Resource Pack Contents
Introduction 3
Background and training 4 – Initial Training 4 – A new beginning 5 – Early Work 6 – Russell Maliphant Company 7
Movement Language – Movement Influences 9 – Maliphant the performer 11
Creative Process 12 – Long Term Collaborations 13 – Lighting 13 – Costume 16 – Music 16 – Revisiting work 17
Interviews with Collaborators Michael Hulls – Lighting Designer 18 Dana Fouras – Collaborative Assistant / Dancer 20 Carys Staton – Company Dancer 23
References 26
2 Introduction
Russell Maliphant has been described as a “genius” (The Guardian 2015) and his work as “dazzling physical poetry” (The Telegraph, 2015).
This resource pack provides an insight into his choreographic practice exploring his background and training, performance career, early influences, movement language, and creative process. It also celebrates his long-standing and highly acclaimed collaboration with lighting designer Michael Hulls.
The pack is comprised of an interview with Russell Maliphant and his collaborators, taken over the course of a year. It is divided into three clear sections and interwoven into each section are images and video clips to support this written content. It also contains an appendix with background information on Michael Hulls and further interviews taken with Maliphant’s Collaborative Assistant Dana Fouras and company dancer, Carys Staton.
Provided within this pack are useful references linked to additional sources where information on Russell Maliphant’s work and creative process is also cited.
We hope this pack will become a useful resource for dance artists, dance educators and their students and will be of interest to a wider audience who share the joy of watching Russell Maliphant’s beautiful work.
Lucy Muggleton and Jane Woolley
For up to date information, touring and education activities on Russell Maliphant Company: www.russellmaliphant.com
3 Background & Training
Initial Training
‘A choreographer of persistent accomplishment and a performer of enduring fascination… mesmerising.’ (The Times) Panayiotis Sinnos
Born on 18 November 1961 in Ottawa, Canada, Russell just a different arrangement of what I already knew. I think Maliphant spent his childhood in Cheltenham where he there was a part of me that would have preferred something studied ballet and a variety of other dance such as tap and else but I didn’t know how to go about finding that. I knew I modern at The Patricia Newman School of Dance. He went couldn’t find it with what I knew up to that time.” along with his sister when he was nine. (Maliphant, 2016)
“When I first started there were no other boys studying This frustration ignited an interest in other forms of dance, there were only girls. I think determination and movement and he had become interested in Eastern discipline was something that I had from an early age.” philosophy. “My father was always interested in Eastern (Maliphant, 2016) philosophy and he read a lot. I probably had a bit of an interest in that from my childhood. I saw an advert in In 1977 at the age of 16 he began training at the Royal Holland Park for someone teaching tai chi and went along Ballet School. At the end of his second year he won a prize to private lessons to learn the form. I kept that training going for the most improved student and in his third year was the for many years alongside my ballet training.” (Maliphant, 2016) only one chosen from his year to learn the lead role for the school’s performance. Later in that final year he constricted A few years later whilst on tour in Brazil during the mid-80s a nerve in his shoulder and lost the use of his arm. It took he also discovered capoeira, a form of martial arts, and him nine months to make an 80% recovery and when he sought classes in London when he returned. Maliphant returned to repeat his third year he felt the loss of ease of didn’t always feel completely satiated though as a ballet shoulder range which was both restricting and frustrating. dancer. As he explains: “While everyone else would be warming up by doing the splits and stretching - I’d often In 1981 he was accepted into the Sadler’s Wells Royal be in a corner going through the tai chi form. I thought tai Ballet (SWRB, now Birmingham Royal Ballet). His ability chi was beautiful: the internal quality of it, the softness.” as a classical dancer was evident. He was chosen to (Maliphant 2016) perform significant Soloist roles such as the King of Spring in David Bintley’s Snow Queen, Benno in Sir Peter Wright’s Driven by his curiosity of the dance world outside of SWRB Swan Lake, Bluebird in Sleeping Beauty and Blackamoor he made the decision in 1987 to leave the company to in Petrushka. After five years of being with the company pursue a career in independent dance. “I heard myself he created his first short piece of choreography: “It was talking about Sadler’s Wells Royal Ballet in a way that for an entirely unrelated personal development weekend. I was not always positive. I was aware enough to know that had to perform a two or three-minute solo which, I decided I didn’t want to be a person who is complaining about to choreograph myself and I struggled to put something their life when it had been so good and I’d had so many together. I remember feeling that the vocabulary I had put opportunities, so I knew that I had to do something to get together was rather clichéd. I’d seen it all before and it was out of that.” (Maliphant, 2016)
4 A new beginning ballets. I had a different relationship to the material and I was quite excited to think that my experience and my life There were five other people that were ready to leave and could now be a part of the work in a new, different way.” together they formed a company called Dance Advance. (Maliphant, 2016) The aim of the company was to break down barriers and bridge the gap between the classical and modern world Maliphant said the experience gave him a very different by using classical ballet in new ways. The company sought perspective on movement and inspired new ways of to promote new work by choreographers, composer and working for performance. The technique of classical ballet designers, working in collaboration. that he’d studied for so many years suddenly felt limiting on his body in this new context. He felt he struggled to do In the first season Sir Kenneth MacMillan created Sea things that other dancers in the company of four could do, of Troubles for the company. Maliphant was excited: like let his body fully relax and suddenly drop to the floor or “Mayerling had been made when I was at the Royal Ballet fall, spin and come back up easily like his co-dancer Nigel School. The partnering was mind-blowing with such Charnock who had a very different training. “Nigel was incredible flow, throws and turns. It was very different from fantastic in the things that he was doing. I thought – wow! I some of the other more conventional classical ballets, can’t do that even after so many years of training.” where there’s less movement through the spine but the (Maliphant, 2016) torso is more focused on being elegant and regal, along with the many connotations that implies.” (Maliphant 2016) It turned things around for Maliphant who felt there was more learning that he needed to do. Some of that included After the first tour including Sea of Troubles, Dance unlearning things which were ingrained in his body. He Advance invited Lloyd Newson to make a piece on the said he hadn’t ever thought about ‘dropping his body, or company. He came to watch them perform at the Queen letting go of holding patterns’ because he’d always been Elizabeth Hall and the following day they met with him. He going towards a particular goal and that goal was classical felt he couldn’t work on a company that already existed; ballet. “So it changed a perspective for me and it made me he needed to choose the people that he worked with want to look into other avenues of technique and movement individually. He talked to Maliphant and asked if he would styles.” (Maliphant, 2016) consider leaving the company and joining him for his next project, which was Dead Dreams of Monochrome Men, In 1989 Maliphant performed with Michael Clark Company based on the fantasy life of the serial killer Dennis Nilsen. in the film Because we must, in which Clark thumbed his nose at the conventions of ‘serious’ dance. He then went on to perform in Clark’s Hetrospective at the Anthony d’Offay gallery. “It was notorious; there were three dancers as well as Michael himself and Stephen Petronio and we were all naked and shaved, totally hairless, and we had feather boas that sometimes covered our genitals. It was a big art event for the time” (Maliphant, 2016)
After a period of ‘research and development’ with Clark in America, Maliphant returned to London and saw the work of Laurie Booth who was to become a major influence. He saw him perform a solo show at the ICA in 1989.
