Inclusive Creative Practise day

Big thank you to Mark Smith, we all so enjoyed his workshop and presentation with questions and answers session. 

For me it was a real buzz to see so many people from cross communities at the sessions, so; Miles from Shallal 2, 5 members of the main company, 4 local dance teaching professionals, 5 students, trainee dance therapist, Amy from Sense, 3 friends from the local deaf community with a friend who had travelled down from Plymouth, and more. I haven't corollated all the information gathered yesterday and was having such a good time I only paused to count occasionally but the numbers were around 20 for the whole day, which was fantastic especially as it was a moveable feast with people coming and going and many more saying they would like to have been there.
Mark presented a fun, up tempo workshop with joy and warmth, with clear insights into his choreography created for the Para Olympic opening ceremony. The insights into his creative practise included signing into choreography, which helped answer a lot of our questions within our ongoing exploration. Friends in the deaf community thought it was very beautiful! 

So big thank you also to The Performance Centre for their usual hospitality which gives a sense of occasion and care to the event. Their new cafe sits easily within the space and the service was warm and friendly. Thank you to Tamsin who's enthusiasm and support for new ideas allowed this to happen,  to Jono who sorted out our technical needs, and to Feast for funding the afternoon Inclusion session with Debbie. Debbie is one of the people who has taught me the most over the past few years and I am constantly, gratefully challenged, by her vision and knowledge around inclusion, as I was by our first administrator Diana Morris many years ago.

So a full week, I enjoyed supporting Daniela at the new Helston Open House group on Tuesday - Colin was away. For me the work is all about people and I met an old friend Andrew Battersby, we worked together in 3 different settings over many years. I always remember his incredible performance with skeletal bird wings and Linda Williamson in Shallal, he gave me a beautiful pastel drawing and has a wonderful, quirky, sense of humour and narrative. We are about the same age, I really don't think of age, but Andrew is now more frail and I was very moved to see him again, and I wish there had been more opportunities and support to showcase and share his talents.

Many lovely and inspiring people at the event yesterday they each could have a paragraph and I am reminded of a beautiful exhibition we saw in Oxford years ago, "Everyone's life is an Epic", huge black and white portraits, soundtrack etc.

It is good to remember the people who create ideas and opportunities, which then grow within the work and vision and it is thanks to: Demelza's love of Sign Language, which rapidly spread within the main company ( the friends from the deaf community included our teachers!) and to a creative conversation with Debbie Harvey over lunch that Mark Smith came to visit. We really hope we may see him back here again.

So onto today, Singing workshop, (fun!) led by Vicky and Mary, thanks to Kneehigh Connections for this. Some of our singers are sadly away and disappointed, but it will be good to see everyone sing and see how we get on! Then a busy afternoon with a meeting with Jo Mayes and David Greaves planning for our new project which will be officially announced on the 25th!!
 Lovely art work to continue from last week, new "covering" plans for The Studio and a trip to St Ives to organise. And most importantly 3 or 4 birthdays to celebrate, so I am off to buy cake! Our chickens who get their occasional mention in this blog haven't laid enough eggs from me to bake this morning!