Dance on
Nikki Critien gives Showtime her thoughts on the state of dance in the Maltese Islands.
In Showtime of November 3, 2006, in the piece Dancing In The Dark: Is Maltese Choreography In Crisis? the island's dance scene almost unanimously got quite a knocking. When asked for their opinion, theatre-goers, critics and dancers alike all contended that choreography is in a rut and that standards and professionalism are lacking.
So, what is needed to develop talent and expertise in professional dance in Malta, which in turn will develop the standard of choreography?
Without a shadow of a doubt, Malta has produced a fair number of gifted, dedicated and committed dancers, who themselves have let loose their need to create - which is the essence of Art. Dance fulfils the need in man to develop qualities of thought and feeling which arise from a consciousness of something about himself. This creativity is the child of the imagination and it is also the expression of an ideal - true of other forms of art, of course, but more so through the system of dance.
However, creativity cannot be taken for granted. Its vigour and vitality need to be nurtured; most of all it requires confidence - in one's self and in the society in which one lives.
Recent research has suggested that a combination of personal and environmental conditions play a significant role in the achievement of exceptional performance. The necessary conditions included extensive and meaningful practice, familial support, competent coaches and teachers, and adequate physical resources. Although pretty basic, these conditions appear to be crucial and, rather than identify talent, it is of greater concern to give potential talent the environment into which it may emerge. Subsequently, talent has been defined in this context as a dynamic manifestation that appears to be determined by both innate and environmental factors. The question is: Has the environment part of the equation delivered in terms of allowing this talent to develop?
For a start, no complete dance education - which includes training in choreographic and improvisational skills (apart from syllabus and technique training) - is available in Malta. Secondly, choreography is not treated as a discipline which is taught and more importantly researched and given the milieu to develop. Only with this system in place would it be appropriate to pass judgement on the pulse of choreography in Malta. Which is to say it is badly needed. With a change of the system what would also be necessary would be a change of mind-set. Dance has historically relied on tradition-bound methods of preparing dancers for peak performance. These methods favour technique training and a kind of "directed, drill and skill" method. However, many dance educators have come to realise that traditional methods of dance education do not fully prepare students for the demands of a professional career in dance. Without undermining the importance of traditional methods, there is also the need for further understanding of technical practice and the use of key concepts in dance. For example, it is necessary to make a shift from perceiving the moving body as a vehicle of expression only, to understanding dance as a domain of knowledge involving creative inquiry, self-awareness and an awareness of the self in relation to others.
An amalgamation of education combining technique training and practice, together with learning the skill of choreography as well as research, allows for the development of artists, not only dancers. This can be done by making available experienced choreographers to direct dance residencies on a regular basis. A residency would involve providing studio space for choreographic research for a series of consecutive days, where the focus would be on experimenting with ideas, concepts and styles in order to produce engaging material, rather than the simply pleasing.
Concentrating on the development of technical skills is therefore the foundation of dance expertise. However, paying attention to the subjective experience of creating and expressing during the act of dancing, rather than solely on the final presentation is essential to the creation of original and stimulating productions. It also requires educators and artistic directors to appreciate dancers not simply as mediums for choreographers but as developing creative artists. This perhaps would contribute towards alleviating the apparent stagnation of creativity in the local dance scene - in other words - seeing the light rather than the sequins!
• Ms Critien is a psychotherapist who has specialised in performance psychology.
A dancer herself, she has interviewed several dancers in prominent dance companies in the UK as part of her Masters dissertation which dealt with talent development in dance. Her work was published in the journal Research for Dance Education last year.
References
Warburton 2002;
Taylor and Taylor 1995
So, what is needed to develop talent and expertise in professional dance in Malta, which in turn will develop the standard of choreography?
Without a shadow of a doubt, Malta has produced a fair number of gifted, dedicated and committed dancers, who themselves have let loose their need to create - which is the essence of Art. Dance fulfils the need in man to develop qualities of thought and feeling which arise from a consciousness of something about himself. This creativity is the child of the imagination and it is also the expression of an ideal - true of other forms of art, of course, but more so through the system of dance.
However, creativity cannot be taken for granted. Its vigour and vitality need to be nurtured; most of all it requires confidence - in one's self and in the society in which one lives.
Recent research has suggested that a combination of personal and environmental conditions play a significant role in the achievement of exceptional performance. The necessary conditions included extensive and meaningful practice, familial support, competent coaches and teachers, and adequate physical resources. Although pretty basic, these conditions appear to be crucial and, rather than identify talent, it is of greater concern to give potential talent the environment into which it may emerge. Subsequently, talent has been defined in this context as a dynamic manifestation that appears to be determined by both innate and environmental factors. The question is: Has the environment part of the equation delivered in terms of allowing this talent to develop?
For a start, no complete dance education - which includes training in choreographic and improvisational skills (apart from syllabus and technique training) - is available in Malta. Secondly, choreography is not treated as a discipline which is taught and more importantly researched and given the milieu to develop. Only with this system in place would it be appropriate to pass judgement on the pulse of choreography in Malta. Which is to say it is badly needed. With a change of the system what would also be necessary would be a change of mind-set. Dance has historically relied on tradition-bound methods of preparing dancers for peak performance. These methods favour technique training and a kind of "directed, drill and skill" method. However, many dance educators have come to realise that traditional methods of dance education do not fully prepare students for the demands of a professional career in dance. Without undermining the importance of traditional methods, there is also the need for further understanding of technical practice and the use of key concepts in dance. For example, it is necessary to make a shift from perceiving the moving body as a vehicle of expression only, to understanding dance as a domain of knowledge involving creative inquiry, self-awareness and an awareness of the self in relation to others.
An amalgamation of education combining technique training and practice, together with learning the skill of choreography as well as research, allows for the development of artists, not only dancers. This can be done by making available experienced choreographers to direct dance residencies on a regular basis. A residency would involve providing studio space for choreographic research for a series of consecutive days, where the focus would be on experimenting with ideas, concepts and styles in order to produce engaging material, rather than the simply pleasing.
Concentrating on the development of technical skills is therefore the foundation of dance expertise. However, paying attention to the subjective experience of creating and expressing during the act of dancing, rather than solely on the final presentation is essential to the creation of original and stimulating productions. It also requires educators and artistic directors to appreciate dancers not simply as mediums for choreographers but as developing creative artists. This perhaps would contribute towards alleviating the apparent stagnation of creativity in the local dance scene - in other words - seeing the light rather than the sequins!
• Ms Critien is a psychotherapist who has specialised in performance psychology.
A dancer herself, she has interviewed several dancers in prominent dance companies in the UK as part of her Masters dissertation which dealt with talent development in dance. Her work was published in the journal Research for Dance Education last year.
References
Warburton 2002;
Taylor and Taylor 1995