London School of Contemporary Dance in the late 1960s to Early 1970s

Going to London and life as a student I had left my boyfriend back in my home town and for some reason (insecurity and lack of money) – persuaded him to move to London to join me.  He got a job quite easily as I recall and pretty soon we were living in a little flat above a shop in Stoke Newington. The local shop burglar alarms went off frequently at all hours – waking us up with a start.  I had embarked on quite a new life  in London. My boyfriend was not particularly arts oriented. One afternoon at Contemporary Dance School I was told about a party being held close by – students invited.  Someone must have suggested I go along – and perhaps against my better judgment I did so. After a few more drinks than was good for me, I got close and personal with a charismatic New York dancer/choreographer 10 years my senior. He was striking – fascinating. I didn’t go home that evening! The next day and the week or so ahead were very difficult.  Living with the boyfriend was no longer sustainable. So the very next day after I had fallen head over heels with said American – and when the boyfriend had gone off to work I sneaked back to Stoke Newington for my possessions.  With a 2 or 3 of my fellow students for back up.  My boyfriend would find out later that we had broken up.  Not very nice, but the circumstances were problematic. His reaction to my going missing, tough perhaps understandable – scared me.

My new relationship was a strange one. A curious kind of wonderful and often confusing for me emotionally. In fact, we were to experience some amazing times together in London,  Spain, Germany and even New York.   Due to the age gap and the fact that he was a guest teacher and on the faculty – we kept our relationship a bit discrete.  He lived in rented rooms in Marylebone High Street and I would often stay there but mostly only overnight.  We never became a “domestic” couple.  I lost quite a bit of weight during that time because it was all so exciting – perhaps a bit too exciting.

Staying at his basic accommodation – a house with shared kitchen and bathroom – I remember often waking in the small hours. I would wander upstairs to the kitchen and put the gas ring on to heat water for herb tea. And find that Ida Collin, a Norwegian part time dance student (who also lived in the house) was there. We chatted and formed a friendship. Ida was perhaps more of a jazz dancer but she loved Graham technique and had aspirations of performing more. 

Solomon was/ is a sophisticated black dancer and had been a member of the Alwin Nikolais Dance Theater.  He and Carolyn Carlson both spent quite a few months teaching at LSCD.  I remember the improvisation classes were strange and mostly I avoided them – time, shape, space and motion. Nikolais’ foundational improvisation forms.   Robert Solomon was a wonderful dancer.  And of course Carlson was a goddess.  Tall, very slim, long limbed, long blonde hair and of Scandinavian extraction.   She worked with our year at the school and we formed a sort of chorus for the workshop “Red Shift”. I think she danced also, with the strikingly handsome Larrio Ekson.   An extract from the publicity reads” Carolyn Carlson and her recently-formed company, THEATRE CIPHER, will present a full length work at The Place, opening May 22 for four performances… and for this year has taught regularly at the London School of Contemporary Dance, where she is currently rehearsing the dancers in their final year of training for a workshop production to be presented on April 25-26-27″  At one point in the piece she made for us   we students as a group each held a hat near our face and  had to speak into it. I remember her shouting out encouragingly to me in rehearsal, “Good, Chris”!   

I later took that encouragement way beyond what it merited – many months later when she had moved on to Paris and was working with her company at the Paris Opera I somehow managed to get to Paris.  I saw her company perform. After the performance I found her dressing room backstage and surprised her with a visit – I was just another desperate young dancer seeking work.  She thought I was someone else! Initially she beamed at me, and then when I spoke she realised I was a student she had taught. She was understandably not very amused or friendly.  Desperation leads us sometimes into foolhardy situations.  

Life as a student at LSCD was extraordinary in the early 1970s.  Technique classes were taught by many fabulous London Contemporary Dance Theatre dancers.  Among them Irene Dilks, Franca Telesio, Linda Gibbs, Clare Duncan, Ruth Posner and Bill Louther. Also the wonderful Flora Cushman.  And I mustn’t leave out Clover Roope – who,  it has to be said was fairly neurotic and prone to being rather unkind to young dancers.

During class when teaching Clover would sometimes turn away from us towards the  large dance mirrors, and pretend to weep.  Along the lines of “I’m crying  not because you impress me, but because you are  awful”.  Clover was X Royal Ballet and although she had later trained in Graham Technique it was not her forte. She still looked quite balletic.  But she was an excellent teacher. 

I remember though what a lovely performance she gave dancing in a work that Robert Solomon choreographed “Ripple” and which they danced together. He told me that he wanted to get her to dance like a real person – I am sure that he succeeded. The work was performed at The Place, and also as part of a  programme by the Ade Diche Group. 

