Dance is my world, it has been since I've entered it. There's something special about being a dancer because not one athlete can relate to us. Dancers' have a precise eye for detail and perfection. When you hear that song that makes your body just want to move, that song that you begin to choreograph in your head, that song where you just feel each beat, every melody, every pause. There is a rush of focus and urge to move. The movements just begin to flow and it becomes a process... a choreographic one.
Dance is a language of the soul, without soul there is no heart in dance. When that moment of true choreographic brilliance it sets in your bones, in your joints, in your mind. That song or idea or motif gets stuck there creating this edge of just wanting to explode with movement. There are movement variances, breathing moments, hard hitting movements, that brings a piece together. That eye for detail can be seen through the movements portrayal. A piece has a story, one may not know what it is or what the idea is behind it but that story is there. Through whatever the choreographer has in mind. But each is different, one may have a similar idea but they will never be the same. Each portrayal is different and yet there is still something unique and completely different than other ideas that have come before that one.
The choreographic process isn't easy. Ask anyone that has taken a composition class and they will say that it is tricky and is a tough process because they want that piece to be perfect. My professor told us at the beginning of the semester that "you will hit that wall but what you do when you hit the wall is what will make the class either be easy or harder." She was right, choreographing is more difficult then improvisation because there has to be transitions, and motifs, as well as all other aspects. Improvisation is a spur of the moment movement, there are no transitions its strictly chance and what happens when that chance happens. Watching a piece on a stage, some people think it is easy. But truly... it isn't. There are months of preparations, months of training, it takes up most of your time. It isn't easy because there a hard times, there are the times one is injured, there are obstacles that come up. But it doesn't stop the choreographer/dancer from pursuing the piece that has presented some trouble.
Choreographing is a wonderful tool to dancers, it creates a story, a motif, a challenge. It can either make or break a dancer in their journey of finding themselves in their element. It is a gift as well because it displays an emotion that dancers know too well. It helps relate their experiences to others through movement and different musical scores. Even though choreographing presents challenges, it also presents opportunities and opens many doors.
It is a tool like no other, it is a process that creates something magical, something beautiful, something that no one has seen before.
