Adaptive Lines, 2007
16mm film transferred to digital, 3 minutes
Choreography and performance by Wiegmann
Cinematography and Editing by Margo Victor
This piece set out to lay bare the collaborative process—one that is part of dance production with lighting, costume and sound designers. My goal, though, was to react to each set of elements, allowing the dance to be altered by these factors, instead of the elements visually enhancing the work.
A text by Vito Acconci supported the process of this work. In “Vito Acconci on Activity”, he talks about adaptive lines of action:
“A performance can consist of performing (adhering to the terms of) a particular element (a rule, a space, a previous performance, another person)…..the performance can be set up as a learning process. When the performer makes a move, the consequences of his behavior can control his next move. The use of feedback can steady and bring into unison one stage of the performance, after which can come change as new material is imported and adapted to. The performer can work as a producer; the performance pattern can be linear—a series of additions of material. And energy. Or he can work as a consumer.”
–Vito Acconci, 1971
The wall text that accompanies this film sums up the process:
Step 1: Choreography by Wiegmann
Step 2: Space chosen by Walead Beshty
Step 3: Choreography adapted to space by Wiegmann
Step 4: Sound score produced by Alix Lambert and Joshua Myers
Step 5: Performance adapted to sound by Wiegmann
Step 6: Costume conceived of and produced by Andrea Zittel
Step 7: Performance adapted for costume
Step 8: Performance filmed and edited by Margo Victor
This process of addition and adaptation, resulted in a final edition that found repetition where there was none, experimented with film as a medium, and modifies the aspects of time and speed.
