Towards Vivencia in Conversation with – Détails, épisodes et analyse

Leticia Silva was born Born in Havana, Cuba.

She began her studies at the Fernando Alonso National Ballet School in Cuba, graduating as a dancer-teacher, and later completing a degree in Dancing Art Studies at the University of the Arts in 2019.

Leticia has been a professional performer working for international companies such as the National Ballet of Cuba and Acosta Danza over the last thirteen years. She has developed her practice in classical ballet, modern, contemporary, and Afro-Cuban techniques. During her career, she performed works by choreographers such as Alicia Alonso, Carlos Acosta, Christopher Bruce, Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, Pontus Lidberg, Justin Peck, Goyo Montero, Juanjo Arques, August Bournonville, George Balanchine, Jorge Crecis and Miguel Altunaga.

Throughout 2021 she is preparing to be one of the ten international artists certified to teach Towards Vivencia methodology.

As an artist, she is intrigued by the artist's experience during the performance, the ability to be present and fully live in real time. Silva is passionate about the idea of ​​awakening and transforming minds, freeing them through movement and full awareness of their actions.

Support the show

Support the show HERE

Throughout this term, all of our guest teachers have talked about the importance of training performance presence. This is at the core of TWV, so for the last week of term,  Jorge will be teaching class, sharing practical and concrete tools to train performance presence...

Join his classes on the w/c  22th of March 2021 as part of the TWV Academy
https://twvonline.academy/

And as a special treat, for the final episode of Season 2 of the podcast, we are going live with Jorge and 3 special guests:

-Bridget Lappin: TWV’s Assistant Director, co-author of Designing Presence, and veteran of TWV1
-Nathan Johnston: Long time collaborator with Jorge and rehearsal assistant for 36
-Molly Danter: Veteran of TWV2 and dancer in Jorge’s piece Agonal

Join us as we chat about our experience with Designing Presence Training, the core of everything TWV does. Learn about how all these artists utilise the training across different areas of their lives, how its impacted them creatively, and how they can continue to develop their presence through TWV.

Plus, we’ll chat about a few opportunities where you can experience TWV’s signature training method firsthand.
Stay tuned for how you can join in.

Support the show

Support the show HERE

In this 10th episode of the 2nd season, we talk with Jos Baker (UK/BE).  Jos is a choreographer dancer, actor, and teacher.  He started his dance training at the age of 7 with Oxford Youth Dance and then continued his formal education first at The Laban Center London and then at PARTS [Performing Arts Research and Training Studios] in Brussels. 

From 2008 to 2014, Jos worked for Peeping Tom as a dancer, actor and collaborator, principally with the productions 32 Rue Vandenbranden [2009], and A Louer [2011]. Since then he worked briefly for DV8 Physical Theatre on the production of John [2014]. 

Jos’ has choreographed a number of works and also directed and performed in Paris Fashion Week to promote Petit Bateau’s Cedric Charlier collection [2014] . On film, Jos made several music videos and short films, most recently as a dancer and choreographic assistant to Damien Jalet for Anima [2019], a Thom Yorke project directed by Paul Thomas Andersson.

Join his classes on the w/c  15th of March 2021 as part of the TWV Academy
https://twvonline.academy/

From 34’ 35” onwards you can hear more about his class; but before and after that, do not miss: 

• The differences between the dance scene in the Uk and in mainland Europe
• The future of dance and dance artists to have on our radar.
• We put Jos on the spot and ask him to give us a small selection of those artists to keep an eye on. Here you have the first names that came to him:

Mathilde Gillet: https://www.instagram.com/mathildegilhet/

Chey Jurado: https://www.instagram.com/cheyjurado/?hl=en

Akira Yosida: https://www.instagram.com/akirazrc/?hl=en

B_ nonstop: https://www.instagram.com/b_nonstop/?hl=en



A few quotes from our conversation: 

“I think is the ideal is that what happens next in dance is unforeseen and unforeseeable… I hope it is that way”

“It is not about presenting someone or something on stage as being perfect, or being above or better than the audience. The virtuosity of what they are doing actually exposes something about the humanity in all of us, so there is something relatable at the same time”

“Performance presence is not something different than dance technique”

