Design Inspiration: Follow Your Sense````````````````p28
Acknowledgement````````````````p30
List of Figures````````````````p33
Bibliography````````````````p37
Introduction
This essay will analyse the author's sensory exploration dancing in two theatres built in different centuries in Newcastle city centre, referring to phenomenology. The author will passionately introduce her story of performing for Newcastle University Dance Club annual dance shows twice in the past two years in Tyne Theatre & Opera House and Northern Stage, especially reflecting on her consciousness gained from the space she perceives while being in and out of various theatre spaces. During the essay, the author described four important spaces inside two theatres, auditorium, stage and wings and dressing room, which were interspersed with author’s two theatre experience timelines from rehearsal to finale. The help of phenomenological understanding in further good architectural design will be discussed ultimately in this essay.
Figure 6. The author doing a ballet pose on stage during the break between matinee and evening shows at Northern Stage.
Key dates in essay:
D-1 Technical Run Tue. 15 March 2022
Show Day 1 (evening) Wed. 16 March 2022
Show Day 2 (evening) T hur. 17 March 2022
Figure 2. Show ‘Blame it on the Boogie’ signboard in Tyne Theatre in March 2022
Figure 3. Newcastle University Dance Club 2021/22 members at Tyne Theatre.
Key Dates in essay:
D-2 Technical Run Wed. 26 April 2023
Show Day 1 (evening) Fri .28 April 2023
Show Day 2 (matinee and evening) Sat. 29 April 2023
Figure 4. Show ‘Shut Up and Dance’ Poster in Northern Stage in April 2023.
Figure 5. Finale scene of Newcastle University Dance Club Teachers and Committee 2022/23 at Northern Stage.
Chapter 1 Into the Spotlight
Theatre Architecture: Victorian vs Modern
A fundamental role of theatre is helping us to ‘live more in the present, but also collectively to remember’. Lefebvre, The Production of Space 1
Before I came to the UK, I didn't know I would be so obsessed with British theatre art and space The first time I went into Tyne Theatre & Opera House and Northern Stage was as a dancer, not audience, which made me feel proud. I really cherished these two experiences for performing in two completely different theatre architecture in Newcastle city centre. This has made me even more fascinated by exploring the connection between my subject ‘architecture’ and ‘dance’ industry I am passionate about.
Figure 7 ( above ) Tyne Theatre & Opera House façade.
Figure 8 ( below). The author and other dance club members shooting promotion video in front of Northern Stage in February 2023.
Tyne Theatre, a Grade I listed Victorian theatre designed by architect William B Parnell for Joseph Cowen Jr.(an industrialist and politician), is one of the few remaining theatres in the world that proudly features wooden modular stage technology. 2Northern Stage, formerly the Newcastle University Theatre, which opened in 1970, and the Newcastle
1 Henri Lefebvre, The production of space (Oxford, UK & Cambridge, Mass., USA: Blackwell, 1991), p. 329
2 TYNE THEATRE AND OPERA HOUSE, ‘History’, Tyne Theatre & Opera House <https://www.tynetheatreandoperahouse.uk/about/history/> [accessed 28 December 2023].
Playhouse and Gulbenkian Studio in the late eighties, reopened in 2006 under its current name and functions as a permanent venue for mid-scale theatre in Newcastle and the Northeast region. 3
9.Tyne Theatre stage door.
10. Northern Stage stage door 2.
Theatres serve the purpose of providing entertainment, disseminating information, inspiring, rallying, and facilitating the personal growth of both the audience and the performers. 4 What people could exactly get from theatre spaces depends on their perception and attunement 5of the environment. The phenomenology founded by Husserl emphasizes the description of phenomena through direct understanding, which is a pure existence within consciousness. 6 Since the knowledge obtained from the environment is analysed from the human brain, Freud's psychoanalysis is a concept worthy of comparison with phenomenology, as so-called 'direct' knowledge is also influenced by consciousness,
4 Lionel Mazet, Behind the Curtain: All about the essence of theatre (Seatle: Kindle, 2023), p. 130 <https://www.amazon.co.uk/Behind-Curtain-about-essencetheater/dp/B0CGWX198S/ref=sr_1_5?crid=3AVE3IMOW18PO&keywords=behind+the+curtain &qid=1704045926&sprefix=behind+the+curtain,aps,69&sr=8-5> [accessed 31 December 2023].
5 Alberto Perez-Gomez, Attunement: Architectural Meaning after the Crisis of Modern Science (Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press, 2016), p. 53. <https://read.amazon.co.uk/?asin=B08BSXGL3P&ref_=kwl_kr_iv_rec_2> [accessed 1 January 2024].
6 ‘Phenomenology’, Wikipedia, 27 December 2023 <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phenomenology_(philosophy)> [accessed 1 January 2024].
