I’m stuck between hip hop education and hip-hop pedagogy!
Title
I’m stuck between hip hop education and hip-hop pedagogy!
Department
Dance
Keywords
Hip-Hop
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Production Type
Honours Student Production
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Description
Choreographer’s Statement of Intent:
My choreographic intention is to portray how the inclusivity of Hip-hop dance education and pedagogy in tertiary institutions, acts as an attempt to pluralise cultural relevance. The storyline structures around the idea that traditional formal education denounces inclusivity of various cultural experiences, and the authenticity of learners, causing a lack of relevance in the content taught and experienced in education.
The performers for this choreography piece will include Michail Labans, Jamie Montgomery, Chantal de Wee and Robyn Settler. One of the ways in which this message would be relayed is through the attire that is expected to be worn by the performers. As part of the costume, the dancers are expected to wear white long-sleeved shirts with black round neck t-shirt’s underneath, and only the first button of the shirt buttoned up. The cast will also wear long formal black pants tucked into colourful socks worn with black Allstar sneakers. The suggestion here is that traditional westernised ideas (based on white middle-class culture) of education that is suggested by the white shirt and black formal pants, eradicates uniqueness and individuality of learners that is suggested by the different colourful socks; expecting learners to conform to the expectations of education that eradicates their lived experience. This message is further portrayed by the natural make up that the performers will wear along with their slicked updo buns, creating the image of conformity.
The performance will take place in five spaces within the studio theatre area situated at the dance department. Each of the spaces is symbolic to the five elements of hip-hop (namely; MCing, DJing, breaking, graffiti and knowledge) that will tell a certain aspect of the overall message in relation to the choreographic intent and with reference to the production elements.
The first section will be performed in the canteen area which will include a trio section with Michail Labans, Chantal de Wee and Robyn Settler. In terms of technical arrangements, the idea is to have a dark setting with a video projected against the white wall and the performers. The video will include images and movements of a recorded dance piece by Abigail Mckenzie, portraying her emotional experience of learning, to the song called “Ghost”, by Beyonce Knowles Carter. The performers in the space will dance with three books covered with brown paper and question marks on it, facing their backs to the audience. This is to show the cultural divide that causes a lack of understanding in the process of learning. The section will be performed to the lyrics of “Ghost” in isolated dance movements along with the books to show the lack of connection. This movement section will start on the floor, and progress with the dancers standing until the return to the floor again and move onto the next section.
The second section will be performed in the studio theatre, situated on the right-hand side within the performance space, facing the audience on a vertical angle. In terms of setting, this will include a black wing faced back as a backdrop to two desks, two chairs and two books which will be brought in by two performers from the previous scene. In this section a duet will take place with Chantal De Wee and Jamie Montgomery to the instrumental beat captioned “’I am’ Old school hip-hop beat”. The vocabulary will include contact improvisation and sequences composed of old school hip-hop moves such as pop ‘n lock, and mundane movement that convey imagery of boredom and fatigue. These books will act as props during their performance. The books will also include pages with questions written on them; related to the learning experience, that will be taken out and shown to the audience.
The third section will be performed on the left-hand side inside of the studio theatre, facing the audience on a vertical angle. This section will include a black wing faced back as a backdrop, with newspapers pasted on it. A monologue will be performed by Michail Labans to the background of a slow instrumental piano soundtrack. The monologue will address the lack of representation in education while embodying various characters, expressing emotions of frustration, anger and sadness. The rest of the cast will also make their appearance sporadically from behind the wing during the monologue to write on the newspapers and return to the back side of the wing. The words written on the wing will include words that will be spoken during the monologue, such as “cultural relevance”, “hip-hop education” and “edutainment” being a few of them.
The fourth section will be performed by the performers, in a circular motion, around chairs which would have been pre-set in the centre of the performance space, on which some of the audience members would have been seated. The symbolic reference here is that hip-hop (which is performed by the performers around the circle) should be included within educational institution, symbolised by the circle. This dance will be performed to the soundtrack “mount Everest” by Labrinth and the movements will be a repetition of the first section to a different movement quality. Instead of being slow and isolated, the movements will be sharper and faster, to portray a protest movement using arts as activism. The ending scene will include posters which would have been pre-set underneath the chairs and used as props to further convey the message. These posters will be held up in the air by the performers who are facing the circle. The posters will further convey the message of hip-hop education with various phrases in relation to the topic.
The fifth section follows the performers as they walk towards the white cyclorama on which a video will be projected. The video will include a presentation on hip-hop pedagogy by an educator at a TedX talk. The dancers will stand collectively against the cyclorama, with the posters lifted in the air to create an image of protest. One by one the performers will exit, until one performer is left before the lights start to dim.