Support the show

Support the show HERE

I was re-listening the conversation while editing and cleaning the audio for this podcast and immediately it brought back the warmth, vulnerability, and shared empathy that I felt while talking to Rob. I am still deeply touched by the profound humanity he displayed throughout this conversation, by the amazing performing artists that by how, someone that I barely knew personally, I now consider a dear friend who I hope to have the chance to share a tea and a chessboard in not so distant future…

In this 9th episode of the 2nd season, we talk with Rob Hayden (USA/BE). Rob was a  competitive gymnast for 13 years and in 1989 enrolled in the BFA curriculum for theatre and dance at the University of New Mexico. He joined Ultima Vez in 2002, performing in the creations Blush, Sonic Boom, PUUR, Spiegel and the revivals of What the Body Does Not Remember and In Spite of Wishing and Wanting. Since 2009, he has collaborated as director, choreographer, performer, and composer with various artists from both Belgium and abroad. His own work combines over 20 years of practical and theoretical research and experience into performance, dance, theatre, sound/music, voice and movement.

From 10' 09" you can hear what his class will be like in detail. Do not miss the other themes we talked about in this very insightful conversation, mainly towards the end of the conversation where we dig deeper into how endings can be considered gifts.

A few quotes from our conversation: 
“Through online interactions and conversations with different people, it reinforced, for me personally, the need to really stay connected to myself and what is important to me, and to be able to clearly communicated that and articulate it in a way that was reaching the other somehow” 

“by simply opening the door to myself and to the other to come it, it creates already a complicit between people involved in the conversation…. it gets very simple, very real, very fast”

“by failing or making a mistake that’s where the trigger for the solution appears”   

“by nature of the fact that I started as a gymnast… and did that for 13 years, I began to understand there is a certain aspect of discipline and rigor that is necessary for any creative endeavor or in life in general”

“Who are we serving in this practice?  is it self-serving? or is it self-gratifying? or there is something more that we can be available for or open to in order to serve. We enter into a relationship with the work where we are  serving the work rather than ourselves or somebody else"

“I experienced a lot of endings last year, and instead of being swallowed by the weight of it, I started to learn how, very slowly and still working on it, those things as gifts as opportunities for transformation, to recognise the natural order of things and try not to resist it”

Join his classes on the w/c  8th of March 2021 as part of the TWV Academy
https://twvonline.academy/

Support the show

Support the show HERE

I am sure many of you can connect and  identify, as I did, with what Vicky describes in this podcast about how she was struggling with her lack of confidence, how that got in the way of many opportunities that were presented to her and how she managed to overcome those obstacles in very concrete ways  with very specific tools.

In this 8th episode of the 2nd season, we talk with Victoria Hoyland (UK) . Vicky has collaborated and worked with numerous companies including Hofesh Shechter Company, Barebones, James Wilton Dance Company, Robert Clark and Riccardo Buscarini. Since 2013 she has been working in Switzerland with  Cie 7273 and as assistant and dancer with Cie Alias. 

From 22' 40" you can hear what her class will be like in detail. But before that, do not miss the other themes we talked about in this very insightful conversation:

• how to serve the work you are performing by not forgetting who you are but by choosing what it needs each time

• how a professional dance career and studying for a degree in Ostepathy, can complement each other.

• Why dancers can continue dancing for longer 

• And what the role of dance and dance artists will be in the future

A few quotes from our conversation:  

"Although I did well in the work and I love the work, and they really appreciated me as a performer… I think my lack of confidence in the studio was probably one of the reasons why I wasn’t able to continue with the company"

"I couldn’t hide behind my dancing , I had to be really exposed in a completely different way that I was used to"

"You allow the piece to work through you and you have some control over or in it. Your own live experience and emotions will arise but it is allowing them to filter through in a way that serves the piece"

"Dance serves the osteopathy as a very useful way to embody your patience… you are so used to your body and sensations that when people describe things or how things happen, it is so easy to put yourself in their position. That really helps with the empathy and the understanding and already that kind of connection can help with the treatment approach."