“Laurie was working as an improviser but it didn’t look anything like improvisation to me, it was unlike anything Dead Dreams of Monochrome Men, Film still else I’d ever seen in dance. In terms of language it had a real dynamic scale to it. There were times when he was just “I didn’t know Lloyd’s work at the time so he showed kind of walking around and there were times when he was me a video of the piece My Sex, Our Dance. I loved the really moving with flow, energy and dynamics and other vocabulary, the raw pedestrian running and jumping. I felt times where he was story telling. It had great variety in it.” it was something I could really relate to and wanted to try it. (Maliphant, 2016) The vocabulary and the way it was performed, said ‘we’re here as real people in all our complexities’ rather than the Maliphant was invited by Booth to Dartington to do some assigned roles I’d seen more regularly in many traditional workshops. They got on well and Maliphant liked his way of
5 working. Using improvisation, he showed him how to create “Our aim was and has always been ultimately to combine an alternative language drawing from ballet, tai chi, and the choreography of the body and the choreography any other movement vocabulary. “He taught me a lot about of light to create a symbiotic whole in which both those the use of space, working with a motif, repetition, energy elements can reach their full potential as partners.” (Hulls and and focus. He gave me tools and awareness to create with Maliphant, 2015) improvisation.” (Maliphant, 2016) Spatial Decay toured on and off for two to three years but Maliphant was influenced by how Booth fused his training was the only thing Maliphant was performing during that of capoeira into his contemporary work and even more so time. He realised that he needed to keep fit and keep on by how Booth used improvisation to create instantaneous top of all the different techniques he had learnt. He thought choreography. It provided Maliphant with the confidence the most challenging and effective way to accomplish to venture into dance making: “It changed my view about that would be to work on a solo for himself. “After the creativity and making things, and about choreography and improvised duet with Laurie, what could be even more the philosophy of the performance space. If I hadn’t met challenging? With a solo, there would be no one else to Laurie I wouldn’t be making my own work today.” rely on if I lost my train of thought. It is something I would (Maliphant 2016) have found terrifying twelve months earlier. Working with Laurie demystified improvisation and put me in a place Booth taught Maliphant to think about improvisation, that was exciting. Creating a solo was about setting myself encouraging him to find ways to ‘colour the space’ by using a personal challenge. That’s why I did it. Not because I physical language as ‘brush strokes’. He also emphasised ever thought about choreographing work as a future at that the importance of light in the creative process, with the two point.” (Maliphant, 2016) of them performing an improvised duet titled Spatial Decay in 1990. Both Maliphant and Booth were awarded a Time Out Live Award 1991 for their work together, recognised for raising improvisational dance to new heights.
It was during this period that Maliphant first met Michael Hulls and this marked the beginning of one of the most prolific and highly acclaimed artistic collaborations between a choreographer and a lighting designer. Hulls had also studied at Dartington, a few years earlier than Booth. They had both trained under Steve Paxton and shared an enjoyment of the process of improvisation. Together Hulls, Booth and Maliphant worked on Spatial Spatial Decay, Hugo Glendinning Decay where the lighting was improvised, as well as the movement material. Although the rig for the lighting was set Early Work the lights Michael used at any point were improvised. Evolving Paradigm became Maliphant’s first work, created “You would know that if you were improvising downstage in 1991. He had wanted the piece to be performed that right, there’s a downward focused par can light or, if you’re year, but a few days before the premiere he suffered across the back there’s a side light or back light wash a severe knee injury and had to undergo two sergical that could pick you up. We were thinking a lot about the operations. As a result, when the work was finally rig and the space. Michael was playing with us and we performed, it had become more set than previously were playing with Michael so there was a communication planned. “Sometimes my knee would twist out of place 10 going on not only on the stage between the performers but to 15 times a day. I had to find a way to navigate around the also offstage to Michael in the lighting booth, and I really low material. I really liked working at that level. I’d studied enjoyed this.” (Maliphant, 2016) Ukrainian dance before I went to the Royal Ballet School so I knew a lot of that language and I’d always wanted to As a result of this initial collaboration Maliphant and Hulls utilise it. It was probably good for my knee. Ultimately, it got to know each other and began to discuss the idea of made it stronger and it made me intent on focusing to make making a work together where light might be the starting it work better. It was also one of the things that led me to point of choreography, rather than music. Rolfing.” (Maliphant, 2016)
6 through the body, drawing on a lot of the information learned in his Rolfing training.
Russell Maliphant Company
By 1996 Maliphant formed Russell Maliphant Company. It was during this year that he made his first full work with Hulls titled Unspoken. For this work they made a decision to reverse the more traditional approach where music is used from the beginning and light is added at the end. Instead they began with light; Hulls designed
Russell Maliphant, Evolving Paradigm, Hugo Glendinning and set up a rig and they worked with that over several weeks. Christopher Bannerman had given them space at Middlesex University as they had no funding. Once During Maliphant’s recovery from his injury he had been Hulls had set up the lighting rig he taught Maliphant the to see a practitioner of the Rolfing method of Structural mechanics of how to operate it through the lighting board Integration. Developed by Dr. Ida Rolf, Rolfing is a method and was then able to leave him to experiment with ideas. involving deep tissue manipulation and movement When Hulls returned they looked at the movement and education. It aims to balance the body and help it deal lighting possibilities and from that they created structured with gravity more efficiently. Inspired by what he had learnt compositions. during this recovery period Maliphant decided to embark on a modular training programme over 3-years studying Shortly after this period Maliphant participated in a Rolfing, anatomy, physiology and biomechanics. In 1994 ‘research and development’ lab where he met Peter he became certified as a practitioner of Rolfing Structural Boneham who was to become a choreographic mentor. Integration. “Experientially there are two different kinds of inspirations in my work. Firstly, the movement side which has developed “Rolfing has been a big influence. It analyses flow in as part of a personal practice and training over the years the body and flow around the joints to see how the with influences from forms like Rolfing, classical ballet articulations are moving and if there are parts that seem or tai chi for example. Secondly, the more compositional less energised or fluid than others. It is generally applied influences through working with people like Laurie Booth, to use for postural balance but can easily be shifted to Lloyd Newson and Peter Boneham.” choreographic movement flow.” (Maliphant, 2016) (Maliphant, 2016)
In 1992 Maliphant received his first commission, a quartet Boneham was the artistic director at Le Groupe titled Relative Shift for Ricochet Dance Company. It Dance Lab (Le Groupe lab de danse), a cutting-edge was this introduction to Ricochet that first got Maliphant international centre for the research and development of choreographing. The following year Maliphant participated contemporary dance. Boneham pioneered the ‘dance in workshops with Dana Reitz and Jennifer Tipton as part lab’ concept whereby established choreographers were of the Dance Umbrella programme. He was inspired by invited to receive studio space, the use of Le Groupe’s their work between movement and light and both Hulls and professional dancers and the attention and guidance of Maliphant have cited them as being a big influence on their an experienced mentor. A key attraction of the Dance Lab work. “We were fascinated by the work of Dana Reitz and experience was the participation of a mentor whose role Jennifer Tipton. Jennifer was a very experienced lighting was to challenge the visiting artist and to offer guidance. designer and when facilitating in a workshop she would Dance Lab provided a nurturing environment that gave always invite the choreographers to assess which state choreographers the opportunity to experiment, explore was better for their needs. She would often withold her movement vocabulary, and most importantly, take risks. opinion but would invite the young choreographers to try The emphasis was on the process of making dance rather things and see it for themselves. She would encourage and than the production of a final dance work. initiate a thought process which was very helpful.” (Hulls and Maliphant, 2015) Boneham was brought to the UK by Assis Carreiro to run the research lab in Birmingham. “As a mentor, Boneham In 1994 Maliphant created the solo Paradigm and it was wouldn’t try and put his mark on material in any way, he during this period that he began developing his own would just say “well here’s what it is suggesting to me, is explorations, utilising knowledge of fascial lines and flow that what you intend or did you intend something else?” He
7 would help us understand how the material might benefit from adding or taking away. That’s something now that stays with me. What is it that I am developing now? What is it that I’m seeing and what do I want people to see? Is that coming through and how can I make that more clear?” (Maliphant, 2016)
Maliphant then went over to Canada for three weeks where La Groupe was based and produced much deeper work. Following that period, Maliphant created one of his seminal works, Critical Mass, in 1998.
