Shadows

Question 1

Choreographer

Answer 1

Christopher Bruce

Question 2

Company

Answer 2

Phoenix Dance Theatre

Question 3

Dance style

Answer 3

Modern Dance Technique. Combination of classical and contemporary dance language.
Styles express themes shown in the work

Question 4

Starting Point/Stimulus

Answer 4

Arvo Pärt’s ‘Fratres’ for violin and piano was the starting point.

Question 5

Choreographic Intention/Theme

Answer 5

A political message, inviting the audience into the world of a family coming to terms with deprivation, poverty and what is waiting beyond the door.
Family waiting to get their call to camp
Horrors of Eastern Europe in WW2 - also other conflicts context

Question 6

Dancers

Answer 6

4
2 x M
2 x F

Question 7

Choreographic approach

Answer 7

Bruce does not prepare movement in advance - preferring to be influenced by and weak with the dancers

Question 8

Structure

Answer 8

Semi-narrative. Each character has their own moment → solo or duet

Question 9

Aural Composer and Overview

Answer 9

Eastern European music → about their history + culture
minimalistic
steeped in human suffering
Arvo Pärt → Fratres.
Wanted dance + music to link directly

Aural composer and overview of ‘Shadows’

Question 10

Costume designer and overview

Answer 10

1930s-40s era
Traditional + old — clearly gendered
Plain + simple - worn out + dull — muted colours = war
Mother = floral dress — muted colours + patterns
Children at end — coats too big
Father = formal shirts + waistcoat
Daughter = pleated skirt + white blouse

Question 11

Lighting designer and overview

Answer 11

Metaphorical or literal shadow — pass by
Symbolising danger + fear
Lighting obscured as though someone walks infront
Side lights
Downstage bright

Question 12

Performance environment

Answer 12

Atmosphere created
Audience engaged in atmosphere
To be interpreted however

Question 13

Set designer + staging

Answer 13

Table
Bench
2x stools

Upstage left props as well

Hat stand with clothing
Luggage for end

Question 14

Shadows link staging/set to stimulus

Answer 14

Family: four seats, the stools are higher for the children
Poverty: minimal furnishings in kitchen - table + stools are wooden and basic
Fear of what lies outside: table dragged towards downstage right, tipped over and used as barricade by son in front of imaginary door + son hides behind it

Question 15

Shadows link staging/set to lighting

Answer 15

Black box set enables white side lighting to stand out and create shadow
Shaft of light is clearly visible on black floor in son’s solo
Simplicity of set, lacking colour mirrors simple shite sidelighting

Question 16

Shadows link staging/set to location

Answer 16

Furnishings suggest a family home

Question 17

Shadows link staging/set to mood

Answer 17

Black box set and minimal furniture create a tense, sad mood

Question 18

Shadows link staging/set to era

Answer 18

Coat stand is a traditional item and suggests a bygone era

Question 19

Shadows link staging/set to movement

Answer 19

Table is used to stand on and lie on to create different levels, tab,e is placed far upstage to give dancers room to move

Question 20

Shadows link costume to stimulus

Answer 20

Poverty: muted, faded colours suggest clothing is old and tired. Cotton fabric suggests low status. Rolled up sleeves of men suggest manual labour
Oversized coats at end suggest hand-me-downs/can’t afford clothes that fit

Question 21

Shadows link costume to age

Answer 21

Mother’s hair in a bun + floral tea dress suggests maturity.
Daughters hair in ponytail suggests youth.
Father has shirt neatly tucked in and a traditional waistcoat suggesting he is older than other male dancer
Suggests family (stimulus)

Question 22

Shadows link costume to era

Answer 22

Mother’s dress is 1940s design due to the puffed shoulders, fitted waist, flared skirt and floral design

Question 23

Shadows link costume to gender

Answer 23

Gender specific: dress, skirt, trousers

Question 24

Shadows link costume to location

Answer 24

Cotton fabrics + pastel colours, with collarless shirts and a waistcoat are typical of 1940s Eastern European rural clothing

Question 25

Shadows link costume to movement

Answer 25

Flared skirts allow for ease of movement and also add to flow of movement when dancers turn

Question 26

Shadows link lighting to stimulus

Answer 26

Poverty: lighting lacks colour and is low intensity, supporting the idea that family have very little as they wait in darkness Fear: white sidelighting creates a mood of tension, mystery and anxiety, supporting the idea of fear

Question 27

Shadows link lighting to set

Answer 27

The lighting helps to create the illusion of a door downstage right. Offstage white sidelights at low level throws a bean across the floor, suggesting back door is open

Question 28

Shadows link lighting to mood

Answer 28

Dark and sinister, the lighting drops to very low intensity at the end, leaving dancers in silhouette. Creates a sombre, poignant mood

Question 29

Shadows link lighting to pathways

Answer 29

Beam of light in son’s solo creates a pathway for him to dance along from DSR to USL

Question 30

Shadows link lighting to narrative

Answer 30

Lighting helps to tell the story eg door has opened for sons solo, low lighting at the end symbolic of the family meeting their fate Coat stand is not lit until the very end, when it appears the story is moved forward as the family get ready to leave

Question 31

Shadows link lighting to highlights dancers

Answer 31

Spotlight on family at table at start, sidelighting sculpts body

Question 32

Shadows link aural setting to stimulus

Answer 32

Fear: music is in a minor key which sets an ominous tone for work Violin plays rapid, agitated, shrieking notes when children perform, which suggest anxiety and fear, sometimes anger. Parents perform to calmer music, suggesting they are maintaining control. All this hints at family.

Question 33

Shadows link aural setting to mood

Answer 33

Variety of moods Daughter: fear, anxiety, terror Mother/father duet: calm, romantic, peaceful in 1st half but then anxious in 2nd Son = anger

Question 34

Shadows link aural setting to structure

Answer 34

Music varies for each section although main theme returns developed each time Low piano notes end each section and mark a section change

Question 35

Shadows link aural setting to character

Answer 35

Dynamic of each section supports each character. Anxious and angry for children help to show they are young, whilst calmer and more controlled for the parents helps to show they are handling situation as adults

Question 36

Shadows link aural setting to movement

Answer 36

Distant relationship at end when family get ready to leave Close relationship at other times: eg daughter works closely with rapid dynamic and erratic melody as she shifts direction this way and that. Son works with the pauses in his solo to hold positions

Question 37

Shadows link props to stimulus

Answer 37

Family: one item of luggage per family member Poverty: suitcases are old and battered

Question 38

Shadows link props to era

Answer 38

Suitcases are old fashioned brown leather, possibly 1940s

Question 39

Shadows link props to narrative

Answer 39

Suitcases are vital for understanding that family are leaving. Holocaust Jews were permitted one item of luggage per person

Question 40

Shadows link number/gender of dancers to stimulus

Answer 40

Family: gender is important for creating a family and number is important for understanding this is a small family not an extended one Also important to understanding relationships between family members

Question 41

Shadows link number/gender of dancers to structure

Answer 41

Each section has different number of dancers: solo, trio, duet, solo, solo, duet, quartet - important for seeing emotions of each family member as dance progresses - link to character Movement ends as it began with all four dancers seated around table