Well, it really was a fantastic run! We so enjoyed dancing this new work by Susie Burpee. Thanks to everyone who came to see us, and for all your feedback and response!
The shows on Saturday and Sunday went very well. Sunday was a particularly nice house of people (I think that there was a lot going on last weekend and lots of people had to wait until Sunday). Sunday was also a very emotional performance for us....the last one. We all felt that the shows were over too quickly. With such a physically and emtionally demanding/satisfying work....we were craving more performances. I could have had a few days off and then another run of 4 shows!! (my meniscus says otherwise)
I spent my down-time after Sunday in a bit of a post-show daze - a bit sad that it was over. Iced some parts. Went to physio for my knee. Saragan spent her time eating.....her body still thinks she's going to put it through the paces, so it's storing up! Lishe and Sarah spent some quality time with their babies.
We know that this work will have a life in the future and we look forward to dancing it again soon! We feel so fortunate to have had this experience with Susie.
So, what's up next for us?? Our Home Season Mainstage is only about 4 weeks away!! We're back in the studio preparing for "Given the Circumstances" - at the Sir James Dunn Theatre May 22-24th. Don't worry - you'll be seeing posters and flyers very soon for this one! We'll be doing another full week of bloggin' for this production. So stay tuned for more Moblog.
CC.
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Saturday, April 19, 2008
Show #2
Hey there. Show #2 last night. The second show in a run always has it's particular challenges....especially when opening night goes well! The challenge after a successful opening show is to accept that the next show may feel different...to continue to be in the moment...and to not be phased by the differences. I think we were well prepped for this (words of wisdom from Susie and our rehearsal director Catherine certainly helped).
So being mentally focused and emotionally prepped for night 2 was key. We do this in various ways - during warm-up, by running short sections of the piece together with music, alone time where ever you can find it....we all do what we need to do. Funny story....So we're mentally prepping for our emotionally intense piece, when Dustin Harvey (one of our amazing crew members at Neptune Studio) comes to get us for our "places" call....we walk through the huge cast of "Producers" in mid-performance of their opening night....a sea of purple lycra and glittered show-girl costumes...the last thing we see before taking our places backstage is Jeremy Webb in full drag as a purple show-girl! Hilarious! But not exactly a helpful last image before starting this piece. Luckily, a few precious moments in the darkness of the wing is all we need to get back to that focused place.
We feel fortunate to have two great reviews this morning. (Ok...I'll admit that I tore out of bed to check the internet for these this morning). One in the Halifax Herald http://www.thechronicleherald.ca/ArtsLife/1050793.html and one in the Globe and Mail! http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20080419.HALIFAX19/TPStory/?query=Mocean%20Dance
I'm looking forward to tonight. Only two shows left!
CC.
So being mentally focused and emotionally prepped for night 2 was key. We do this in various ways - during warm-up, by running short sections of the piece together with music, alone time where ever you can find it....we all do what we need to do. Funny story....So we're mentally prepping for our emotionally intense piece, when Dustin Harvey (one of our amazing crew members at Neptune Studio) comes to get us for our "places" call....we walk through the huge cast of "Producers" in mid-performance of their opening night....a sea of purple lycra and glittered show-girl costumes...the last thing we see before taking our places backstage is Jeremy Webb in full drag as a purple show-girl! Hilarious! But not exactly a helpful last image before starting this piece. Luckily, a few precious moments in the darkness of the wing is all we need to get back to that focused place.
We feel fortunate to have two great reviews this morning. (Ok...I'll admit that I tore out of bed to check the internet for these this morning). One in the Halifax Herald http://www.thechronicleherald.ca/ArtsLife/1050793.html and one in the Globe and Mail! http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20080419.HALIFAX19/TPStory/?query=Mocean%20Dance
I'm looking forward to tonight. Only two shows left!
CC.
Thursday, April 17, 2008
Opening Night
Just got back from the shoe shop....it's midnight, so I'll do a quick post about opening night before bed.
We started our day with warmup and notes at 11:30, and a dress rehearsal (with some invited students) at 1:00. Sarg (Marcel) also came to watch which was really nice. As you may know from previous posts, Sarg is our usual tech director....who is about to get married in a few days - so isn't working with us this time. What a devoted member of the team though....thanks for dropping by Sarg and we'll be thinking about you this week! Anyhow, it was a pretty good run of the piece this afternoon.....Coach (Mel) and Catherine had a couple of really key notes at the end though that we thought about, discussed, tried out afterwards and then put to work tonight......making all the difference. I'm not sure what we would do without our outside eyes!