In 1999 a re-working of Critical Mass was made for film, directed by David Hinton and shown on Channel 4, and so Maliphant’s work began developing a wider audience and it caught the attention of William Trevitt and Michael Nunn (George Piper Dancers, now BalletBoyz) whom then asked Maliphant to create a work with them. In the following year Maliphant created Trio and Torsion (2002) for them. A breakthrough moment came when William (Billy) and Michael brought Sylvie Guillem to see an evening of Russell’s work at The Place. “Sylvie said she had found it difficult to stay still in her seat and watch, she wanted to get Sylvie Guillem and Russell Maliphant, Push, Tristram Kenton up and dance like that.” (Maliphant, 2016)
After the performance Sylvie asked Maliphant to create something on her, Michael and Billy. The result was a 30-minute duet titled Broken Fall which premiered at the Royal Opera House in 2003, and won an Olivier Award for best new Dance Production, touring internationally for two years. Guillem later asked Maliphant to create a duet especially for him to dance with her. Initially reticent as he had retired from dance the previous year, Russell eventually did make something for Sylvie and himself, a 30-minute duet titled PUSH. The work received four major awards: An Olivier Award; South Bank Show Dance Award; Daniel Proietto, , Hugo Glendinning Time Out Award and Critics’ Circle National Dance Award Afterlight for Best Modern Choreography. Rodin Project his first full evening of work, which was later In the same year Maliphant became Associate Artist at adapted for film and re-titled Erebus. Sadler’s Wells. The works that followed were artistically diverse collaborations. The first, Cast No Shadow, was In 2014 Maliphant was commissioned by English National in collaboration with the visual artist Isaac Julien and the Ballet to create Second Breath as part of an evening titled second, Eonnagata, was created and performed with Lest We Forget marking the centenary of World War One. theatre director Robert Lepage and Sylvie Guillem. The evening of work which also featured pieces by Akram Khan and Liam Scarlett, won the South Bank Sky Award In 2009 Maliphant was commissioned to create a work 2015. as part of Sadler’s Wells celebrations commemorating one hundred years of Diaghilev’s Les Ballets Russes. Maliphant’s evening of work Conceal | Reveal (2015) Afterlight, a solo, received the Critics’ Circle National marked the 20th year of the collaboration between Dance Award for Best Modern Choreography in 2010 and Maliphant and Hulls. The evening of work celebrated the was also nominated for an Olivier Award. The following unique partnership and unparalleled language between year Maliphant was awarded an honorary doctorate of arts light and movement that has developed between Maliphant from Plymouth University. In 2012 Maliphant created The and Hulls over the past two decades.
8 Movement Language
‘Maliphant has consistently produced artistic elixir that if unable to prolong life certainly makes it richer while we are here.’ (Maura Keefe, 2014)
Chris Nash
Movement Influences The movement is a gravity-based flow, exploring qualities of movement. Classical dance is traditionally more light and Maliphant’s movement influences, as noted, have been more upwardly oriented, whilst contemporary is generally drawn from many sources, including ballet, capoeira, more oriented down, relating to the earth. I am trying to Rolfing, tai chi, yoga and contact improvisation. “There draw on and expand through that range. It is a synthesis of were things about classical ballet that restricted me in forms and information”. (Maliphant, 2016) certain contexts and so I felt I needed more variety in my body where I could drop certain things at certain times Carys Staton, a company dancer since 2011, portrays how and pick them up again. That led me on a path exploring she sees Maliphant’s movement: “Both Russell and Dana improvisation, yoga and softer techniques but because Fouras were classically trained and the movement is still I still loved ballet, I wanted to work with a language that quite classical in terms of making beautiful lines. Other moved through all of those. It’s the techniques’ qualities contemporary dance companies are about breaking these rather than the technique per se that interest me. It’s not lines down. Russell is committed to making beautiful lines, that I set out to use a tai chi phrase or movement but I but rather than using the classical technique to inhibit or might use a quality or elements of it.” (Maliphant 2016) make the movement smaller, he switches it and makes the technique allow a dancer to expand and grow with it.” Maliphant prefers for his work not to be categorised into (Staton, 2015) specific movement styles but instead he refers to the ebb and flow of each movement. “I see movement more like Exploring this with his dancers, Maliphant outlines a typical calligraphy in space or shape vocabulary with elements day in the studio: “The company often have a little time such as dynamics, tension, juxtaposition and relationships. doing their own thing before we come together as a group.
9 possible for me to work with someone like Dickson Mbi, whose primary practice was popping, or Aakash Odedra, whose training is kathak, and not feel entirely like I don’t know this language.” (Maliphant, 2016)
Maliphant’s knowledge of Rolfing and his analytical approach to movement opened up his ideas about working with people with a different vocabulary, as he explains: “With Dickson, I was about to start work on The Rodin Project when I’d seen him perform in the Lilian Baylis Studio at Breakin’ Convention. He was doing a largely improvised set, dressed in street clothes and had a charismatic Piece No. 43, Hugo Glendinning charm and grounded quality that came across through his movement language. I had wanted to work with dancers When we do start, it often involves getting more deeply trained in social dance and hip hop for a long time and put in to the senses, to increase awareness of breath, skin, a group together that had a fantastic range of skills and body tensions and structural relationships. Quality and different movement experiences. I wanted to explore a new breath might be tuned into any number of small and large language for the piece. I wanted to try something different.” movements and in a variety of relationships to gravity, (Maliphant, 2016) for example, lying, sitting, squatting, standing, moving. Sometimes an improvisational task might be used to explore vocabulary, pace or qualities.” (Maliphant, 2016)
Staton continues to describe her experience: ‘‘His knowledge of anatomy and fascial lines is incredible. Even after three years, we take class and there is still new information and new ways to think about doing an old movement. Russell makes us switch our mindset and perform it in a different way. I have learnt a lot about openness to changing and letting my body find new ways of moving.” (Staton, 2015)
Maliphant is interested in many movement analysis forms Dickson MBi Still Hugo Glendinning including Laban Movement Analysis and he has explored the work of Bartenieff and Bonnie Bainbridge Cohen. In In exploring a new language Maliphant tried to deconstruct the light of this, Maliphant describes a short film by John some of the elements of popping and breaking to find a Lasseter, an American animator and one of the founding way of using them in combination with elements from his fathers of Pixar Animation Studios, as a way of illustrating own fluid movement vocabulary, in order to forge a different one way he thinks about movement: unity. His ideas about movement and form were informed to some extent by Rodin’s sculptures and the way the “I remember seeing a documentary where John Lasseter artist shaped the body with torsions and turns, counter- explained his first film Luxo Junior which used two twists and curves, as if the body was moving in a spiralling Anglepoise lamps. Lasseter was asked how he gets so motion. These are elements that Maliphant had used in much emotional expression from an inanimate object and earlier choreographies. A characteristic feature of his he explained that we’re reading the timing relationship to vocabulary is the articulation of the arms folding, curving the floor and the spine. The ‘father’ has a heavier base and and spiralling and the fluid movements of the spine as it has more time in touch with the floor, whilst the ‘child’ is twists and undulates. bouncing and jumping. How much you see the spine lifted or how much you see it dropped is something that we read often unconsciously. They are all great ways of looking at movement that are not really specific to any technique. It is actually about the flow of movement and with that any language becomes suitable. That is why it has been
10 Maliphant the performer
‘He is a dancer in whom strength and grace share equal billing, and the choreography draws upon his extraordinary ability to make heavy-set compressed movement spring to life with an impossible fluidity. So light footed and beautiful is the effect that the ballast of his own magnificent power is all but invisible.’ (Deborah Craine, 1998)
