14th Dec Doorways, UCF, Andy's photos

So here again,
with a link to Andy's photos and a few i couldn't resist- they are all lovely and we are so grateful for his time, support and talents. Andy's enthusiasm and sharing is infectious and we all enjoy it when he works with us.

we don't have many images of this piece, Duane continues to surprise us!

this epitomises for me what i love about improvisation and the way we work - those of you who know the piece know  Katherine sits on Duane's knee at the end, but apparently they decided to change it that night!

many photos on;
http://www.flickr.com/photos/fezparker/

Also thanks to Tim and Colin for the Tea Dance, a really enjoyable event, it was a pleasure just to turn up without any more than family responsibilities.

Happy Christmas

Will this be the final holidays blog?

Well today i hope to go and enjoy the Tea Dance in Penzance this afternoon.

 I found some old photos to end the year with, Snapshots below ....

but if Andy or Jem come up with recent Doorways photos i may have to blog them.....however we all need a break even from a good thing, time to recharge .....

A chance to share a nice email from Terry Stanton our chair person; 

"I just wanted to say thank you to .. all the other performers for a wonderful experience that got better every time I watched. On each occasion I saw something different. I loved it and watching each performance reaffirms my commitment as to why I am involved in and with Shallal. I know I've talked about family before but that's what Shallal it is for me, its more than just the performance. Friday ( Doorways at UCF) was the Shallal equivalent of Christmas Day, with all the family gathering and enjoying each others company; for the sheer joy of being together, each of us bringing the gift of ourselves and our friendship.

It was also good also to see some new faces in the main company, each person adding a new dimension in their movement and character.

......... please pass my thanks to all involved in the performance. I look forward to 2013 to see what the next theme will be and where it will take us.
Have a lovely Christmas and New Year
Best wishes to you and your families."

Terry Stanton

we are very grateful to Terry and all our trustees..as you can see from below he is very busy!

Projects and Services
Volunteer Cornwall
CaSS - Community and Support Service.
Cornwall Council Learning Disabilities
(Partners in Changing Lives - shaping services around individuals & communities)

Snapshots: a nice funding meeting....

The nearest we get to an office! we all laughed at all the laptops! kitchen table meetings, the only sort..
with tea and cake!
A busy day when forward plans were hatched in the morning with Barbara (left) and Rory, building on a company feedback session. Laura ( right ) came in the afternoon to finish a Studios bid.
 Luke is clearly better on laptops than me, as he is 5 ( 4 in photo).
Peter is my supportive and very long suffering husband- fortunately we worked together in a weekly dance /movement group for people with high support needs for many years, many years ago! so he understands it all - and my approach to creating work is very much based on watching him paint
( abstract painting in background ) so a chance to Thank him for all his support for all these years!

  Some of the main company;

i may have blogged this before! but you can see our faces, unlike the next one!

 All of us including backstage, new faces etc;

i know it's blurred... sorry... i am still so fed up it moved, (wrong shutter speed, our friend has analysed) but, wanted to just show it... play "try to spot the person," if you know us..i think we were all there that day, which is why i'm so attached to this blurred photo!- we have grown recently. New Year resolution - to get a clear photos of us all.

Colin, Tina, Toby, Star, Elaine, Tina, Arran, Skye, Sam, Duane, Eleanor, Daniela, Michael, Katie, Lauren, Rory, me, Trevor, Kerry, Demelza, Katherine, Jessie and Flo, Marjorie, Elaine, Katie, Debs, Anna, Ollie, Giles, Lydia, Zoe....

Sammy is back helping us when she can.

Thanks to Diana, and all our partners and supporters, especially Barbara Santi, Andy Parker, Rory - for all the extra time he's given,  Colin at the Acorn, Lucy" Lights", Dot, UCF and the old and new people in Shallal 2 and all the groups.

Wishing you a Happy Christmas!

Andy rehearsal photos 9th Dec

I will blog soon about the show which went well and we have some interesting and insightful reviews from our audience. Yesterday was our Christmas Tea Party. Andy passed me some photos on Friday night, so this sleepy morning at home, with toooo many laptops on the table, Nigel, friend /writer /photographer, Mary back from university and Anna - who likes some of the new photos and Michael on ipad! I thought i'd join in and look at them, many to choose from..... but here's a selection!
i am so indecisive! so there are lot more, but this is done quickly...

kicking Colin..warm up beginning, hard to stop everyone chatting!

Colin and Giles

the girls!
Demelza, Anna, Ollie, Skye

Katie is trying out with us and she and Debs have worked before in Penryn group

Lydia has recently joined us and is Eleanor's house mate

giggles again
Debs, Kerry and Star

Anna

Duane in flight!

followed by Sam!

giggles again Duane made Zoe laugh!

Anna
I am really pleased with how Anna and Skye, 12 and 13,  have progressed and developed their work over the past 2 years, many children loose their spontanaeity and become too self concious, and they have successfully made the transition into the next phase of dance and performance, broadening and strengthening their work as they grow up.

floating off the floor!

Zoe gets a chance to stand in and use the white veils.

Demelza who has recently joined us, with Giles

Katherine and Duane

next day;
also whilst having a break from work..researched a contact Laura gave me some time ago...
epic arts
www.epicarts.org.uk/index.php/page/show/1
worth a look !

