Digging deeper....

Adesola had encouraged me to really consider the deeper meaning of my question before I run away with trying to solve the problem, meaning I need to actually ask more questions to try to perceive the context of my initial questions.

My initial question:

What is the sociological role of engagement in Dance?

But what do I mean by society? Who am I specifically talking about? Which groups in society interest me/will be of benefit to others?

What do I mean by engagement in dance? Is this inclusive to professionals and amateurs/non – dancers?

How can I incorporate my passion for the community based organization I am starting to work for (Ludus)? As far as I am wear the next module will involve a lot of work, so choosing a topic in which we are motivated to persevere through our inspiration is essential, no one wants to study something they don’t find interesting right?!

So for now, I am looking into

‘What does Dance mean to the users of Ludus Dance’

I have had a series of informal chats with the Creative Director of the company whilst shadowing her at one of the projects offered to the Ludus Youth Dance Company. Although I did not speak to the students themselves, observing how they engage with the Ludus concept, from entering the building to how the atmosphere is in the studio to how they approach and react to the tasks set, and noticing their attitudes and different approaches to what was being asked of them was very interesting.

The specific points of interest in our conversation were that as the creative director, she aims all Ludus opportunities at ‘Opening doors to inspire lifelong engagement in Dance’ – the Ludus Dance Mission statement. The word ‘lifelong’ makes me wonder if this means having dance available and accessible to all ages?

For this specific guest teacher workshop situation, the students are encouraged to work from the inside out, introduction to focusing on how a movement feels on the inside as opposed to how it looks. This community troupe specializes in the process of movement making to try to create positive feelings during dance engagement. Following this, a sense of self ownership is created through what they produce, this usually means very different things to each person and is all very individual – she felt this is potentially what stimulates and encourages so much focus (something I observed straight away was the level of focus and active interest from all students)

Our conversation progressed onto what her thoughts were what kept them going back to dance on a regular basis, (this particular 4 day workshop project was done in half term, so why weren’t these students off doing other things in their free time(??)) Various elements tied into her thoughts on this, one being that many of them had decided they wanted to make dance a career, students understood the importance of regular practice and that they make full use of every opportunity they get, ‘soaking up every opportunity before they undergo their professional training’. Location was a factor here, most students can’t afford to travel to London and back for lessons, so having a professional organization nearer their homes in the North of England is key to their development of regular engagement in dance activities. She highlighted that at Ludus, exploration of movement is always encouraged, and that the emphasis is on engagement in the creative process with a deeper sense, rather than being so black and white and either right or wrong. Ludus is an organization that has found a way to encourage relationships with very individual personalities from varying backgrounds, cultures and religions. Finding a medium where they have exposure to collaborating and sharing thoughts and ideas to create something diverse and beautiful is so unique. Lastly, this is not always the case at Ludus, but the Youth Company are actually a selection of students who have been chosen to join this troupe through an audition process – she thought that they were so keen to keep coming back during their holidays from school and work because they felt a sense of prestige and belonging.