Task 3d) Critical questions and and issues that emerge

Do some very specific ideas emerge about your networking and sources? Does your engagement to date seem appropriate? Limited? Focused? Planned? Unplanned?

What has emerged through the process of this module is the need for me to broaden my network to involve others who are not in exactly the same profession as myself. Although I have social friends who are not dancers, I would rarely discuss work with them and I must admit that at times I feel curious to know how the work of a ballet dancer compares to someone in an entirely different profession. I feel like developing my network in this way would help me to view my work in a different way. These ideas came to me when I was talking to a dancer colleague who has worked in a number of different fields such as in shops and bars. What I noticed was that he was analysing and comparing some methods of working which I had previously considered to be the norm and explaining how these are quite unique to our profession.

Although I have quite a broad network of contacts, they are mostly within the field of ballet and I have to be honest in saying that really, I am quite scared to meet people out of that context. Questions which always pop into my head are what will people think of me? will they think I am odd? Also aside from facebook and the BAPP blogs I don't have a huge online network. When I was trying to find people outside of the course to comment on the work of I found myself again feeling quite intimidated. I was pleased to find the website www.4dancers.org which has the blogs of different dancers on different topics, some of which I found very interesting and I managed to leave 2 comments on this forum. However, I was hoping to be able to conect with more blogs outside the course and I really feel that I need to develop my confidence to broaden my networking further in order to expand my knowledge.

 Some of my networking such as social media and blogging is planned where as other aspects of it are not. For instance I had never viewed my audience as a network before and recently when I performed alongside the BBC National Orchestra of Wales at The Wales Millenium Centre, I realised that I had just expanded my network even further by working with a 70 piece orchestra!

Rehearsing before the performance with the National Orchestra of Wales

Are your ideas, positions or concerns shared by others within and beyond your professional area of work?

Through looking at the blogs of others I can see that I share many ideas with other people on the BAPP course. For instance I found that the internet, books and magazines are common sources of information for many of us. Also on the www.4dancers.org blog I found an interesting post about how a dancer can manage mental stress. The author of this blog shared my opinion that the physical health of a dancer is wrongly given much more focus than the mental health.

Through talking with other company members, I find that I have a lot in common when it comes to thoughts about professional practice. Equally I disagree with some of their views too and it is always good to have a debate about a shared topic of interest. I have also found that many audience members share the feeling that I have about performance needing to be something which is felt from the soul in order to be transmitted into the auditorium. As I say I do not have great connectivity to those outside of my field at present, although some people on the BAPP course are involved in different aspects of the performing arts.

Does sharing and communicating with others shift your thinking planning or practice?

I often feel that when I share or explore ideas with others, those ideas will develop a much greater meaning to me than before I have voiced them. Learning what other's think about a given concept or idea can again give new insights into them. For instance often I will get quite bad stage fright before a performance. However, if I tell a colleague, especially someone who tends to be fairly laid back then I will immediately become less nervous. This is a very basic example, but it is extremely important to my profession seeing as I am performing all of the time.

Another example is when I was struggling to come to terms with some of the concepts and theories related to networking in this task and found that when I was talking to a family member about them and relating them to my own practice, they suddenly made more sense to me.

Does critical reflection help you decide what really matters and the actions to take?

Critical reflection most definitely helps in my decision making processes. Often I will have the feeling that a day has gone very badly or that I could have done better. However, always having these feelings can have a negative affect on me and my work. I find that the process of critical reflection puts everything into perspective. It helps me to see what I have learned from what has happened rather than dwell on it negatively. It can help me to take action and make changes to my work. I must admit that since studying the BAPP course I feel like I have learned a lot more from my work with Ballet Cymru than I would have had I not started on the course at this point. It has made me analyse my work and how others have worked over the season. I have also been able to really see where my current restrictions are as a professional and hone in on them so that I can make changes. Critical reflections also has the effect of making me feel more positive about myself and my work by giving me a sense of being in control of an outcome.

To what extent do concepts and theories assist you in thinking about your professional networking in different ways? And do these different ways of thinking have some purpose for you?

The different concepts and theories studied in part 3 of Module 1 have helped me a lot. Initially I found it hard to understand some of these concepts and I really had to work to engage with the material. However, once I did, I found real benefits. For instance the concepts of affiliation and cooperation have been really important during this season with Ballet Cymru, yet I realise that I have completely taken them for granted and never considered them or analysed them as concepts in their own right. Learning about these theories has also improved my confidence in social networking situations. Knowing what different aspects make up a good network gives me much more of a sense of security. Perhaps because I feel that I now have different strategies to employ to make networking easier.

Are you left thinking differently prior to this part of the module? And if so, how?

Before this part of the module I had no idea how important networking is to my job. Now I realise that it will help me to expand my knowledge within and beyond my own field of work and that it is really worth spending the time on. I think it has also highlighted for the fact that I need to further expand my networks and ensure frequent participation within my current networks. I feel inspired and more confident to take action and make this happen!

