Hybrid Festival: Island Workshop
A movement and word workshop for families led by Caylia Wallace and Soobie Whitfield.
Come and join two members of Signdance Collective in workshops exploring the theme of Islands, through dance, writing and theatre. Suitable for families.
Tickets are available at £3 + booking fee via Ticket Tailor: https://www.tickettailor.com/events/wycombeartscentre1/555598
This event takes place as part of wider Hybrid Festival programming from 6th – 21st August 2021 by Signdance Collective in association with Wycombe Arts Centre.
The Hybrid Festival public engagement project is an in-person/post-lockdown event promoting creativity, confidence, unity and a sense of belonging. Highlights include Signdance Collective’s work-in-progress Oriente Plus, in-person and remote creative engagement opportunities at Islands workshops, “The Land of I” exhibition curated by Tabitha Gunstone-Pollock and MACA Nights in memory of Lionel Macauley.
Workshop Outline
These inter-generational workshops will be responsive to the age and diverse experience of the participants, so the following outline is a guide. Both facilitators are very experienced at working with a range of ages, abilities and interests.
Welcome and Warm Up: Some gentle introductions, a physical warm up and games together to help the group bond, focus and prepare to have fun!
Island Stimulus: The facilitators will share an island story and picture/visual image as a starting point for the creative part of the workshop.
Workshop Creative Content: The main part of the workshop will be an opportunity to respond to an Island story or picture stimulus through dance movement, writing or theatre improvisation. The workshop leaders will guide participants through a series of creative and imaginative exercises and then help shape these into a final response. Participants will have a choice about whether they would like to respond using words, movement or both.
Sharing: There will be the opportunity to share work at the end of the workshop with the other participants. On August 26th, this sharing will be at 6pm and you can invite friends and family along to watch.
About Caylia Wallace
Caylia Wallace is a growing international creative director, choreographer and performer, as well as a dance studio teacher at Lachaney’s Dance and Music Academy and an elementary and middle school dance teacher at Thirteenth Avenue School in Newark, NJ.
She received her Bachelor of Fine Arts from Montclair State University in May 2018 and her Master of Arts from Fordham University in August 2019. Caylia Wallace has performed works by Jessie Dimauro, Kim Whittam, Kathleen Kelley, Christian von Howard, Lori Katterhenry, Earl Mosley and Camille A. Brown. She’s performed with various New York City-based companies such as Lakai Dance Theatre and WellBeing Dance. She has also performed behind the international singer, Simona Rodano.
In 2017, Caylia premiered her first professional work, Elements of 92‘. In December 2018, she formally started her Visual and Performing Arts Company, throughtheyes.
Artist Statement:
Dance became a passion of mine because I admired the discipline and emotional connection I’m allowed to have. The way dance training needs to be consistent and accurate for improvement drew me to expand in this art form. Dance plays a role in exploring new values, cultures, and people. I’ve personally observed how dance can travel around the world. While in Stockholm, Sweden, I was able to learn about the different societal dynamics, how they interact, how they eat, and how they live on a daily basis. As I prepare to travel to Europe again four years later, I’ve learned that embracing my background is the key to my artistic success.
About Soobie Whitfield
Soobie Whitfield graduated from Trinity/Laban in 1985 with a BA(Hons) in Dance Theatre from Laban. Having spent a few years touring as a founder member of Insight Physical Theatre company, she went on to post-graduate training as a teacher and has enjoyed many successful years in education, as a performing arts teacher, director, choreographer, and Head of Department in Buckinghamshire schools and community groups.
More recently, Soobie successfully studied for an MA in Applied Theatre at The Royal Central School for Speech and Drama in London, with a focus on community place and environment. Soobie is now focusing on freelance work and has been working with SDC on community engagement and co-producing The Hybrid Festival.