As a dancer, Maliphant is exceptional and it seems the more he learns about the body, the more enthused he becomes. “The more time goes on, the more I connect the Footage of Russell Maliphant dancing in principles of all these body practices and they feed into Shift, created in 1996, performed here at – a body of work. The body is an endless resource, I feel https://youtu.be/6qLcflTwTq0?list=PL5Td like I know a reasonable amount about it now, but it is still QaWwoOsETzVCztgOD7CMzElrtkoTo nothing. It is just the tip of the iceberg.” (Maliphant, 2016)
11 Creative Process
‘Russell will start on an anatomy train of thought or on a task based process that just organically leads into moving your body deeply.” (Dana Fouras, 2015)
Johan Persson
Alternatively, Maliphant may employ a more task-based approach to his creative process. When creating Afterlight At the outset of a new project Russell Maliphant often (2009) Maliphant used a new, more thematic approach begins by exploring his ideas with his dancers in a to choreography by taking inspiration from both pictures workshop setting. This is his way of seeing how they of Nijinsky and his drawings. “I was working with spirals interpret his ideas with their bodies. in the body as Nijinsky often displayed counter-rotation in his body. It inspired a task in which Daniel Proietto was His anatomical approach to creating work often explores invited to extend and spiral through fascial lines to create the body’s fascial lines or particular body parts and the movement that made sense to me on his body. In my work flow of energy through these: “I usually go into a process it is usual to collaborate with the dancer in this way during a with a physical starting point to give some parameters. With process.” (Maliphant, 2016) the solo <
12 The filming and reviewing of material is a core part of impressions created. There’s usually something that I see Maliphant’s process. In 2000 he was awarded a fellowship that is in the articulation in the shape maybe or in the flow from Arts Council England. The funding from this fellowship or speed.” (Maliphant, 2016) allowed him to purchase an editing program, Final Cut Pro, whilst also attending a video-editing course. “Before When using Final Cut Pro Maliphant attaches notes to each I had Final Cut Pro I would do improvisations and select clip of material that he has created for example ‘add a movements to learn back from the video camera. Software pause here’ or ‘ronde de jambe the leg at this point’. Editing has made it simpler to explore and put together many the material on computer in this way also gives Maliphant different assemblies and sequences before learning them an opportunity to play with choreographic devices such as back, saving a lot of frustration for the company. The adding repeats, reverses, retrograde, reordering, changing computer time also lets you get to know the material in a the speed of a movement or trying out different music to different way. Sometimes you have to watch something the sections. so many times to understand the visual dynamics and
Daniel Proietto, Afterlight, Johan Persson
Long Term Collaborations acclaimed lighting designer Michael Hulls and he is an integrated part of the creative process, often from the The success of Maliphant’s creative journey can partly beginning. be attributed to the close working relationships Maliphant has nurtured with his long standing collaborators: “The creative use of light is a constant protagonist. Michael Hulls, Andy Cowton, Mukul, Stevie Stewart and During the rehearsal process, elements that may affect Dana Fouras. His extensive explorations of the quality material could be the frame of light, the direction, location and workings of a dancer’s body lie at the heart of his and intensity, and size of the lit area – what physical work but these discoveries would not evolve without the elements are highlighted or obscured and what looks close community of artists with whom he works. “Russell to me complimentary in any given state. If we have light must feel a kinship with the people he works with. It near the beginning of the process, we might first work out is not a family but there is an understanding, shared what elements of the vocabulary could, in my opinion, fit. characteristics. When it works it is spot on and it is what We might also get some idea initially about duration, but we try to achieve. I think we will all continue to work with this will be approximate. We can then start putting longer Russell for a really long time.” (Fouras, 2015) phrases together containing those elements in the studio, phrases that have their own physical logic and dynamics. Lighting When we later have the opportunity to run things through again with the light we will then have a clearer picture about In the moulding of material, lighting plays a pivotal role. whether we’re on the right track and can start thinking more Maliphant has a long-standing collaboration with the in detail about duration before moving on to assembling
13 ‘People have always assumed that lighting can be like a layer, applied over the finished work – that the designer can be brought in at the last moment… but we begin from day one.’ (Michael Hulls 2014)
Dana Fouras
sections. If there are areas that appear a bit dull, we might lighting it, it has to be like that as the movement is made see if there is something to do that energises the result like that. The only way you can make something indivisible through any of the elements; movement, light or sound. It is is to start with lighting from the beginning.” generally these three elements that we are playing with and (Hulls and Maliphant, 2013) they contribute to the whole of the finished piece.” (Maliphant, 2016) Fouras, describes how Maliphant has a special sensitivity when exploring the light and the body: “He can put a So important is light in the creative process that Maliphant dancer into a light with Michael and that dancer can’t really has chosen to forgo having a large company of dancers. understand the light, even if they have made material, they “People ask ‘why is Russell Maliphant making another may not understand the light, how it falls on the skin or solo or duet?’ It’s because that allows us to also put an how the speed of the eye can take the information of the allocation of money into the lights. I’ve worked with many light. Michael and Russell have developed this over many more dancers in other companies because they may be years. When Russell himself goes into the light everyone using a different scale of budget. To work with twenty says “now we understand what you are saying”. So the more dancers at English National Ballet was a fantastic light can sculpt the body but the body can also sculpt the opportunity for me. I really loved having that experience space. This three-dimensional relationship is how Russell’s and would absolutely do it again, however, my company material develops, it’s very strong and easily readable for has enabled us to explore the relationship between some magical purpose.” (Fouras, 2015) movement and light in a very specific way.” (Maliphant, 2016) Low lighting can be used to highlight the intensity of Over time Hulls and Maliphant have developed a common Maliphant’s choreography. In creating dark scenes on language enhancing each other’s creativity. Hulls has stage, Hulls’ intention is to draw the audience’s eye on described this form of creating as a unique process in something and pull them right into it: “With Russell’s work which each artist has the ability to change and develop it seems to me that the movement is coming from inside whatever the other brings. This collaboration, brings the body rather than from having an idea about creating a out more than each artist could achieve on their own. pattern with dancers in space. There’s an intensity to that “Sometimes, the most exciting things are the ones you and I think you need to have light that is really focused, that could never imagine on your own but get to by some helps, or is complementary to that kind of experience, so interaction. It might be a happy accident. That’s creativity.” it is very clear you are tightly focused on something. To do (Maliphant, 2016) that with light you need really good quality dark.” (Hulls and Maliphant, 2013) Maliphant has always cited Hulls as his co-creator as he always wanted light to be indivisible from the movement. This interplay between the physical language of the “If you took the lighting on its own it wouldn’t really make performer and the dynamic architecture of the light is sense and if you took the dance, there is no other way of continually explored in Maliphant’s creative process. He
14 has described how movement and articulation for him have world. In Afterlight, both Maliphant and Hulls emphasised a special logic, related to flow, gravity, dynamics, line, form, the texture that this brought to the movement: “It was like rhythm and space. He believes these elements can be seeing a cyclone on a weather satellite. It was interesting, seen not only to relate to the body but also to the shape, the light, dark, mid tones and texture that were achievable form, direction and intensity of the light. Both Maliphant and with animation and a projector. The light was very textured Hulls share a strong interest in sculpture and the way light and organic, it could move, dissolve and reform.” (Hulls and and movement interact. This shared interest informs their Maliphant, 2013) work in terms of dealing with the frame implied by a light, the intensity of brightness, the direction of movement in a transition or the rhythmic interplay of the elements. For both A video clip of Piece No.43 from Conceal | Reveal, danced Maliphant and Hulls light can give energy to a dance piece by Russell Maliphant Company, created in 2015, performed in the same way music does. here at https://youtu.be/ZWY52SqRQBo
