh and collar bone,” she continues. “Remember the space
behind you!” She demonstrates
one of the Forsythe technique’s
necessities: “loose hips.” Gently
pushing each dancer, they fall,
releasing their backs, hips and
heads; they begin to work deeply
in their bodies, finding back spins
and big sweeping movements fol-
M a s t e r c l a s s
lowed by tiny finger circles.
The final exploration designates a “puppeteer” who conducts
his or her partner’s movement by
performing movements of their
own. Some puppeteers are shy
waving only a single arm. Others
direct with spins and jumps. The
partners interpret the gestures and
respond. At times, the impromptu
duet comes powerfully close to
choreography. In the final iteration, together, the dancers create
“a synchronicity” that Thomas
finds “quite magical.”
discovering one’s own physical
metaphors and ways of moving. Thomas, a former member
of Forsythe’s Ballett Frankfurt
and a choreographer, explains:
“The work promotes openness
and receptivity. Students discover
their ability to be non-judgmental
catalogers, moving away from,
and beyond, constructed performance—dancing in ways never
imagined.” Thomas has adapted
Forsythe’s approach to her own
“Improvisational Movement” for
actors and dancers.
The Lesson: The space
between the two points
Initiate movement between two
specific points of the body. How
far apart can you move them?
How close together can you bring
them? In how many different
directions? How many ways can
you travel the distance between the
two points?
• Try two far away points.
• Insert “truck.” (above)
• Switch to two unusual points.
(Additional suggestions in text.)
• Awareness of relationship with
others:
o Duets—puppeteer and dancer.
o Invisible puppeteer.
Q: Describe William Forsythe’s “innovative
dance technologies.”
A: It’s based on systems rather
than form and technique. That’s
why it’s called technologies, not
technique. It uses geometry,
spatial orientation—concepts in
which, when you dance, you live
through them and invent them in
real time. For example, instead
of saying “passé,” one might say
“investigate the space between
your knee and your ankle.” Or,
“draw a diagonal line with your
knee towards the upstage corner.”
It’s the task rather than the result.
This is Natalie Thomas’ Choreolab III: Improvisational Movement,
part of Brooklyn’s Dancewave’s
teen program. A certified teacher
of “William Forsythe Improvisation
Technologies,” Thomas’ hopes,
above all, to help the budding
dancers “surprise themselves.”
Forsythe, a classically trained
dancer often described as “reorienting the practice of ballet,”
developed a choreographic physical language and process Thomas
describes as “modalities of physical translation.” It encourages
M a s t e r c l a s s
Q: What are “modalities of physical
translation?”
A: A modality is a way of moving.
Modality of physical translation
is a system for taking the information that’s given by one body
and translating it into your own
(physical) language, and how you
bridge the gap (in-between).
Q: How do you impart Forsythe’s style?
A: The systems of Forsythe’s “Technologies” creates new systems, which
is the point. So I’ve invented my
own way of teaching, my version of
what I learned with Bill [Forsythe]
and my experience since I left.
Every group has limitations that
can be great to work around, or
work through. I start with what’s
available in the room—the individuals, their experience, their energy.
A lot of my techniques— tools and
structures—developed when I translated Forsythe for the actors in the
Wooster Group’s “Hamlet.”* Bill’s
work uses a lot of acting and text,
voice work. I incorporate that to
free-up participants as people and
artists, to connect breath to body,
to make them more receptive. I created exercises dealing with range of
motion, things that for dancers are
no problem.
With these kids, I’m developing
warm-ups to get them playful, fearless. It’s important to get them in a
zone where they are willing to investigate. I tell them not to think you
have to look like something. But
it’s been ingrained in us—in me as a
ballet dancer. You look at yourself
in a mirror eight hours a day.
Q: How do you translate the complexity and
layering of Forsythe’s work into something
children can grasp and perform?
A: Due to time, I rarely get to
as many layers as Bill commonly
works with. I have this group until
June, but I won’t rush them. When
too many ideas are given, and
you’re not ready to receive them, it
gets diluted. I’d rather see one or
two specific ideas developed. The
layers come from the history you
have in your body, a history with
movement, and with a group.
Q: What are some of the challenges of doing
this?
A: This was only the fifth class.
At a simple level, they’re going to
need to learn to move in a different way, to build new coordinations. To isolate a pinky toe and a
collarbone—to be that specific, it
December 2009 ~
~ 69
will take a while…but I think they can get there with
their ideas. I want to challenge them with new composition ideas, so over time they can grasp ideas that
they can’t [yet] physically implement.
Q: How do the kids react to the work?
A: I think the first class frightened and shocked them.
It was different than what they’d had before. They
want to know things, not be left in a not-knowing
state of mind. But by the second class they were
excited, ready to be challenged; they could start to see
the importance of the work. Having me demonstrate,
seeing Bill’s work, showed them where it could go.
You don’t know when they’ve taken the jump to new
understandings until you throw it out there.
Q: Forsythe’s company performed at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in
October. What did the students say when they saw the company perform?
A: A few understood and were fascinated with it the
way I am. A lot were confused. For some, maybe, it
was too big a step. I had to explain to them that it was a
theatrical event—that the performers and Bill wanted
to explore many things, and that it’s very specific and
not an exercise.
If I hadn’t seen much avant-garde work I’d be
[confused, too]. I came from Pacific Northwest Ballet. After I got into Nederlands Dans Theater 2, I
got a video of Bill’s work. I was 18 and seeing it shook
my foundation. I didn’t like it. I was terrified by how
different it was. Once I got into Ballett Frankfurt I
found it’s value, it has it’s own classicism.
Q: How do you approach teaching?
A: This class is an introduction to intellectual movement. It’s about exploration. I think that’s interesting
at this point in their lives when they’re reading great
literature in school and being encouraged to find
their own voice and opinions.
I’m interested in their experience, not the result.
It’s the first time they’ve done improvisation [like
this]. It takes patience, energy, and negotiation on
my part. There’s always a balance between teaching them the physical tools they need for dexterity
in their body, and the freedom to take risks and not
worry. Hopefully you come up with exercises that do
both at the same time.
What I love is their learning curve; it’s unbelievable. If you’re true to your value system they pick it
up whether it’s improvisation or ballet. I thought it
might be more difficult to show them [than adults]
70 ~
~ December 2009
the inherent value of the work. Because I believe it so
much, and they’re willing, it’s not an issue. And when
you tap into their not-so-conscious part, they’re
willing to take risks. Teens want to take risks when
given the chance.
Q: What is your goal for the class?
A: Over the year, we’ll establish ways of moving, then
move into partnering, choreography, and dissecting
choreography. It’s a great way to create our ownshared history. After a year I may make a piece for
them, but I consider that separate.
The aim of improv in general is to find tasks in
which you can surprise yourself—new awareness, new
orientations, new body systems. The task of puppet and
master—someone else moving your body—was a simple
way to introduce movement “new” to your body. In the
end they could all listen to, and read from, [their partner]. I was so happy they could take that step.
* THE WOOSTER GROUP is an ensemble of performance and
media artists specializing in new forms and techniques of theatrical
expression under the direction of Elizabeth LeCompte. Hamlet premiered at New York’s Public Theater in 2007.
Find Natalie Thomas at ntprofile.com
For more information on Dancewave’s programs visit
www.dancewave.org
M a s t e r c l a s s