It’s a truth universally acknowledged that people who dance are good company
It was true when Jane Austen was writing. It was true during the Georgian era. And it’s still true today.
When I first arrived in Bromsgrove, sweaty and tired after a whole day of travelling by train without AC during one of the worst heatwaves, I had no idea what to expect. Even though I’ve been dancing for many years, it was my very first time participating in a historical dance summer school. The warm welcome I received exceeded my expectations. It’s impossible to simply sum up the whole week, so allow me to share with you my three fondest memories from Bromsgrove.
It’s all about air and water
Whenever I tell people that I dance Baroque dances, their usual association is, sadly, that of very stiff and somewhat boring choreographies, dusty old costumes, and wigs. I must confess that there were times when I would lose spirit and think that maybe Baroque really isn’t suited to contemporary sensibilities. And then I met Nicolle. Our daily classes were incredibly demanding, both physically and cognitively. We would start with a deceptively easy combination of steps, only to build up to incredibly complex choreographies. But what really made the classes special was Nicolle’s attention to artistry. With her, Baroque movements no longer resembled stiff, prescribed movements. Instead, they became flowing streams of water, a summer breeze, a ray of sunshine. There was emotion and meaning behind every movement. It wasn’t possible to integrate all of that teaching within one week, but this new way of thinking about the dance will stay with me for a long time.
I went to the market and I bought….
“Oh my gosh, I can’t breathe, stop!” That’s exactly what I was thinking during our social evening when I was dying from laughter while playing a parlour game. The fact that social evenings with no dancing in sight are among my fondest memories really shows that the Summer School is what it is because of the people. I was constantly sleep-deprived (no regrets!) as we would stay up late, chitchatting about everything and anything, listening to (sometimes delightfully heated) debates on the history of various dances, sharing stories about our dance groups or just hanging out together sipping a good drink.
What do you mean I can’t be in three places at once?!
Now, I must be honest. There’s one thing I didn’t like about the Summer School. In fact, I absolutely hated it. Before everyone gets frustrated with me, I hasten to explain: I hated the fact that I couldn’t participate in all three courses at the same time. Fortunately, there was a solution — afternoon workshops! Thanks to these extra classes, we had a chance to learn from all the wonderful tutors and mingle with students from other groups. This is exactly how I learnt some early Scottish dances from Anne Daye and became a real Sherlock Holmes with Ann Hinchliffe, trying to make heads or tails of a cryptic country dance choreography written on a Georgian fan.
The Summer School was a time of dancing, laughing, and making new connections. And there’s much more to say about the whole thing — the performances, lunches, friendships we made, and all the other shenanigans. Sadly, there’s no way to convey it all on a page. But there’s a solution to that: come to Bromsgrove next year and experience it all yourself.
Katarzyna Kozma