We will explore using the voice and the body as expressive entities, building a supportive energy of community and collaboration. Akeim has found this practice deepens the dance experience, bringing awareness to breath and enjoyment in moving. Working with the voice helps to pinpoint movement dynamics and finding different textures in movement by drawing on our natural vocal abilities as instrumental to our movement.

Expect improvisation and set sequences. Challenging our memory and our discipline to explore. The class is accompanied by some live beat-box recording on a loop pedal.

Movement influences stem from Caribbean Dance, Contemporary Dance, Hip Hop, Yoga, Capoeira and Release Technique. Voice influences stem from jazz skating, spoken word poetry, voice improvisation and beat-box. Creating movement sequences, accompanied by melodic scores emerge from vocal and dance improvisation. We will use our imagination and some rules to see what we come up with. Participants are invited to play with the set sequences and make them more suited to their liking. Individuality is celebrated and invited.

Bio:

Akeim is a multifaceted performing artist, born in Jamaica and raised in England. Since graduating from The Northern School of Contemporary Dance in 2014, Akeim has been involved in a variety of cross-disciplinary performance projects and community projects. Artist Akeim has worked with include Jamaal Burkmar Dance, Balletlorrent, Rationale Productions and Heather Walrond Dance. Akeim’s solo show ‘Windows Of Displacement’ has recently toured the North. The work has been performed for audiences at Wet Yorkshire Playhouse (Leeds), The Civic Barnsley (Barnsley), STUN at ZArts (Manchester) and SOAS University (London). Akeim is also one half of dance and music duo Snakebox. Snakebox performed P.L.A.Y at Resolutions in 2015 and were branded in reviews as “ones to watch” in The Guardian. PLAY is an audience participation performance that utilises improvisation, cross-disciplinary art forms and games to create a performance before the audience and by the audience. Akeim’s focus as a maker and collaborator is to combine expressive skills such as dance, creative writing, poetry, beat-box, singing and acting through performance to tell stories that provoke thought and infuse a sense of community spirit.