I have very much enjoyed the process of commenting on other peoples blogs. The links to some of my comments can be seen below.

https://alicesampson.blogspot.co.uk/2016/11/task-3d-critical-questions.html?showComment=1481741553069#c3557271385044172854

http://josephdarbybapp.blogspot.co.uk/2016/12/bapp-arts-2016-17-module-1-task-3b.html?showComment=1481737731360#c1522445044649347037

http://josephdarbybapp.blogspot.co.uk/2016/12/bapp-arts-2016-17-module-1-task-3c.html?showComment=1481736886590#c8877803569900641957

http://georgietedora.blogspot.co.uk/2016/11/task-3c-sources-of-information.html?showComment=1481738255472#c6010677778408234006

https://gonzalopreciado94.blogspot.co.uk/2016/11/bapp-task-3a-current-networks.html?showComment=1481738733678#c8266311733590466734

https://gonzalopreciado94.blogspot.co.uk/2016/11/bapp-task-3b-theories-relating-to.html?showComment=1481739325932#c3671769976640607693

https://gonzalopreciado94.blogspot.co.uk/2016/11/bapp-task-3c-sources-of-information.html?showComment=1481740020011#c3305803537397791245

https://shannalogan.blogspot.co.uk/2016/11/task-3c-sources-of-information.html?showComment=1481743305594#c6097498435981632705

http://www.4dancers.org/2016/10/coping-with-mental-stress-as-a-dancer/comment-page-1/#comment-118328

http://www.4dancers.org/2016/10/dancers-cross-training-with-yoga/comment-page-1/#comment-118329

Module one has been absolutely fascinating and I must admit some of the knowledge that I acquired I never thought I would be learning about, such as technology and theories from the areas of sociology and psychology. The amount which I have discovered about my own work and how to approach professional practice has been most beneficial during my first season with a ballet company. I look forward to submitting my critical reflection and moving on to Module 2.

Task 3c Sources of Information

When deciding on my 5 most important sources of information in relation to my professional practice, I returned to the principles of the theory of connectivism and have included them again below:

• Learning and knowledge rests in diversity of opinions.
• Learning is a process of connecting specialized nodes or information sources.
• Learning may reside in non-human appliances.
• Capacity to know more is more critical than what is currently known
• Nurturing and maintaining connections is needed to facilitate continual learning.
• Ability to see connections between fields, ideas and concepts is a core skill.
• Currency (accurate, up to date knowledge) is the intent of all connectivist learning activities.
• Decision making is itself a learning process. Choosing what to learn and the meaning of incoming information is seen through the lens of a shifting reality. While there is a right answer now, it may be wrong tomorrow due to alterations in the information climate affecting our decision.
  (Siemens, 2004, pp 3-4)

All of these principles played a key role in the decision making process of identifying my most influential information sources. After analysing these sources, I realised that I do in fact draw my knowledge from a variety of networks. I was surprised because I had not previously thought about networking in relation to drawing together your sources of information, but now it makes a lot of sense to me as I can see how the views and work of others shape my own decisions and work.

1. Network of Teachers and directors

I rely a lot on the advice which I receive from my teachers and directors. It is through them that I can develop an understanding of where I am up to alongside other members of my community of practice, as well as continue to develop and improve my dancing. I also learn from the experiences which they tell me about within the earlier parts of their careers, as well as analyse their teaching and working methods and learn strategies which will be of use to me. In the world of ballet your teacher or director is usually the reason that you are working in the context that you are working in. Therefore there is a desire to please and satisfy them. This means that I tend to learn their particular preferences quite fast and try to apply the principles which are important to them when working for them.

The teachers and directors in the world of professional dance are all closely related to each other. Many will have been at school together or working in the same company at some stage, or they may simply have crossed paths in auditions. This means that by knowing one teacher you very quickly become associated with another and this results in a broadening of the professional network.

2. Experienced professional dancer colleagues

During this season with Ballet Cymru, I have learned a great deal from the other dancers of the company. Especially those who are older and more experienced than myself. I have gained knowledge and advice in so many areas but the most important I would say have been advice on professional etiquette, touring, corrections to my technique, how to cooperate with others in the company, how to improve my C.V and audition techniques, how to develop my cross training and how that will help me as a dancer. I have also learned about how to approach performance and manage nerves. What I think I learn from this source - through talking and working with my colleagues, is the type of information which can only come from those who have recently been at the same point as you in their careers.

3. The audience

The audience is most definitely one of my most important sources of information, as after all they are really who I dance for. From the views of an audience both during a performance - through applause and reactions, and afterwards - through speaking to people I can gain a huge amount. For instance it becomes clear whether or not a characterisation or storyline has come across through reactions such as laughter. I can immediately tell who has stood out as a dancer through the cheers and appreciation shown in the curtain calls. Through talking to audience members after a performance I can gage whether or not I have performed well, it is easy to tell a genuine response from a fake one.

An audience waiting to see The Royal Ballet's Frankenstein at the Royal Opera House

4. Dance publications, journals and books and programmes

Through dance publications such as the Dancing Times and Dance Europe I can learn a great deal about other companies, up and coming performances and auditions, reviews of the performances of others, as well as the reviews my own company. The critics view is always important in the world of dance, even though it is important to recognise that very often an audience will thoroughly enjoy a production which the critics can slate and vies versa. Never-the-less this in itself we can learn from. Sometimes it can be hard to read a critics review, but I still believe that it is a very important source of information, as it can be what a totally fresh eye on you sees and sometimes when you are working in a context where you are known well, you won't always get that feedback. Books are one of my most essential sources of information, in fact if I need to know something I will usually consult a book before I google it. If I cannot find the information I need only then will I consult the internet, but I feel that books are a far better source when I need to know about the more historical aspects of dance. Programmes from productions, both old and new provide me with a huge amount of information about a performance. All the details of the music and and designers are included, together with the performers details and I have found them to be extremely useful to my work. 

