For people who can't get access to dance, choreographer Cathy O'Kennedy has devised an innovative programme: she brings dance to them. F.L.EX., 'a shopping basket of events', opens this week in Co Mayo
Dancer and choreographer Cathy O'Kennedy likes to travel light, but this in no way means she is a lightweight. As in Far Eastern philosophy, which recommends light things should be treated as weighty, heavy things with levity, O'Kennedy has put together an innovative programme that fits in her carry-on luggage - but its true scope far outstretches its simple appearance.
O'Kennedy has been dance artist in residence with Kildare Co Council for nearly three years, and has used that experience to put together F.L.EX: the Fluxusdance Local Experience. This programme, tailor-made for bringing dance "into the regions" of Ireland, will premiere in Castlebar, Co Mayo this week.
Well aware of this art form's status in Ireland as poor cousin to theatre, dance professionals spend much of their creative energy developing concepts of promoting dance, making it more attractive and accessible. This requires some ingenuity: as the least-noticed of the performing arts, its audiences - and consequently, box office draws - are smaller; funding is very limited, as are suitable performance venues. Most companies are relatively small and Dublin-based; the areas outside Dublin have greatly reduced access to dance performances and workshops.
Many professionals dedicated to their art have put much time and energy into promoting dance and helping those interested - especially young people - find their way into it. CoisCeim's Ezimotion programme, for example, under development manager Jak Ahluwalia, has travelled round the country to give students a chance to acquaint themselves with the basic concepts of dance, and to let them have a go at it with the help of local tutors and members of the CoisCeim company. Ezimotion, offered free of charge, leads young people through a three-step programme, through which they will finally choreograph, perform and record their own work. Irish Modern Dance Theatre in Dublin and the Institute of Choreography and Dance, at the Firkin Crane in Cork, offer a variety of classes and workshops, and Waterford Youth Drama has also provided opportunities for young dancers under the tutelage of Libby Seward, producing Ripples in Time earlier this year.
In Wexford, Deirdre Grant, artistic director of Myriad Dance Company, has worked with children, producing the Pulse! dance project, showcased during their Celebration of Dance Day last May. O'Kennedy, from Wexford, also administered programmes there as well as in Waterford, before taking on her role in Kildare. Her concept takes a new twist on local projects and workshops: with FLEX, O'Kennedy offers arts offices and communities around the country "a shopping basket of events", as she describes it, a selection of short dance pieces as well as workshop and seminar possibilities with Fluxusdance.
Having produced many dance programmes, her own as well as those of others, O'Kennedy understands the pitfalls and difficulties of touring and staging. F.L.EX "moves away from the established pattern of how dance companies work", she says. "Over the last three years, I've developed a lot of short pieces: solos, duets, trios. I have no interest in really big theatre pieces. A 20-minute production would be a big piece for me to make." With these shorter items, she says she can offer a more flexible programme.
The package O'Kennedy presents to arts councils allows them, in conjunction with her, to negotiate and put together exactly the kind of programme they'd like implemented in their community. For the inaugural production of F.L.EX in Castlebar, says Sally O'Leary, assistant arts officer for Mayo Co Council, they wanted to offer a creative dance weekend. A questionnaire sent out to ascertain interest returned with an "overwhelming" response.
"We were looking for a programme that could cater to the county's needs and wishes," O'Leary says. "This was something new from our perspective. It can cover as many audiences as possible within a short period of time and build up interest within the area as well. People are coming from all over the county to take part in the programme."
O'Kennedy assembled a programme with weekday events for schools and weekend workshops for the general public. In addition, she scheduled Time in Motion for a children's performance - a piece which echoes the F.LEX. concept in that its first principle was "everything we use had to fit in a shopping basket". Sparing use of elaborate props and lighting equipment means her pieces travel easily and the focus is on the choreography.
"Of course, I would love to be able to spend lots and lots on my work. When I make a new piece, I'm like a lover. I want to give it presents, dress it up, I'm always tempted to spend more than I have." But, in the end - as in human relationships - this strangles the essence of creativity and development. "If a piece communicates, then the job is done. If it depends on huge theatrical input, then the choreographer hasn't really done the job."
STRIPPING away theatrical paraphernalia to concentrate on the purity of choreography and dance benefits the programme additionally in broadening the choice of venues in which to perform. Many areas around the country lack proper venues for dance performances. The less extraneous equipment required, the easier a piece can travel and appear in unconventional performance spaces. "Personally, I much prefer this kind of challenge," O'Kennedy says. "It's almost too easy to go into a theatre."
As the highlight of the F.L.EX programme next weekend, Fluxusdance will perform Made In Kildare, a production composed of three individual pieces. These demonstrate a further asset of F.L.EX: the ability to make performances relevant to regional audiences. One of the pieces, Bridie, based on the story of St Brigid, "can be translated into either pagan or Christian traditions", depending on local history and legend. Another, You Can't Kill a Button, focuses on phobias and irrational fears. O'Kennedy hopes "people will speak on local radio about their phobias", the recording of which will form part of the soundscape to the piece. "We'll have a local score, which will change with every performance. It will have a bit of the radio interview in it."
The last of the three pieces, Morphic Fields, concerns the theory of collective energy. Something like Jung's concept of the collective unconscious, this theory postulates that "knowledge is passed on by a collective energy", says O'Kennedy. "People don't have to be in the same place for the same energy to move them. Because it's an energy-based thing, it's a great subject for dance." The combination of all these aspects and elements, says O'Kennedy, offer audiences "a way into the work".
She has presented her "shopping basket of events" to arts officers around the country, who have shown great interest. "People over the years have called me up for advice on dance programmes: 'You've worked as dancer and choreographer in residence, what would you recommend?' I ask them, 'What do you want? A choreographer, a dancer, a teacher, an animateur?' I prefer the word 'animateur' - someone who 'animates'. You can animate as a choreographer, a teacher, a promoter - most areas need an animateur, someone who will animate dance at all levels".
And, with F.L.EX, "a little capsule of what a dance programme can be", O'Kennedy sets out to do just that.
F.L.EX. runs from Wednesday to Sunday, with children's workshops Wednesday-Friday, workshops for 14+ on Saturday and Sunday. Fluxusdance performs Made In Kildare Saturday at 8.30 p.m. at the Linenhall Arts Centre. All events free, but booking essential, tel: 094-24444