Figure
Figure
preconsciousness and unconsciousness, 7 which have profoundly affected activities of being-in-the-world in the spaces 8 I always feel that from a phenomenological perspective, architecture is not only the space that my senses perceive, but also my interaction with space, and the interpretation and reflection of these perceptions by my brain. 9
Figure 11. Tyne Theatre stage view.
Figure 12 Auditorium of Stage 1 in Northern Stage.
7 Saul Mcleod, ‘Freud’s Theory Of The Unconscious Mind’, Simply Psychology, 24 October 2023 <https://www.simplypsychology.org/unconscious-mind.html> [accessed 1 January 2024].
8 Frederick Wertz, ‘The Phenomenology of Sigmund Freud’, Journal of Phenomenological Psychology, 24.2 (January 1993), 101–29 , pp.105-106 <https://www.researchgate.net/publication/233566723_The_Phenomenology_of_Sigmund_Freud> [accessed 1 January 2024].
9 Stephen Houlgate, Hegel's 'Phenomenology of spirit : a reader's guide (London: Bloomsbury, 2013), p. 54
Figure 13. Ground inclination difference between Tyne Theatre and Northern Stage.
Standing outside these two buildings will not feel the height difference inside the buildings. Façade of Tyne Theatre, with decorative gables, eaves, and roof spires adorning the exterior 10 , consists of colourful patterns filled with exquisite pastels carved from the late Victorian era, conveying a luxurious atmosphere, whereas Northern Stage, with brownish red brick walls, concrete columns, avant-garde 11steel decorations on the roof, large-area French window made of glass, and a simple façade, exudes the modern style.
The above diagram was drawn by me purely with the perception by my eyes and feet, without any reference to any formal drawings. The elastic wooden stage floor in Tyne Theatre is sloping, letting rear-row audience at the stall see the performers , who undertake risk of falling onstage. Northern Stage has a flat stage ,quite performer-friendly, but hard as stone, making it difficult to do jumps on it.
These two buildings, in terms of appearance, one looks like sparkling sculpture that have been baptized by centuries, and the other looks like new products just salvaged by a forging factory, waiting for future polishing.
10 MasterClass, ‘Victorian Architecture: 3 Characteristics of Victorian Architecture’, Master Class, 22 June 2021 <https://www.masterclass.com/articles/victorian-architecture> [accessed 8 January 2024].
11 ‘Avant-garde’, Wikipedia <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avant-garde> [accessed 8 January 2024].
CHAPTER 1.1TyneTheatre
D-1: Solemn Auditorium
Listen! Interiors are like large instruments, collecting sound, amplifying it, transmitting it elsewhere. That has to do with the shape peculiar to each room and with the surfaces of the materials they contain, and the way those materials have been applied. 12
Peter Zumthor, Atmosphere
I still vividly remember the first time we went into Tyne Theatre & Opera House proudly as performers in March 2022 At the moment I walked in, it seemed like I was in another fantasy world that couldn't be sewn together with the outside world. 13 W hen we headed to auditorium, there were already two people majestically standing on the stage. Our club president tightly holding the microphone ready for her enthusiastic speech, who was the most passionate person among 200 people, and our show coordinator holding her notebook seriously, who was always scanning the crowd with eagle-like eyes, showed us around the the theatre to get us familiar with the performance environment and process before the start of rehearsal.
Figure 14 (above) Box Office of Tyne Theatre & Opera House.
Figure 15 (below). Stall Seatings of Tyne Theatre & Opera House.
Sitting on the blue velvet narrow chairs at the stall and staring at the shimmering chandelier, I had felt a solemn atmosphere At this moment of readiness, we are like female warriors holding weapons, ready to obey orders
12 Peter Zumthor, Atmospheres: Architectural Environments - Surrounding Objects (Basel: Birkhäuser GmbH, 2006), p. 29.
13 Howard Barker, Arguments for A Theatre, 3rd edn (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1997), p. 127
and rush to the stage to showcase our talents. Before entering Tyne T heatre, I had no idea of a post -Victorian theatrical space.
Figure 16 (left). Upper Circle Seatings, Gallery Seatings and the shimmering chandelier in Tyne Theatre.
Figure 17 (right). Show openers rehearsing jazz dance ‘Waiting for Tonight’ in Tyne Theatre.
Figure 18 (below). Stall seatings perspective in Tyne Theatre.
There is a big ‘photo frame’ on the stage that catches my eye. With this effect ,it is possible to achieve more scenery than previously stage before Victorian era. 14 The stage arrangement becomes a scene within the photo frame. Another noteworthy feature was shimmering chandelier hanging on the ceiling of the opera house. The melodious voices of two club leaders swayed over the empty but bustling theatre top. Under the enchanting yellow light from the chandelier and lambs, we quietly listened to the architectural language of four centuries ago. Unlike crowded and chilly dressing room, space for audience was more spacious and warmer. And the reason why dancers can ignite unexpected enthusiasm on stage is also due to the huge contrast between stage and backstage.
