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Hofesh Shechter creates contemporary dance performances that engulf audiences in dramatic, sinister, other-worldly atmospheres. In this essay I intend to explore the tools used by Shechter to construct his unique visions, focussing on his authentic movement style, musical compositions, and the combination of these elements and other performance medias, such as lighting, costuming and film.

Shechter began his dance journey in a youth folk dance company in his home country, Israel. He went on to become a professional dancer, working in companies such as the Batsheva Dance Company and the Jasmin Vardimon Company. Alongside dancing he was a practising musician, who played as a drummer in rock bands. He began his choreographic journey in the early 2000s shortly after moving to London, and his career has not ceased to gain momentum and success since. He started his own eponymous touring company in 2008.

Firstly, I will examine Hofesh Shechter’s unique movement style, which I find absolutely captivating. His dancers seem to shapeshift as they encompass their spaces in oscillating formations, displaying varying qualities and dynamics with character and bite. Shechter plays with rapidly changing qualities of movement where the dancers may transition from a sense of weight to lightness, to fast and rhythmical patterns that melt into softness, all in a matter of seconds. This utilisation of speed captures spectators in a state of witnessing the dance without the time to analyse and pick apart the movement, an effect Shechter enjoys creating to immerse his audiences more fully. Musicality is an important element of Shechter’s movement identity, relating to his background as a drummer. His choreography is highly focussed on rhythm, creating complexity in his work yet simultaneously offering a sense of groove. Qualities of elasticity, totality and moving full-bodied are other defining characteristics. The combination of being grounded into the floor with expressive arm motions, keeping the hands alive and the limbs connected snake-like to the spine and core, equip his dancers to move with captivating flow, power and dynamism. His structuring of movement phrases, shifting between speed and ease, wildness and simplicity, make his movement language rich with contrast and layers.

I have personally had the opportunity to learn repertoire from ‘Political Mother’ (2010) in an intensive with the company, which was a fascinating chance to zoom in on Shechter’s choreography with his own dancers, who echoed his choreographic voice. The dancers relayed bizarre and detailed descriptions of every movement to capture the essence of each quality that Shechter wanted to translate. For instance, one step was described as like ‘a snake attack in a vaccum tube’, a movement in which the arms and hands are thrown to the side and recoil suddenly back to the body. In another phrase the dancers said that they used the idea of dancing bears in the circus, to provide imagery for a series of small skips, with the hands held behind the back and the head drooped; a movement motif performed by characters in the show representing weakness and oppression. It was highlighted to me that for each small second of movement Shechter is deeply dedicated to communicating qualities, feelings and specific sensations, making his choreography authentic, deriving from a place of real exploration and a search for honesty in his work. He has influenced my own practise and creative ideas as a dance student, by teaching me the impact of a group moving with the same energy and intention behind each step, that generates togetherness and power in choreography. 

Shechter has shared that when developing his choreographic style, he felt constricted when attempting to create something new and unique, and what freed him to make authentic work was abandoning the concern of originality, and instead deciding to use what he knows (Shechter, 2013). Traces of inspiration from traditional folk dance are identifiable in his work, and the interconnectedness with the music is evident, deriving from his musical background. Key figures, Pina Bausch, William Forsythe and Ohad Naharin are among Shechter’s biggest dance inspirations (Shechter, no date). He describes being a part of Batsheva company under the leadership of Naharin as being his main ‘school’ (Shechter, 2013). Similarities between this group of artists are detectable, key characteristics being theatricality, intensity and expressiveness. Ohad Naharin’s work has been described as ‘integrating tenderness with savagery, vulnerability with bursts of violence’ (Bremser, Sanders, Jowitt, 2011, p. 293), which links to Shechter’s style, and his usage of changing movement qualities and personalities in his work. 

Before being a dancer and choreographer, Hofesh Shechter was first and foremost a musician. He now merges these roles in his work by composing the music for his choreography. Shechter has a background in piano and drumming. He played in rock bands during his early twenties, and this love for rock music plays a prominent role in his compositions. Shechter has shared his musical inspirations, which include artists such as Led Zeppelin, Peter Gabriel, and Pink Floyd (Shechter, no date), as well as Bach who he describes as ‘the most rock of all the composers’ (Shechter, 2023). Shechter composes epic, percussive scores that are a significant identity of his work, and his company’s stage performances have often been described as feeling more like a rock concert than a contemporary dance show, with standing audiences in gig venues and even enthusiastic spectators ‘moshing’ at the front (Winship, 2015). Shechter’s powerful music scores accompanying his punchy movement style have opened up new possibilities for the exposure of contemporary dance, with his company performing in venues such as the O2 Academy Brixton.