Below is a programme found in a second hand book of a performance by Anna Pavlova.

5. The Internet

 The internet is a very important source of information for me though, the most important aspects probably being Facebook, blogs, networkdance, youtube. Through Facebook I can assimilate knowledge in relation to other companies and other dancer's experiences of them. Also through the companies group facebook chat I will learn about things related to the company and basic information like tour schedules, tour leave times etc. all of which is essential for day to day working. Through looking at other peoples blogs on the BAPP course I can develop an understanding of different view points and this can give me enlightening ideas on my own work. Networkdance is a great way to learn about other companies and up and coming auditions, it also allows for my professional profile to be presented publicly and the opportunity for me to apply for auditions directly through the site. Youtube is of use to me because if I have to dance a particular piece of choreography, I can analyse different versions by different dancers, formulate my own opinion on which would suit me better and help to develop my own interpretation of it. I do not always use youtube because I do not believe you can get the same atmosphere of a 3 dimensional art form on a 2 dimensional screen, but I would say that at times it is a very useful source of information.

It is always important to consider that there are copyright issues regarding the internet and these must always be taken into account as it is very easy to acquire knowledge and not think to source where you have found it. Also when it comes to talking to other colleagues and audience members it is essential to respect their desire for confidentiality and use what they say without their permission.

I have been looking at other peoples blogs and was interested to see that for most people the internet is a major source of information, also books and films or documentaries are common sources. I noticed that some people are listing meetings and short courses as important sources of information, while others were stating that they would like to broaden their information sources by attending these. This made me feel that I would also very much like to broaden my sources of information by getting involved in more group meetings and short courses, where I can extend my network of professionals, possibly in different fields, as well as further my knowledge.

Having identified my main sources of information I would say that I can develop my usage of every source to gain greater knowledge in my work so I am currently exploring the ways that I can do this.

Bibliograhy

Siemens, G (2004) Connectivism: A learning theory for the digital age

Accessed 12^th Dec 2016

Task 3b) Theories relating to networking

Studying different concepts related to networking has really urged me to analyse my current networks in different ways. Below I will discuss the different concepts which I have looked at and explore how I feel they may apply to my own individual networks. I found the following extract by Siemens very useful when coming to terms with the initial idea of what a network is so I have included it here to provide a starting point from which to develop.

A network can simply be defined as connections between entities. Computer networks, power grids, and social networks all function on the simple principle that people, groups, systems, nodes, entities can be connected to create an integrated whole. Alterations within a network have a ripple effect on the whole.

(Siemens, 2004, p 3)

Cooperation

The concept of cooperation has close ties to the Game Theory. This theory has been formulated mostly by mathematicians as a way to address issues in the areas of sociology, economics, international relations and biology. Political scientist Robert Axelrod was a key influential figure in the development of cooperation as a concept. Below he describes the game Prisoner's Dilema. This game is of great value in the analysis of cooperation as it is all focused around the decisions and consequences of deciding whether to compete or cooperate.

The game allows the players to achieve mutual gains from cooperation, but it also allows for the possibility that one player will exploit the other, or the possibility that neither will cooperate.

(Axelrod, 1984, p vii)

The following extract also helps gain a better understanding of the game and how it's principles apply to the contexts of cooperation in the work place.

Among its interesting characteristics are that it is a non-zero-sum game: the best strategy for a given player is often one that increases the pay off to one's partner as well. It has also been shown that there is no single ''best'' strategy : how to maximise one's own pay off depends on the strategy adopted by one's partner.

(Serendip, 2013 http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/playground/pdref.html )

In the context of a small ballet company like I am working in, I think that cooperation has a great deal of importance, both for the company as a whole and the individual within it. For example, in order for a good performance to take place, every dancer must be focused on their own dancing, but they must also be clued in to everyone else performing on that stage so that there are no collisions, as very often there are passages of choreography, especially in the ballet I have been involves in Little Red Riding Hood, where we are all dancing rapidly on the stage at the same time and it is easy for people to accidentally kick or hit each other. Also as dancers, we must be clued into the work of the technical crew too, always respecting their need to prepare the stage before we can use it. During a performance we must all be prepared for any eventuality. For instance last night in Romeo and Juliet there was a problem with the breaks on the bed and it began to move. One of the dancers crawled onto the stage and repositioned the bed and secured the breaks during one of the half blackouts.

Being a small company we all have a number of costume changes during the course of a show and some of them are extremely fast. We are all responsible for helping out depending on who is on and off stage. Therefore, we must cooperate with one another and always be considering others as well as our own roles. Ultimately by the end of the performance, if the right cooperation has taken place the company will have gained as well as us as individuals.

Cooperation in the rehearsal studio is also an essential element, as without it the rehearsal studio can be a disrupted one. The studying of this concept has highlighted how, in a ballet company there is always a leader and director and how important this person is. They must be fully respected and listened to in order for good cooperation to take place. The nature of the profession is to always do as you are told, however some people find this quite hard because their personality might be to question authority and to want to discuss aspect in order to make improvements to the work place. This is an area which I think can be difficult to approach and I feel like this concept has broadened my analysis of the drawbacks of cooperation. The notion that one must always cooperate in every aspect may not result in change which is sometimes necessary.