14 MasterClass, ‘Victorian Architecture: 3 Characteristics of Victorian Architecture’, Master Class, 22 June 2021 <https://www.masterclass.com/articles/victorian-architecture> [accessed 8 January 2024].
Figure 19.Dressing Room 11 in Tyne Theatre.
Figure 20 (left below). Dressing Room 11 in Tyne Theatre.
Figure 21 (right below). Fifteen dancers squeezed in a 10-sqm dressing room doing their homework before the rehearsal started
D-DAY: Wobbling on Stage
Freedom! Freedom! I can't move Freedom, cut me loose! Freedom! Freedom! Where are you?
'Cause I need freedom, too!
I break chains all by myself
Won't let my freedom rot in hell Hey! I'ma keep running 'Cause a winner don't quit on themselves
Freedom, by Beyoncé, ft. Kendrick Lamar 15
Figure 22 The author (third on the left) performing street dance ‘Freedom’ in Tyne Theatre, music by Beyoncé, choreography by author’s street teachers Cerys Robson and Emma Brooke.
Juhani Pallasmma said all senses including visions are extensions of touch. 16As a dancer, my method of intimate dialogue with the theatre space is the tactility of my dancing feet. The audience never know how steep the floor is unless they stand on the stage of the Tyne Theatre. Flying back to March 2022, at the first show day night, the showcase of street dance ‘Freedom’ knocked audience’s socks off. The members of our street dancing team diligently addressed the issue of imbalance on stage and successfully executed a series of remarkable choreography.
To ensure that the audience seated in the back row may have an unobstructed view of the whole stage, dancers must overcome any feelings of instability and execute their performance flawlessly, as if they were on a flat surface. Due to scheduling issues, we only rehearsed once on stage. Prior to this, all rehearsals were conducted on the flat and
15 Just Blaze, Beyoncé and Jonny Coffer, ‘Freedom’, Genius, 23 April 2016 <https://genius.com/Beyoncefreedom-lyrics> [accessed 26 December 2023].
16 Juhani Pallasmaa, The Eyes of The Skin (Chichester: John Wiley & Sons Ltd, 2012), p. 175. <https://read.amazon.co.uk/?asin=B007VTYDY2&ref_=kwl_kr_sea_1> [accessed 31 December 2023].
hard wooden floor of the dance studio in our university sports centre. The floor of theatre stage was brittle and tilted, making all dancers unfamiliar with the sloping stage feel uneasy during the rehearsal.
Dance is a comprehensive sport I was not just relying on my sensory perception to perform the dance; I was also using my cognitive faculties. During the whole of my dance process, my brain had been actively engaged in absorbing sensory input and translating it into cognitive understanding. 17 Subsequently, cognition directed my muscles to execute dance moves.
During the actual performance, I made full use of my vision to help me determine my position in space and used my hearing to identify the movements of my dance partners, in order to correctly recognize my range of movement when my feet showed limited levels of tactile sensation. My vision 'touched' the stage space, ‘touched’ the colourful spotlights, ‘touched’ the smoke floating around the dancers, and ‘touched’ the lively dancing bodies beside me one by one. 18
17 Ole Moystad, Cognition and the built environment (London: Routledge, 2019), p.80
18 Miranda Tufnell and Chris Crickmay, Body Space Image: Notes towards Improvisation and Performance (Axminster: Triarchy Press, 1990), p. 320. <https://read.amazon.co.uk/?asin=B0BTDW7L4J&ref_=kwl_kr_sea_1> [accessed 2 January 2024].
Figure 23. Street Dance ‘Whine & Kotch’ performed by street competition team, choreography by Newcastle comp team coordinator Kristina Pascual.
CHAPTER 1.2NorthernStage
D-2: Pain behind the Wing
OH time, let me go Stop pushing I’m fine on my own Aligned with the stones
Out into the sea Where I’ll be till tomorrow Out into the sea Where my troubles can’t follow
Wash it away Make me new like a child running into the waves Let me stay
Figure 24 Projectors behind the wings in Northern Stage.
Into the Sea, by Lexi Berg 19
19 Lexi Berg, Lexi Berg - Into the Sea (Official Video), online video recording, YouTube, 14 May 2021 <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E4950fsFVxI> [accessed 26 December 2023].
One of the most frustrating things for a dancer is suddenly getting injured during her rehearsal. In April 2023, on the second day before our shows in Northern Stage, at the time when we finished our technical run for lyrical dance Into the Sea and ran back from the stage, my right foot accidentally kicked on a large black projection lightbox on the floor behind the wings. The ‘boom’ sound scared my dance partners and they turned back and asked if I was alright. I suppressed the sharp pain between my toes and trembled, saying it was okay I would like to pretend it's good to keep my stage enthusiasm going And I never thought of giving it up.
