Stray fragments of conversation as we get ready for our premiere in San Francisco at the Fort Mason Firehouse July 16-17:

1. We have said from the start that breath is intrinsic to dance; but what we are discovering is how easily moving our bodies can overwhelm the movement of breathing. For example, Dan the  composer for the piece pointed out regarding an experiment when we slammed our torsos against a wall to provoke exhalation: “the thump of your body can be much louder than your breath.” So the trick is to figure out how to keep the breath primary, and then how to communicate to the audience this alternate way of attending to a dancing body.
2. Ben, the interaction designer, is now working with three data sources for the show’s visualizations based on the breath sensors. The first is the interactive visualizations that are based entirely on the dancer’s live breath in real time. The second is data that is captured from live breathing during the show but remixed to form an additive image that accumulates over time. The third is a live breath from the prior run of a dance section that is captured, saved, time-shifted, and then reused later in the same performance.
3. The performance is currently broken down into two types of “curios”: longer, more developed sections, which could be considered concrete “breath choreographies/objects,” and then “fragments” that are shorter investigative events. The curio fragments are based on singular breath tasks or tests: what happens if you breathe fast and move slow at the same time or vice versa? Can you choreograph inhalations and exhalations the way you choreograph movement? Can you move, breathe, and tell a story at the same time while keeping all three on separate tracks? What are the breath events that happen between language?
4. Each of the 12 catalogue entries that make up this particular show need to be unique enough to open different drawers of possibilities in the cabinet of breath curiosities, but cohesive enough to together build and sustain an evening of performance. We are mourning eliminating some breath ideas at this late date. At the same time, not displaying these curios now means that the catalogue will continue to grow outside the constraints of this specific performance. Given the right opportunity, these drawers can be opened and shared as we continue to collect and catalogue new material in the future.
5. We now accept that our breath is directly connected to the visualizations, albeit in ways particular to each section. However, as we move toward the performance and refine the specificities of the various breath events, we are also reminded what it is like not to know or assume this connection, and to instead be in a landscape of discovery.

Looking forward to sharing with you next week!