The idea to create a performance choreographed by Nigel Charnock came up as a result of an intensive improvisation project for young Polish dancers and choreographers that took place in March 2008 in Stary Browar (Old Brewery), Poznan.
Nigel Charnock – live legend of European dance and one of the most colourful personalities of contemporary dance in the world. Co-founder and long-standing frontman of DV8 Physical Theatre. For several years artistic director of Helsinki City Theatre Dance Company.
Nigel gave a week-long workshop for a group of the chosen Polish artists based on his own method, i.e. improvisation combining dance and theatre, words, video art, film and pure physicality. The project gave almost 20 artists from all over Poland a chance to discover their creative potential. This artistic adventure ended with a final show enthusiastically received by the audience. After the project Nigel came with an idea to come back to Poznan in spring 2009 to create a full-scale performance with a group of chosen dancers.
Nigel was impressed by the potential of young Polish artists, their creativity, audacious courage and readiness for improvising challenges. He took part in the discussion about the situation of dance in Poland, learnt about conditions of our daily work, and dropped an idea of creating a multidimensional project – HAPPY PROJECT.
HAPPY PROJECT includes:
– six-week rehearsals – residency in the Art Centre Stary Browar (Old Brewery) in Poznan (4 February-15 March 2009);
– Polish premiere (14-15 March 2009) and performance at the most prestigious British dance venue – The Place in London (7-8 April 2009);
– open (and free) classes given by Nigel Charnock for professional dancers (4-18 February 2009);
– creative writing workshop (4-8 February 2009) by Jadwiga Majewska teaching how to write creatively about movement and dance as a complex and sensuous phenomenon;
– extensive and creative documentation prepared by a group of young artists from various fields (photographers, graphic designers, cameramen, dance critics). Their observation of the creative process opens the door to the inside of performance making. For this go to the special HAPPY PROJECT website.
The form of HAPPY PROJECT, resulting from cooperation between Nigel Charnock and Joanna Lesnierowska – curator of Stary Browar Nowy Taniec (Old Brewery New Dance), mirrors artistic interests of all parties involved. HAPPY PROJECT is not only devoted to the performance as product, but it also focuses on the creative process which is usually inaccessible to the audience.
Thanks to regular updates on the creative process, everybody may follow the studio work from the first moments till the premiere, and even later. The updates include comments and impressions of the dancers creating a fascinating website testimony to the six-week adventure under Nigel’s command.
A variety of documenting and creative explorations enriches the project and gives it a multidimensional character. Creative potential of artists from different fields adds new quality to the performance. The performance itself derives from brand-new discoveries of the creative process and the whole wealth of contemporary dance inspiration found together with visual artists, dance critics, musicians, light designers and photographers.
HAPPY PROJECT presents the avant-garde of the creative process. It aims at inspiring Polish contemporary dance community to cooperate with artists from other fields.
The documentation process of HAPPY PROJECT highlights the need to reflect on the idea of performance both long before the beginning of the creative process and in the middle of it.