Cooperation is essential when working with a ballet company

Photo by Sian Trenberth

Affiliation

The concept of affiliation seeks to explain the ways in which we communicate with each other socially and how each one of us as individuals has a different desired level of communication. It looks at the ways in which we form relationships with one another and why, exploring the psychological factors surrounding the choices people make when they affiliate with others.

Crisp and Turner explore how psychological factors can influence and alter our desired levels of affiliation over the course of time by introducing some related theories in the extract below:

The privacy regulation theory (Altman, 1975) argues that our ideal level of privacy (versus affiliation) can vary from being open to others or closed off to others, even in the space of a few hours. We also operate by an optimization Principle, where we try to align our desired level of contact with our actual level of contact with others. If we have too little contact, we feel isolated, but if we have too much contact we feel crowded.

(Crisp and Turner, 2007, p 323)

Within the work place affiliation plays an important role. Again particularly within the context of the network of my company, as we are with each other all the time. We begin rehearsing at 9am in the morning and finish at about 6pm at night. We travel together in the minibus, share twin rooms on tour, eat together and usually go out for the evening together. I consider myself extremely lucky to be part of such a sociable group of people as on the whole there have been very few difficulties which have arose. However, the concept of affiliation and the idea of everyone's need for affiliation being different lead me to view the relationships between members of the company in a different way. Everyone gets on well but the enormous amount of pressure which our job involves can at times create frictions between people, especially as people start getting tired towards the end of the season. Those who develop ways of managing their different moods are not as likely to disrupt their professional networks. Words can travel fast and it is not nice to have any bad feeling as a result of one day when someone is not feeling so good. Being close to those which you work with outside of work can have benefits and draw backs as although it makes you work more closely as a team, it means that if there is ever a difficulty which arises outside of work it is hard to separate it from the work place or vies versa. I think mutual respect and empathy are key factors which should always be employed when considering colleagues personally desired levels of affiliation.

With some of the members of the company after a show

The Theory of Connectivity

The three aspects which make up the theory of connectivity are social constructionism, connectivism and communities of practice. I will look into these in some more detail below.

Social Constructionism

This is a concept takes the angle of looking at the world and seeing all knowledge as being constructed by human practices. It takes the opposite view to objectivism which states that meanings are seen in objects themselves and human consciousness does not alter these meanings.

Crotty describes contructionism is the extract below:

It is the view that all knowledge, and therefore meaningful reality as such, is contingent upon human practices, being constructed in and out of interaction between human beings and their world, and developed and transmitted within an essentially social context.

(Crotty, 2005, p 42)

I personally feel that the notion of constructionism is quite a liberating one. It helps me to feel in control of my life and my experiences. I find it to be especially important in my work because ballet is not something that one can progress in unless there is application and a lot of self management. If I want to achieve something I know that I am in control of making it happen. As Crotty says:

''in the constructionists view, as the word suggests, meaning is not discovered but constructed.'' (Crotty, 2005, p 42)

Connectivism

Connectivism seeks to explore the organisation of learning and the notion that there are new ways to learn which involve a broader network than simply a student and teacher. It is also connected to the computer science derived concept the 'network theory'. The following quote by Siemens describes the theory well.

Connectivism is the integration of principles explored by chaos, network, and complexity and self- organisation theories. Learning is a process that occurs within nebulous environments of shifting core elements – not entirely under the control of the individual. Learning (defined as actionable knowledge) can reside outside ourselves (within an organisation or a database), is focused on connecting specialized information sets, and the connections that enable us to learn more are more important than our current state of knowing.

(Siemens, 2004, p 3)

In order to understand the theory better I analysed each principle of connectivism as stated by Siemens and discovered that in my work, I can see each of these principles coming into play. My analysis showed me that I am learning in a different way from when I was at school, as usually there was a teacher and your learning was very much from one source of authority in each class. Now, although obviously my director is the main source of authority, I realise that I am in fact learning from the other dancers and in many more diverse ways. Sometimes I will feel as though I am not learning anything and it will only be in retrospect, sometimes months later that I will discover just how much knowledge I did acquire and this is usually because I was learning from a different source other than the usual one such as a teacher. Now that I know about this concept I am hoping that it will make me more tuned in to these more varied ways of learning.

The principles as stated by Siemens are listed below:

• Learning and knowledge rests in diversity of opinions.
• Learning is a process of connecting specialized nodes or information sources.
• Learning may reside in non-human appliances.
• Capacity to know more is more critical than what is currently known
• Nurturing and maintaining connections is needed to facilitate continual learning.
• Ability to see connections between fields, ideas and concepts is a core skill.
• Currency (accurate, up to date knowledge) is the intent of all connectivist learning activities.
• Decision making is itself a learning process. Choosing what to learn and the meaning of incoming information is seen through the lens of a shifting reality. While there is a right answer now, it may be wrong tomorrow due to alterations in the information climate affecting our decision.
  (Siemens, 2004, pp 3-4)

Communities of Practice

This concept was developed by social scientists to explore how we learn through engaging in social relationships as opposed to individually assimilating knowledge. Through the idea of a community of practice, the term 'situated learning' came about. This is the idea that you learn from different situations in which you are participating with others. Lave and Wenger's description is very clear below:

A community of practice is a set of relations among persons, activity, and world, over time and in relation with other tangential and overlapping communities of practice.

