Dance Workshop Spring 2013 Unit 1: Theme parks Rollercoaster Hi everyone, it s Richard and today we re buckling up our safety belts and taking off to the theme park for some high energy, stomach churning thrills on the rollercoaster! Let s warm-up with a few stretches in time with the music. Stay on the spot and really stretch your whole body as your arms reach high above your head like the action people make as the rollercoaster plunges down a steep dip on the track. It s stretch up!... And down..arms up!...and down! Keep stretching with the music! Hold it! This time, bend your knees as your arms swing down - so you end up crouching low by the floor. Then quickly straighten your legs to spring back up as your arms reach up above your head. Try that with the music. Arms ready to reach up above your head to start. It s stretch up! Crouch down! Stretch up! Crouch down! Keep going! Hold it!...time to get your feet moving! Take 8 lively steps forward through the spaces, then stop to repeat that stretch up and crouch down move we just practised. Ready everyone? Follow me! And stop! And walk 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8! Stretch up!...crouch down!... Stretch up!...crouch down!... Again! Walk! Stretch up!..crouch down!... Stretch up!...crouch down!... Keep going! For the first part of today s rollercoaster dance, you need to get into groups of 4 so pause the programme now to get organised. You re going to create a picture of a rollercoaster frozen in time as it dives down a steep dip in the track. 1
First, get into a follow the leader line standing one behind the other with the rest of your group. Spread your line out a bit so you re about an arm s length away from the person in front of you. OK Person at the front sit down on the floor. Second person kneel down so you re a bit higher. Third person just bend your knees to crouch down a bit. And person at the back you stay standing. Stay in that frozen in time rollercoaster shape with each person a little higher than the person in front of them as we practise a few happy punching-the-air actions together. First, punch your fists twice out to the left side so it s punch! Punch! Next punch them twice up above your head punch! Punch! Now punch them twice out to the right side. And finally, punch them twice down towards the floor. Stay where you are and listen first to get the timing of those punching actions with the music. It s Punch left! Left! Up! Up! Right! Right! And down! Down! Punch left! Left! Up! Up! Right! Right! Down! Down! That s pretty fast!...that move looks really good if you re punching at exactly the same time as the rest of your group. OK Get ready in your Rollercoaster shape - Listen out and follow me! It s Punch left! Left! Up! Up! Right! Right! And down! Down! Punch left! Left! Up! Up! Right! Right! And down! - Hold it! Rest your arms down by your sides. and everyone stand up ready for the next part of the dance. Stand with your feet shoulder width apart and rest your hands on your hips. You re going to stretch your arms and the top half of your body out, up and over to trace an enormous arch or rainbow shape above your head. Let s practise that movement slowly first - without the music. So, keeping your feet firmly glued to the floor, stretch your arms and upper body out to the left side... - really lean your body out from your waist. 2
Now stretch up on tiptoe as your arms swing up above your head. Lower your heels as your arms and body swing over to the right side. And finally, bend your knees to crouch down low by the floor. And that s it Easy! But here comes the fun part! Because you re going to perform that movement one after the other with the rest of your group so from the front it looks like you re in a moving rollercoaster! The phrasing of the music will help tell you when to move - but basically, as the person at the front of the line sinks down to the floor, the second person stretches out to the left to begin tracing their rainbow arch and you keep going like that until everyone in the line has had their turn. Sit down where you are and listen first to get the timing of that sequence with the music - First person - stretches out up.over.and down Second person out up.over and down Third person out up.over and down... Last person out up.over and down... Got the idea?...ok Stand tall in your rollercoaster line. First person get ready! Stretch out up over and down Second person out up over and down Third person go! Last person go! Play that music again to practise and perfect the timing of that sequence you could even divide the class in two and take turns to watch the effect of the moving rollercoaster. Stand up in your group line ready for the third and final part of the rollercoaster dance. Hold onto the hips of the person in front of you. If you re at the front of the line, stretch your arms out in front with the palms of your hands together to guide the movement. You re going to lead your line through the spaces twisting and turning along the curving pathway of the rollercoaster. Don t forget to bend and stretch your knees every now and then to show the dips and peaks in the track. Everyone else watch and follow your leader s moves as closely as you can. You re going to start off walking, and then speed up to a jogging step when the music 3
