Backflip - jump and hope for the best!

This day of CIP was filled with performance class, and now we saw what a progress we have done since the first weeks. We did many exercises with different levels of tension in the body, as well as more work and improvisation on "Obesession" which is the theme for the show.

At the parcour class we all tried to do an assisted back flip which was the first time for me. It was super scary! First, we tried it from a height down to a crash mat and then from the floor to a crash mat, but they where both equally scary. I don't think I tuck in my legs pr anything but just jumped and hoped that the teacher would spin me around and save me, which he did. I am very proud of myself though that I dared to do it and now it fells like I want to do it again!

Top tips for beginners of assisted back flips:

• It is easier to do it from a height down a to a crash mat, but it is scary since you are high up.
• When doing it from the floor, remember to jump up high in the air before you tuck.
• Commit to it! Believe that you can do it! It think fear is the biggest enemy when staring to to back flips, at least it is that for me. 

Slackers in botanical garden

Today I visited Sheffield Botanical Garden together with some friends from the course to do some slack line walking. It was a long time since I last tried slack line so it was fun, and it is very different from tightwire since the slackline can go sideways under you in a way tightwire can not.

Here I am on the slack line!

The slackline stand out quite much in the park and some children also tried it out, and they all looked so happy to do it.

We also juggled and did some other circus things together, and practiced some pass juggling. The weather was very unpredicible; it rained, was sunny as in summer and then it suddendly started to hail big ice marbles from the sky.

The pavillion that was used as a greenhouse. It was free entry.

Before I met everyone we ha a walk around the botanical garden and the pavillion.

No doubt it is spring times.

Specialization phase started

This week has been different to the previous weeks at the course, because we now all have chosen our specialization subjects among manipulation, acrobatics, aerial and equbrilistics. For me, it was quite a hard decision since i like everything and couldn't really decide if I wanted to broaden my skills or be better at the ones I already got.

After a lot of thought I chose equibrilistics and aerial and I will do there even more to progress and develop some kind of act that can be fitted into the final show. I like the idea that we are doing a show together at the end.

During the dance class we have been working on our pieces for the final show, and it is both difficult and interesting to create and choreograph your own things. It can sometimes be difficult to collaborate, communicate ideas and make movement to a beat but I am happy with what we have made so far. 

I have been doing a lot of tightwire lately, and juggling even if I didn't pick manipulation. I really want to learn how to juggle five balls so I am practicing that quite a lot. I also just discovered hat juggling, which was unexpected since I have never had any interest in that before. our juggling teacher said that that is typical for hat juggling; at first people think it is not sp interesting and then suddenly it comes up to you anyway. I did tightwire and juggling together that day since I had to rest my feet from the tightwire sometimes, but now I have bought soft sole shoes to protect my feet.

Today we ha aerial all day and I felt that I have become stronger in my arms. I am still super tired, but at least I did more things today than any other aerial class. I have become even better at climbing and doing different silks positions, even though I have never done any drops yet.

Tomorrow we will have another clown class as we have already had one in the beginning of the week. We used clown clothes for the first time which was fun and made me feel very clowny, which was a good thing.

Newton's architecture - A documentary about Swedish juggling

When I was surfing the internet looking for juggling things I stumbled upon this documentary about the Swedish style juggling:

Newtons Architecure - En film om nutida jonglering i Sverige (A film about contemporary Swedishi Juggling) with subtitles in English

It is a 30 minutes documentary about the Swedsih Juggling. Appearantly there is a special Swedish juggling style that both tries to be high skilled and artistic. The documentary contains interviews with some Swedish Jugglers at DOCH (University of Dance and Circus) and some nice juggling clips.

Quote from Jay Gillian:

And for me, it is also about how the juggling looks, that’s what I like about it, it is not the skill.

I like this idea of artistic juggling. In the documentary that also say that there were really no discussion in Sweden whether juggling is a sport or an art, and most think that it can be both. I like to see juggling as an art or way to express something, almost like dance. Jay Gillian also talked about to be conscious about what type of juggler you want to be and what expression you want to have. 

Om jag gör ett vissts visuellt mönster med min jonglering, att objekten bildar någonting, eller jag håller objekten på ett sätt som bildar nån sorts… ja, en bild på det ena eller andra sättet. Det är ju samma sak som arkitektur till exempel. Det är ju samma sak, det är ju också en bild, som en front av ett hus eller liksom en allé med träd. Det blir ju också en grafisk bild på samma sätt som jonglering kan vara fast det gör ju nödvändigtvis inte att vi måste räkna in det som jonglering.