Behind the attention-grabbing parts on stage are people pushing their bodies to the extreme, as well as taking risks and getting injured 20 Slowly walking down the small staircase in the dim backstage to the stall seatings, I seemed to see a dark liquid gushing out of my small toe. I was wearing a pair of dark blue pants made of gauze, like a lonely and painful mermaid who has just landed on the beach. When I kept walking on cold and rock-hard floor in the auditorium on my way back to my seat, my foot felt the pain of a knife.
I was embarrassed, but I couldn’t let others find out. I tried to close my senses so when I sat on the narrow armchair in the audience, I could only feel the black, thick mist-like air surging through the heads of the dancers communicating with each other, as well as the dance curves shimmering in the distance, as if waving to me and continuing to welcome me, which also seemed to be forming a barrier against me, as if that place doesn't belong to me.
20 Marvin Carlson, Performance (London: Routledge, 1996), p. 103.
Figure 25 Lyrical dance ‘Into the Sea ’ in Northern Stage ,music by Lexi Berg, choreography by author’s lyrical teachers Kathryn Nann and Emily Clements.
Figure 26 & 27 (above ). The vacant Stage 3 in Norther Stage used as a big ‘dressing room’ for dance club members who had less than five performances in the show, leaving the main dressing room for the busiest dancers.
Figure 28 (left). The internal stairs connecting Stage 3 and Stage 1 in Northern Stage. The necessary path for the author to rush to the backstage wings.
D-DAY: Light, Smoke and Melody
It's perfect, it's passion, it's setting me free From all of my sadness, the tears that I've cried I have spent all of my life
Waiting for tonight
Waiting for Tonight, sung by Jennifer Lopez 21
Ballet, as an art that denies gravity, has many beautiful spinning and jumping movements. Unlike street dance, which celebrates the gravity, it is a beauty that flows upwards. 22 Pallasmaa ,in his book The Thinking Hand , argued that our senses establish a connection between ourselves and the world. Our sensory perception and physical embodiment immediately shape, generate, and retain tacit existential knowledge. The human body has cognitive abilities. Our existence in the world is primarily experienced via our senses and our bodies. This embodied experience is the foundation of our understanding of existence. 23 Performance on stage is a stimulating process for connecting my direct sensory and the surrounding world.
Figure 29 The author (second on the right) performing ‘Spring’ of ballet ‘The Four Seasons’ with her dance partners, music La Primavera Op.8 No.1 E Major : Allegro by Antonio Vivaldi, choreography by author’s ballet teachers Melanie Bettles and Emma Cairns.
It had been the most existing and shining moment since hard preparation for this performance days ago. In the darkness, I and my dance partners stepped onto the cold and hard dance floor, made of vinyl, preparing for doing ballet dance The Four Seasons to the violin concerti composed by Italian musician Antonio Vivaldi ,which was slowly played from the sound of the stage from all sides. All of a sudden, my eyes was widened with the strong spotlights shooting on us, and my skin immediately warmed up. My adrenaline was pumping, all my pores were open, and my muscles of arms and legs were tense but shaking.
21 Richie Jones and Ric Wake, ‘Waiting for Tonight’, Genius, 1 November 1999 <https://genius.com/Jennifer-lopez-waiting-for-tonight-lyrics> [accessed 26 December 2023].
22 Kent C. Bloomer and Charles W. Moore, Body, Memory, and Architecture (New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 1977), p. 58.
23 Juhani Pallasmaa, The Thinking Hand (Chichester: John Wiley & Sons Ltd., 2009), p. 13
The magic of the stage is that it can be transformed into different spaces, creating a unique atmosphere with the help of stage effects and the dancing postures of the dancers I raised my arms gracefully, like a budding cherry blossom, and I stood on tiptoe in pink cotton ballet shoes and stretched out my legs to complete a beautiful Pirouette (a complete turn of the body on one foot 24 ).The audience in front of me became a wavy stream of coloured light In the hazy air that blends with pink lights, the stage seemed to be transformed into a peaceful and tranquil secret garden. All the flower fairies (us) swirled gracefully, our pink gauze skirts shrouded the stage like mist, and the stage was divided into small balls by us. The stage ceiling looked like a light grey sky full of clouds, and the boxy stage space seemed to be surrounded by vague air into an arc-shaped cradle, protecting flower fairies in the middle.
