Sally McKay

6th October

At The Place to draw the dance students while they work on their 2 1/2 minute solos with Rosemary Lee to be performed in Queen Square for Square Dances. The dance starts and ends to a ring of a bell.

Drawn with a brush and ink on handmade paper

There is a wonderful energy in the room. Each solo feels different, some feel safe and comfortable, with gentle dynamics, others are slightly wild as if there is an external force in control of the movements.  All feel intimate and personal.

I am at The Place, drawing choreographer Rosemary Lee and The Place students devising and rehearsing solos for Square Dances.

Rosemary Lee: “…make a gift of your dancing; a small but rich and delicate gift”

  Rosemary Lee is rehearsing 4 groups of professional and non-professional dancers for her new large scale site specific community dance: The Place dance students, 50 men, 100 women and also children, each group will dance in central London squares: Gordon, Woburn, Queen and Brunswick Squares,  repeating the dance 12 times over the weekend. Part of Dance Umbrella, the performance will take place 8 and 9 October.

Two years ago I drew during the rehearsals of Rosemary Lee’s Common Dance, the captivating community dance for over 50 dancers of all ages performed at Greenwich Dance. I feel so fortunate to be invited by Rosemary and welcomed by the dancers to draw the rehearsal process of Square Dances.

Gregor (Edward Watson) 

Betinna Carpi rehearses with Edward Watson 

   Grete (Laura Day)