Negotiation
A piece combining circus and dance.
Imagine a theater space, where precicely rhythmic bodies meet in a space of changing rhythms, where direction of light changes and Unity 3 D is creating graphics in real time. Imagine abstract but meticulous rhythmic research between these bodies, the space and sound. Imagine a dactyl rhythmic form of the body together with syncopated light changes. Imagine an hour-lasting space or rather a state of being that derives from the network and dialogue of these rhythmical changes. You step into an hour-lasting mantra where you can not know who moves first, what begins and what ends. What is left is the rhythm. Let’s call it love. Our souls feed from songs like Love is all around me and All you need is love, but are you also confused. What a cliché. What is it, where is it, where does it live, what does it feel like, if my rhythm is not the same as your rhythm? Cliché. You are confused, I know. I look at you and the light changes around me. I look at you all the same, but the pulse has changed.
About the history and artistic question of Negotiation (choreographer Pippingsköld)
”Take my hand,” Kat said. ”These are the contact points we always come back to. We go through the sensations, the surface of contact, the power or force and the grip on our palms,” the partner acrobats and circus artists Kat & Jared told me when we were working together in Aarhus in the summer of 2020.
These small regions of the palm form an area, which is the foundation of their whole work together. On such a small surface these two bodies of very different dimensions work daily to find a common rhythm, a shared tempo, a focus and a power generation, which intertwine with a major element of injury risk and working through that together. Every day they join, whether they want it or not. Every day they meet unspoken hopes, fears and bodily sensations, whether they want it or not. The way they have to confront themselves and each other every day and how they need to reflect on their feelings and sensations extremely deeply and precicely was very fascinating for me. Was that love? I do not know.
The nature of their daily work is thus connected with a kind of situation of negotiation, that is forever evolving by their bodily intentions and actions. In this daily dialogue I as a choreographer found fascinating research questions in the relationship of rhythm and tempo in their embodied negotiation, and what kind of emotional reactions these different forms of rhythm resonate to the outside for the viewer or audience of this negotiation.
After our time together in the studio I started really thinking about rhythm, not just in the relationship of two bodies, but in relation to changes of all different elements around me, and especially the affect of these rhythmic changes to the emotional reactions of the spectator or experiencer. The distances between spaces, directions, shapes and shades, how they resonate to us through our visual senses, when we watch for example the broadening and receding of a physical space. Also the rhythm changes of music and the
tempo of the auditive input has always had a significant role in the formation of different emotional reactions.
These thought processes gave me the idea of a dance piece that focuses on rhythmic research of these three components: human body, the visual changes of the space and different tempos of the sound scape. I am interested to find out if a certain rhythmic form of the moving body, such as dactyl, together with spatial light changes (syncopic rhythm) can subconciously evoke recognizable emotional reactions such as hate or sorrow. I am also interested in all the complicated in-between spaces, the unnamed emotions between
these basic emotions. Can we build a space for flashes of these yet unnamed emotions through the use of different tempo and rhythm combinations?
By putting all these components into a mutual and sometimes simultanious dialogue I hope to reach a kind of breath or state of being during the performance, where the body doesn’t show just as a traditional agent with shape and gender, the space is not just a static structure and sound it’s invisible companion. In this state we are guided or drifted mainly by the strictly constructed dialogue of rhythmic changes. This piece is like a visual portrait of rhythm, where it’s soul and relatability lives in change. It’s aim is to move the
spectator as an abstract living multi-dimensionally formulating space, where the question of what was first in this space is blurred. So it is not really a movie, but it is also not a concert. Does it have humans? I don’t know. Does it have the love? Surely it will, if a heart-shaped flash of light or a spondee rhythm tells you it does. But I still don’t understand the love. Don’t worry, neither do I.
Maybe it is the rhythm. For you it is taa-taa, for me it is ti-ti-taa.
Maybe we shout out together a hurray for escapism – an ode to freedom or your reality.
Why this is important
As a young artists I am afraid and worried as many others by how easily the world is now defined through the definitions of wrong and right. My way or your way. Our borders, your limits. My understanding ruling out your understanding. Sometimes I feel like I don’t even know within which lines am I walking and where should I walk. We are somehow being defined by borders and choices in the tight embrace of escapism. But still, that drawing of lines, limits and borders has become a threatening and scary act for me. Am I still in all my rebellion some kind of a romantic when dreaming of more understanding and the ethos of belonging and togetherness. But this ethos too is always in the state of non-becoming. Still, I find myself dreaming of recognizing and relating – a common energy that can be momentarily embraced. Maybe it is called love, maybe. Maybe it is already embracing. Is it then called hope. Maybe. With this piece I hope to give more space for accepting change and difference, for the beauty of not-knowing and the complexity of being human instead of being told by some border what is right and wrong, where you belong and where you don’t, what you should feel and what not. The abstract embrace of rhythm.
Schedule
Because this piece is also about working with the technical elements of soundscape and the space, it’s schedule is divided into separate periods.
