5 images/5 actions
Who
any group of people, or individuals working alone
Source et inspiration
This exercise was created as part of research conducted with Mariam Faquir at L’L-chercher en arts vivants (Brussels)
WHERE
An open space (inside or outside)
DURATION
2 – 4 minutes per action
MATERIALS
Music and images
EXERCISE DESCRIPTION
Before beginning, create a playlist that corresponds to the five steps that follow. Example: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1dfMDICSAGtC0ujQk29Vqt?si=d9c83b4d28b24b51. Find five images that correspond to the following five steps. Example: Warm up.pdf. The five actions correspond to five stages of a warm-up. Each person can approach the five actions with their own movement vocabulary and adapt the warm-up protocol to fit their needs. The prompts are inspired by the work of American choreographer Anna Halprin and fit into 3 categories: physical-anatomical level / sensory level / imaginative level.
Depending on one’s fatigue, motivation, attention, or energy, the 5 actions / 5 images protocol can be practiced or adapted in various ways: by relying more on images or sensations, by working on giving weight (to the floor, or to another consenting participant), or by doing the exercise as visualization rather than movement, etc. The dramaturgy of the musical playlist also matters, as it colors the movement while transmitting a specific energy and intent.
TAKING IT FURTHER
Work with different sets of images.
Action 1
Action 2
Move the joints: roll and unroll every joint in the body with circles, spirals, figure-eights; imagine a current of water or electricity flowing through your movements; follow the flow of a river.
Action 3
Use the muscles, without stretching them; contract and release the muscles by doing pull-ups, sit-ups, pliés, etc.; think about density and resistance: imagine moving through a heavy, thick environment, like cake batter.
Action 4
Increase heart rate: run, jump, bounce, move up and down, raise your arms, or engage in any action that raises the cardio-vascular rhythm; imagine a bouncing ball moving through your body, or move as if the floor is lava; work with tiger or antelope imagery.
Action 5
Return to your axis: work on proprioception (balance) and alignment, move through the body’s three dimensions and three planes; imagine being held up by strings like a giant puppet; imagine having the roots and branches of a large tree.