My current dissertation working title is Disputing the Norm: Considering Hierarchical and Non-Hierarchical Methods of Collaboration Between Dance and Visual Arts. I came upon this idea by working backwards – I was keen on working towards a collaborative project for my FMP and therefore decided that researching processes of collaboration would hopefully enable a more successful project in the second semester. The more I’ve read up on the subject, the more I’ve found of interest surrounding the topic. Now it feels like I’ve opened up Pandora’s Box because there is a never-ending list of questions that I’m finding myself asking; it has been difficult to not go off on a tangent over and over again.
Focusing on hierarchical modes of collaboration is somewhat contradictory anyway because when we think of collaboration or collectively generating – like pioneers such as Judson Dance Theater – we generally think of an equal working process, in thoughts, decisions, choreography, pay and ownership. However, I think that sometimes (particularly between dance and visual arts disciplines where work might be displayed in museums or galleries) the collaborative process is not as clearly defined as we imagine. This could occur potentially from the outset, where a dialogue has happened to clarify the roles/position of each participant – somewhat like Théâtre du Soleil – or that the artists claim to be in a collaborative process but there are obvious directors throughout, who eventually receive more credit for the work.
My current position stands somewhere in between. I agree that collaborative processes require different coordinators at different moments; for example I know little about visual arts and so I would have to take a step back to learn from experts in that field and vice versa, all to enable the function and progress of the eventual collaboration. I also agree that strengths, opinions and personalities won’t always be equal, and because of this I think I would emphasise the importance of a continuous dialogue to keep the process understood. But on the other hand, I think it’s crucial for the sake of the audience and participants that the process is explicitly clear, and responsibilities, roles and values are defined with the aim of working towards a common goal. Likewise with crediting the work and taking ownership, if a collaborative process is implied, the outcome should be equal for all practitioners.
Nevertheless, it’s a very messy, contradictory and confusing topic that I’m not sure could ever be absolutely defined. Let’s see where my research takes me next.
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Practitioners that have been of particular use up to now and that I owe credit to are: Dance scholar Sara Wookey Social theorist Rudi Laermans Editor of Move. Choreographing You. Stephanie Rosenthal, and the other contributors