The New York Baroque Dance Co.

Turocy’s original 1983 version in performance with Mercury Baroque in 2007, photo by Amitava Sarkar

The New York Baroque Dance Company is producing a 3 day workshop from July 24-26, 2020 on Zoom

Honoring the Women’s Suffrage Centennial in 2020, Les Caractères is a workshop exploring one of the first professional women choreographers, Françoise Prevost, and her iconic creation, Les Caractères de la Danse. Students will explore one of the first female choreographers of ballet who predates Noverre, “the father” of ballet.

What is this Dance? Original descriptions in 1715 can be found in the Mercure de France Paris Journal and what is described is a unique portrayal, by one dancer, of 11 different faces of humankind and stories of love; young and old, men and women, privileged and vulnerable.

Françoise Prevost, a principal dancer at the Paris Opera, passed this work on to her pupils, the famous Maries, Camargo and Sallé, who both created their own versions and passed the work onto to the next generation of performers in Europe. These original choreographies by women reflected social and theatrical practices of 18th century France.

Master Teacher: Catherine Turocy, internationally celebrated for her work in Baroque dance since 1976, will teach her original period choreography as a way of introducing the students to Baroque compositional structure and the art of performing which forms the basis of theatrical dance today.

The ability to perform such a dance demands a state of transformation from the dancer.  The performers must own all the characters and emotions within their being, connected by a line of energy. Discovering this line of energy which allows the performer to shift on a breath, builds empathy for these characters both in the performer and in the audience.

Prevost by Jean Raoux       “I wish it in my Power to pay that just Tribute of Praise her mercy calls for.  In one single Dance of hers are contained all the Rules we were able to give on our Art, and she puts them in Practice with such Grace, Justness and Activity that she may be looked on as a Prodigy in this kind. She justly deserves to be regarded as Terpsichore the Muse, whom the Ancients made to preside over Dancing, and has all the advantages of Proteus in the Fable.  She, at Pleasure, assumes all manner of shapes to enchant the Greedy Eye of those that look on her, and to gain Applause of every Body which excites a noble Emulation among other Women Dancers.”- Pierre Rameau, 1725

This workshop is intended for dancers (in any dance style: performers, teachers, choreographers and writers), musicians (with movement experience: instrumentalists, composers, directors and singers) and actors (performers, directors and writers).

SCHEDULE

Day 1, July 24 Friday

4-5 Powerpoint introduction to Les Caractères de la Danse also covering Baroque posture, mask and expression in historical dance pantomime performance practice

5:10-6 Learn choreography for Prelude, Courante

6-7 Continue with Minuet and Bourée

Day 2, July 25 Saturday

9-9:45 Warmup and Continue with Chaconne

10-11 Sarabande and Gigue

11:15-12:30 Rigaudon and Passepied

Day 3, July 26 Sunday

9-10 Warmup and continue with Gavotte and Sonate

10- 11:15 Loure and Musette

11:30-12:45 Link dance segments together and then learn final sonate which is a recapitulation of the characters

1-2 Conversation with conductor/harpsichordist James Richman and Catherine Turocy addressing the marriage of music and dance as experienced through Les Caractères de la Danse. Questions are encouraged.

*Each session will be video-recorded with the teacher view only. An unlisted video link will be sent to each student so they can review the lessons at their leisure and have a record of what was taught. This video is not intended for circulation and is exclusively for the students.

Baroque Dance Basics Links Bibliography TUROCY

TUITION : $90 (less than $10 per session)

Registration is individually handled. Contact Catherine Turocy at cturocy@gmail.com