( Lave and Wenger, 1991, p 98)

I think that this approach to learning is extremely beneficial as it encourages learning from a more varied and diverse range of sources. Lave and Wenger state that:

Rather than learning by replicating the performances of others or by acquiring knowledge transmitted in instruction, we suggest that learning occurs through centripetal participation in the learning curriculum of the ambient community.

(Lave and Wenger, 1991, p 100)

This theory is most definitely of use to me in my professional practice as the ballet world is made up of communities of practice. I learn from the community of my ballet company, always drawing on others experiences and seeing how I might approach similar situations. In the broader picture, one company is linked to another and through my network I can connect and learn from many interlinking communities of practice. Perhaps I am not yet as connected as I could be in this respect, so this is an area of knowledge which I have identified I can learn more from. Therefore I am applying the principle of the capacity to no more being more important than what is currently known, as seen in the theory of connectivism.

The dancers of Ballet Cymru a 'community of practice'

Bibliography

Axelrod, 1984, The Evolution of cooperation. London: Penguin

Crisp and Turner, 2007, Essential social psychology. London: Sage

Crotty, M (2005) The foundations of social research : meaning and perspectives in the research process, London: Sage

Sociology guide (no date) Cooperation (online) available from: http://www.sociologyguide.com/basic-concepts/Cooperation.php last accessed 10^th Dec 2016

Lave, J and Wenger E (1991) Situated learning, Legitimate peripheral participation, Cambridge: University of Cambridge Press

Serendip (2013) available from: http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/playground/pdref.html Accessed 12^th Dec 2016

Siemens, G (2004) Connectivism: A learning theory for the digital age

Accessed 12^th Dec 2016

Task 3a) Current Networks

The ballet world is a very small one so in many ways I see it as many small networks which make up one large one. For instance as a pre-vocational student I was a part of a network of dancers auditioning for schools, taking supplementary training and open classes. I remember all too well continuing to bump into the same people. We learned from each other's experiences and this helped us to develop our training and ultimately gain places for further training.

Then within the environment of English National Ballet School I became a part of a network, both within the school and across the other leading vocational schools in the UK. There were students from many different countries in the school, so I automatically learned a great deal about the profession around the world and discovered some of the differences of how dancers train and work in different places. Then in my graduation year, I auditioned for many companies, further developing this network by meeting different dancers in different places and hearing their experiences. Also getting advice from students who had graduated before me. After my graduation, my year group has found work all over the world and I am able to keep up to date with how everyone is doing and learn about the networks they are becoming a part of. Whilst at school., I also worked on the ENBS juniors programme (ballet classes for children) as a teaching assistant. This was a great opportunity for me to get into contact with teachers and young students.

Now I am part of a network within my company Ballet Cymru. We are a small company with 10 dancers, 2 technicians, 1 administrator, an education officer, development officer and a Director and Assistant director. Never the less, the company also has guest choreographers which broaden this network and the dancers themselves have further developed my network by putting me in touch with other dancers they know.

My apprenticeship for this year has been partly funded by The London Ballet Circle, a society of dancers and dance enthusiasts. Through being given this funding, I have become known to the circle and had the opportunity to meet a number of them. This has broadened my professional network too.

In the summer of this year I was asked to perform The Dying Swan at a congress dinner dance for The National Association of Teachers of Dancing, here I met a number of teachers and important people who I now have contact with.

In my family town of Chirk in North Wales I would say that I am part of a network. It is a small community and I have done a lot of work within it, both through teaching ballet and through doing performances with The Ballet Pod company there. Whenever I return there in holiday periods, I once again engage in this network and this enables me to continue my work as a professional even during holiday periods. Through my teacher Richard Slaughter and The Ballet Pod, my network has extended, as many events that I have performed at have put me into contact with musicians, photographers, dance teachers and other dancers.

I think one of the most important tools for developing my professional network has been facebook. I tend to use it as a forum for professional promotion and I feel it has broadened my network so much. I can keep up to date with how my friends are doing in different companies and broaden my circle of friends even further through the acquaintances they make. This is useful if I want to attend company class in one of these companies. However, I still feel that at times I lack a bit of confidence when it comes to self promotion, I feel a bit exhibitionist! However, I know that all of the experienced professionals who I admire always engage with social media for this reason.

I am a part of the network 'networkdance'. This is a really useful site because it allows you to have all of your details readily available to directors and employers who are looking for dancers. You can upload your c.v and details and view all the up and coming auditions. I really need to develop my profile on this site though and am hoping to make it of more use to me.

I would very much like to develop my network to include more high profile individuals so that I might be able to experience more opportunities to seek advice from them and attend classes and so on. One way of doing this might be to develop my contacts in other companies so that I can talk to them about their experiences. The more experienced professionals who I have come into contact with all have these contacts and I have noticed that they find it easier to get company classes and work with other companies. I think that I can start to broaden this aspect of my professional network through the use of social media and also getting in touch with more friends of friends.

Now that I am on the BAPP course I am part of another network. This is a particularly useful one as although we are all on the same course, everyone is in different areas of work and so I feel that I have the opportunity to connect with people who I might other wise not get the chance to. It is great to be able to share experiences and learn about other people's views.

I created the diagram below to try and make sense of my current professional networks visually.

