Lila in Residency

By Lîla Dance

We crammed some major research into our six days at PDSW. Last week was a chance for us to really tackle some issues in our research of creating immersive physical theatre. As one of their dream artists we get some incredible support from the organisation, and this last week that support was seen most clearly in the inspiring and creative advice we received from their whole team.

When we create a piece we think of it as a world. Our name- Lîla, is a Sanskrit word meaning divine play. To play is to really believe in the world of the game; to transport yourself into a new reality. When our dancers are able to play in the world of each work, they discover their characters, relationships and environments and transform the stage into a world. For our next work we are researching how we can bring the audience right into the heart of our physically charged world for an unforgettable experience.

When we arrived on Monday, we sat down and spent almost two hours explaining our ideas to all the Pavilion Dance staff. Then the three of us (Dougie, Carrie, & Abi) took a rare opportunity to bat ideas between all three artistic directors. What would our story be, how would the audience experience it, in what spaces would performances happen, how would we light unconventional spaces, what sound equipment do we need, and how can the marketing be immersive too? A lot of people are surprised that we have three artistic directors, but for us it is simple- we need three directors.

The quality of PDSW’s team has really proven itself to us over our time here. Cally, technical manager, researched our potential tour venues and spent a great deal of time with Dougie working our how we bring high production values to everyday spaces. Her expertise was invaluable to us and has answered a huge number of questions about what is achievable and within our budget. You can read our blog on Lighting Unusual spaces here

The Marketing team, led by the ever practical and creative Helga, gave us some fantastic advice in a session where we brainstormed through our ideas for marketing our immersive world. Needless to say, Danielle Rose and Ian Abbott from the producing/programming team were always on hand with out of the box suggestions and solutions.

It was fantastic to see welcome back some very talented young dancers to join us again and make a huge impact on how we involve an ‘extended cast’. Working with Chris Fogg, we had them invade all areas of the building, and what we achieved together has left us inspired. You can read more about what we did with our young dancers on Carrie’s post here. It was also particularly lovely to have our communications apprentice Heidi as part of our extended cast.

We would like to say a massive thank you to the whole team at PDSW who went above and beyond the call of duty to make our week an incredibly productive one.

Until next time,

It’s over and out from Lîla Dance