Chamber

Chamber is an examination of the links between dance improvisation, embodiment and subjectivity, which began as a response to difficulties in defining masculine identity. This beginning was a recognition, made possible by feminist explorations of gender identity, that historically the idea and construct of masculinity has been assumed as the norm and therefore unworthy of attention, effectively rendering it invisible. The choreographic component of Chamber was a bid at pinpointing a small space within the landscape of masculinity, by using the subjectively experienced nature of improvisation. Focusing on the experiences of male dancers, it functioned by isolating, defining and problematizing what is otherwise taken for granted. This book is the shadowing of that performance, reflecting on its creation and theoretical implications. It aims to align men with embodiment and to define their bodily practices in a specific way so as to illuminate alternatives to the authoritative but limited representations of hegemonic masculinity.

Autorentext
McLeod, Shaun Shaun McLeod is both an academic and a dancer and choreographer. His particular research interest is in the connections and tensions that exist between improvisation and set choreography. He has been making and performing dance in Australia for over 20 years and is a lecturer at Deakin University, Melbourne.