When looking at such a broad network it is evident that many people will have different reasons being involved in that network. For instance with Ballet Cymru, all the dancers are here because they want to dance but these dancers provide opportunities for artists who want to paint them, then they provide work for the stage crew, choreographers who want to work with them and so it goes on.

I feel that for me, what often stands in the way of professional networking is confidence to connect with others. This is what I intend to work on, but also I think that through the process of learning about what others have done to build their networks this confidence will build naturally.

Task 2d Inquiry

What in your daily practice gets you really enthusiastic to find out more about? Who do you admire who also works with what makes you enthusiastic?

In my daily practice I am always enthusiastic about finding ways to delve deeper into what I am doing. For instance, in ballet class I am always trying to find a way to work which will gain me greater strength and work my body in a more effective way. I also like to find expression within every exercise I do and strive to show differences in dynamics, although this is an area that I do tend to find challenging as naturally I move in a very legato way. Expression and creativity are what I love about dance and although some people do not like it, perhaps because they feel that dance should be an athletic feat, the artistic side of dance is what I am passionate about. I do know a few people who share this feeling but not that many to be honest. However, I do know that the dancers of the past expressed an innate sense of artistry and they are a constant inspiration to me. Some of these dancers were Anna Pavlova, Lynn Seymour, Margot Fonteyn, Rudolf Nureyev to name just a few. They might not have been as technical as the dancers of today but they had such an exceptional level of artistry that they were far greater than most of the dancers of today in my opinion.

What gets you angry or makes you sad? Who do you admire who also shares your feelings or has found a way to work around the sadness or anger?

I tend to become angry when I feel that dance is purely an athletic feat or when there is an emphasis on every dancer being the same. I feel that dance is a form of individual expression and everyone should be able to offer something entirely unique to them. I know many dancers who feel the same way as me with regards to this. However, most of these dancers have no choice but to engage with the athletic side because it is essential if we want to find work in the industry. It is finding a way to untie these aspects which I believe is key. It makes me sad when the art form is not treated with the respect I feel it deserves, for instance when a traditional ballet is being re-choreographed and there is a lack of respect for the version before. I think it is essential that ballet moves forward, however I also think we must respect tradition in order to make these developments. It also makes me sad when there is a lack of respect amongst the workers or any sort of unfair dealings amongst people. I think that people must at all times be empathetic, never judging someone until they have stepped into their shoes and walked around in them. I know and admire many dancers who also share this feeling, again it is a challenge as the profession can naturally be quite unfair. I think that all my teachers at school shared this feeling in particular Larissa Bamber, a wonderful teacher who always knew what I was going through but never lost site of the journey ahead of me!

I also feel that as a company Ballet Cymru is very good at understanding each dancer as an individual and I think that makes it quite unique actually.

What do you love about what you do? Who do you admire who also seems to love this or is an example of what you love?

I love the notion of dance from the soul. Dancing with true sincerity and delivering a quality to an audience that they will never forget. Some of the artists who I admire who I think really did achieve this were Anna Pavlova, Lynn Seymour and Richard Slaughter. Below is some information on each of these artists.

Anna Pavlova

Born in 1881 just outside St Petersburg, Pavlova was inspired to become a ballet dancer after she saw a performance of The Sleeping Beauty as a child. She trained at the Russian Imperial Ballet School and despite having a frail and slender body, which was considered to be a hindrance for her career, Pavlova was taken into the company. She trained with the very best teachers Pavel Gredt, Christian Johansson, Nicholas Legat and Enrico Cecchetti.

Even though Pavlova became well known within the Imperial Russian Ballet, it was only when Mikhail Fokine choreographed The Dying Swan for her that it became apparent that what Pavlova had was something very different. The Dying Swan was first performed on 22^nd of December, 1907 for a charity gala performance in St. Petersburg. The solo became known as one of the most iconic pieces in ballet and Pavlova's legacy is wrapped up within this solo.

. It cannot be classified in the same way as other variations, as it does not include virtuoso steps and on the whole, the choreography is incredibly simple. The difficulty lies in not simply dancing the choreography, but in becoming the swan creature; so that the movement is so natural you do not have to think about it, you just immerse yourself within it. Having said that, it is obvious that it is not a realistic representation of a dying bird. Svetloff's quote describes it well below: 

The Swan's Death is not a mere ''variation'' unimpeachably performed, nor a mere realistic imitation of the wounded bird: it is the mystic elegy of a fated ending, translated into the soulful poetry of dramatised dance.

 (Svetloff, 1974, p.92)

In 1909 she performed with Diaghilev's Ballet Russes and then formed her own company in 1910. She toured the world taking ballet to places who had never even heard of the art form. For nearly two decades she toured with her company, during this time inspiring the next generation of dancers and choreographers who would diffuse all over the world and develop ballet to the next level. In 1931 she died because she was unwilling to undertake an operation which would mean she would have to give up dancing.

Pavlova was unique, she was an artist who danced from her soul. Below are some quotes which I think depict this.

''Leave acrobatics to others, Anna...You must realise that your daintiness and fragility are your greatest assets. You should always do the kind of dancing which brings out your own rare qualities instead of trying to win praise by mere acrobatic tricks.''