My understanding of stage space was based on the perspective I saw through all my stage actions, which was a gift from my senses. In my vivid stage memory, at that performing time, the stage space carried my frame-like body in black leotard moving under dizzying ceiling, the soft and slender arms of my dance partners drawing neat parallel lines beside me, the white and tender long legs under their nude ballet pantyhose, the shyness and ambiguity that our bodies passed by each other, the cool and bittersweet air whistling past my red lips, the melodious background music and explosive cheers we heard, the smell of the dance floor with a mixture of wood and resin flavours, and the dark but glittering curves connecting the heads of the audience. Greedy yet pitiful. Dancers are full of ambition, willing to spend so much pain and struggle in the early stages, hoping to have a
24 ‘The Complete Ballet Terminology Page’, More than Dancer, 31 May 2021 <https://www.morethandancers.com/posts/ballet-terminology> [accessed 8 January 2024]
Figure 30 Wings perspective: the author and her dance partners performing spring section of ballet dance The Four Seasons, watched by their teacher Melanie.
period of time and space that truly belongs to them, even if it's just a little bit. Once there are dancers on an empty stage, it is filled with flowing emotions.
Chapter 2 When the Curtain was Down
Finale：Bow with Tears
And you can tell everybody this is your song
It may be quite simple but now that it's done
I hope you don't mind, I hope you don't mind
That I put down in words How wonderful life is now you're in the world
Your Song, sung by Ellie Goulding, produced by Ben Lovett 25
Figure 31 Author’s lovely teachers from dance club, who are also Newcastle Uni students like us, bowed together in finale in Northern Stage.
The finale was the last chance to dance on stage for the show. We danced to a popular track as the theme of the whole show. When I boogied onstage with my costume again for finale with my fellow dancers, the huge contrast in the environments always made my heart shake hard. Unlike the dazzling white light that enveloped the stage and fuzzy auditorium during previous performances, the stage under my feet and the audience in front of me are surrounded by warm pink and orange lights The audience took off their strict ‘masks’ and wriggled in their seats with us
Two seemingly separated spaces were warmly connected like this. After our dance ended, we all bowed.
Florid air was flowing,. The excited and tearful faces of the dancers bloomed into roses one after another The music floating in the air turns into strands of golden thread, weaving everyone's emotions into an invisible space that we could break free from restraint and scream freely The curved bowing lines of us made the stage look like it was ignited by glitzy sparks.
At this moment, the stage was not just a piece of stage, but a grand flowing feast. The space in front of us and the space inside us were unified at this moment. They triggered an emotional nuclear explosion together.
25 Ben Lovett, ‘Your Song’, Genius, 12 November 2010 <https://genius.com/Ellie-goulding-your-songlyrics> [accessed 8 January 2024].
Figure 32 Dancers waiting in wings for finale in Northern Stage.
Blackout：Post-show Melancholy
I wanna be a human 'Fore I do some art It's a cruel world
But there's gon' be my part 'Cause true beauty is a true sadness
Now you could feel my madness
Yun, by RM of BTS, ft. Erykah Badu 26
Figure 33 (above). Author standing in front of the closed velvet curtain on stage after finale in Tyne Theatre.
It was always a hard moment when we stood on the stage, waving to the audience cheering for us and waiting for the stage curtain slowly closing. The stage is a flowing space where I can suddenly become happy or melancholic. Standing under the tightly closed blue velvet stage curtains, only a few scattered spotlights emitted white light, and I couldn't bear to move my steps. Outside the curtains were a bustling crowd of exiting spectators, there were excited dancers embracing each other behind me, with others like me couldn't help but sigh. Glorious space, desolate time, my stiff body and my soul drifting away.
When I danced, my emotions gushed out from my body, flowing like a colourful river on stage. The blurred lights, the audience's fiery gaze, the sharp, high-speed air brushing against my cheeks, the music beating the beat for my heart they all dazzle me and lift me up high. When the performance came to an end, standing alone on stage and backstage, I was thrown heavily on the cold floor, with a loud thud, everything turned black and white,
26 Namjoon Kim (artist name: RM), ‘RM - Yun ft. Erykah Badu (English Translation)’, Genius, 2 December 2022 <https://genius.com/Genius-english-translations-rm-yun-ft-erykah-badu-english-translation-lyrics> [accessed 26 December 2023].
and my soul was split in two by the thunderous impact.
Figure 34 Atmosphere at wings :contrast between way to dressing room and way to stage in Northern Stage
We all have our own unique definition of space. The above photo with contrasting colours expresses my views on the backstage and stage in Northern Stage. Behind the scenes, there are countless dancers who care for each other in the dressing room. People tolerate each other's mistakes and pains, covering up various problems that are not on the table. This space, dressing room, is warm but numb.
