Day Five: The Performance

There was a great feeling at last night's event. All the showcased projects were unique and surprising in their own way. We had the whole evening to enjoy the atmosphere and entertainment before rushing backstage to get ready to end the night.

While CoLab is about the process more than the performance, we were really excited to see the impact the performance would have on our collaboration and our confidence. A positive audience reaction would be a bonus too!

The performance was a lot of fun and a success. I felt that everyone communicated well with each other and the audience. Some could argue that our project was too much like a traditional orchestra to be collaborative, however the musicians let go of their inhibitions and whole heartedly performed alongside the dancers. The collaborative nature of the project made us all aware of the audience and aspects of the performance other than the music. I believe we created a visually striking, powerful performance of the beautifully theatrical piece. 

Personally, it challenged me to think about my performance and be brave enough to physically communicate with the audience, dancers and other musicians. We pushed the capabilities of our orchestral set up without compromising the music. Memorising our march allowed us to move with the dancers and, despite the principal clarinet having a slight bump in the darkness of the wings, it was effective, musical and in the spirit of La Strada. 

We came into the performance with a nervous excitement and left as a strong team with smiles all round!

Imitation

Heartfelt expression