( Pavel Gerd cited by Minden, 2005,p136),

Choreographer Frederick Ashton recognised Pavlova’s sincerity in everything she did, saying:

 ‘As a dancer she had genius, when you think how limited her vocabulary was, but whatever she did, she became that person, she personified dance.’

 (Ashton on https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cn_K41P0B1w )

Sources: Anna Pavlova on https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cn_K41P0B1w Frederick Ashton talking about Anna Pavlova with Nathalia Makarova, undated, uploaded 2008. Last accessed 01/05/16

Minden, Gaynor (2005) The Ballet Companion, Fireside: New York

Svetloff, V. (1974) Anna Pavlova, New York: Dover Publications

From Top to bottom Left to Right: Anna Pavlova as The Fairy Doll https://www.pinterest.com/pin/410742428491505966/

Anna Pavlova and Pierre Vladimiroff  in The Fairy Doll 1925-29  https://www.pinterest.com/pin/278378820692015161/

Anna Pavlova in The Dying Swan, p 170, in Pritchard, Jane and Caroline Hamilton, 2013 Anna Pavlova Twentieth Century Ballerina, United Kingdom: Booth Clibborn 

Lynn Seymour

Lynn Seymour was born in Canada in 1939. She went to London to train at the Sadler's Wells School in 1954 before joining the Covent Garden Opera Ballet in 1956. Then in 1957 she became a member of The Royal Ballet. She became a principal dancer 2 years later. She was a muse of both Frederick Ashton and Kenneth Macmillan. Some of her most famous roles being the Young Girl in Les Deux Pigeons (1961), Juliet in Romeo and Juliet (1965, although Margot Fonteyn danced Juliet on the Premiere performance for political reasons) and Natalia in A Month in the Country. A link to a video of her performing the pas de deux from this ballet with Anthony Dowell is below. I think the artistry with which she dances is very evident from this video. : 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NW5XN4gTrpM

    

Lynn Seymour in The Two Pigeons. Jordan, Stephanie, The Royal Ballet programme, Rhapsody and The Two Pigeons, The Royal Opera House, London December 2015 to April 2016, p 23

Sources:

Encyclopaedia Britannica, (5, 13,2016) Lynn Seymour, Canadian ballerina https://www.britannica.com/biography/Lynn-Seymour Accessed 21/11/16

Richard Slaughter

Richard was born in Sussex and attended The Royal Ballet school from the age of 13. Whilst at the school he won the Ursula Moreton Choreographic Award twice and first appeared with The Royal Ballet Company as a student in 1974. Throughout his training and career he has received coaching from many famous names including Leonide Massine and Svetlana Beriosova.

He joined The Royal Ballet in 1977 and went on to dance principal roles with Ballet For All, London City Ballet and The Royal Ballet Education Unit. He has worked in the field of Historical Dance and appeared in the film 'The Dark Crystal' by Jim Henson.

In 1989 he started his own company 'Ballet Creations of London' together with Ursula Hageli. The school and company lasted over 18 years in which time Richard choreographed many productions.

His career has taken him through so many different aspects of dance and he continues to explore new possibilities. He is currently artistic director of The Ballet Pod in North Wales, lecturer in dance at Chichester University, freelance teacher of the Cecchetti method across the country. Richard has been my teacher since I was 9 years old and what he has taught me has stretched far beyond technique. When he demonstrates and performs he has a special aura about him, a spiritual presence which is unique. I have so much admiration for him as an artist and feel honoured to be able I work with him.

You can read more about Richard by following the link below:

http://www.chi.ac.uk/staff/richard-slaughter

Richard Slaughter as the Harlequin in Ballet Creations of London programme, A Portrait of Pavlova, No date but created for the 1990 tour  

I also love to apply the principle of perseverance, to push through no matter what stands in your way. Two dancers who in my opinion are proof that anything is possible with perseverance are Michaela DePrince and Misty Copeland. Both experiencing traumatic childhoods but both whom have gone on to lead the most incredible lives and careers as dancers. The following sites provide more information about both of these dancers.

http://www.michaeladeprince.com/

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/theatre/dance/11675707/Misty-Copeland-ballerina-interview.html

What do you feel you don't understand? Who do you admire who does seem to understand it or who has found a way of making not understanding it interesting or beautiful, or has asked the same questions as you?

I still feel like I do not trust myself and body to achieve certain steps, especially allegro and other styles of dance. I am interested to find out whether it is my body or my mind which is holding me back or whether it is the lack of connection between both. I admire Dylan Waddell, my friend and colleague in the company who seems to understand a natural flow of movement. He is helping me to find the sensation of jumping in a natural way first. I also admire Nathalia Barbara my teacher from 1^st year at English National Ballet School. She has the most incredible mind which allows her to understand what is going wrong with each individual's technique. What I learned from her in a year is a lifetime of material! I think I find the concept of patience a difficult one. I find it hard to wait for change to happen, I just want to see it as I work but in reality that can never happen it is only through the repetition over a period of time that change can be seen.

How do you decide the appropriate ethical response in a given situation? To what extent are disciplinary responses different to that you might expect more generally in society?

