Week 1:

We started with a warm - up session for the whole group and because the concept of our piece was about flying and falling we started by learning a phrase which identified falling as its main stimulus. It included a lot of floor work and therefore, a lot of arm and core strength from the dancers. 

The first week of this rehearsal period was to experiment with the ideas of flying and falling. 

While performing one of the floor phrases, I overstretched the ligament in my right ankle, due to which I could not continue with the exercise further and had to go to the hospital in order to get it checked by a doctor. I was strongly advised by the doctor, not to dance for the next four weeks, which meant that I could not dance for the show and I had to sit out for most of the rehearsal period as I did not want to risk doing more damage to it before my final major project.

Strengths: I was motivated to be a part of this rehearsal process as I wanted to work with Emmeline since quite some time.

Weaknesses: I injured my ligament in my foot and therefore, could not dance.

Week 2:

After the first week, I spoke to my choreographer about the injury and we decided that it would be best for me not to dance this piece, however, I was keen on being a part of this rehearsal process and therefore, I asked her if I could take on more of a production role which included costumes for dancers and lighting the piece. I thought it would be an interesting experience as I have not yet done something on the production front. 

Strengths: To be able to continue working on this process on the production front. 

Weaknesses: I have not yet worked on the production side of a show and therefore, I was not aware about how it all works.

Week 3:

This week there was not much for me to do as it was only a week before the show and the dancers were going through intense rehearsals. My choreographer suggested that I should focus on completing my written work for the course and also rest my ankle as I should be completely fit for my final major project. I took her suggestions in account and completed most of my written work during the week and also rested my ankle. 

Strengths: I managed to complete all my written work and also rested my ankle enough so, I could help during show week with backstage work.

Weaknesses: I had to sit out in rehearsals due to my ankle injury.  

 

Week 4: 

This was our performance week. The dancers had one final rehearsal on Monday before the technical rehearsal and show day. The whole day was spent cleaning up sections of the piece. Wednesday and Thursday were show days and we also planned to tech the piece on Wednesday morning. While the technical rehearsals were going on, where the choreographer was giving lighting cues to the technician I decided make a note of the lighting cues in order to understand the process of how show is brought to life with its lighting. 

During the show, I was given the role of a backstage manager. My main job was to bring dancers backstage in the right costumes for the right performance. I called it 'flow duty' as it runs the show because if the dancers are not in the right costume or on stage for their performance it is not fair to the performers as well as the choreographer.

Overall, I enjoyed the whole experience of being a backstage manager and a assistant to the choreographer during the rehearsal process as I got to explore a different side to the industry.