Free translation by me:

If I make a certain visual pattern with my juggling so the objects makes something, or if Ii hold the objects so the make up some kind of... picture in some way. That is the same thing as architecture for example. That is the same thing, that is also a picture, like a front of a house or an alley with trees. That also makes a graphic picture in the same way that juggling can be, but that doesn't require us to count it as juggling.

There are big contrast between juggling and architecture, but they both is a kind of art focused around patterns, and this could in fact be applied to almost all art forms.

For people interested in juggling I recommend this documentary.

Lost in Hillsborough

Yesterday I slept as long as usual to recover from a week of circus. In the morning I joined Im to go out running. We ran for maybe one hour and it was a nice sunshine but still windy so it was perfect running weather. We ran along the canal in the old industrial areal which was a nice path.

Since I chose equilibrilistics as one of my specializations I plan to do a lot of tight wire, but the wire is made from twinned metal wires and after 2,5 hours of constant walking my soles are hurting. Therefore I planned to go to some dance shop to see if they had some kind of dance shoes or even martial art shoes that could be suitable for tight wire walking. I was told it would talk maybe 20 minuets to walk there, but after 45 minuets of walking I felt that I was not even near or in the right areal. I had seen a lot of Hillsborough area though, but I never found that dance shop.

Then I met a friend in town to watch some photo exhibition from travelers which was small but nice. The we also watched the Millennium galleries since he had never been there the last two years even if he lives in Sheffield. I really understand this since I am not very good at doing tourist things in my previous hometowns, except when guiding friends and family.

Aerial practise and choreography

I think I have become a lot better at climbing the silks that for my first time three weeks ago. In the aerial class the day before yesterday we did our assessments tasks which was spotting someone and then do a trapeze routine.

My trapeze routine was quite simple, but I am still happy with my performance and the feedback I got from the teacher. I did the trapeze moves gazelle, angel, reverse angel, candlestick, mixed grip straddle, up to sitting, balance, lamp post, coffin, birds nest.
This picture is a screen shot from the movie of me going into this position, but I think I have become a lot better at climbing the silks that for my first time three weeks ago. In the aerial class yesterday we did our assessments tasks which was spotting someone and then do a trapeze routine.

My trapeze routine was quite simple, but I am still happy with my performance and the feedback I got from the teacher. I did the trapeze moves gazelle, angel, reverse angel, candlestick, mixed grip straddle, up to sitting, balance, lamp post, coffin, birds nest.

Finally I mastered a nice silks position

On Wednesday afternoon we had aerial choreography. Unluckily, I was unable to participate for a very funny reason. I was jumping and dancing around at lunchtime, and just when my foot was in the air a diabolo from one of the other students flew in under my foot. When I landed I hit the diabolo and strained my ankle, so then I decided to rest to not risk the rest of the course.

So instead I took a lot of notes in the choreography lesson. I have some experience of choreography from dance and figure skating that I practiced when I was younger, so it was interesting to hear how this teacher thought about it.

We discussed different starting points for a choreography, like space, context, character, equipment, budget, duration, music, theme, safety, costume, narrative, solo/duo/group and so on. We also talked about the importance to know who is in charge of making different decisions when making the choreography. Sometimes the buyer want to make them, sometimes there is a director and sometimes the artist. Then we did some exercises in tempo, when they did the same series of aerial moves but in different tempos.

Watching an exercise in aerial choreography class

Chorepgraphy top tips

• Be present and do the moves worth watching
• Have a clear ending and a clear end
• Don't be afraid to use the ground as well as the air in aerial performance
• Choreography doesn't have to be complicated, just clear
• We like patterns
• Don't be afraid of repetition
• Try to vary the tempo pf the moves from static holding to flowing moves
• Don't be a slave to the music
• Try to create contrast in speed, shape, pace
• Audience see shapes, not moves
• Slowness and still points give confidence to the performance

And most important of all:

• Audience don't remember tricks, they remember moments. Create great moments!

Circus in media after Circus Space name change to National Center for Circus Arts

11th of March Circus Space in London changed its name to National Center of Circus Arts, and circus artists now will get the same recognition as artist as dancers or musicians in the UK. The name change has was written quite a lot about in English media, so if you want to read some circus related articles here are some:

Al Jazeera - UK circus school recieves high wire status

Standard - National Circus center promises an art form to rival ballet

BBC Circus school gets new national status 

NBC Circus center teaches hights

Buzzfeed - There is a circus school in London and its amazing

I think it is great that circus is getting higher recognition as an art.