In more recent works such as Afterlight and Still Current, A video clip of Still Current (Duet) danced by Russell Maliphant’s desire to create texture within the lighting has Maliphant and Carys Staton, performed here at led to collaborations with the animator Jan Urbanowski. https://vimeo.com/152692110 This work has developed where the creation of images on stage that have been likened to images within the natural
Dana Fouras, <
15 Russell Maliphant and Carys Staton in rehearsal, Dana Fouras
Costume the solo <
16 Cowton composed the music. Similarly, for Broken Fall, Fouras has described Maliphant’s desire to re-work material Barry Adamson composed the music towards the later part as a response to the people he is working with. “There is of the process. Maliphant was using Adamson’s already something in how Russell responds to people, he never composed tracks as an initial map to create material in the really feels like he has finished, so he is usually ready to go dance studio. Maliphant would then show him sections, on. This is often how he feels at the end of a piece. How it often on film, as they became more developed and ends suggests to him where to start with the next piece”. Adamson would then go away and write for that section. (Fouras, 2015) Andy Cowton followed the same process in the creation of PUSH. Maliphant explains: “There’s often music playing in This desire to explore creative ideas with others on an the studio, it gives us a certain feel. Sometimes it is there in-depth level is a strong characteristic of Maliphant’s to provide energy and sometimes it is there to provide an work. This trait challenges his dancers and collaborators interesting juxtaposition to the movement and suggest to go beyond where they would normally push themselves boundaries.” (Maliphant, 2015) as artists. Those that have been willing to trust Maliphant and strive for the same level of inquisition, travel on this Revisiting Work creative journey with him changing as artists along the way. Dancers such as Daniel Proietto, Julie Guilbert, Alexander The desire to re-visit work and explore it on a deeper level Varona, Dickson Mbi, Thomasin Gülgeç and Carys Staton is a common theme in Maliphant’s work: “I’ve enjoyed have displayed an openness and commitment to Russell’s having the opportunity to work on pieces for longer. To work and with his support have developed greatly. present Two, for example, many times and to re-work into Two x Two or Two x Three, has enabled me to work with Maliphant’s continuous process of refining the three different people’s energy, dynamics and qualities and elements of movement, light and sound, in both new then come back to it with the company. I really enjoy that creations and revisited works leads to a reduction and process.” (Maliphant, 2015) purification of ideas that drives his work to new heights. The creative process is not simply about repetition but Maliphant has been clear that he does not see exploring every creation and performance is a new opportunity the same subject matter with new dancers as repeating to explore the interactions of body, light and sound at a himself but rather as an opportunity to find different deeper level. levels of quality within the vocabulary. He believes the explorations of material on different people benefit from repeated visits. “The questions we need to answer do not necessarily change, as answers are often complex and detailed and you need to go deeper and deeper into the exploration to get to the depth of those answers.” (Maliphant, 2016)
17 Interviews with Collaborators
Michael Hulls - Lighting Designer
‘Hulls’ lighting is truly a life force for dance.’ (Ismene Brown, 2014)
Integral to the visual impact of Russell Maliphant’s work has unquestionably been Michael Hulls’ lighting design. The collaboration between Maliphant and Hulls has been hailed in The Daily Telegraph as “possibly the most significant creative partnership in modern dance.”
“The unique and unparalleled language between light and movement that these award-winning artists have developed has been created through more than 40 works over the past two decades. They are two of contemporary dance’s Gavin Evans most defining artists having changed the landscape of modern dance and stagecraft.” (Culture Whisper, 2014) became obvious to Hulls that they shared key interests and the same vision. Born in 1959 Hulls developed an interest in theatre and lighting from a young age. “One of the first shows I went “I enjoyed meeting Russell on stage with me improvising to see when I was young was a famous production of with lighting and him improvising the dancing. What I was Treasure Island at the Mermaid Theatre. There were some particularly interested in was the way Russell seemed to scene changes... and the lighting went dark and murky... be particularly sensitive to the light on stage and he would it was so mysterious and non-narrative and you could just dance in a different way.” (Body: Language Talk, 2013) see people moving around... that was inspiring to me. It was ambiguous, you were not sure what you were looking Hulls’ developed a fascination with Maliphant’s unique at.” (Hulls – Brown, 2014) approach to light and how this could affect the way the body moved. As Hull’s describes: “If he (Russell) was in the Hulls had no formal training in lighting design opting to centre of the light he would dance differently than if he was study a dance and theatre degree at Dartington College. on the very edge of the light. This was interesting to me His parents were both artists, his father an architect; and I thought this had potential.” (Hulls – Brown, 2014) this nurtured his interest in theatre and design. Whilst at Dartington, Hulls studied contact improvisation with Steve In 1992, with no formal training behind him, Hulls applied Paxton. This experience instilled a love of the improvisation for funding from Arts Council England to attend a two-week process and a desire to work creatively in theatre and course with Jennifer Tipton and Dana Reitz in New York. design. “This was where I realised I wanted to be involved Tipton had been trained by Jean Rosenthal, someone in theatre... but also in the design of it.” (Hulls – Brown, 2014) Michael had great respect for. He believed her explorative work with Martha Graham formed the foundation of light Soon after graduating Hulls met Laurie Booth who had and design and has since described her as the pioneer of also studied improvisation at Dartington a few years earlier. lighting design. Booth was in the process of creating Spatial Decay. “He [Booth] understood I was design-based and he asked me Tipton was a major inspiration throughout Hulls’ career. “I’d to come and do some lights for him... I’d had no lighting only just started as a lighting designer and I’d been told training.” (Hulls – Brown, 2014) It was through this connection she was ‘the best in the world’. It was inspiring seeing that with Laurie that Hulls first met Maliphant. The foundations the kind of thing that Russell and I were trying to do wasn’t of their relationship were built through spending time crazy... that we could do a collaboration of light and dance together in airports and hotels whilst on the road touring in a way these two women were already doing.” Booth’s Spatial Decay. Within a short space of time it (Hulls – Brown, 2014)
18 On his return to the UK, Hulls with Maliphant began using In 2003, Broken Fall was created with Sylvie Guillem. The improvisation as a tool to explore the possibilities within formation of this new partnership came at the right time for dance and lighting. They began through improvisation Maliphant and Hulls and lifted them into a more positive to create the initial dance and light material. Over time, period of creation. The pair won an Olivier Award for both improvisation was used for the creation of material and Broken Fall and PUSH, which followed two years later, and gradually the explorations developed into structured this success propelled their careers to new heights. performances. Hulls and Maliphant were curious to explore what a true collaboration between dance and light would From 2001 onwards, their careers went from strength to look like, with the aim of totally affecting what each other strength. This period was marked by both artists winning did. several prestigious awards. Their collaborations won international critical acclaim across a breadth of works. For ten years Maliphant and Hulls went on the road For example: Sheer (2001) won a Time Out Award for together, surviving on very limited and sporadic project Outstanding Collaboration, Choice (2003) won a South funding. “We felt stuck in this underfunded position where Bank Show Dance Award, PUSH (2005) with Sylvie not many opportunities presented themselves, yet we knew Guillem, won four major awards including the Olivier for that when we did things people did quite like them.” Best New Dance Production and Afterlight won two Critics (Hulls – Brown, 2014) Circle awards.