We left the theatre around 3:30 for a dinner break (time to eat and ice my knee - it's ok...just needs ice and advil). We came back to the theatre for 6ish to work on some notes on stage, do make-up, hair and warmup. Backstage before the show was a busy place!!! Producers was in full swing tonight in the mainstage (PS: singers are much louder than dancers warming up), but it's a great place to be back there with so much creative talent in one building! Also, Lishe's sister Katrina surprised her by flying in from Toronto (for one night) to see the show!
8pm showtime...We opened with a pretty full house tonight, but more importantly a very warm house. The work was very well received and there were a few tears in the house tonight. We felt good about the performance - both emotionally and physically....this work is such an authentic and full experience for the dancers and we feel so fortunate to be doing it!
After a lovely reception, some of us grabbed some food and drinks at the shoe shop.....I'm telling you...this piece makes us eat like crazy!! We all said our goodbyes to our amazing lighting designer Ron....he leaves on an early flight in the morning. Thanks for everything Ron!
Ok. I'm off to sleep. We'll see what the reviewers say over the next couple of days! only 3 more shows left....I can tell that it's going to go too fast!!
CC
We started our day with warmup and notes at 11:30, and a dress rehearsal (with some invited students) at 1:00. Sarg (Marcel) also came to watch which was really nice. As you may know from previous posts, Sarg is our usual tech director....who is about to get married in a few days - so isn't working with us this time. What a devoted member of the team though....thanks for dropping by Sarg and we'll be thinking about you this week! Anyhow, it was a pretty good run of the piece this afternoon.....Coach (Mel) and Catherine had a couple of really key notes at the end though that we thought about, discussed, tried out afterwards and then put to work tonight......making all the difference. I'm not sure what we would do without our outside eyes!
We left the theatre around 3:30 for a dinner break (time to eat and ice my knee - it's ok...just needs ice and advil). We came back to the theatre for 6ish to work on some notes on stage, do make-up, hair and warmup. Backstage before the show was a busy place!!! Producers was in full swing tonight in the mainstage (PS: singers are much louder than dancers warming up), but it's a great place to be back there with so much creative talent in one building! Also, Lishe's sister Katrina surprised her by flying in from Toronto (for one night) to see the show!
8pm showtime...We opened with a pretty full house tonight, but more importantly a very warm house. The work was very well received and there were a few tears in the house tonight. We felt good about the performance - both emotionally and physically....this work is such an authentic and full experience for the dancers and we feel so fortunate to be doing it!
After a lovely reception, some of us grabbed some food and drinks at the shoe shop.....I'm telling you...this piece makes us eat like crazy!! We all said our goodbyes to our amazing lighting designer Ron....he leaves on an early flight in the morning. Thanks for everything Ron!
Ok. I'm off to sleep. We'll see what the reviewers say over the next couple of days! only 3 more shows left....I can tell that it's going to go too fast!!
CC
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Pre-Show Day
Today we spent another day at the small and sweet Neptune Studio Theatre with all of our wonderful crew. Well actually, we first began our day with ballet barre at Halifax Dance and then proceeded have some alone time to fix several corrections and go over parts of the creation that needed fine tuning. It was then our favorite time of day... LUNCH TIME! You know some days you just live for this hour... well today we all ate the hugest lunch ever. During these intense weeks of creation and performance, especially during a vigorous piece like this one, we need to take in all the food we can get. The rice crispie cakes we often eat as dessert usually do the trick.
Tech day # 2.
Today we spent the afternoon and early evening doing our cue-to-cue with our lighting designer Ron (who was cracking a couple jokes today by the way). For those who don't know, a cue-to-cue session is when we go through the dance bit by bit and add in all the lighting cues and sound cues to match our movement...over and over, for hours and hours. It went amazingly smooth and all were satisfied. Catherine and Mel are our eyes and ears in the house (seats) making sure the piece is looking as fabulous as it can. These are times when you sometimes wish you could just watch the dance from the outside to see what the final product looks like. After a wonderful creative process we are now ready for an audience! Yeah!