Doorways this Friday and Tea Dance 21st December

Don't forget Doorways this Friday 14th December at The Performance Centre,  Tremough Campus, Penryn, UCF, FREE and mince pies too!

Early notice of a lovely event (following on from the successful Golowan Tea Dance at The Exchange in the summer), organised again by Tim Boulton with entertaining friends, tea, mince pies and cake! some of Shallal will be popping up again to dance, along with Echoes and more!

Workshops and Free Performance

Seasons Greetings!

Just a reminder of an exciting week with Shallal next week;

 

Starting with Inclusive Dance Theatre Workshops on Monday 10th December and ending in a Free Show on Friday 14th December, bring your family and friends,

this is the last chance to see Doorways - highlights from the summer site specific performances.

 

All hosted by The Performance Centre, Tremough Campus, UCF, Penryn.

see below for details;

Thanks to Rory for all his lovely design work for us and to

Monkey Puzzle Repro Art - Printers - Porthtowan, Cornwall

www.monkeypuzzleart.co.uk/

Friends and Dancing

Thanks to our funders The People's Health Trust, we have been able to invite Andy Parker to come and take some photographs of Friends and Dancing, here is the link;

http://www.fezparkerphotography.com/portfolio289818p2.html
This is a wonderful group and we have fun! as you can see.
Last week there were 28 of us, but a few were away, there are at least 30 on our register...
The group is run in a very open improvisational manner nowadays, which best suits peoples confidence, experience and needs.
The works spans the breadth of what dance can offer from, exercise, to stretching, fitness, posture, relaxation, to play, meeting and engaging with others at a fun, playful, non verbal level, trust, depth of communication and feeling, taking risks, experimenting, to self expression, choreography, entertainment and art.

Peter and Georgia

Debbie, Yvonne, Hayley and Lucy

Debbie and Lee

Diane and Lucy

Andrew with Jane in background

Jessie, Giles and Lauren
who are all also in the main co

Great to have Andy back with us more, he really captures the work and the relationships wthin it.

Shallal Studio 4th Dec

Zoe's 4th and last piece of work in a very productive day - a collage of a burning house.

Zoe's 2nd painting on a small piece of board in watered down acrylic

Zoe's 1st painting of the day acrylic on canvas - 'blue'

A big canvas by Sam - a Christmas tree in his garden including the stream a red hen and his ginger cat

Zoe's 3rd work today - a pastel drawing on an off cut of handmade Indian paper - 'bush fire'

A working drawing by Toby of a hill top community

Launceston

So here we are  back from our forray to the near borders, on the way there Lauren said she'd never been to Launceston and Lucy ( Lights)  who has spent the last seven weeks living and working at Eden  said "I've never been here, it's very near Devon!"( I need to add Lucy is a traveller, off for summer sun in New Zealand soon.) Anyway we all found it fast and well, and thank you to Launceston Town Hall a highly recommended venue, spacious, comfortable, helpful, .....we would like to return. We started the show with a loyal audience and having been the recepient of Frantic theatre's small shows for sitting rooms etc - highly recommended - www.frantictheatre.com - I have no worry about size of audience "Quality not Quantity" and the performers love what they do, however 10 mins in we were pleased to have many of Access Theatre and their friends join us, which is what we had hoped for. ~So time to meet and chat in the interval and afterwards. Next time we come they said they will spread the word.
Thanks to Sammy who came to be an extra pair of hands, thanks to Lucy for putting up with us and the extra levels of chaos Shallal can provide!!! i had forgotten to find someone to press projection buttons so did it myself - badly -....however with help from Fred and friend who had set the lights etc all went reasonably well. I wear too many hats and old age doesn't help the memory ..anyway.... apologies, and .... 
Thank you to all and well done...
I am always impressed by Shallal, I can forget how much attention we need to focus and I am then amazed by the generousity of everyone involved. Many lovely images from the day, especially of the young "uns" and young at heart! sliding over the long smooth floor at the end.
Thank you to trustee Anne Mackay and her family, and Sammy for doing front of house and hospitality. Jem has taken some photos on his iphone so we may get some images.

Here is some feedback;
(more to come soon from Access members)

Delighted & inspired.
I love the range of dance & movement, poetry, music, song, costumes, lighting.
Ray Bowler

Most enjoyable and touching, would have been great to have had a larger audience. I guess Shallal doesn't have a reputation in this area.
The balance between choreography and improvisation the "play" alive.
Loved the singing, the duets, being audience to human "beings" getting their needs for touch, caring, movement, validation and more is a pure joy - heart to heart.
Thank you.
Franki Anderson 
www.frankianderson.co.uk

And well done and welcome to Lydia, Lauren, Daniela and Arran - their first show with us, and to Anna who stood in for Jessie's solo, 12 and her first solo not ever choosing/wanting to do one.( Mum talking here.)

Mousehole photos from Barbara Santi

Busy putting in applications and asked Barbara Santi for some photographs from Mousehole, so here they are a lovely memory of the day. Thank you Barbara.

Went out on Monday to funding information day and met Anna from ACE conference again, old friends and aquaintances and some lovely new contacts.

Time to look at planning; winter is a time for dreaming and scheming, hatching new ideas and connections.

This wonderful old doorway, once the Keigwin Arms, Dolly Pentreath's local, thank you to the present owners for allowing us to use it twice on the day.