However, the stage is beautiful but cruel, allowing dancers to showcase their best selves to the fullest, almost ‘naked’ under dazzling spotlights, showcasing everything they have Either bask in the audience's approved gaze, or those gazes turn into bayonets that destroy all your pride 27, making you suddenly realize how this space can inexplicably demote the audience who are also 'human', becoming so cold and ruthless, becoming 'animals' that kill each other. You dare not look at other humans in the same space, your heart seems to be exploding, your dance cloth is soaked in sweat, your arms and legs are trembling, unable to perform beautiful movements anymore, you want to cry, you want to escape this space, but not yet. It is this space and other 'beings' in this space that are forcing you to continue staying
27
Antonin Artaud, The Theatre and its double, trans. by Victor Corti (Montreuil: Calder, 1993), p. 72.
This whole theatre space, either inflates your confidence and continues to love it, or it makes you angry and fearful, accompanied by indescribable shame, afraid to bravely explore your possibilities in this space again. I have bought tickets and watched no less than twenty performances on Tyne Theatre. Does it feel like the audience watching the performance off-stage is watching the Beast Fighting in Colosseo in Rome? The audience watched the dancers on stage perform as if they were torn apart by themselves, perhaps expressionless but passionate below. Isn't dance a form of violent aesthetics?
Figure 35 The author watched Swan Lake performed by ballerinas from Amande Concerts Company
If you unfortunately mess up your performance on a cold stage, your lonely soul will automatically drift back to the warm backstage, and all your negative emotions will burst out without any disguise, shamefully returning to the embrace of other humans. This kind of shame is both like the feeling of a child losing a battle outside and returning to their mother's embrace, as well as a frank surrender to the limitations of humanity itself The reason why I emphasize the pain brought by stage space is that this is reality. Reality is very physical, and the entire 'natural' world can be said to lack empathy. Otherwise, why do humans create the space of 'society' and stubbornly hide?
Figure 36. Way to box in Tyne Theatre.
with live orchestra in Tyne Theatre in Oct 2023.
Design Inspiration: Follow Your Sense
Architecture should serve and care for people. The people living in the building are more important than the beauty of the building itself. Heidegger said, not every building is dwelling. 28 Focusing on how people experience the environment is crucial for architectural design. How people perceive space, explain space, and engage in activities and reflection on space is a question worthy of architect's consideration
A good architectural design is compassionate because humans comfort and protect each other in this cruel world All of our knowledge comes from our perception of the world we come into contact with. Senses are the main channel for humans to obtain information, and the so-called objective and scientific analysis through the brain is also based on the perception of the surrounding space. The elusive and flowing emotions of humans fill the space they are in With empathy, designers will be more able to feel pain and digest it in order to design better spaces for others, so ultimately beauty is presented; with empathy, designers will create beautiful spaces that can accommodate flowing emotions.
In this sense, architecture is a shelter that protects these human emotions. These ‘shelters’ we are in has places worth appreciating and regretting. Designers design with a one-sided feeling, while users feel with a one-sided feeling, so every space cannot be perfect for everyone. Designers are very painful, just like clam shells producing pearls, creating a place for humans to protect their bodies and spirits, so designers are always praised
If we can only obtain our understanding of space from direct senses, then we only need to follow our own human feelings. What you see, hear, smell, touch, and taste, if you think it's good, then it's good. If you think it brings you a certain sense of atmosphere, then follow that feeling. I want to tell all human beings, no matter how you feel in a space, that’s alright, that’s no problem, because that’s you.
28 Martin Heidegger, ‘Building Dwelling Thinking’, Filosofia, 1971 <https://www.contentarchive.wwf.gr/images/pdfs/pe/katoikein/Filosofia_Building%20Dwelling%20Thi nking.pdf> [accessed 31 December 2023].
Figure 37. Backstage facilities in Tyne Theatre.
Perhaps the entire world, including the space we are in, is not real, just like Truman's world Perhaps our "feelings" are only defined and obedient like the "scenery" in movies, but this is the limitation of our humanity. We can only feel space and the larger world from each person's unique perspective. 29 I have seen dancers sitting in the audience or backstage crying sadly during rehearsals. I really wanted to rush up and comfort her, but I didn't because I understand that this is her effort to understand the space she is in, and I should feel relieved
Thankfully, phenomenology has made me understand how small and limited human is in the world, made me more sympathetic to humanity, made me respect human senses, and also made me reflect on the 'my' space formed by the perspective I am in. It has encouraged me to communicate more with other 'being' in human society about their cognition on space. Phenomenology tightly connects the spatial ‘body’ and the human body together. Not only theatres are spaces, but also I was like a ‘space’ I used my eyes, ears, nose, mouth, and skin to feel outer spaces, like doors and windows that open from the inner world. My brain organizes my understanding, and the projector of my eyes plays out the world I feel So I live in the space my body ‘sees’. 30
Space we feel and understand may not necessarily be its entirety 31, but we can cherish and celebrate what we have gained, allowing it to realize its maximum value I am fortunate enough to release my precious emotions in these two theatrical spaces, letting it flow in front of solemn stagedoor, flow under dazzling spotlights, flow behind cascading blue curtains, flow between soft velvet chairs, and rest in my magnificent inner world. 32
29 Maurice Merleau-Ponty, The world of perception (London and New York: Routledge, 2009), p. 14 <https://read.amazon.co.uk/?asin=B000OI15ZW&ref_=kwl_kr_iv_rec_15> [accessed 2 January 2024].
