Team Roster and Basic Plays for ‘continuous play’

While I’m still trying to nail down how to interface audience-with-performance-piece, I decided that it might be fun to share the playbook with them. GroundCrew Joe and I talked about the Bang on a Can All-Stars - how making the All-Star parallel allowed them to invite certain audiences into the level of complexity in some of the contemporary music they were playing. So, in that spirit, I’m working on how to bring the audience to a basic level of understanding and encouraging a deeper level of engagement - to the point of participation. I’m still working up more Standard and Advanced Plays. But here’s my Roster and Basic Playbook.

Play Ground - Play Time - Play Offs - Play Mate - Play er - Play Date - Play Book - Play Hard – Play Fair - Play House - Play Boy - Play Girl - Play Toy - Play Thing - Play School

PLAYBOOK

TEAM ROSTER

• Abby = ME U J16
• Alex = MY P J22
• Aretha = STAND
• Beatrice = G6 ROK
• Brianne = L WALL • Emily = SPE K23
• Jill = ILL K11
• Josephina = F24 Z ME
• Katie = D J26 ME
• Katie A. = F31 TIZ • LauraAnn = L15 NOW
• Lona = DAN D28
• Lorna = HRR30W
• Meredith = J6 THEN
• Zoe = M13 US

BASIC PLAYS

• BOWLING PINS: 5 dancers line up on the stage left side – kneeling and facing upstage. Other dancers repeatedly run out of the SL wings and tumble into them moving them further across the space. The last pin still on stage ends up at the bottom of a final group pigpile.
• CRAZY DIAMOND: a group stands upstage center in a diamond behind ILL K11 and follows her lead, the diamond eventually disperses, and a line moves from upleft to downright across the front and melts to the floor where they then sing “Auld Lang Syne.”
• ENDLESS CYCLE: F31 TIZ pulls DAN D28 to USR and they begin a low, level contact duet that flows in a clockwise pattern off the stage, through the house up to Row J – across out the House Left doors, down the stairs, and back around again. After 2 cycles – one partner calls out a new dancer who takes her place in the cycle. From then til the end of the work, 1 dancer is replaced with each new cycle.
• EXPANDING CIRCLE:  D J26 ME begins a thrashing solo in the midst of a closing circle of bodies who perform a tick-tock side step while enclosing and then eventually expanding away and walking in an ever increasing circle that grows beyond the parameters of the proscenium stage and out into the house.
• FAMILY BED: Everyone lays on the floor at the orchestra pit line in a crush of bodies while ME U J16 wiggles restlessly. Occasionally dancers sit up come to the edge of the stage, sit and stare out at the audience.
• LINE: everyone lines up the Orch Pit Line
• LINE & RETURN: everyone lines up and then returns to what they were just doing
• LOW LYING FOG: several dancers roll across the floor from SR wings to SL wings; then walk on – stop, re-orient and reset to floor – each new stage crossing moves further DS and into the house and across the audience
• MAD WORLD: SPE K23 solos across the proscenium line
• ME/YOU/NOW: L WALL calls out a sequence of the words “Me” “You” & “Now” – several dancers respond to “You” by jogging around in a small area downstage; “Me” = sit down where you are; and “Now” means jump off the stage and try to get to prizes in the 3rd or 4th row of seats.
• OPEN AND RECEIVING: dancers return to their original seats and spin in place with arms open and eyes gazing outward and looking people in the eye.
• READY TO GO: dancers walk into the house and find another agent/friend – ask them to come with them, pull them to a corner or onstage and tell them a very personal story about themselves or how they feel at that moment or initiate a conversation about how the piece is going. 
• RUN AROUND: dancers spread across Row J in the House in the doorways of HL and across front of stage. Most HR dancer initiates a physical telephone game, last dancer in the line runs to replace starter after given amount of time. Frequency of changes increases between each run.
• SWIRLING VORTEX: HRR30W and ME U J16 swirl around each other on the floor DSR
• TAKE DOWN: F31 TIZ chases STAND and repeatedly pulls her down to the ground while they move on a river and tide pathway.
• RESISTING PROGRESS: Several dancers kneel all the way upstage, others stand behind them, kneelers begin to crawl slowly, standers allow them a couple steps then drag them back and RESET. Once everyone has reset, crawlers begin again striving for the end of the stage, standers try to impede any forward progress. Whoever makes it off the edge first causes a Total RESET. From the reset line – one person begins to crawl everyone tries to stop her.
• TRADING CLOTHES: Everyone trades labels by trading clothes.
• STOP the WORLD: raise your arms and run around like a maniac.

1/21/08:

Songs about TIME

In October 2004, List Organizer sponsored a contest asking for songs having to do with Time.  Here are the top 35 songs sent in.  Also, the winners of the Holiday Packet are listed below.  Thanks to the over 200 people who sent in entries.
1.

The number one mentioned song:  Time in a Bottle by Jim Croce
2.

Time Passages
3.

Syncopated Clock
4.

Time after Time
5.

Does Anybody Really Know What Time it Is?
6.

Till the End of Time
7.

Summertime
8.

Time on my Hands
9.

Time
10.

Wings of Peace
11.

One Day at a Time
12.

If Tomorrow Never Comes
13.

25 or 6 to 4
14.

Forever and Ever, Amen
15.

Time Stands Still
16.

Time Marches On
17.

As Time Goes By
18.

Too Much Time on my Hands
19.

To Everything there is a Season (Turn, Turn, Turn)
20.

I Didn’t Know What Time it Was
21.

Till the End of Time
22.

It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year
23.

Hazy Shade of Winter
24.

Somewhere in Time
25.

Yesterday
26.

Ruby Tuesday
27.

Monday, Monday
28.

Rock Around the Clock
29.

Yesterday, When I was Young
30.

Killing Time
31.

A New Day has Come
32.

No Time
33.

Time to go Home
34.

Tonight
35.

Hickory, Dickory Dock
36.

Funny How Time Slips Away
37.

Time has Come Today
38.

Time Is
39.

Wasting Time
40.

Time Out
41.

Day By Day
42.

Twilight Time
43.

The first time ever I saw your face
44.

Good old summertime
45.

Time to say Goodbye
46.

Somewhere in Time
47.

Apple Blossom TIme
48.

Till the end of time
49.

A time for Us
50.

Second Time around
51.

For the Good Times
52.

Get me to the church on Time
53.

In the good old summer time
54.

It’s been a long long time
55.

Jeannie I dream of Lilac Time
56.

My dreams are getting better all the time
57.

Sleepytime Gal
58.

Hog Sloppin’ Time in the Hollow
59.

Christmas Time is Here
60.

A long long time
61.

All the wasted time
62.

Next time, Next place
63.

Hard time losing’ man
64.

A long time ago
65.

You got the money honey, I got the time
66.

Every time you say good bye (Alison Krauss)
67.

It won’t work this time (Alison Krauss)
68.

Nick of Time (Bonnie Raitt)
69.

Killin’ Time (Clint Black)
70.

No time to kill (Clint Black)
71.

This Time (Dwight Yoakam)
72.

Tomorrow is a long time (Elvis)
73.

It’s about time (Tracy Byrd)
74.

Time Marches on (Tracy Lawrence)
75.

One step at a time (George Strait)
76.

Last time, The first time (George Strait)
77.

River of Time (the Judds)
78.

First Time for Everything (Little Texas)
79.

This Christmas Time (Lonestar)
80.

Hearts get broken all the time (Luther Vandross)
81.

I’ve been a long time leavin’ (Roger Miller)
82.

Every Time I do (Tracy Byrd)