Review of progress in 'Dancing on the street' - a Kathak Dance project for Units 13 and 14

The physical skills 

Posture and Alignment 

• Good posture and alignment is where all parts of the body are relating to each other in a safe and efficient way, either standing, sitting, lying down or in motion. This ensures the safety of the body. This skill is applied in the dance as we are required to stand in a specific way, with out knees bent, feet turned out, and our backs straight - this is a fundamental aspect of Kathak which must be executed correctly and precisely to create triangular shapes.

• I believe I apply this skill successfully in the dance. As you can see, I demonstrate the correct triangular Kathak stance yet my back remains straight, and also my knees are correctly and safely aligned with my toes despite both being turned out. Even as I am looking down in the first photo, I am not slouching and I keep my spine extended. In the second photo, my upper body and lower body are detached, so despite being knelt down with my legs bent, my spine remains correctly aligned and straight.
• To further develop this skill, I believe I could apply this skill not only in the still movements but also as I am moving, such as during Chakkars or as I am walking. 
• By the spotlight performance on the 14th of June, I would like to be able to successfully perform a Chakkar with accurate posture and alignment - such as keeping my back straight, my shoulders back, my knees bent and aligned with my feet safely, and my neck extended. I will achieve this through asking a friend to watch me execute the movement and give me tips on how to improve my posture. 

Coordination 

• For this section of the dance, good coordination skills are required as you just simultaneously think about your feet, arms, head, eyeline, bols, and posture- and the movements are extremely fast and precise. Coordination is where you enable different parts of the body to work together well and are able to focus on more than one movement at a time.
• I believe I demonstrate this skill successfully. I keep good hand-eye coordination which is a key element of Kathak, meaning my eyes follow where my hands go precisely and accurately. I also demonstrate good Tatkars (footwork) which must happen at the same time as the arm movements and therefore require focus and good coordination. Despite the fast rhythm I am able to focus on all of the elements successfully. 
• To further develop, I want to become even more confident in my coordination so I can stretch my arms further and carry out each movement more purposefully and strongly. My focus is mostly drawn to ensuring my coordination is correct, so I want that aspect to become almost like second nature so I can focus on making each movement the best that it can be.
• I'd like to achieve this by Spotlight, and I will do so by practicing additionally outside of lesson time, such as at lunchtime or at home, as well as in the lesson. This way it will hopefully become muscle memory. 

Balance

• Balance is the ability to hold and control your body weight evenly at a supported point. It is applied in this dance as we must shift all of our weight onto one leg and hold it there while simultaneously focusing on our arm positioning and eyeline. 
• I believe I demonstrate this skill successfully as I am holding the position still and confidently and my arms and eyeline are accurate. My back is straight and I am not tilting or wobbling in any way. 
• However while executing I am quite tense and rigid as all of my focus is on remaining still and balanced, and therefore I do not convey meaning or facial expressions and could come across quite awkward and stressed to an audience, so to further develop this skill I want to be able to relax into it more and be more fluid, flexible and versatile when it comes to balance. 
• I want to achieve this by Spotlight, and I will do this through using a mirror. I will balance in front of a mirror each time I practise and analyse how I could convey emotion, meaning, and relax more to look less stiff. 

Strength

• The physical skill of strength allows you to withstand force and pressure and endure/ push back against resistance. It relies mainly on muscles and is required and applied in this dance as we must keep our knees bent for long periods of time throughout the whole piece, specifically in greeting and rhythmic sequences. This is a crucial element of Kathak which requires good strength in our legs and thighs in order to sustain the stance.
• I believe I demonstrate this well as I do not straighten my legs unless the dance permits it, and even if it feels uncomfortable I am able to keep my legs bent in a strong triangular position for long durations.
• To improve however, I could definition bend my knees even lower and sink down more to create a deeper and more exaggerated diamond with my legs which is the aim in Kathak
• By Spotlight I want to be able to sit in a deep plie and sustain it accurately without having to straighten my legs or weaken the position - to achieve this I will need to practice the stance regularly and in front of a mirror or a friend to ensure my position remains strong and doesn't falter. 

Stamina

• Stamina is the ability to endure and sustain physical activity in terms of your muscle and your cardio vascular system. There are multiple moments in the dance where speed and effort is required, such as the chakkars or the rhythmic sequence, and therefore stamina is needed to ensure we can execute the dance energetically without becoming breathless or sloppy
• I believe I demonstrate stamina fairly accurately, because as the dance goes on and I get more tired, my bols and enunciation still remain loud and precise and do not falter
• However my movements do look slightly slopping, particularly the chakkars, as I do not acquire the speed needed to execute the movement accurately in the Kathak style, and this is because I'm slightly tired and breathless
• My target is to, at the Spotlight performance, perform every single move with 100% effort and accuracy and to do this I will need to enhance my stamina to ensure I do not become breathless or tired as easily. To achieve this goal I will record myself performing particularly tiring moves such as Chakkars and analyse how successful I am and how I can improve. I will do this multiple times to assess how my stamina improves through time and practice. 

Flexibility 

• Flexibility is the range of movement at a joint. This section of the dance required flexibility in the legs, hips and ankles as we must sink into a very deep plie to convey the meaning of "from the earth to the sky" (the movement mimicking us touching the earth)
• I demonstrate this skill partially successfully as I show flexibility in my legs as I stretch down as far as possible
•  To improve I want to bend my knees and use my hips to turn out and deepen the plie while keeping my back straight because right now my back is bending and doing most of the work which is not accurate to the Kathak style. 
• To have this movement improved by Spotlight I will do stretches targeting my legs and my hip flexors to ensure the greatest range of movements at each specific joint. 

