This entire thread is fascinating--and Jürgen's addition is really
important. We constantly run the danger of associating only "nice and
good" things with the arts. His examples remind us that the arts,
including choreography, can be applied in ways that threaten humanity, and
they can involve many many people, beyond the 150 discussed in earlier
posts. If we aspire to a) achieve something "good" (for whom?) with the
arts in organizations/society and b) understand the workings of these
processes, we really have to be open to seeing the dangers and potential
damage that they can also be associated with. Sometimes I worry that we
treat arts like tamed dancing bears.
Ariane
> don't forget all the dictators: They used and use the power of
> choreography. Not only during military parades. See the army p.ex. of
> Prussia: even in the battle field the perfect choreography.
> Jürgen
>
> Von: Claire Dale <[log in to unmask]>
> Antworten an: Claire Dale <[log in to unmask]>
> Datum: Dienstag, 1. Mai 2012 10:08
> An: <[log in to unmask]>
> Betreff: Re: AW: choreography and dynamic structures - follow up and WSCI
>
> Re: AW: choreography and dynamic structures - follow up and WSCI
> Dear AACORNers Just a quick note from me I will contribute fully at the
> weekend, and am so enjoying reading the posts so far.
>
> With regard to scale and collaboration - Here in London its all about the
> Olympics at the moment. The Olympic opening and closing ceremonies are
> probably one of the largest scale choreographed operations! - more on the
> scale of a corporation.
>
> Claire Dale
>
>
>
>
> On 30/04/2012 20:54, "Katrin Kolo" <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
>> It¹s really exciting how this conversation goes on! I agree about the
>> size,
>> even I would say there are choreographic or other artistic works with
>> more
>> than 150 people involved (just imagine big events in big sport stadia.)
>> And
>> those usually don¹t leave much space for improvisation or individuality
>> of the
>> performers.
>> But as Brenda says, also in organisation group size is ususally even
>> more
>> limited. Would be interesting to find out what is the highest and what
>> is the
>> average number of employees who directly report to one boss. Does anyone
>> of
>> you know?
>>
>> I also would like to raise my other question, if anyone knows something
>> more
>> about service choreography? I only found on Wikipedia the following
>> quite
>> interesting explanation:
>> The intuition underlying the notion of service choreography can be
>> summarised
>> as follows: ³Dancers dance following a global scenario without a single
>> point
>> of control"
>> What Do you think about this?
>>
>> Looking forward to reading more of you!
>>
>> Katrin
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> Von: Aesthetics, Creativity, and Organisations Research Network
>> [mailto:[log in to unmask]] Im Auftrag von Brenda Parkerson
>> Gesendet: Montag, 30. April 2012 12:57
>> An: [log in to unmask]
>> Betreff: Re: choreography and dynamic structures - follow up and WSCI
>>
>>
>>
>> This is an excellent point and I completely agree. There are limitations
>> to
>> applying arts processes to large groups. Even processes for ensemble
>> group
>> working or working within the feudal structures of an orchestra aren't
>> useful
>> for very large groups.
>>
>> Having said that, most organizational work is done in smaller groups of
>> people, perhaps for this very reason.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> Sent from my iPhone
>>
>>
>> On Apr 30, 2012, at 5:13 AM, "Piers Ibbotson" <[log in to unmask]>
>> wrote:
>>>
>>> This is such an interesting conversation. I wonder of there is an
>>> element
>>> that we overlook when we talk about the qualities of artistic
>>> processes: and
>>> that is the question of group size. The silos and bureacracies that
>>> impede
>>> adaptability and creativity in organisations are a product of their
>>> size.
>>> Very large numbers of people cannot order their activities without them
>>> and
>>> their existence then reinforces the kind of status differences and ego
>>> games
>>> that make creative collaboration difficult. Large groups also cannot
>>> provide
>>> the quality of mutual trust and intimacy that frees people to take
>>> risks.
>>> Artistic collaborations only ever take place in small groups. Even the
>>> very
>>> largest artistic performances you can imagine have no more than about
>>> 150
>>> performers in them and the vast majority of productions far, far fewer.
>>>
>>> There is some interesting research going on around group size in
>>> primate
>>> societies that seems to sit very well with observations of what
>>> constitutes a
>>> stable, healthy, creative community. Thinking about organisations as
>>> relatively simple structures composed of huge numbers of people (I had
>>> a
>>> brief from a company that refered to their "top team" of 500 senior
>>> executives) is clearly missing something.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> ----- Original Message -----
>>>>
>>>> From: Brenda Parkerson <mailto:[log in to unmask]>
>>>>
>>>> To: [log in to unmask]
>>>>
>>>> Sent: Sunday, April 29, 2012 6:45 PM
>>>>
>>>> Subject: Re: choreography and dynamic structures - follow up and WSCI
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> I would venture to say that adaptation is par for the course in
>>>> choreography
>>>> and is indeed a very useful model for business and in particular for
>>>> line
>>>> management and leading teams. You work with what you've got and
>>>> together you
>>>> make it work to serve the artistic vision of the choreographer. It is
>>>> a
>>>> fascinating interdependent relationship between choreographer and
>>>> performer
>>>> that requires trust and a willingness to take personal risks. I
>>>> believe that
>>>> the relationship is really quite fragile. There is something here that
>>>> is
>>>> apolitical which I can't quite articulate. Perhaps when personal
>>>> politics
>>>> enters the equation (i.e. a dancer vying for a bigger role, promotion
>>>> or
>>>> other career move) the creative process is hindered or burdened.