All in all a beautiful and sunny great day. No major dramas. We left the theater at about 6:00ish and headed home to recuperate. No major dramas to report except that..... Carolle has a swollen and extremely painful knee and ripped her costume (which we got a new one tonight), I have a serious flesh wound on my knee that Saragan thinks I should sew together with a needle and thread from my drawer, Sarah Rozee has a purple knuckle that comes and goes every few hours or so, and aside for me nearly taking Saragan's head off while exiting the stage in a mad dash during a run, she just needs a good soak in the tub!
We can hardly wait for you to see the show this weekend. "Rescue Left Her to Her Plight" has certainly made an impact on our lives in this short time and we hope after you watch the performance, it will do the same for you.
As I pop my Advil, I am off to bed!
xo
Alicia
Oh yah..... SUSIE WE MISS YOU SO MUCH AND WISH YOU WERE HERE!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Tech day # 2.
Today we spent the afternoon and early evening doing our cue-to-cue with our lighting designer Ron (who was cracking a couple jokes today by the way). For those who don't know, a cue-to-cue session is when we go through the dance bit by bit and add in all the lighting cues and sound cues to match our movement...over and over, for hours and hours. It went amazingly smooth and all were satisfied. Catherine and Mel are our eyes and ears in the house (seats) making sure the piece is looking as fabulous as it can. These are times when you sometimes wish you could just watch the dance from the outside to see what the final product looks like. After a wonderful creative process we are now ready for an audience! Yeah!
All in all a beautiful and sunny great day. No major dramas. We left the theater at about 6:00ish and headed home to recuperate. No major dramas to report except that..... Carolle has a swollen and extremely painful knee and ripped her costume (which we got a new one tonight), I have a serious flesh wound on my knee that Saragan thinks I should sew together with a needle and thread from my drawer, Sarah Rozee has a purple knuckle that comes and goes every few hours or so, and aside for me nearly taking Saragan's head off while exiting the stage in a mad dash during a run, she just needs a good soak in the tub!
We can hardly wait for you to see the show this weekend. "Rescue Left Her to Her Plight" has certainly made an impact on our lives in this short time and we hope after you watch the performance, it will do the same for you.
As I pop my Advil, I am off to bed!
xo
Alicia
Oh yah..... SUSIE WE MISS YOU SO MUCH AND WISH YOU WERE HERE!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Techin' Pics!
Well folks, this is where it's all going down tomorrow night....the Neptune Studio theatre on Argyle Street! I wish I had some good pics from inside the theatre today....but, well....we were on stage techin' the whole time. Ron was crackin the whip....there wasn't a lot of time for photos. Here are a few pics from before we started the hard work.....to set the scene!
Mocean Dance (minus CC - I'm taking the picture) catching some vitamin D before the long tech day in the dark!
What a nice spring day in Halifax!Our lighting team....Tom Barkley and Ron Snippe catching their vitamin "C" before the long tech day.
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Resting Up
Yesterday was bittersweet as we spent our last few hours with Susie before she headed back to Winnipeg. We're so sad that she won't be here to see the premiere, but we're thrilled to have at least had a few rehearsal days over the weekend and a morning in the theatre with her.
Our morning began at 9am when we met at Neptune's Studio Theatre to go over notes from Sunday's rehearsal, while Louisa and the crew finished laying the dance floor. It was pretty hairy backstage when we arrived because "The Producers" has been using the Studio Theatre as storage for their props and set and they were busily moving stuff into the Mainstage Theatre at the same time as they were making final painting touches and repairs! That show opens this week as well, so the whole Neptune complex is alive with opening show excitement.
At 10am we were able to start a full walk-through of the piece on stage. Basically this means that we go through the piece slowly, not really dancing things full-out, to see where we need to be in relation to the wings, the markings on the stage, the edge of the stage etc. and we need to make lots of mental notes as things are often slightly different than how we've been rehearsing it in the studio. After that, we did a full run of the piece with music and house lighting, as Susie, Mel (she took on Catherine's role!), Ron and Louisa took notes. Everything went pretty well considering it was our first time doing it on the stage. We're still trying to work on the sound at this point because for some reason it wasn't filling the space and encompassing the audience as we had hoped. I'm sure that Louisa and the Bucklemaster will figure it out! We also got to try out a hand-held light that we're using in the piece and without revealing too much, I think it's going to be really effective! You'll have to come and see....