First period - Autumn 2021
We will continue working on this piece physically in the studio together with the dancers and sound designer in Fall 2021 during a few weeks rehearsal period, fir which we have and will apply funding from different grant oganizations. During this first period we focus especially in creating movement and sound vocabularies for the piece. During the first period we will also work together with the light designer remotely, to establish our co-operation and shared vision for the second rehearsal
period in 2022.
Second period - Spring 2022
Technical rehearsal period in Oulu Finland, where we focus on researching the technical elements of sound and light in this piece together with the performers and both the sound and light designers in Valve hall. During this rehearsal period we will go through the pieces movement material and test out the possibilities and our different options of sound and light to configure our direction to be more clear and ready to work this piece into it’s final form during the third rehearsal period.
Third period - Autumn 2022
During this third rehearsal period the piece will find it’s final form and will be officially premiered it’s final venue either in Helsinki or Aarhus, Denmark. The team will bring their ideas and experience developed through their work together both technically and movement wise into this final period to bind it all together into a full dance piece.
The team
Our artistic work of this multidisciplinary team will use the experience from the fields of dance, circus, music, graphic design, videography and coding to find new audiences for contemporary dance. We want to combine our personal and professional life experiences into stories that can really touch people and open new doors. The work of the artistic team aims to produce pieces, that by their methods and content are internationally recognizable and sought after not just in the field of dance but also light art, new technologies and contemporary circus.
The team consists of a Finnish choreographer-director, four performers, a light designer and a sound designer. From the performers two come from the field of dance and two from circus arts, all having a passion for the art of moving bodies and the stories they can tell.
Click an artist to view their personal portfolio.
To be confirmed
Performer, Dancer
To be confirmed
Performer, Dancer
Previous works
King of Oulu 2020/21
Dance theater piece made for two dancers and an actor.
Choreography Heli Pippingsköld (FIN) and Simon Beyer-Pedersen (DK).
Actor/talker Mika Kiviniemi (FIN)
Production JoJo – Oulu Dance Centre
Duration 55 minutes
Premiere February 2021
Valvesali, Oulu
Paikka, johon katoan 2019
Contemporary piece made for 5 dancers.
Choreography: Heli Pippingsköld
Dance: Saaga Suonvieri, Tuija Raatikainen, Salla Kekäläinen, Päivi Niskanen ja Miira Pettinen
Duration 60 minutes
Re:action 2017
Contemporary piece made for two dancers and a live- drummer.
Choreography Simon Beyer-Pedersen & Heli Pippingsköld
Dance Janne Aspvik and Meri Reunamäki
Musician Olli Estola
Duration 50 minutes
Supported by Art Promotion Centre Finland and JoJo – Oulu Dance Centre
https://vimeo.com/284326058
Becoming monsters 2016
Contemporary dance piece made for 9 dancers.
Choreography Heli Pippingsköld
Choreographic assistant and dance trainer Joel Alalantela
Light design Ville Aunola
Sound design Simon Beyer-Pedersen
Costume design Matleena Kehus
Duration 60 minutes
Production JoJo – Oulu Dance Center and supported by Finnish Cultural Foundation and Art Promotion Centre Finland
https://vimeo.com/201833200
Invisible garden 2016
Choreography: Heli Pippingsköld
Dance: International collaboration between Finnish and Lithuanian dancers
Biciu saskrydis Dance Festival
Duration 30 minutes
Film & music: Simon Beyer-Pedersen
Final editing: Heli Pippingsköld & Simon Beyer-Pedersen
Supported by Finnish Cultural Foundation and Oulu Applied Sciences, Bites Organization (LT)
Assent orange
Choreography and dance Heli Pippingsköld
Solo work/residency/performance
MoveMe Festival Perth, Australia
Supported by STRUT Dance The National Choreographic Centre of Western Australia and JoJo – Oulu Dance Centre
Peripheral vision 2013
Director Antti Ahokoivu
Choreography Heli Pippingsköld and Mia Jaatinen
Film Olli Luoma-aho
Dance: Ella Seikkala, Mia Jaatinen, Heli Pippingsköld and Saara Hedman
Best Film Prize InShadow Festival of performance, Portugal 2013
Official sélection Sans Souci Dance Festival USA, DanceLive Dance Film Showcase Scotland, Desterro Video Dance
Exhibition Brazil
https://vimeo.com/66094592
Shapes of Water (Kat&Jared 2021)
Dance, circus, local photography and stories of changing winters. Supported by The Arts Promotion Centre Finland (Taiteen edistämiskeskus – Taike), Taikabox ry, & Oulun Tähtisirkus ry.
https://whatmaybe.life/shapesofwater/
Kaboom & the power of imagination
- Oulu City Theatre (KAT & JARED 2020/21)
Production for Oulu City Theatre main stage. Directed by Alma Lehmuskallio, choreography by Jenni Nikolajeff. 2020-2021
https://teatteri.ouka.fi/naytelma/kaboom/
Dancing in the rain (KAT & JARED 2020)
Choreography and dance for a music video for
Three in the Dark. https://m.youtube.com/.watch?v=wa1qsrmeS9U
Work in progress perfomance (KAT & JARED 2019/20)
Work in progress performance 12 minutes, as part of the Gala.