Occasionally they were able to find support for their In 2009 Hulls became an Associate Artist of Sadler’s Wells, research and development through their connections within the first non-choreographer to do so earning himself the the dance community. Christopher Bannerman occasionally reputation as a ‘choreographer of light’. In 2012 he was gave them free space at Middlesex University. “This gave nominated for the Theatre Managers Association Award us time to play with things that you don’t normally have for Outstanding Achievement in Dance for his brilliant when you’re just setting light very quickly hours before a contribution to lighting for dance; in particular for Torsion performance.” (Body: Language Talk, 2013) and The Rodin Project. Most recently in 2014 Hulls received the Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement in Dance As their creations were dependent on darkness it wasn’t and the prestigious Knight of Illumination Award. as simple as just working in a dance studio. As Hull’s describes: “The studio had glass walls and windows, so everyday Russell and I had to start by blacking out all the glass and windows... you can’t have lighting without darkness, and the quality of the darkness is really important.” (Body: Language Talk, Sadler’s Wells 2013)
Their first collaborations were limited financially. They created the duet Unspoken in 1996 and then the solo Shift in the same year. The duo went on to create Two in 1998, a very heavily lighting inspired piece created with performer Dana Fouras in which the primary relationship was between the performer and the light.
19 Dana Fouras - Dancer and Collaborative Assistant
Where did you first meet Russell? We met in the summer of 1994 at a performance at the Queen Elizabeth Hall (Southbank, London). It was the day I had left the Royal Ballet and it was a momentous occasion for me as I was excited about moving on, I’d enjoyed it but I was ready to leave it behind.
Russell and I met at the performance, we were introduced by Julia Carruthers who said it would be good for me to talk to Russell as he had been through a similar experience leaving the Royal Ballet a few years earlier.
We exchanged numbers and both said we’d like to try some work together in the studio. Right after that I did a ‘Choreographer and Composers’ course at Bretton Hall. It was very intensive and Lloyd Newson led the choreography. I was the only classical dancer there.
How did you start working together? Russell used to occasionally get free space as he knew the stage manager at the old Sadler’s Wells Theatre. They used allowed all the pull up from my classical training to begin to let him into the building when a studio was empty so we to unravel naturally. When I came back to dancing I began would rehearse there sometimes. working with Jonathan Burrows and Russell saw me in some of his work. After this Russell suggested we made a We began to play around with movement and Russell was solo together, which was Two, created in 1998. really into improvisation and release at that time, which was a completely new world to me. Russell was at the peak of What have been your various roles within the company? his dancing; he had so much information in his body that How have they evolved? was readable, so watching him was amazing. He had a From the beginning I started to watch Russell when he clear ability to drop but still a classical line. The classical was preparing for his solo Paradigm (1994). I would watch shape was familiar to me but we did a lot of work on him and give my opinion on certain things, and this was dropping and letting go. the beginning of me giving feedback. He really wanted the external eye, as he was very much inside his own work. He Back then Russell was working on bridging yoga, capoeira would point out things within the work, when he watched and tai chi and he had just completed his Rolfing course. himself on video that he wanted to draw out. Through this He was deeply into the body and anatomy and that really I began to understand his style and his quality that was a read to me. He had a deep understanding of the fascial really fun exchange. I would just go to the studio and watch lines and he was beginning to develop a technique around and give feedback, I wasn’t necessarily dancing. I guess these and the flow through the body. To me it is very clear, this observation was the beginning of my rehearsal director but it can be quite hard for new dancers to grasp these role. ideas when they first work with him as there is so much anatomy missing from their education. It’s a very useful He then went on to make Sheer with me dancing (2001) tool, your body is your instrument and young dancers don’t and other group pieces and I became a regular dancer really get taught enough about it. in the company. At this time Russell was still occasionally dancing some improvised performances. He would What was the first piece you made together? improvise the performances with Adam Benjamin or Kirsty We made an experimental solo together but then my father Simpson whilst Michael Hulls would improvise the lights. died suddenly and I had to return to Australia. Following this, I had a period of two years where I didn’t want to He knew I was a strong lover of all genres of music, so for dance. This gap was crucial as this non-dancing period one performance he invited me to ‘improvise the sound’
20 and that was the beginning of my sound-mixing role aren’t ready for this, others eat it up and you see their within the company, which is something I really value. bodies changing, which is really exciting. From a dancer’s perspective I understand about energy and how an uplifting track or strong beat can change the How does he recruit his dancers or collaborators? atmosphere in the studio. I believe I can respond to this When he gives workshops he may see someone he likes with different music. Over time my role developed into and he’ll ask the dancer to come back so he can spend providing the ‘sound track of the day’ during the creation more time working with them. This is what he did with Carys process using a range of spoken word, classical jazz, Staton. Otherwise the dancer will make a move towards house music etc. anything as long as it was sensitively him. Daniel Proietto saw his work and started emailing us. done. Daniel and I had many email exchanges that eventually developed into a friendship, over time. Russell must feel a After having our three children, Russell went on to create kinship with the people he works with. It is not a family but Cast No Shadow (2007), Afterlight (2009) and The Rodin there is an understanding, shared characteristics. When it Project (2012) and for all of these works I was Russell’s works it is spot on and it is what we try to achieve. That’s ‘Collaborative Assistant’. This was a title we decided upon why him and Michael work so well together, along with as by this time I had so many different roles within the Andy Cowton, Stevie Stewart and Mukul. I think we will all company. I would liaise with the costume designer, coach continue to work with Russell for a really long time as we the dancers in Russell’s style, provide sound and be a are all really close now. rehearsal assistant to Russell. I would also feed into the work by filming everything, and looking after the company’s Describe how the choreographic process feels from your technical equipment. perspective. For me as a dancer… I’d go on tour with the company sometimes as the I think he likes my arms as they are very expressive so Rehearsal Director if Russell was working elsewhere or he will encourage me to extend way beyond what is touring with Sylvie so we would share the responsibility comfortable for me. For example, with arm rotations I will of the company. Russell is very ‘big picture’ and I’m very rotate the arm to a point but he will really try to carry that ‘detail’, so our collaboration works very well. into the spine and the momentum of the body.
