Dance and Drama Research Seminar – Sioned Huws: Dance and Technology

Wednesday 9th May 12- 2pm, Clephan 2.15, De Montfort University, Leicester

Visiting Speaker. Sioned Huws

‘Everywhere In Nowadays’

Dance and Technology? Maybe contemporary dance does not look closely enough at the reality of our evolving times; technology, the impact it has on the body, our physical and social being in the world, this includes media and communication systems. Looking at digital processes of creating dance works (the idea of a ready-made dance), the live experience of interactivity between audience, dancer, sound, video, light and heart beat in a real time responsive environment.

Technology is part of our evolution and contributes to our understanding of the living body in dance.

Biography

Sioned Huws was born in 1965 Bangor, Wales; she’s currently based in London.

Sioned trained at The Laban Centre for Movement and Dance in 1983-86 and performed with Transitions in 1986-87. She started choreographing and performing her solo work in 1988-90 whilst studying at The Merce Cunningham Studios in New York. Since she has choreographed and performed a range of film, installation and dance works in U.K, Europe, USA and has undertaken residencies in Portugal, Belgium, France, Norway, Germany, Italy, Slovenia, Costa Rica, Sardinia and U.K. Her work ranges from solo to large scale productions such as “Cor Meibion” commissioned by the South Bank Centre in 1997. “Dear Body” in 2002 her first collaboration with new media artist Massimiliano Simbula, since they have continued to research and create pieces such as “Forget It” in 2003, a work that explored the associations between dance and media. Continuing an interest in innovative dance works “Passion No Patience” in 2004, was a careful elucidation of human movement through digital technologies. “StillMoving alpha-Vs” opened in Ljubljana in 2005, an Installation-based performance questioning and investigating the complexity of the body in stillness and movement, the work is constantly evolving and mutating every time it’s presented. Sioned and her company are currently touring in the U.K and Europe with a new solo work “You don’t know how to make the first move gracefully” the dancer reflects the fragilities, beauty and incertitude of everyday actions within the support of an interactive environment. “Esther” 2006 a collaboration with actor and director Daniel Evans. Recently the short film ‘Ping Pan’ was screened at Greenwich Dance Agency and Roxy Live Screen, London.

For further information, contact Professor Ramsay Burt.