After lunch, we met again at Halifax Dance and went over some final notes before Susie headed to the airport. She has been such an amazing person to work with and as I said earlier, it will be sad not to have her in the audience on Thursday night. She has led us through an incredible creation process and we're really excited to share the results with the public this weekend. Carolle, Alicia, Sarah and I are also really excited to be sharing the stage again after over a year, especially in a work that is so emotional and personal for us.
We're taking the day to rest as Susanne and her cast work in the theatre today and then we'll be in there again tomorrow for teching with the lights that Ron has designed. Another exciting step in the production process!
I'm off to ice a few body parts and then enjoy some of the sunshine before banishing myself to the dark for the next few days!
Sara
Our morning began at 9am when we met at Neptune's Studio Theatre to go over notes from Sunday's rehearsal, while Louisa and the crew finished laying the dance floor. It was pretty hairy backstage when we arrived because "The Producers" has been using the Studio Theatre as storage for their props and set and they were busily moving stuff into the Mainstage Theatre at the same time as they were making final painting touches and repairs! That show opens this week as well, so the whole Neptune complex is alive with opening show excitement.
At 10am we were able to start a full walk-through of the piece on stage. Basically this means that we go through the piece slowly, not really dancing things full-out, to see where we need to be in relation to the wings, the markings on the stage, the edge of the stage etc. and we need to make lots of mental notes as things are often slightly different than how we've been rehearsing it in the studio. After that, we did a full run of the piece with music and house lighting, as Susie, Mel (she took on Catherine's role!), Ron and Louisa took notes. Everything went pretty well considering it was our first time doing it on the stage. We're still trying to work on the sound at this point because for some reason it wasn't filling the space and encompassing the audience as we had hoped. I'm sure that Louisa and the Bucklemaster will figure it out! We also got to try out a hand-held light that we're using in the piece and without revealing too much, I think it's going to be really effective! You'll have to come and see....
After lunch, we met again at Halifax Dance and went over some final notes before Susie headed to the airport. She has been such an amazing person to work with and as I said earlier, it will be sad not to have her in the audience on Thursday night. She has led us through an incredible creation process and we're really excited to share the results with the public this weekend. Carolle, Alicia, Sarah and I are also really excited to be sharing the stage again after over a year, especially in a work that is so emotional and personal for us.
We're taking the day to rest as Susanne and her cast work in the theatre today and then we'll be in there again tomorrow for teching with the lights that Ron has designed. Another exciting step in the production process!
I'm off to ice a few body parts and then enjoy some of the sunshine before banishing myself to the dark for the next few days!
Sara
Monday, April 14, 2008
Production Week Begins...
Well, we're happy to be back on the Mocean blog this week bringing you all the action from our production week as we prepare to premiere our new work by Susie Burpee this Thursday (through Sunday) at Neptune Studio Theatre in Kinetic Studio's Mainstage Production. This weekend was a working weekend for Mocean. Susie came back to Halifax to fix some last minute things with the piece.....and we were so happy to have her back!! We worked at Halifax Ballet Theatre Saturday and Sunday (thanks Claire) with an amazing team present in the studio....in no particular order: Louisa (Stage Manager), Ron Snippe (Guru lighting designer for Dance from Toronto....you name em, he's lit em....), Tom Barkley (a new budding lighting designer who's been with us in the studio a lot....we like him and hope that some day he'll be the Mocean Dance resident lighting designer, what do you think Tom? you in?), Brian Buckle (aka the BuckleMaster on Sound editing), Sheilagh Hunt (Kinetic Studio - the one who made this whole project happen!) Rachel Grant (Costume designer extraordinaire), a mom or two for positive feedback, and the most dedicated rehearsal director on the planet, Catherine Walker (happy birthday CW!).
It's been a whirlwind weekend of changes, notes, and new transitions. We're feeling good about the piece and so happy that we had this bit of extra time. We did get to relax tonight with Susie, a little Tomasino's, salad and wine at Alicia's house....good times.
Monday will be our first day in theatre. We're all looking forward to getting in the real space. This piece uses the space to the max and in specific ways....so we're itching to get our bods on that stage and get settled. We'll keep you updated this week through the production process and the run of the show!
Carolle
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
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