Noguchi

Doing a performance with Theresa right now in which we play angels. “The End of Time Project” has shown how useful Noguchi Taiso technique is. By using the least amount of muscle energy and instead using gravity, lines of gravity, water-flow, and empty limbs, we are able to dance on and off for over an hour without any exhaustion.

Also I have noticed how the simplicity and brain-integrating elements of the exercises can be used in rehab, and I have been working out a post-stroke program for Kris to use as a home exercise regimen. Each exercise seems to hit very specific brain pathways…

I wonder why Western dance forms have failed to integrate the scientific concepts of movement along with spiritual/emotional links. Noguchi said that movement is changed by imagination, and much focus is put on having the proper mental state to move within. Half of his class is spent studying physics (or geology or psychology- depending on the theme of the class) before any movement is attempted. Any modern class I have been in has stressed vanity and voyeurism over all else, making the actual emotional state of the mover quite irrelevant. At the same time, I find BMC and other Western therapeutic approaches to be alienating as an audience (again voyeuristic), as they stress the indulgent experience of the mover above all else. 

 

~ by gerrydance on May 17, 2008.