gets faster. Wait for it - Walk 2, 3, 4 Twisting and turning, bending and stretching along the rollercoaster track. Get ready to jog! and Jog - 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8! keep going! Stop jogging! Time to put all 3 parts of that rollercoaster dance together. Choose a different person to lead the line this time, and then move to a space and get back into your starting positions remember, the person at the front of the line sits down on the floor, the second person kneels down, the third person crouches a little, and the person at the back of the line stays standing. You start with those happy punching-the-air actions 2 to the left side, 2 above your head, 2 to the right side, and 2 down towards the floor with everyone moving at the same time. Then, you all stand up and, moving one after the other, swing your arms and upper body out, up and over in a big arched rainbow shape above your head before crouching down close to the floor. If you get the timing right it should look like you re on a moving rollercoaster ride. And for the last part of the dance, you walk and then jog along the curving track of the rollercoaster twisting and turning, bending and stretching to show the dips and peaks of the track. There s not much time between the 3 sections of the dance so think ahead and remember what s coming next. OK - Get ready everyone! Arms punching the air with the music! Wait for it.. Punch left! Left! Up! Up! Right! Right! And down! Down! Again Left!... Up!... Right!... And down!... Keep going First person Stretch out up over and down! Second person go! Third person go! Last person go! Walk 2, 3, 4 twisting and turning, bending and stretching along the curving rollercoaster track. Ready to jog! 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8! keep going! Stop and rest! 4
Take a few moments to get your breath back.then choose a different leader because you re going to dance that all again. Think about ways you can improve your dance especially on the change overs from one section to another. Try adding different facial expressions too big smiles or perhaps a few nervous glances as the rollercoaster speeds along the curving, dipping and climbing track. OK Starting positions everyone sitting, kneeling, crouching or standing. Get ready for those happy punching-the-air actions! Wait for it! Punch left!... Up!... Right!... And down!...- Keep going! First person stretch out up.over. and down Second person go! Third person go! Last person go! Walk 2, 3, 4 And jog! 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 keep going! And stop! That s enough rollercoaster stomach churning for one day! But you can find all the music and sound effects for that dance on the music resource programme that comes with this series so you can perform the rollercoaster dance whenever you choose. Move into a space with a partner and sit down together. We re off to another part of the theme park. Have you ever been inside a hall of mirrors? If you have, you ll know that these mirrors don t reflect in the usual way! They exaggerate and distort your image so that in one mirror you might have huge bodybuilder shoulders and tiny stick-like legs, whilst in another you might have a long, stretched out body with a funny, sucked in face and hollow cheeks! Stand facing your partner with enough space in between to move without touching one another. You re going to take turns to create strange and distorted reflections. You can make any shape you want so experiment using different parts of your body. Then, when your partner lifts up an arm or a leg or both of them together, stay in your distorted shape as you copy their movements. OK - Quickly decide who s A and who s B You ll both have a chance to be the mirror so it doesn t matter which one you are.. 5
A s Stand up straight in front of the mirror. B s Choose a weird and distorted shape as a reflection of your partner A s Get ready to lift an arm with the music.. B s Copy them A s - Lift a leg..b s copy.. A s - Try lifting an arm and a leg. B s Copy them. Now swap over! So B s stand up straight in front of the mirror. And A s Choose a different weird, distorted shape to reflect your partner. B s Lift an arm A s copy them. B s Lift a leg A s copy. B s Lift an arm and a leg... A s copy them. And stop.. I wish I could see your hall-of-mirror dances! Play that music again to practise and perfect the timing of that sequence. That s just about it for today we ve run out of time! But before I go, walk away from your partner to a space of your own with slow, sluggish, bored steps imagine you re queuing for your favourite theme park ride and the queue s moving really, really slowly! Walk with drooping shoulders and floppy arms. Walk to a space and carefully lie down. Stretch your arms out to the left side along the floor. and slowly slide them round to trace that big arched rainbow shape again. And relax with a few deep, gentle breaths. We re going back to the theme park next time for more exciting rides, and a visit to the haunted house! See you there..if you dare! 5