The performance skills 

Projection of intention

• Projection is where you emotionally connect with the piece and its intention and apply it to your movement. In this section of the dance we must apply this skill through our understanding of the meaning and intention behind what we are saying and how we can convey this. It is a detailed and important story and it is crucial that we successfully deliver its meaning and intention.
• I believe I apply this skill successfully. There are many poignant moments in the story, particularly the harsher parts such as 'punctures' and 'neat rows' which must be conveyed with urgency and power which I believe I do well. I also demonstrate meaning through mudras and adding expressive intonation to my narration.
• To improve I would like to incorporate facial expressions to show myself connecting emotionally with the story. I would also like to add more enthusiasm to my voice, because while my tone varies accurately it still sounds flat and dull which creates a disconnect between myself and the material. 
• I would like to have added more emotion and personality to my performance by Spotlight on June 14th, and to achieve this I am going to make notes of the meanings of every line in relation to its movement. I will mark it through while focusing solely on meaning and rather than worrying about the movements too much I will mainly consider the story and Sita as a character - such as her intentions, her emotions and her feelings. 

Communication of meaning 

• Good communication allows meaning to be conveyed to the audience. In these sections we are communicating meaning through narration, movements and mudras. For example in paragraph one we use mudras for words such as "noisy" "windows" "rupees" and "taxis" to captivate and engage the audience, as well as using exciting and enthusiastic narration to capture the idea of storytelling, which is what Kathak is all about. 
• I believe I demonstrate these aspects well. Throughout I use expressive narration with varying intonation. I also successfully use mudras alongside each word, keeping my hand-eye coordination and ensuring my vocal tone fits with the movement. 
• To improve and develop I'd like to focus on adding more energy to both my movements and my voice. I am doing everything correctly yet I am thinking more about the movements and words themselves than the actual story. In doing this I am slightly robotic in my movements and my narration is engaging but lacks life and energy. I'd also like to incorporate facial expressions.
• To achieve this by Spotlight I will perform to a friend and also in front of a mirror to be able to reflect on my performance and how I can communicate more clearly and engage the audience.

Facial expressions

• In this clip I demonstrate a few subtle facial expressions to accompany the movements and narration, such as raising my eyebrows and smiling. 
• I am fairly successful as the expressions are there, but they are far too subtle and can't be seen from far away. 
• To develop I want to exaggerate each expression and also make each expression more intentional and decisive rather than an afterthought. 
• To achieve this I will perform to someone or a mirror but pretend I am performing to a really young child, that way my expressions will automatically become much more engaging and exciting and will feel much more natural - and I will become less stoic and tense!

Focus

• Having good focus is to ensure your eyeline is in the correct place. In Kathak your eyes must follow your hands. In the first fast rhythmic section, the skill of focus is applied as we must move our arms extremely quickly, ensuring our eyes follow them accurately. In the slower section the movements are very detailed and exaggerated and my eyes must follow my arms at all times, otherwise it is very noticeable.
• I believe I demonstrate this skill well, even in the faster section my focus remains solely on my hands and as you can see in the slower part, my eyes and head accurately follow my arm as I reach up and then to the side. 
• An area I need develop is the faster section, because while I am moving my head and focus accurately, the action is quite harsh and sharp and rather than following my hand smoothly as it travels, I just move my head to the side which isn't accurate to Kathak technique.
• to achieve my target - doing this faster section in a more technically accurate way - by spotlight I will practise and repeat this sequence in my own time, outside of lessons, to familiarise myself with the movement and make it muscle memory.

Extension of limbs

• Good extension is where you stretch your limbs to their full potential. In these sections there is lots of reaching up and out which requires proper extension of the limbs. 
• I am successful in that in the slow sections I stretch my arms and legs up and out accurately while keeping in unison with the rest of the group and ensuring my hand-eye coordination is kept.
• However I need to develop the faster section because as you can see my arms are still bent at the elbow which makes the my performance look more lazy and less engaging. I need to ensure I am fully reaching out - by keeping straight arms at the elbow and also by creating a right angle between my torso and my shoulders/arms.
• To achieve this by spotlight I will perform this in front of somebody and ask them to correct me whenever I am not keeping my arms straight or extending my limbs properly so that I am more conscious and aware of it

Dynamics

• Contrasting dynamics are where you add variety to your movements through paying attention to the rhythm and varying the speed and strength of your movements, for example from sudden to sustained, fast to slow, or flowing to abrupt. Contrasting dynamics are shown in this section, for example "punctures" is harsh and quick, which juxtaposes the more relaxed and slow "soft cotton cloth" section.
• I demonstrate this contrast successfully, during the more aggressive sections my movements are more rigid and fixed whereas my body is more fluid and relaxed during the slower and gentler sections. I also use Tatkars (footwork) successfully to add harshness where it is needed. 
• To develop this skill I feel as through I need to exaggerate my movements because I demonstrate the contrast nicely but it is quite difficult to pick up as my movements are still quite shy and reserved. I can improve by extending my limbs more, altering my posture to make my positions more strong and intentional rather than casual, and adding facial expressions 
• To achieve this I will break the dance into sections and work on adapting each section separately to ensure the dynamics are accurate and can be obviously seen by an audience.