You call yourself a “movement artist” and you are considered today as one of the leading acrobats and performers in physical theatre. If you had to explain what your discipline consists of, how would you describe it? What fascinates you most about this profession?
Firstly, I would just say that I don’t consider myself to be the leading acrobat and performer in physical theatre. I am just simply a part of many others who are also on their own path within these art forms. My discipline if we use this word consists of a continual interaction and exploration within the physical and cognitive world of practice. I like learning about the world and specifically on how I can continually keep exploring it. This means that I will move towards things which allow me to interact with my environment in different ways. So, when I am training in acrobatics, parkour, swimming, running, meditation or any other form of practice, this becomes my attempt at figuring out how things feel, smell, sound and taste. In this way I am building an ever more delicate palate and sensitivity towards movement, awareness and the world. It’s almost like extending the exploration of the world that one so naturally does as a child.
Checking in, daily bread, scanning. What is where. Practice before a practice. Setting intention, gaining clarity. Preparing the joints, bones, skin, muscles, senses.
an interview of sorts
with Caleido
You graduated from Circomedia, a school of contemporary circus and physical theatre based in Bristol, England. you then completed your studies at ACAPA (academy of circus and performance art) in Tilburg in the Netherlands. how did the rigour and discipline of these teachings combine with creativity?
The rigour and discipline within an educational institution can act as a bit of a double-edged sword. On one hand it allowed me to train the hardest I have ever trained, within a consistent schedule and environment, exposing me to the time needed to integrate and build the foundation of my physical language. And on the other hand, it boxed me in within the university’s attempt at shaping its students to become a certain type of artist. All in all, I am grateful for the experience, as I found freedom within the restrictions of being part of a school system. By allowing me to resist aspects of the education being proposed it helped me shape my practice into something which became my own and is now opening up to become others.
Thinking about your artistic journey, how did your methodology evolve? If you were to write down in a diary some key episodes or events that influenced you in this way, what would they be? How would you describe them?
My artistic journey was informed by certain setbacks and difficulties. Injuries for example became a gift in surprise as it taught me to slow down and reassess where I was going. My injury (or near injury) planted the seed which grew into the literal way that I would approach the physical world of acrobatics and dance. It helped soften me. And this softening seeped into my movement practices.
Looking at your “world”, i imagine it as a community of experimenters. i am thinking of your “master” Alexander Vantournhout, your partner Axel Guérin and other artist-performers. what other artists or creatives inspire you? Can you suggest some to start following?
Yes, I agree, the community I find myself in now is definitely a group of experimenters. Alexander Vantournhout was more like a friend than a master. A challenging friendship, but some of the best ones are. He opened up many worlds to me and is an integral part to my current artistic craft. Axel Guérin was an important part of my journey in understanding and exploring what is possible as an acrobatic dancer and although we have headed in different directions, we are still close. Other key people in my life at the moment in terms of inspiration and curiosity are
Body architecture. in a previous issue of Caleido, we reflected on this theme (click here). what is your relationship today with your body? and with the physicality of other people’s bodies? has this relationship always been like this or has it undergone transformations? what is the link between body and mind?
My body or the state of being, is continually going through a process of further refinements and building of deeper awareness. For example, when we listen to certain
Dance and social media: How has social media become part of your work?
Again, there are positives and negatives, and like all tools we have to learn to use them with care and understanding otherwise they can cause issues. Social media has helped me to engage with a wider community which I am grateful for. It has also kept me questioning my authenticity in what I share and allowed me opportunities of teaching, film work and inspiration which perhaps would have been difficult without. On the other hand, it has sometimes used up more of my time than I would like and placed me in a space of desire or comparison which is so common within the social media world. I am just as prone to these things as others. It is also a digital CV, and diary where one can follow a trail of where and how my practice has developed. All in all, a tool to be used with care.
We are all familiar with the ‘public’ dimension of your performances. what form does your personal and intimate relationship with dance take? Are there moments when you dance only for yourself? personifying the dance, what kind of partner is he?
In my personal practice I dance for myself, mostly at home with earphones in, sometimes it’s difficult and sometimes it’s effortless. Like everything else right? I dance with my mind, and sometimes he is quiet whilst other times he has a lot to say.
What is an object in your home that you would never give up? What is the memory attached to it? can you send us a photo taken by you?
I don’t place so much attachment to objects, but perhaps the small painting hanging on the wall between my living room and kitchen which my father Peter Reynolds made. He has always listened closely to his children and to this day continues to listen.
Alex Plechko
music or taste certain foods, the more we listen and taste the more details and nuances we discover. This continual engagement with the body and mind allows me to see further and closer at the same time. Everything is transforming all the time and the journey is far from finished, but it is happening.