Art-Venders... Assemble!
for A Chorus of Women. We have been passionately engaged with human relations to the Earth and I look forward to helping with A Chorus of Women’s contribution to our work in progress performance in June.” Glenda Cloughly is like a sage-like cheerleader of the group, albeit with the brain of a professor.
By Allan Sko A dancer-actor-photographer, visual artist, composer-poetsinger, choreographer, and musical director-singer-songwriter walk into an arts centre… It sounds like a ridiculously elaborate set up for an esoteric joke but fortunately, for the sake of Humour, it is in fact the premise of the exciting, new collaborative project of the Belco Arts Centre’s Artists in Residence. “Earthbound is a new intergenerational, multi-arts performance group which has come into being to undertake the inaugural Belco Arts Rhizome five-month residency,” explains Courtney Allen, who frankly did a Herculean effort pulling all this information together for this scintillating article. “We are bound in examining the existential threat of climate change, and in exploring art’s purposive role in felt, emotional responses to such crises. In our time of profound environmental crises, we explore the patterns and rhythms that connect people with nature through dance, music and visual art.” Allen is the dancer-actor-photographer of the crack fivestrong multi-disciplined arts squad. Rounding out the team are visual artist Sally Blake (whose Night Goddess art adorns the background of this very article), composer-poet-singer Glenda Cloughley, musical director-singer-songwriter Johanna McBride, and performance poet-musician Danny Pratt. Elizabeth Cameron Dalman is the theatre consultant and choreographer supported by the Agent Phil Coulson of the group, Craig San Roque. As well as their own artistic fields, each member brings a wealth of experience and a new perspective to the singular piece. “I bring a long artistic and research career that explores human’s relationship to, and place within, the natural world,” explains Sally Blake. “Visualisation of the natural laws and patterning that hold humans in the right relationship with Earth, as well as the consequences of these unravelling is my art’s work. My art takes many forms as I make across textiles, sculpture and drawings opening up many potentials for the theatre space.” With a solid footing on both sides of the camera, Allen brings a different aperture to proceedings. “Behind the camera I bring a background of six years in both commercial and fine art photography, creative direction and producing,” Allen says. “In front of the camera I bring a background in dance and acting. I have always held a deep passion for humans’ interconnection with nature, and expressed this through multiple works where I dance outdoors at site specific locations.” Johanna McBride further compliments the brew. “I bring to our group years of experience as a choral director and accompanist and a great love of working and playing together,” she explains. “For the last 18 years I have been directing music PAGE 28
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“I bring a passion for telling inspiring wise law stories about nurturing life and unsquishable confidence in the wellsprings of love and people’s capacity for creative action,” she reveals. “Since 2003, I’ve written lots of music and words for A Chorus of Women’s large performance repertoire of original songs and major choral productions. Much of this has drawn on my training as a Jungian psychoanalyst and my research background in cultural psychology and the indigenous layers of European mythology.” And much like his chosen written artform, poet slash musician Danny Pratt keeps it cogent. “I’m bringing the sum of my life’s experience in music and poetry. At the moment that is distilling through Earthling Blues.” Collaboration can create a cacophony of creativity when working well, but can be a tricky balance to achieve. How have our members faired during such multitudinous imaginings? “Working across generations and art forms is exciting to me,” Sally Blake explains. “It is also challenging as we have hugely different ways of creating and understanding the world, and ourselves as artists. The collaborative pot is heating up and bubbling with potential. New things are beginning to emerge, fragile and tender.” Courtney Allen echoes these sentiments. “I have found the collaborative process incredibly eye opening and educational,” she says. “I have never worked with such a diverse group of artists across different generations before. We all have vastly different artistic processes which has been challenging in the making of the work. We have recently found more form and settled into our roles which has given us the momentum and clarity needed to combine creative capacities.” With Directing as one of her skillsets, Johanna McBride has found herself more at home in the environment. “Five passionate artists working together and being guided by Elizabeth Cameron Dalman, a marvellous choreographer and theatre artist has had its challenges and has been wonderful and inspiring. After many years of directing others, I have really enjoyed being directed. I have also loved improvising, playing with my own music again, and learning to jam with others to Daniel’s music.” For Glenda Cloughley, it’s been an experience of discovery: “I began the residency saying that I’d never written a note of new music with anyone else in the room,” she says. “I’m hoping to free myself into more playful practice.” And whilst the previous section saw Danny Pratt’s contribution brief, it is on the topic of collaboration that the man comes alive. “It’s been good!” Pratt beams. “It’s been a lot of listening, deep thinking, feeling, connecting, and sharing with these artists,” he enthuses. “Sitting together in vulnerable, sometimes heavy states. Letting the work brew both in the space between us and within our individual processes. Sometimes it’s been challenging for me to dwell in deep conversation rather than discovering the nature of our work together through play and process, but as we @bmamag