>>>>
>>>> This can be seen in the film Stricktly Bolshoi - about Christopher
>>>> Wheeldon's struggle to set a piece at the Bolshoi. The star dancer
>>>> was not
>>>> able to take a risk with Wheeldon fearing he might end up in a bad
>>>> piece. It
>>>> was recast with dancers lower in rank (with nothing to lose). If you
>>>> haven't
>>>> seen this film, you should. Collaboration and artistic egos do not
>>>> make for
>>>> an easy ride!
>>>>
>>>> Best,
>>>>
>>>> Brenda
>>>>
>>>> On Sun, Apr 29, 2012 at 1:07 PM, Stephen Carroll
>>>> <[log in to unmask]>
>>>> wrote:
>>>>
>>>> Katrin,
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Thinking about Steve s comments about his theatre experiences
>>>> working with
>>>> choreographers, I recently observed stage productions in which
>>>> choreographers played a major role. In the last week I attended an
>>>> opera
>>>> Havisham by Argento- and a play about Darwin entitled Sandwalk on my
>>>> campus in which choreographers played major roles. By incorporating
>>>> significant dance elements into both productions, the performances
>>>> were
>>>> enhanced significantly in an aesthetic sense as well as advancing the
>>>> narratives. In the dancing elements of the performances , dance
>>>> movements
>>>> compatible with the capabilities of the singers and actors were
>>>> introduced
>>>> congruent with the usual space, music, lighting, and aesthetic
>>>> limitations
>>>> and considerations. The choreographers had to collaborate with actors,
>>>> singers, as well as stage and musical directors and others to make
>>>> these
>>>> productions the memorable performances they were. Extensive rehearsals
>>>> identified possible future problems which were then effectively made
>>>> less
>>>> probable. High adaptation skills for these choreographers were
>>>> critical to
>>>> their success.
>>>>
>>>> Many management academics and consultants over the past forty years
>>>> have
>>>> described the inability of many organizations of all types to adapt
>>>> and
>>>> change effectively when faced with changing circumstances. Traditional
>>>> command and control systems, bureaucracies, internal silos as well as
>>>> differences in subunit cultures, often prevent necessary collaboration
>>>> and
>>>> problem solving from occurring. Awareness of the choreographic model
>>>> might
>>>> be very helpful in such organizational design and change programs.
>>>> Steve C.
>>>>
>>>> Stephen (Steve) Carroll
>>>> Maryland Business School
>>>> 301/405-2239 <tel:301%2F405-2239>
>>>> [log in to unmask]
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> -----"Aesthetics, Creativity, and Organisations Research Network"
>>>> <[log in to unmask]> wrote: -----
>>>>
>>>> To: [log in to unmask]
>>>> From: Katrin Kolo
>>>> Sent by: "Aesthetics, Creativity, and Organisations Research Network"
>>>> Date: 04/25/2012 05:37PM
>>>> Subject: choreography and dynamic structures - follow up and WSCI
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Dear AACORNERs,
>>>> it¹s impressing how many mails with great thoughts have already been
>>>> sent. I
>>>> am extremely grateful, that this network exists. Thanks to all of you,
>>>> who
>>>> make this such a remarkable meeting and discussing space!
>>>>
>>>> I decided to collect emails and follow discussions individually, in
>>>> order to
>>>> summarize and then bring the theme back to all AACORNers. I hope this
>>>> way, I
>>>> respect also the people in the network, who are not too interested in
>>>> this
>>>> vibrant mail traffic. Hope this is fine for all of you.
>>>>
>>>> There is only question I would like to ask right now: Is there anyone
>>>> of
>>>> you, who knows something about ³service choreography² notation (WSCI)?
>>>> I
>>>> would love to learn more about this.
>>>>
>>>> Thanks again
>>>> Best
>>>> Katrin
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>
> Claire Dale
> Director | Companies in Motion
>
> T +44 (0)7932 680224
> [log in to unmask]
> http://www.companiesinmotion.com
>
> Transforming the way people learn and engage
>
>
>
>
>
>
--
Prof. Dr. Ariane Berthoin Antal
from April-September 2012
Fellow at the Kulturwissenschaftliches Kolleg
Otto-Adam-Strasse 5
D-78467 Konstanz
http://www.wzb.eu/en/personen/ariane-berthoin-antal
Blog: www.culturalsourcesofnewness.net
Research program:
http://www.wzb.eu/en/research/society-and-economic-dynamics/cultural-sources-of-newness/projects/artistic-interventions-in-organiza
|