Can you describe a typical day working in the company? Russell will always point out that you can go further with There is no typical day but I can describe typical things your body, and he is really a great support in that as he that happen in the studio. When Russell starts a new can hold your space but really stretch you out. He will see project he likes to teach as he feels he can get a better things that you don’t see in yourself. I think with dancers the understanding of the dancers, and see how they interpret quality that they believe is their special thing isn’t always the things. When Russell teaches it is more of a workshop most interesting as it may be too comfortable. If you have a situation, it is rarely a simple class with exercises. A lot of dancer that’s trusting enough to give themselves over into dancers find this strange but for me it’s great because after what an outside eye can see of them; they can change very the Royal Ballet, I don’t want to do class. We will work with quickly. We had that experience with Daniel, he had some an anatomy or task based train of thought together. Then classical training but more contemporary training, we could he will start manipulating their material drawing out of them share things and he really trusted us both. I would give him and selecting the most interesting part that he sees. Then a small correction and it would change a huge amount for we’ll play a lot of with different types of music and share or him. As that started to happen he trusted us more and more learn material, and then it’s 6pm! and he really believed in what was happening to him, it was exciting to see a dancer move like that. He really went into Can you give me an example of his warm up process? Russell’s style so deeply, it was good. Sometimes we’ll spend around 20 minutes working on our own and then come together and Russell will start on How do you think Russell’s style has evolved over time? an anatomy train of thought or on a task based process I think for me the biggest shift in his choreographic work that just organically leads into moving your body deeply. is that he has allowed back in the classical aesthetic They’re always different and they’re often with some kind of alongside the improvised, martial art, yogic, anatomy based apparatus. He’ll show us what he’s developed with a stick release work, so now he has a balance of both. I think this for example or massage balls e.g. releasing the shoulders, is very unique to him. He really works choreographically opening your feet. He likes to help people feel when they’re with the balance between these, if he wants to see a line, a getting a niggle to understand this more. Some dancers pulled up line, he will then totally balance this with a drop or
21 a curve and I think achieving this balance has really shifted Can you tell me about his collaborations, the evolution of and developed through working with myself, Sylvie Guillem them, who he’s worked with and how those relationships and other classical dancers that did not have contemporary have developed over time? training. He really gave us that balance which we needed to With Michael, Andy, Mukul, Stevie and myself we perform his work. understand Russell and in that sense it’s like a chef’s reduction sauce. It becomes the essence of what he’s He is very generous with his information and there are trying to achieve, the essence of what he sees in the some dancers that are really ready to hear that and there body and the light, it’s a very sculptural eye. He can put a are some that it passes them by for some reason. Maybe dancer into a light with Michael and that dancer can’t really they think they don’t look good dancing his material or understand the light, even if they have made material, they they don’t trust his opinion or they can’t impart it from their may not understand the light, how it falls on the skin or how training. The ones that do, I think they become clear with the speed of the eye can take the information of the light. his quality. Michael and Russell have developed this over many years. When Russell himself goes into the light everyone says Can you share your thoughts on how and why he revisits ‘now we understand what you are saying’. So the light can works again as this is another strong trait of his work? sculpt the body but the body can also sculpt the space. There is something in how Russell responds to people, he This three-dimensional relationship is how Russell’s material never really feels like he has finished, so he is usually ready develops, it’s very strong and easily readable for some to go on. This is often how he feels at the end of a piece. magical purpose. How it ends, suggests to him where to start with the next piece.
22 Carys Staton - Company Dancer
When did you meet Russell? How did you begin working with him? I attended a workshop in the May of my third year at Rambert School, which was held at his studio. It was a bit of the right place, right time, as I hadn’t booked to be on the workshop, a teacher of mine had booked to go and decided she couldn’t, so I took her place the night before the two-day workshop. We had an absolute blast, and I talked to Russell in the context of the workshop but nothing more, and he took my details but that was it.
I then went back to college and finished my degree and then I got offered an apprenticeship with Bern Ballet, which I decided to accept. Then, one week before I was due to go to Switzerland, Russell called me and asked me if I wanted to join the company. It was massively unexpected and obviously an opportunity I couldn’t resist.
Carys Staton, Two, Hugo Glendinning I joined the company for The Rodin Project in September 2011. This was the first creation I was involved with. I then about them doing it themselves, and the dancers doing it. I went on to work with them on Still Current where I danced think this is what brings audiences back. Two, Still and also the duet Still Current with Russell. Now I’m working with them for the new programme, Conceal | There’s an awful lot of subtlety in the work, which I think Reveal. has been overseen in other choreographers work over the past few years. Russell’s work really hones into detail. The What is it about his work that made you want to dance for collaborators make this great big picture, but there’s still the company? such an attention to detail. It’s not about putting on a big To me the work just looks really beautiful, it’s not narrative show, but it’s about watching someone move beautifully, in it’s not flashy, I don’t think. It’s just really beautiful beautiful light to beautiful music. movement in a complete marriage with all of Russell’s collaborators. It’s some of the only work I see where you The movement, although it is abstract, is emotive and I don’t feel that anything is a coincidence or a last minute think that’s what brings audiences back to watch it. I think option everything sits very nicely together and makes the audiences come back to Russell’s work as opposed to really beautiful pictures. The way bodies move in the other abstract contemporary dance because it gives them work is unique. You can see a piece of movement in the a feeling without a narrative. choreography and you know it’s Russell’s work. What makes Russell’s work stand out for me is the kind of flow In what ways do you feel you’ve developed as a dancer, and natural body movement which is always present, creatively and technically, from working with Russell? the kind of openness in the shapes and openness in the I think Russell and Dana’s depth of knowledge is just mad! performance. I don’t think I’ll ever feel I know everything they do. I could work with him for 20 years and never know all the stuff that What do you believe audiences are attracted to in his he has, it’s an endless bank of information. work? There’s a lot of honesty in the shows, and I think this is His knowledge of anatomy and fascial lines in incredible. maybe a reason why people want to see the work. I think On top of all that, he has all the spiritual ‘Body Mind they find the movement quite organic, not necessarily Centering’ approach, so it’s such a kind of marriage of simplistic, but it is like an expanded version of everyday those two things. Even after three years, we take class and movement. I think people recognise a flow in the movement there is still new information and new ways to think about or a length of the arm, but they might not recognise what doing an old movement. Russell makes us switch our exactly it is that’s special about it, and what’s different mindset and perform in a different way.
23 I have learnt a lot about openness to changing and letting Then we’ll go on to learning repertoire. If it’s new to us, or my body find new ways of moving. I think there’s a huge learning material off the video, we may develop material amount of performance skills we’ve learnt in the company or make corrections if we are comparing our movement without having a lesson in performance skills. Obviously, to the original cast. Later we’ll move onto the creation of having Russell performing alongside us until now has been new material based on an improvisation. We may revisit amazing. To learn from someone who is still actively doing what we’ve been working on in class. Improvisations are it, is super special and to see it in action whilst trying to filmed for Russell to look back at and see what he likes. discover that for yourself is special. He may begin editing and switching stuff about trying out formations or piecing sections together. We may be running We talk a lot about finding authentic emotion and things or concentrating on cleaning material. performance quality in the body shape rather than it being put on, so you’re never in ‘performance mode’. So finding I have found working with Russell that the cleaning process the place where even if you’re improvising by yourself in comes much nearer to the premiere of a work. From the the studio it’s got that quality is important, even if there beginning it’s more about play and experimenting, and this isn’t an audience present. It should always be present and continues up until the last minute when it becomes the final authentic. product.