Shechter has shared the general outline of his creative process, in which he begins by drafting short sketches of music and sounds that align with the atmosphere he aims to realise. Next, he takes this initial scrap of music and plays it on a loop in the dance studio, and allows movement material to generate, seeing what the music initiates for him. From here on the music and the movement grow together, demanding from and inspiring each other, which Shechter describes as ‘a complex and chaotic process of developing two elements simultaneously’ (Shechter, no date).

Shechter considers that he cannot place more importance on either the music or the dancing in his work (Shechter, 2013). For him these elements are equal in their pursuit of reaching the main aim of creating an experience. Shechter is of the mindset to ‘use whatever works’ when creating atmosphere in his pieces (Shechter, 2022). He can manipulate the music, lighting, costumes, movement material and use of projections to create varying intensities, and steer his audience through time and space. Political Mother, created in 2010, is an excellent example of Shechter pushing intensity to the extremes and inventing vivid worlds on stage. There are sections that build biting power through his layering of dance components, where the movement material is fast-paced, tightly packed in unison, full-bodied and fierce. His epic rock score is a driving force that engulfs the theatre, played by a wall of dramatically lit musicians, looming over the dancers. The energy feels scarcely containable; it seems as though the roof will explode from the power building within the theatre. These sections are then drastically contrasted with moments of sudden ghostly stillness and restraint. From a thrashing pack of fiery characters, to a dark space and five shaky figures lowly lit at the back of the space. They wear dull and baggy clothing, and stand with the illusion of stillness, shaking weakly with their arms up and their heads bowed. The electric guitars and heavy drumming fade to drone like strings playing an ominous melody, and the stage feels solitary. By the building up and holding back of these performance elements Shechter can create intensity in the atmospheres on stage, consuming the audience in his narratives.

Shechter also invents a sense of character using movement material and costumes, allowing his dancers to adopt personas that support the realising of his worlds. ‘Clowns’ (2016) showcases intense, confrontational characters, executing choreography depicting extreme violence, dressed in strangely familiar historic costumes. It is unclear which exact era they reference, which adds to the atmosphere of this being an invented reality. Contrastingly, Contemporary Dance 2.0 (2019) introduces a confident pack of youthful, personalities clad in flashy, club-style clothing, with an air of swagger and groove. Shechter manipulates these elements of choreography, lighting, costume and music to create worlds of his own, and he plunges his audiences into these dystopian visions. 

I believe that the nature of his style has the ability to capture a wider audience of people not usually involved in the dance world, with his rock influence, earthy choreography and gritty, sarcastic and youthful on stage characters, his work displays contemporary dance in a light that to me, is undeniably cool. His work opens new spaces for the exposure of contemporary dance, from large gig venues and music festivals to winning the award for best dance film at the Cannes Film Festival. I really believe that his work connects with people, with it’s focus on exploring human emotions and responses to pressure, which could draw more people to dance, contributing to a society of greater appreciation for the arts. The worlds he fabricates immerse audiences in experiences rich with compelling movement, atmospheric lighting and powerful music, with narratives that provoke a human connection between the performers and spectators. ]]> 2023-04-28 12:05:40 UTC https://padlet.com/daphnewright1/2ul3ju8n68xiuydt/wish/2571710311 daphnewright1 https://padlet.com/daphnewright1/2ul3ju8n68xiuydt/wish/2571710458 BAMorg (2013). I think therefore I BAM: Hofesh Shechter. Avaiable at: https://youtu.be/zsxwDj7-Kvw. (Accessed: 29 March 2023).

Bremser, M, Sanders, L, Jowitt, D (2011). Fifty Contemporary Choreographers Second Edition. Oxon: Routledge.

Espoon Kaupunginteatteri (2022). Political Mother – Interview with Director Hofesh Shechter. Available at: https://youtu.be/k2dZgZdwVuY. (Accessed: 29 March 2023).