Join her classes the w/c  1st of March 2021 as part of the TWV Academy
https://twvonline.academy/

Victoria graduated with a BA Hons degree in 2008 from NSCD. Upon graduation she joined the Hofesh Shechter Company as an apprentice touring “ In Your Rooms” and went on to join the company for the creation of “The Art of Not Looking Back” in 2009. She has since collaborated with choreographers and company’s balletLORENT, VanHuyhn Company, Barebones, James Wilton Dance Company, Jorge Crecis, James Finnemore and Robert Clark.  In 2012 she was a creative dancer in The Place Prize winning piece “Athletes” by Riccardo Buscarini. Since 2013 she has worked in Geneva Switzerland with Cie 7273 and as assistant and dancer for Cie Alias. Alongside her dance career Victoria trained as an Osteopath at the British School of Osteopathy graduating in 2017.

Support the show

Support the show HERE

In this 7th episode of the 2nd season we have talked with Ian Garside (UK/ES) . Ian has performed with the likes of Punchdrunk (Shanghai), Liquid Loft/ Chris Haring (Vienna) & the seminal DV8 Physical Theatre (London). Ian's passion for pedagogy is fed by the variety of experiences and approaches that people bring to the encounter. 

From 26' 00" onwards you can hear in detail what his class look like, but before that do not miss the other themes we talked about mainly the very insightful conversation about:

- Resilience, determination to carry on despite hardship
- Dancing as a way to provide a great sense or achievement to the people
- Where and how we can use our skills as dancers for the greater good

A few quotes from our conversation:  

"How do we reflect upon the value of our dancing, when there are people in large parts of the world who the biggest concern is if they are going to have fresh water to drink in five years time?"

"Maybe is not about instantly solving the problem, but considering where we can put our skills to use that will bring some kind of greatest consciousness about the problems that faces us all, rather than just what is the best way to get more power for myself individually and put myself in a better situation"

[Dance] "encourages that kind of creative consciousness around the problems we are facing more than just focusing on  myself"

"The difficulty of working at a very very high level the pressure is that you can easily break… emotionally, psychologically and physically. So the rigorous practice allows us to persevere through all those difficulties and come out they other side saying: 'you know what, I am still ok and I even have a little bit of energy to put into the next thing' "

Join her classes the w/c  22th of February 2021 as part of the TWV Academy
https://twvonline.academy/


Ian Garside (UK/ES) discovered contemporary dance through classical theatre. He completed his vocational training at Laban (UK) & P.A.R.T.S. (BE). 
Since 2010 he has performed with the likes of Punchdrunk (Shanghai), Liquid Loft/ Chris Haring (Vienna) & the seminal DV8 Physical Theatre (London). 
Alongside performing Ian teaches extensively. His passion for pedagogy is fed by the variety of experiences and approaches that people bring to the encounter. 
His passion for performing comes from a desire to engage people in an experienced process of reception and reflection.

Support the show

Support the show HERE

In this 6th episode of the 2nd season we have talked with Joy Alpuerto Ritter. Former performer and associate choreographer with Akram Khan (UK) and many others (see below for full biog)

From 19' 20" onwards you can hear in detail what her class look like, but before that do not miss the other themes we talked about mainly the very insightful conversation about:

What is the difference between a dancer and a good performer

How spiritual practices can help to train performance presence

How Joy describes those rare moments on stage.

A few quotes from our conversation:  

“[When I perform] it is almost like an outer force that is leading me, but I am also open to it” 

“When I dance, when i move, I like to connect to nature. To element of fire, water, wind, animals… Animals, their intuition is so pure…   I  use that quality in my body”

 “We all crave for those moments… after time, when you look back it is a strong memory, and it feels very extreme. Your body is so exhausted and tired that your mind just accepts what is happening to you… so you kind of transcend”

“You get into a state of TRUTH. You cannot pretend… you are just there. Even though it is really tough and you think, I am going to faint on stage, and your life has been poured time… those are the moments you think: this is quite a spiritual moment”

Join her classes the w/c  15th of February 2021 as part of the TWV Academy
https://twvonline.academy/

