This year Otago Girls’ High School entered Show Quest for the very first time.

The senior Dance students had almost finished the choreography and were gearing up for a dress rehearsal as the lock-down approached. Since returning to school, they have been back practising hard and it is coming together superbly. They look forward to filming this at the end of term up at Otago Boys’ Auditorium.

The girls would like to give a special shout out to the wonderful Mr Pickard, Mrs Flannagan and Mrs Laiman for all the help with props and costumes.

Over the lockdown period, some senior students developed danceworks inspired by their experience in isolation. Here is a thoughtful dance choreography by Renata Herrera Rojas. She even composed the music with the help of her Dad!

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1JZZGr5qpIfwLj4uL-aVnuMAShQeYY0Q7/view

In this dance, I wanted to express a battle which, although it is something that happens everyday, was heightened during isolation. This is the battle between our own selves and technology. Being away from everyone, we turned to our devices as a way to anchor ourselves to social interactions and to forget about our new limits. It was our ‘first-aid’. What I wanted to share is that technology does not allow for internal growth and happiness. It is a robot that sucks us into its glamorous world, but keeps us from noticing our real world around us . Much like us, the character deals with having a hard time letting go of the phone. In the end she realises that exploring her own organic self gives her a lot more fulfillment and she is able to tear down the idea that her physical limits limited her as a person and what she was able to do. Embrace your limits.

Renata Herrera Rojas

And a choreography by Caelin Rooney

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1qMN-5nO8Ho8F4Q5tNV8zMONJu1xLwZ9X/view

This dance is the product of my time during the lockdown period. Our task was to create a box (around 1.5m squared) and use this limitation of space to portray some of the ideas and feelings being trapped made us feel. My dance became based around the simple idea of self-isolation and how the world can often push back at your efforts to change, grow and open up. The box was a symbol of a “comfort zone”, and throughout I made many failed attempts to step out, before finally making it at the end. Although it was not my original intention I found the concept related to my personal lockdown experience and the challenge of moving back into everyday life.

Caelin Rooney