30 Miranda Tufnell and Chris Crickmay, Body Space Image: Notes towards Improvisation and Performance (Axminster: Triarchy Press, 1990), p.320 <https://read.amazon.co.uk/?asin=B0BTDW7L4J&ref_=kwl_kr_sea_1> [accessed 2 January 2024].
31 Stephen Houlgate, Hegel's 'Phenomenology of spirit : a reader's guide (London: Bloomsbury, 2013), p. 15
32 Flow : interior, landscape, and architecture in the era of liquid modernity, ed. by Penny Sparke and others (London: Bloomsbury Visual Arts, 2018), p.263
Acknowledgement A Massive Thank-You
to these Powerful Ladies behind the Show ‘Blame it on the Boogie (2022)’ !
Figure 38 Newcastle University Dance Club Teachers and Committee 2021/22 in Tyne Theatre
Figure 39. President 2021/22 Nicole Lowens. Figure 40. Show Coordinator 2021/22 Phoebe Weddle.
A Big Shout Out
to these invincible Female Warriors for Show ‘Shut up and Dance (2023)’ !
Figure 41 Newcastle University Dance Club Teachers and Committee 2022/23 in Northern Stage.
Figure 42 President 2022/23 Rebecca Horner. Figure 43. Show Coordinator 2022/23 Imogen Windfiled.
...and last but not least,
Stage Love Forever
to all of mydearestNCLDanceClub folks
If itweren'tforspending suchawonderful and tearfultimewithyou inthesetwolovely theatres,there wouldn'thave beenthispainstaking article !
44. Monitor Perspective of the Finale of Show ‘Shut Up and Dance’ in Northern Stage in Apr.
Figure
List of Figures
Figure 1. Newcastle University Dance Club 2021/22 in rehearsal in Tyne Theatre & Opera House.
Author’s own photograph.
Figure 2. Show ‘Blame it on the Boogie’ signboard in Tyne Theatre in March 2022.
Author’s own photograph.
Figure 3. Newcastle University Dance Club 2021/22 members in rehearsal in Tyne Theatre.
Photographed by Newcastle University Dance Club media officer 2021/22
Figure 4. Show ‘Shut Up and Dance’ Poster in Northern Stage in April 2023.
Newcastle University Dance Club, ‘Tickets for our show are released at 11am today on the Northern Stage website!! We can’t wait to see so [...]’, Facebook, 17 February 2023
Figure 5. Finale scene of Newcastle University Dance Club Teachers and Committee 2022/23 at Northern Stage.
Author’s own photograph.
Figure 6 The author doing a ballet pose on stage during the break between matinee and evening shows at Northern Stage.
Photographed by author’s dance partner Cherlyn Lam.
Figure 7. Tyne Theatre & Opera House façade.
Author’s own photograph.
Figure 8. The author and other dance club members shooting promotion video in front of Northern Stage in February 2023.
Newcastle University Dance Club, ‘It’s time to start thinking about our annual show!! We’re kicking off with our show promo video, and tomorrow we [...]’, Facebook, 13 February 2022
Figure 9.Tyne Theatre stage door.
Author’s own photograph.
Figure 10. Northern Stage stage door 2.
Author’s own photograph.
Figure 11. Tyne Theatre stage view
Author’s own photography.
Figure 12. Auditorium of Stage 1 in Northern Stage.
Author’s own photograph.
Figure 13. Ground inclination difference between Tyne Theatre and Northern Stage.
Author’s own drawing.
Figure 14 Box Office of Tyne Theatre & Opera House.
Author’s own photograph.
Figure 15 . Stall Seatings of Tyne Theatre & Opera House.
Author’s own photograph.
Figure 16. Upper Circle Seatings, Gallery Seatings and the shimmering chandelier in Tyne Theatre. Author’s own photograph.
Figure 17. Show openers rehearsing jazz dance ‘Waiting for Tonight’ in Tyne Theatre.
Author’s own photograph.
Figure 18 Stall seatings perspective in Tyne Theatre.
Author’s own photograph.
Figure 19.Dressing Room 11 in Tyne Theatre.
Author’s own photograph.
Figure 20. Dressing Room 11 in Tyne Theatre.
Author’s own photograph.