Within the circle of dance there is generally an understanding that physical contact is a part of the way we work. This is evident right across the spectrum from choreography to improvisation and the teaching and training of others. It is important to be careful when teaching to ensure that the necessary consent forms have been signed to allow for this physical contact, if the student is under 18. It is essential to understand the differences in the students you teach as well. For example a group of students undertaking advanced training would understand that physical contact is necessary, where as a group of beginners of the same age may feel self conscious or threatened by someone touching them to help them understand a correction. This is because within general society, many of the ways of working in the world of ballet would seem inappropriate. I think this also applies to the psychological approaches which are often adopted within the studio. To the general public, the harshness with which dancers are often treated would be quite shocking. In my opinion very little of the harshness is actually called for anyway. It usually has to do with a tradition of harshness and negativity which was thought to bring out the best in dancers and make them work harder. I personally feel that you can still make someone work harder and achieve more with a positive attitude towards them.

Through answering these questions I have discovered that I am very much interested in the expressive elements of a dancer. The individuality and artistry that every person holds inside themselves and how this can be unleashed and allowed to fly, in a world which can tend to want to form and mould everyone to be the same. I am looking forward to exploring these lines of enquiry further as I progress through the course.

Bibliography

Books

Minden, Gaynor (2005) The Ballet Companion, Fireside: New York

Svetloff, V. (1974) Anna Pavlova, New York: Dover Publications

Videos

Anna Pavlova on https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cn_K41P0B1w Frederick Ashton talking about Anna Pavlova with Nathalia Makarova, No date, uploaded 2008. Accessed 01 May 2016

Websites
Encyclopaedia Britannica, (last updated 2016) Lynn Seymour, Canadian ballerina. Available from: https://www.britannica.com/biography/Lynn-Seymour Accessed 21 November 2016

University of Chichester, no date, Staff profiles: Richard Slaughter . Available from: http://www.chi.ac.uk/staff/richard-slaughter

http://www.michaeladeprince.com/ Accessed 22 November 2016

Mulkerins, Jane, 21 June 2015, Misty Copland: Meet the ballerina who rewrote the rules of colour, class and curves, The Telegraph. Available from: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/theatre/dance/11675707/Misty-Copeland-ballerina-interview.html Accessed 22 November 2016

Pictures

 Ballet Creations of London programme, A Portrait of Pavlova, No date but created for the 1990 tour  

 Lynn Seymour in The Two Pigeons. Jordan, Stephanie, The Royal Ballet programme, Rhapsody and The Two Pigeons, The Royal Opera House, London December 2015 to April 2016, p 23

Anna Pavlova as The Fairy Doll https://www.pinterest.com/pin/410742428491505966/

Anna Pavlova and Pierre Vladimiroff  in The Fairy Doll 1925-29  https://www.pinterest.com/pin/278378820692015161/

Anna Pavlova in The Dying Swan, p 170, in Pritchard, Jane and Caroline Hamilton, 2013 Anna Pavlova Twentieth Century Ballerina, United Kingdom: Booth Clibborn 

Performing at The Sadler's Wells Theatre, London

This week I have been performing in Little Red Riding Hood and The Three Little Pigs at the Sadler's Wells Theatre in London. I thought I would share some extracts from my journal and some photographs below. Permission has been granted to share the following information and images. 


 Monday

Our first day at Sadler's Wells! I really enjoyed Amy's class on stage, lots of eating up the space! After class we did a full run. I must say that I found this really hard. I think I could have done with having a more substantial snack but we were told that we only had 5 minutes between class and rehearsal so I did not really have time. Still, although I know that I made a few mistakes, I was glad that we did this full run because I knew the areas which were going to take more concentration for the show. After a good meal I felt much better and actually the performance ended up going really quite well. There was a great atmosphere in the audience even though it was not a full house and everyone seemed to be very entertained.

The more I think about it, the more I realise that one of the reasons this ballet is so challenging is because if you are not on stage, which most of the time you are, you are either doing a quick change, quick changing someone else, moving the set or doing a fast cross over! The concentration required for the performance is extreme. At times I still find that my memory can fade, probably just from an over load of information. However, I am not blanking in my own passages of choreography any more which is good.

With Krystal Lowe and Anna Pujol

Tuesday

My legs were very sore today but I enjoyed pushing through this because I know that ultimately it is at these times that I will gain strength. I feel that I am finally starting to let loose a bit more in my dancing and really go for it, rather than worry about being technically correct. We had a rehearsal of a few scenes and then a decent break before the second show. The atmosphere in the audience was not so great tonight and I was very frustrated because during one of my entrances in this ballet I have to bring a pig on wheels on and it got caught in the wing. Someone managed to unhook it but it fell on its side so I had to pull it on on its side! I was already on stage so there really was nothing that I could have done. I felt annoyed and as though I had spoiled the performance but tried to tell myself that there was nothing I could do and that I had not done it deliberately. Aside from this the performance was good and it was lovely to have two of my friends take company class and then watch the show. It made me consider how actually I think I do feel more confident when I have someone I know in the audience. Especially in this theatre because the auditorium and stage are at such close proximity and it is possible to literally see everyone's faces.

Wednesday

Again a good class with Amy which the London Ballet Circle came to watch. I felt a bit nervous with them watching because they have sponsored my apprenticeship with the company. I did enjoy performing for them though. This was followed by a productive rehearsal of some of the minpin sections which were still a bit ragged because of so many cast changes. Then I practised my entrance with the pig about ten times until I was confident that I would not disrupt the production with it!

I thoroughly enjoyed this performance, I just felt so fortunate to be there dancing in the Sadler's Wells Theatre.   

      

Warming up on stage before the show