A comment from Fiona - about the pain to come???? So far all I've suffered is a couple of small bruises on the knees, but I'm very proud of them! Makes me feel like a child again :-) Nothing that a drop of arnica doesn't cure... I feel brilliantly well after the rehearsals, - not just the physical movements, but the creative energy Ginny brings is so uplifting. My difficulties are in the form of wondering if I am going to remember it all. We put together all the sections we have been working on last time, which was rather a strange sensation, in the sense that the whole piece seemed so much shorter than the individual sections... perhaps that is usual, but it's all new to me.YoursFiona Zeyfert

Welcome to the blog for mine and Fiona's work on the Lone dance piece. I don't have a title for the piece yet so its' still "lone dance", work is going well (I think) as something is taking shape that I like, at this stage it is slightly unidentifiable but that is oftern the way when working on a devised piece. I have been encountering two big hurdles this week; one is the music, I'm in conversation with composer Dirk Cambel about making a score for the piece, he and I have worked together in the past with good results. This time I am approaching the music from the point of view of using it as a structuring devise,taking Pina Bausch's use of the BArtok opera in her piece Bluebeard, I am working with the idea that Fiona stops and starts the music which is being played on and old fashioned record player, and this means that the score must be legible over a period inwhich it stops and starts. The main question that has come up is what is the role of the score in creating narrative and how much narrative do I want?.I'm researching different sounds and types of music in order to get to the bottom of this, it seems that this task might have been easier if I had started with the music first - but hey I'm a choreographer!The other question that has been in the back of my mind is how far do I have the right to push Fiona's physicality, I , at some point, may be asking her to do something that is painfull ( I hear an empathetic sigh from all those of you who I have worked with in the past ), and, as she is essentially a voluteer should I change the choreography or pursue the image at her cost.... well I know this will all be worked out to some extent by the 6th of MArch in the mean time I will keep you posted on how it's going...any answers on a post card.yours Virginia Farman

The choregrapher and the performer

South East Dance is delighted to announce that Virginia Farman and her performer Fiona Zeyfert have been selected for the Lone Dances commission 2008.

Virginia Farman
Born in 1965 Virginia (Ginny) studied Fine Art Foundation at Cambridge Polytechnic and went on to study at the Brighton Polytechnic School of Art in 1984. Ginny has an impressive track record of freelance productions and has worked as a dancer, choreographer and director for several years. Virginia is currently a Senior Lecturer in Dance at University College Chichester.

Fiona Zeyfert
Born in Scotland 1954 Fiona studied French and History of Art at St Andrews University. Married in 1977 she moved to Lewes in 1979 and became a mother to three children now aged 21, 24, and 25. Having previously worked as a carer, Fiona is currently Duty Manager for a sheltered housing scheme in Lewes. Fiona is extremely excited about the Lone Dances commission and the prospect of working closely with Virginia.