Joy Alpuerto Ritter was born in Los Angeles and grew up in Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany. In her youth she was trained at the balletschool Armin Krain and learned Philippine Folk Dance in the cultural dance group led by her mother. In 2004 Joy graduated at the Palucca School in Dresden, Germany with a dance diploma. She started working as a freelance dancer with choreographers like Christoph Winkler, Heike Hennig, Wangramirez and Yui Kawaguchi. After expanding her repertory in urban dance styles, she became part of the Hip Hop and Voguing Ballroom culture scene in Berlin. In 2011 she joined Cirque du Soleil as a dancer and aerial artist for the Michael Jackson Immortal World Tour. Since 2013 she has been a dancer and rehearsal director of the Akram Khan Company where she continues her touring life all around the world. In 2016 she has been nominated as "outstanding female dancer" (modern) in the Performance "Until the Lions" by the UK National Dance Awards.
With her own solo work „Babae“, she has found international response as a Choreographer and is one of the Aerowaves artists 2020. Since then Joy has been creating her own work and has been collaborating as a (an associate) choreographer with Akram Khan (UK), Ballett Black (UK), Chen Shi-Zheng (New York), Riz Ahmed (UK), Viviana Durante (UK), Yang Liping (China), Florence and the machine (UK).
As a teacher Joy has been sharing her knowledge and created works at SEAD - Salzburg Experimental Dance Academy, DAF- Dance Arts Faculty in Rome, Motions Berlin, Marameo Berlin and Beijing Dance Academy in China.

Support the show

Support the show HERE

In this 5th episode of the 2nd season we have talked with Michalis Theophanous. Current performer with  Dimitris Papaioannou and Bob Wilson

Together we talked about:

- What is for Michalis performance presence

- Training in vocational schools

- Stillness in performance

- His own work as a performer, director and workshop teacher

Some quotes from our conversation with Michalis:

"Having a premiere is not the end of the process… it is the begining of it. It is about finding a reason to do it again and again and stepping a bit further each performance than what you did last time"

"Nobody told me on school how to cover 25 metres in 12 minute in a fluent movement without pausing at anytime, or how to sweat without even moving, or how to face the audience, how to take off your jacket… how to be present on stage without overtrying, without over exposing yourself and scream:  'look at me' " 

"During the rehearsals of Primal Matter, the duet with Dimitri, there is a moment in the piece, where I am naked and I need to stay there for three minutes. During the rehearsals, I was: this is a good moment for me to rest. But when I was in the theatre and I hundreds of eyes looking at me, that was and endless nightmare (...) I could’t shit my pants because I had no pants"

" After the 5th rehearsal, I was so excited because I was failing (…) so I found a way to make it happen and to be extremely precise"

"I am not here to teach, I don’t like the word teach, I am just here to share, very basic and very boring exercises that you might use or might never use in their career… they will be free to keep [the exercises} or to throw them away… but you never know when will be the moment to use them…  

"At the end of the day we train our body, we sharp our knife, it is not necessarily that we are going to use all of them in our career, but it is  our choice what we want to keep using"

Support the show

Support the show HERE

In this 4th episode of the 2nd season we have talked with Scott Jennings. Former dancer (but still collaborator) of Pina Bausch Dance Company.

Together we talked about:

- The healthiest way to approach auditions

- Adding the humanity to the act of performing

- What does it mean to exist in the space as a dancer

Some quotes from our conversation with Scott:
"in terms of skill or what I learned (from auditions): there is this thing of saying - this is me and this is what I have to offer, can we make that work, do you wanna work with me? "

Reflection about the challenges of working for the Pina Bausch co: "It was pretty intense but fascinating"  /
"It was a new way for me to face that fear of going on stage with a different sense of uncertainty as it always was this strange thing of the first time of doing a piece (on the general rehearsal) it was facing all the elements for the first time and many times in front of people as well"

"I had to find a way of just being able to exist in those pieces (Pina´s) so I suddenly became fascinated with what it means to exist in a space, on how to connect to these very human things or personal stories and how do they sit in this role of performance, how do I exist there"

Support the show

Support the show HERE

In this 3rd episode of the 2nd season we have talked about:

- Which gaps Lucy found in her training as a professional dancer

- How we build the bridge between chapters in our careers and how we go over those bridges

- The hardest mental challenge a dancer has to endure

- And how you can be in control of your happiness


“Your career is not going to come in a neat little package of what you think this is”

“I have definitely had to push for my position in the dance world”

“I was so passionate that I had to share what I have”

Support the show

Support the show HERE