I think in terms of techniques both Russell and Dana were Could you describe Russell’s choreographic process from classically trained and the movement is still quite classical your perspective? How does he introduce initial ideas? in terms of making beautiful lines. Other contemporary They are usually based around the anatomy or the body, dance companies are about breaking these lines down. but for The Rodin Project we used a huge number of visual Russell is committed to making beautiful lines but rather cues, books on sculpture and several documentaries about than using the classical technique to inhibit or make the Rodin. We all went to The Rodin Museum and saw the movement limited, he switches it and makes the technique sculptures and watercolours, this was a part of his process. allow a dancer to expand and grow with it. How does he develop and edit material? There’s a lot of emotion behind Russell’s abstract Russell usually edits work using film but he has used it less movement. When we’re in the studio and you see them in the creation of Conceal | Reveal to learn back material. (Dana and Russell) dance it’s incredible, to see them We used it more in Still Current. He usually films twenty moving their arm from A to B doing exactly the same minutes of improvisation and then he’ll cut that together movement as the other dancers but one looks great and the using Final Cut Pro and then we’ll learn the new material other doesn’t, it’s finding that quality, it’s a constant search! back. He can make an entire duet in this virtual world and then we will learn all the material back. Can you describe a typical day working with the company? A typical Conceal | Reveal creation day will begin at How does he prepare his dancers for a performance? the studio spending 20 minutes warming ourselves up, Russell emphasises breaking down the wall between the stretching etc. getting into our own bodies. Then we’ll join audience and the dancer, letting the audience really see together as a group and Russell will lead a one and a half what you are doing. Dana talks a lot about not putting hour warm up workshop focusing on a different aspect on a front or acting in anyway, just being present in what of body work or fascial lines and we’ll go really deeply you’re doing. The work evolves a lot during the tour so into one thing for 40 minutes or so working on it together. the performance always feels like we’re on our toes and Russell may be hands on with it and we’ll discuss what we it feels new. I can’t think of when something felt totally in feel about it. That will often lead directly into improvisation my body, as it’s always a different partner or a little step on that focus, and then playing with crossing the space, or that changes. Russell talks a lot about the importance of moving the body through space. seeing the thought process in a performer so if there’s an improvisation in a piece, to have the dancer on stage That will then lead onto a broader improvisation, maybe looking like they’re present and not on auto pilot. Therefore, revisiting things from an earlier rehearsal or adding onto everything is a conscious decision. material rather than loosing information. We’ll play with that for a while. We may improvise in contact work if we’re working on a piece with contact in it, such as Broken Fall.
24 Are there still improvised sections in his works? Russell works very collaboratively with Michael Hulls. Are These are minimal. When we premiered the duet Still you involved with this collaborative process at all? If so, in Current there was a whole improvised section of four what way? minutes, but by the final performance the whole piece was It’s kind of a blessing and a curse that I’ve worked with both set. So even when we’re performing a work it’s still part of of them, as the relationship between them has completely a process of always developing a piece. Maybe Russell shaped how I want to work myself. Even though there’s not doesn’t know what the final piece will be until it’s been a direct conversation between Michael with the dancers, performed for a while. the impact of the light on the body and the space and seeing that on video and seeing that on your colleagues How does he work when he is re-working an earlier piece? becomes totally part of the process for everyone. Finding Using Two as an example, you can put Dana, Sylvie and the light and shadow and how emotive light can be, is very myself doing exactly the same movement and we will all important. It shouldn’t be an afterthought; everyone in the look completely different. Russell lets the dancers go on company feels it is equal to the movement. their own journey with the piece knowing they are thinking about what he’s said, even if it looks completely different.
25 References
To complement the content of this resource pack, please find below further sites and sources providing additional information and interviews with regards to Russell Maliphant’s work, creative process and artistic collaborations.
Background and Training
Monahan, M. (2015). Russell Maliphant’s Conceal | Reveal, Sadler’s Wells, Review: an evening of dazzling physical poetry The Telegraph [online] Available at: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/dance/what-to-see/russell-maliphants-conceal-- reveal-sadlers-wells-review-an-eveni/
Barnett, L. (2008). Portrait of the Artist: Russell Maliphant, choreographer The Guardian [online] Available at: http://www.theguardian.com/stage/2008/mar/25/dance
Brannigan, E. (2001). Maliphant: shaping space with bodies and light. Real Time issue #41 pg. 26 Available at: http://www.realtimearts.net/article/issue41/5569
Constanti, S. (1996). Dance: Unspoken; The Place Theatre, London. The independent [online] Available at: http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/dance-unspoken-the-place-theatre-london-1342051.html
Craine, D. (2005) Dance: Guillem and Maliphant. The Times [online] Available at: http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/arts/ article2403114.ece
Drew, W. (2014). Still lines. Exeunt Magazine [online] Available at: http://exeuntmagazine.com/features/still-lines/
Hulls, M. and Maliphant, R. (2013). Body: Language talk – Michael Hulls and Russell Maliphant: Body Light.
Hulls, M. and Maliphant, R. (2015). Sadler’s Wells Conceal/Reveal Press Release [online] Available at: http://www.sadlerswells.com/press/press-releases/2015/09/conceal-reveal-russell-maliphant-company-sadlers- wells-26-28-november/
Hutera. D. (2003). Russell Maliphant. Dance Europe. December Issue.
Khan, M. (2014). Russell Maliphant Inspiring Artist. YAA; Interviewed by Maria Sascha Khan [online] You Tube Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mCJ5BhAah5c
Mackrell, J. (2012). Bring the poise: Russell Maliphant, Rodin and hip-hop. The Guardian [online] Available at: http://www.theguardian.com/stage/2012/feb/01/russell-maliphant-rodin-hip-hop
Mackrell, J. (2015). Russell Maliphant Company review – tripping in the light fantastic. The Guardian [online] Available at: http://www.theguardian.com/stage/2015/nov/27/russell-maliphant-company-conceal-reveal-sadlers-wells
26 References
Movement Language
Anderson, Z. (1995). Dance on the Fringe. Dancing Times. October issue
Brannigan, E. (2001). Maliphant: shaping spaces with bodies and light. [online] Real Time Issue no. 41 pg. 26 Available at: http://www.realtimearts.net/article/issue41/5569
Brown, I. (2014) Q&A: Michael Hulls. The Artsdesk [online] Available at: http://www.theartsdesk.com/dance/theartsdesk-qa-lighting-designer-michael-hulls
Craine, D. (1998). Bravery and beauty. The Times [online]
Keefe, M. (Archives: November 2014). The life-affirming dance of Russell Maliphant. [Online] The Joyce. Available at: http://www.joyce.org/2014/11/
Mackrell, J. (2012). Bring the poise: Russell Maliphant, Rodin and hip-hop. The Guardian [online] Available at: http://www.theguardian.com/stage/2012/feb/01/russell-maliphant-rodin-hip-hop
Maliphant, R. (2015) Choreographics Live Talk [online] Available at: http://www.ballet.org.uk
Seaver, M. (2014). Imaginative Maliphant Moves with the times. The Irish Times [online] Available at: http://www.irishtimes.com/culture/imaginative-maliphant-moves-with-the-times-1.1795512
27 References
Creative Process
Brown, I. (2014). Q&A: Michael Hulls. The Artsdesk [online] Available at: http://www.theartsdesk.com/dance/theartsdesk-qa-lighting-designer-michael-hulls
Clarke, A. (October, 2013). ‘Russell Maliphant moves dance out of the shadows into the light’ East Anglian Daily Times [online]. Available at: http://www.eadt.co.uk/home
Hulls, M. and Maliphant, R. (2013). Body: Language talk – Michael Hulls and Russell Maliphant: Body Light.
Joyce.org. (2014). ‘Still current: the creative process of Maliphant and Hulls’. [Online] Available at: http://www.joyce.org/still-current-the-creative-process-of-maliphant-and-hulls/
2015. Roy, S. (2009). Step by step guide to dance: Russell Maliphant’, The Guardian [online]. Available at: http://www.theguardian.com/stage/2009/jun/04/guide-dance-russell-maliphant
Michael Hulls
Brown, I. (2014) Q&A: Michael Hulls. The Artsdesk [online] Available at: http://www.theartsdesk.com/dance/theartsdesk-qa-lighting-designer-michael-hulls
Culture Whisper (2015) Conceal/reveal: Russell Maliphant Company. Available at: http://www.culturewhisper.com/event/view/id/5115
Hulls, M. and Maliphant, R. (2013). Body: Language talk – Michael Hulls and Russell Maliphant: Body Light.
Sadler’s Well’s website (2015) Michael Hulls Associate Artist. Available at: http://www.sadlerswells.com/about-us/people/associate-artists/michael-hulls/
Design — Andrew Lang www.anglepd.co.uk
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