Production Technologies These are all the extra parts on a stage which are used to enhance the Choreographic Intention. These include:  Lighting  Props  Sound  Venue  Costumes  Set  Make Up  Accompaniment

Costuming The purpose of a dance costume is to enhance the dancer’s body and the concept of the choreographer “Costumes are clothes and they are art. They make the invisible ideas visible” (Nadel 241).

Costuming  Costumes help to set the scene for the audience, to give a message about the dance.  They help to put the dancer into the correct frame of mind and help create the correct mood to dance.  Quite often they have specific items which identify with a specific culture, genre or style.

What kind of dances do these costumes portray? ……

What features help in a costume? Costumes

Costuming - Colour  Colour appeals to the emotions of the audience.  Some colours give a warm feeling, some give a cold feeling.  Colours also reflect the light in different ways on the stage. You need to think of the lighting as it can change the colour of a costume under different lights. Red = passion, love, rage, anger Blue = sad, surreal, calm, water White = freedom, purity, peace, Green = envy, nature

Costuming – Pattern and Texture Texture and patterns emphasize or minimize parts of the dancer’s body. It helps to make the costume feel like it is connected to the dancers body. Dance is about movement, so the way the fabric moves is very important. Fabric can enhance the moves that a dancer does i.e. Silk flows around the body like water

Costuming - Design Costumes can be used to enhance or hide certain parts of the body to support the movements made by them. They also allow for either ease or restriction of certain movements.

For example: Polynesian dancers wear feathers and extra grasses/leaves around their hips to accentuate the movements made. Hip hop dancers wear Gloves on their hands to show the sharp movements and precision in their dance

‘MAURI’ Have a look at the costume in ‘Mauri. Draw the costume and analyse all the parts and the purpose

Make-up Make-up is used to enhance ones appearance and ‘finish’ the look associated with a costume.

Make-up At times make-up is needed to show the facial features of a dancer so the audience can see the emotion on their face (due to stage lighting)

Make-up At other times make-up is used to change the appearance of a dancer to help tell the story or show the character.

SOUND The music or instrument behind the dancing also helps to communicate the theme or ideas to the audience. It appeals to the senses and creates an atmosphere about the emotion throughout the dance. It can be used to: Build tension and suspense Create a vibe which is happy, bright, cheerful Create a feeling of calm, quiet, soothing thoughts Create a feeling of havoc, mayhem, craziness

SOUND Different types of instruments create a completely different feel to the dance. i.e. Heavy metal gives the feeling of anger Water or flutes give a calming feeling

SOUND The music itself helps to keep the Beat or set the Tempo for the dance. There may also be certain Rhythms that the movements may follow. The music may also have certain Accents which add interest or change the Duration of the movements

Lets look at Mauri...

Lighting... Lighting also helps to tell the story. It is used to allow us to see certain things (Visibility), set a certain scene (day/night), create a certain mood (Atmosphere), or enhance shapes and objects. We can break these into specific functions:

1. Selective Lighting This allows us to see what is happening on stage. The brighter (or more contrasted) the light, the more we see. Without this the viewers cannot see the performers, unless this is the specific intent.

More light, can see body and face Less light, lots of shadows, no definition on face

Revelation of Form Altering the perception of shapes onstage, particularly three-dimensional stage elements.

Focus Directing the audience’s attention to an area of the stage, or distracting them from another.

Mood Setting the tone of a scene. Harsh red light has a totally different effect from soft lavender light.

Colours in the Red area of the colour spectrum are known as warm colours, and include red, orange and yellow. These warm colours evoke emotions ranging from feelings of warmth and comfort to feelings of anger and hostility. Colours on the Blue side of the spectrum are known as cool colours, and include blue, purple, and green. These cool colours are often described as calm, but can also call to mind feelings of sadness or indifference.

Location and Time of Day Establishing or altering position in time and space. Blues can suggest night time while orange and red can suggest a sunrise or sunset

Plot (script) A lighting event may trigger or advance the action onstage.

Composition Lighting may be used to show only the areas of the stage which the designer wants the audience to see, and to "paint a picture"