My choreographic intention is to portray how the inclusivity of Hip-hop dance education and pedagogy in tertiary institutions, acts as an attempt to pluralise cultural relevance. The storyline structures around the idea that traditional formal education denounces inclusivity of various cultural experiences, and the authenticity of learners, causing a lack of relevance in the content taught and experienced in education.
The performers for this choreography piece will include Michail Labans, Jamie Montgomery, Chantal de Wee and Robyn Settler. One of the ways in which this message would be relayed is through the attire that is expected to be worn by the performers. As part of the costume, the dancers are expected to wear white long-sleeved shirts with black round neck t-shirt’s underneath, and only the first button of the shirt buttoned up. The cast will also wear long formal black pants tucked into colourful socks worn with black Allstar sneakers. The suggestion here is that traditional westernised ideas (based on white middle-class culture) of education that is suggested by the white shirt and black formal pants, eradicates uniqueness and individuality of learners that is suggested by the different colourful socks; expecting learners to conform to the expectations of education that eradicates their lived experience. This message is further portrayed by the natural make up that the performers will wear along with their slicked updo buns, creating the image of conformity.
The performance will take place in five spaces within the studio theatre area situated at the dance department. Each of the spaces is symbolic to the five elements of hip-hop (namely; MCing, DJing, breaking, graffiti and knowledge) that will tell a certain aspect of the overall message in relation to the choreographic intent and with reference to the production elements.
The first section will be performed in the canteen area which will include a trio section with Michail Labans, Chantal de Wee and Robyn Settler. In terms of technical arrangements, the idea is to have a dark setting with a video projected against the white wall and the performers. The video will include images and movements of a recorded dance piece by Abigail Mckenzie, portraying her emotional experience of learning, to the song called “Ghost”, by Beyonce Knowles Carter. The performers in the space will dance with three books covered with brown paper and question marks on it, facing their backs to the audience. This is to show the cultural divide that causes a lack of understanding in the process of learning. The section will be performed to the lyrics of “Ghost” in isolated dance movements along with the books to show the lack of connection. This movement section will start on the floor, and progress with the dancers standing until the return to the floor again and move onto the next section.
The second section will be performed in the studio theatre, situated on the right-hand side within the performance space, facing the audience on a vertical angle. In terms of setting, this will include a black wing faced back as a backdrop to two desks, two chairs and two books which will be brought in by two performers from the previous scene. In this section a duet will take place with Chantal De Wee and Jamie Montgomery to the instrumental beat captioned “’I am’ Old school hip-hop beat”. The vocabulary will include contact improvisation and sequences composed of old school hip-hop moves such as pop ‘n lock, and mundane movement that convey imagery of boredom and fatigue. These books will act as props during their performance. The books will also include pages with questions written on them; related to the learning experience, that will be taken out and shown to the audience.
The third section will be performed on the left-hand side inside of the studio theatre, facing the audience on a vertical angle. This section will include a black wing faced back as a backdrop, with newspapers pasted on it. A monologue will be performed by Michail Labans to the background of a slow instrumental piano soundtrack. The monologue will address the lack of representation in education while embodying various characters, expressing emotions of frustration, anger and sadness. The rest of the cast will also make their appearance sporadically from behind the wing during the monologue to write on the newspapers and return to the back side of the wing. The words written on the wing will include words that will be spoken during the monologue, such as “cultural relevance”, “hip-hop education” and “edutainment” being a few of them.
The fourth section will be performed by the performers, in a circular motion, around chairs which would have been pre-set in the centre of the performance space, on which some of the audience members would have been seated. The symbolic reference here is that hip-hop (which is performed by the performers around the circle) should be included within educational institution, symbolised by the circle. This dance will be performed to the soundtrack “mount Everest” by Labrinth and the movements will be a repetition of the first section to a different movement quality. Instead of being slow and isolated, the movements will be sharper and faster, to portray a protest movement using arts as activism. The ending scene will include posters which would have been pre-set underneath the chairs and used as props to further convey the message. These posters will be held up in the air by the performers who are facing the circle. The posters will further convey the message of hip-hop education with various phrases in relation to the topic.
The fifth section follows the performers as they walk towards the white cyclorama on which a video will be projected. The video will include a presentation on hip-hop pedagogy by an educator at a TedX talk. The dancers will stand collectively against the cyclorama, with the posters lifted in the air to create an image of protest. One by one the performers will exit, until one performer is left before the lights start to dim.
Is Part of
Year Created
2020
Producer
CTDPS
Choreographer
Robyn Settler
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