Softening - a choreographic exploration with trees

Abstract

The purpose of this project is to explore how to connect with nature through an embodied work, understood through a choreographic practice. It seeks to investigate what movements and materials can be generated from a choreographic work with trees. This was made through practice-based research, outdoors in nature and in the studio, using fascia-focused training, attentive walking, and explorative work through tactile and kinesthetic senses. Three performances/presentations have been made as part of this empirical work, where dwelling, connection, ecocentrism and embodiment, are essential aspects in the relation to nature and trees. The work has resulted in the development of a new way of moving, and points towards a new movement system influenced by the elasticity of the trees. The title, Softening, is both a result of my project and a call for action as a pathway towards a sustainable world.