Figure 21. Fifteen dancers squeezed in a 10-sqm dressing room doing their homework before the rehearsal started
Author’s own photograph.
Figure 22. The author (third on the left) performing street dance ‘Freedom’ in Tyne Theatre, music by Beyoncé, choreography by author’s street teachers Cerys Robson and Emma Brooke.
Craig, Harry, ‘NU DANCE SHOW’, Harry Craig Photography, 17 March 2022 <https://harrycraigphotography.pixieset.com/nudanceshow/> [accessed 29 December 2023]
Figure 23 Street Dance ‘Whine & Kotch’ performed by street competition team, choreography by Newcastle comp team coordinator Kristina Pascual.
Author’s own photograph.
Figure 24 Projectors behind the wings in Northern Stage.
Author’s own photograph.
Figure 25 Lyrical dance ‘Into the Sea ’ in Northern Stage ,music by Lexi Berg, choreography by author’s lyrical teachers Kathryn Nann and Emily Clements.
Craig, Harry, ‘DANCE SHOW 2023’, Harry Craig Photography, 5 May 2023
<https://harrycraigphotography.pixieset.com/danceshow2023/> [accessed 29 December 2023]
Figure 26 & 27. The vacant Stage 3 in Norther Stage used as a big ‘dressing room’ for dance club members who had less than five performances in the show, leaving the main dressing room for the busiest dancers.
Author’s own photographs.
Figure 28. The internal stairs connecting Stage 3 and Stage 1 in Northern Stage. The necessary path for the author to rush to the backstage wings.
Author’s own photographs.
Figure 29. The author (second on the right) performing ‘Spring’ of ballet ‘The Four Seasons’ with her dance partners, music La Primavera Op.8 No.1 E Major : Allegro by Antonio Vivaldi, choreography by author’s ballet teachers Melanie Bettles and Emma Cairns.
Photography by author’s dance partner Hollie Muir.
Figure 30 Wings perspective: the author and her dance partners performing spring section of ballet dance The Four Seasons, watched by their teacher Melanie.
Photography by author’s ballet teacher Melanie Bettles.
Figure 31 Author’s lovely teachers from dance club, who are also Newcastle Uni students like us, bowed together in finale in Northern Stage.
Author’s own photograph.
Figure 32. Dancers waiting in wings for finale in Northern Stage.
Author’s own photograph.
Figure 33. Author standing in front of the closed velvet curtain on stage after finale in Tyne Theatre
Author’s own photograph.
Figure 34. Atmosphere at wings :contrast between way to dressing room and way to stage in Northern Stage.
Author’s own photograph.
Figure 35. The author watched Swan Lake performed by ballerinas from Amande Concerts Company with live orchestra in Tyne Theatre in Oct 2023.
Author’s own photograph.
Figure 36. Way to box in Tyne Theatre.
Author’s own photograph.
Figure 37.Backstage facilities in Tyne Theatre.
Author’s own photograph.
Figure 38. Newcastle University Dance Club Teachers and Committee 2021/22 in Tyne Theatre.
Craig, Harry, ‘NU DANCE SHOW’, Harry Craig Photography, 17 March 2022 <https://harrycraigphotography.pixieset.com/nudanceshow/> [accessed 29 December 2023]
Figure 39 President 2021/22 Nicole Lowens.
Craig, Harry, ‘NU DANCE SHOW’, Harry Craig Photography, 17 March 2022 <https://harrycraigphotography.pixieset.com/nudanceshow/> [accessed 29 December 2023]
Figure 40. Show Coordinator 2021/22 Phoebe Weddle.
Craig, Harry, ‘NU DANCE SHOW’, Harry Craig Photography, 17 March 2022 <https://harrycraigphotography.pixieset.com/nudanceshow/> [accessed 29 December 2023]
Figure 41. Newcastle University Dance Club Teachers and Committee 2022/23 in Northern Stage.
Craig, Harry, ‘DANCE SHOW 2023’, Harry Craig Photography, 5 May 2023 <https://harrycraigphotography.pixieset.com/danceshow2023/> [accessed 29 December 2023]
Figure 42 President 2022/23 Rebecca Horner.
Craig, Harry, ‘DANCE SHOW 2023’, Harry Craig Photography, 5 May 2023 <https://harrycraigphotography.pixieset.com/danceshow2023/> [accessed 29 December 2023]
Figure 43. Show Coordinator 2022/23 Imogen Windfiled.
Craig, Harry, ‘DANCE SHOW 2023’, Harry Craig Photography, 5 May 2023 <https://harrycraigphotography.pixieset.com/danceshow2023/> [accessed 29 December 2023]
Figure 44. Monitor Perspective of the Finale of Show ‘Shut Up and Dance’ in Northern Stage in Apr. 2023.
Author’s own photograph.
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