France Culture (2023). Comment le choreograph Hofesh Shechter bouleverse le monde de la danse. Available at: https://youtu.be/KewIyaHPyak. (Accessed: 29 March 2023)

Shechter, H (no date). ‘FvF Mixtape #147: Hofesh Shechter’. Interviewed by FF, Friends Of Friends, (no date). Available at: https://www.friendsoffriends.com/mixtapes/fvf-mixtape-147-hofesh-shechter/#:~:text=My influences range from film,Pina Bausch and William Forsythe. (Accessed: 2 April 2023). 

Shechter, H (2015). ‘Hofesh Shechter talks #HOFEST, Political Mother and how British dancers simply don’t work hard enough’. Interviewed by Winship, L. Evening Standard. 2nd July. Available at: https://www.standard.co.uk/reveller/attractions/hofesh-shechter-talks-hofest-political-mother-and-how-british-dancers-simply-don-t-work-hard-enough-10360851.html. (Accessed: 30 March 2023). 

WOW Talks (2013). Performance + Dance – Hofesh Shechter. Available at: https://youtu.be/vFo6pVVCmI0. (Accessed: 29 March 2023). ]]> 2023-04-28 12:05:49 UTC https://padlet.com/daphnewright1/2ul3ju8n68xiuydt/wish/2571710458 daphnewright1 https://padlet.com/daphnewright1/2ul3ju8n68xiuydt/wish/2571712271 Cannes World Film Festival (No date). An Interview with Hofesh Shechter, Choreographer and Direcor of “Political Mother”. Available at: https://www.cannesworldfilmfestival.com/post/an-interview-with-hofesh-shechter-choreographer-and-director-of-political-mother. (Accessed: 30 March 2023). 

Hofeshshechterco (2016). AS and A-Level Film Resouce – Hofesh Shechter’s Political Mother. Available at: https://youtu.be/0-OiffUY5uQ. (Accessed: 29 March 2023).

hofeshshechterco, (2020). POLITICAL MOTHER UNPLUGGED. Available at: https://youtu.be/tWUxN0OPBLA. (Accessed: 3 April 2023).

hofeshshechterco, (2021). Double Murder – Clowns trailer. Available at: https://youtu.be/CfREn9RzB8g. (Accessed: 3 April 2023). 

Hofesh Shechter Company, (no date). Our Story, Available at: https://hofesh.co.uk/about-us/our-story/. (Accessed: 8 April 2023). 

Jones, J (2012). ‘Hofesh Shechter on Political Mother’, Talk Dance, Walker [Podcast]. 8th November. Available at: http://walkerart.org/magazine/hofesh-shechter-on-political-mother#03504080.1917686967.1680348217-1558932417.1680348214. (Accessed: 1 April 2023). 

Raymond Strauss, M, Howard Nadel, M (2012). Looking at Contemporary Dance: a guide for the internet age.Hightstown: Princeton Book Company, Publishers. 

Roy, S, (2009). ‘Step-by-step guide to dance: Hofesh Shechter’, The Guardian, [no page number]. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2009/may/13/guide-dance-hofesh-shechter. (Accessed: 4 April 2023). 

Sadlers Wells (2020). Get into dance workshop: Hofesh Shechter Company. Available at: https://youtu.be/dCdLpQ71gt8. (Accessed: 29 March 2023). 

Shechter, H (2013). ‘One hot mother: Hofesh Shechter Interview’. Interviewed by Winship, L. Evening Standard. 25th June. Available at: https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/theatre/one-hot-mother-hofesh-shechter-interview-8672324.html. (Accessed: 30 March 2023). 

Shechter, H (2018). ‘”As much as I love the mathematics of dance ... there must be something deeper which matters to me”: Hofesh Shechter on his creative process’. Interviewed by Mortha, L. Bachtrack. 17th May. Available at: https://bachtrack.com/interview-hofesh-shechter-dance-may-2018. (Accessed: 30 March 2023). 

Shechter, H (2019). ‘In conversation with Hofesh Shechter’. Interviewed by Sanderson, L. Danz Aotearoa New Zealand. 1st March. Available at: https://danz.org.nz/in-conversation-with-hofesh-shechter. (Accessed: 30 March 2023). ]]> 2023-04-28 12:07:37 UTC https://padlet.com/daphnewright1/2ul3ju8n68xiuydt/wish/2571712271