March: Backyard Ballet

Choreographing ‘Slow-ballet’ for my instagram podcast as part of the program Dis-Tanzen-Solo.

Early spring my practice went outdoors. Developing choreographic material at Humboldthain and on the Uferhallen compound. Part of it is to apply authentic movement principles to classical vocabulary. Reducing perfection to marking level (15%) and strip tension plus the classical attitude. Searching a quotidian mode as if walking in the streets.
Unlike often in ballet this quality allows my breathing to switch to an aerobic use of oxygen. The low-fy approach leaves also capacity to watch, hear and react with the environment. In the park when dogs and families walk by there are split second eye contacts which are actually interpersonal.
All in all I am currently searching for a mind state while dancing which can stick to a routine, yet perceives what is going on around and is less busy with ‘showing’.

Later I taught the sequence to Yui and here we are just spacing it together in her backyard. Feels familiar dancing with her since we often trained together in class. There is an underlying beat to the material but it’s intuitive. We need to see each other in the periphery and there is an attempt for synchronicity though I like the slight off-ness between us.

Thanks to the Dachverband Tanz Deutschland e.V. für supporting my choreografic research,
and to Yui Kawaguchi for the video.

„Gefördert durch die Beauftragte der Bundesregierung für Kultur und Medien im Programm NEUSTART KULTUR, [Hilfsprogramm DIS-TANZEN/ tanz:digital/ DIS-TANZ-START] des Dachverband Tanz Deutschland.“

BONES AND BAMBOO

Tonight, January 29th at 6-7pm on Instagram @Dasniya_Sommer

Trying sth new.. A sort of ballet podcast on Instagram. It’s an open atelier, raw researching/redefining my daily ballet barre, loosely shibari inspired, and with music!

You can watch, stretch or move with me. Or looking at the ceiling listening to sound. Towards the end we can chat, I am happy to exchange thoughts on this.

„Gefördert durch die Beauftragte der Bundesregierung für Kultur und Medien im Programm NEUSTART KULTUR, [Hilfsprogramm DIS-TANZEN/ tanz:digital/ DIS-TANZ-START] des Dachverband Tanz Deutschland.“

Queer Hospice

A project by Liz Rosenfeld and Rodrigo Garcia Alves. I was very happy and touched working with them for a few days.
There will be a livestream:

Thursday, December 17th, 20h

Facebook Event: https://www.facebook.com/events/766255620634035/

Sophiensaele Link: https://sophiensaele.com/en/stueck/rodrigo-garcia-alves-liz-rosenfeld-residency-showing-new-techniques-i

Im Rahmen des Sophiensæle-Residenzprogramms New Techniques laden wir zu einem ersten Online-Showing ein: Am 17. Dezember werden Rodrigo Garcia Alves und Liz Rosenfeld Einblick in ihre fortlaufende künstlerische Forschung zum Thema queeres Hospiz in Form von choreografischen Video-Partituren und einem Gespräch mit dem Tanzdramaturgen Mateusz Szymanówka geben.

Wie werden wir als nicht blutsverwandte Familie füreinander sorgen? Was brauchen wir als queere Menschen, um sicherzustellen, dass wir in der Lage sind, am Lebensende für die Pflege zu sorgen, die wir uns vorstellen? Wie kann künstlerische Forschung zu einer lebenslangen Aufgabe werden, die in verschiedenen Formen und Spielarten erforscht wird? Während ihrer Residenz in den Sophiensælen haben Rodrigo Alves Garcia und Liz Rosenfeld Persönlichkeiten getroffen, die sowohl ganz pragmatisch als auch kreativ mit dem Tod arbeiten: darunter ein Palliativmediziner, eine Sterbebegleiterin, ein Chorleiter, eine Bondage-Expertin und ein Tätowierungsheiler. Gemeinsam haben sie ihr Wissen rund um das Sterben und die queere Pflege vertieft. Dabei entstanden choreografische Partituren, Video- und Textarbeiten, die sich mit Fragen der Intimität auseinandersetzen und untersuchen, wie queere Familien politisch, künstlerisch, räumlich und emotional weiterhin Raum füreinander halten können, während sie sich auf ihr Hospiz vorbereiten. Während ihrer Residenz haben sie mit Colin Self, Maja Zimmermann, Fercha Pombo, Andre Neely, Imogen Heath, Christian Küllmei und Dasniya Sommer gearbeitet.

Dis – Tanzen Funding

Yea! I am very glad to announce that the Dachverband Tanz has granted my ‘Dis-Tanz Solo’ scholarship, a promotion programme for freelance creative-dance artists.
The program supports my artistic reorientation from dancing and performing towards focussing on choreographic work for nine month.
On this blog and on social media I will document my research material. The first tutorial or live stream podcasts will be end of January 2021.

„Gefördert durch die Beauftragte der Bundesregierung für Kultur und Medien im Programm NEUSTART KULTUR, [Hilfsprogramm DIS-TANZEN/ tanz:digital/ DIS-TANZ-START] des Dachverband Tanz Deutschland.“

An Unboxing Ballet Beat

A collaboration between Mmakgosi Kgabi and Dasniya Baddhanasiri invited by
Tanznacht Berlin 2020.

Sound and vocal composition / performance: Mmakgosi Kgabi
Choreography / set design / dance: Dasniya Baddhanasiri

Thanks to Julian Weber, Jacopo Lanteri, and Tanzfabrik.
Pictures by Dieter Hartwig.

AN UNBOXING BALLET BEAT

September 13th, 2020

For the closing event of Tanznacht Berlin 2020, two very different female artists have been invited to combine their practices: Mmakgosi Kgabi is a voice-over artist who finds ways of embodying language and speech with her own «(Dance) Encyclopedia of the Mouth». Dasniya Baddhanasiri is a ballet dancer and choreographer who runs a dojo in Wedding in the Japanese art of Tight Bondage.

In «An Unboxing Ballet Beat», Mmakgosi Kgabi and Dasniya Baddhanasiri conduct an open, body-voice dialogue, simultaneously breaking down sentences and ballet vocabulary to create a rough working environment. By their reciprocal approach of bodily listening, they open spaces in which processes of connecting and dividing occur equally, in parallel. The audience is cordially invited to engage with this exchange and to join the artists on their journey through a space-time continuum full of surprises.

Mmakgosi Kgabi is a trained physical theatre and improvisation performer and also a performance facilitator. Her work often interrogates the premise of identity and nationalism, revisiting themes on the Black Female Body Politics and Migration.

The choreographer Dasniya Baddhanasiri researches movement from the perspective of the dancer. Her primary interest is the redefinition of body images, which she seeks within a physical and cultural spectrum ranging from Japanese bondage art to deconstructed ballet practice.

Ticket and more information here