Dance and performance is somewhat mysterious – and when a dancer is all technique but little or no spirit/ soul – it is lifeless and uninteresting. No matter how good the choreography might be.  Clover danced the “Ripple” duet beautifully with some of her defences down. She always seemed to have a chip on her shoulder as I recall, making her brittle. But somewhere in there was a more open person as a performer.  

Early in my training at LSCD, Jane Dudley came over to head the Graham studies as they called it. Jane was a force to be reckoned with.  Her own body had been fairly wrecked by Graham’s harsh technique.  Clover Roope tore her Achilles tendon at one point – wearing weights round her ankles and jumping! Jane hobbled for years but at some point I think she had joint replacement surgery.  Jane taught us Graham technique and composition – and for a while in our final year – introduced her “How to Teach” class.  The realisation that most of us were not going to be able to find employment as contemporary dancers must have woken up staff and students.  Only one or two students in any year at this time , might make the grade to become a member of LCDT.  They had to have a very strong technique and fit in.  The programmes were mostly of Robert Cohan choreography. Some of it, like “Stages” included a lot of acrobatics.  Physical bravery was vital – and I never possessed that.  

In my year, Charlotte Milner was invited to join LCDT.  And Peter Page from the year after us – Peter metamorphosed into a very European dancer with completely his own freer style of dance – Julyen Hamilton. Still performing after an illustrious career a lot of which was at the Theatreschool in Amsterdam.  Contemporary Dance was the progenitor of New Dance.  Julyen – when he was still Peter Page used to sometimes travel with me to play percussion for my dance classes in Cambridge. 

This story is inevitably going to jump around quite a bit forward and back in time.  

Going back to the time when I left the Stoke Newington abode – I stayed for a while with my good friend Suzy Bridges. Suzy was in my year at LSCD. She had long blonde hair and had a bubbly personality.  Outgoing and often laughing loudly around The Place building. 

I remember after rehearsals for a workshop presentation – perhaps it was Twyla Tharp’s “The One Hundreds” – she beamed and said “Crispi (her name for me) – I’ve just been lifted! 

   Suzy persuaded her mother’s partner (a GP) to give her some slimming pills. Which we both took sometimes – put on our plastic over trousers on top of tights – and took 2 or more dance classes consecutively. I didn’t know it at the time, but I think slimming pills were the equivalent of speed.  The next day we were completely wiped out! Silly young girls. 

Her mother loved cats and when I stayed at her house with Suzy – there were cats all over the house. You would walk into a room and find about 6 or more chairs – every available seat taken by a cat. There weren’t enough chairs for them so a few were sat on a  deckchair.  The eyes would follow you round the room.  In the summer Suzy had to look after the cats whilst her mother was away.  There was a bit of an outbreak of cat flu and one of the cats died just before her mother returned home. She didn’t know whether to get a male friend to bury the cat or leave it in the house until her mother returned.  I think she buried the cat, but whatever she had chosen, it would have been wrong. Suzy as I recall did all she could by taking the affected cat/s to the vet.  But not a responsibility that she ought to have been left with. 

Suzy and I had some proper adventures together. We lived on Narrow Boat Gort, for a month – on Lisson Grove Canal. The owner of the boat was the Honourable Innes Catto.  I have no idea now how she met him, but he let us stay on his boat on our own. He was the only boat owner that had a residential licence at the time. We were supposed to walk up and down each evening to check that none of the boats had been tampered with etc.  There was a radio on the boat – and this being pre mobile phones – that was the only way we could be contacted.   

So romantic – the wooden interior of the boat, the pleasant smell – and a radio for contact. On the rare occasions we got a call it went through an operator.  Exciting times.     

On one occasion Innes agreed to take the canal boat out for us. He was very concerned about the safety of his brass funnel or chimney that was on the top of the boat. One of us on board might damage it. I don’t think we went very far on that little journey. 

ANNA SOKOLOW

Watch the You Tube extract from the BBC documentary that was televised in 1972 for Anna Sokolow’s brief time at LSCD. She choreographed a work dor London Contemporary Dance Theatre. And taught some of us a few sessions of dance composition based on Louis Horst’s Pre-Classic dance Forms. I found them dreary and felt the method lacked any merit.  Anna was authoritarian and challenged us with what I felt were daft questions.  In a session she sat on a chair with us students sat on the floor (irrationally I didn’t like that – but what on earth did I expect?) Anna asked each of us one after the other “What kind of music do you like?”  Each response was dismissed by her unless it met with her approval. I got angrier and angrier as it progressed towards me. Eventually she said “And you, the girl lying down – what kind of music do you like?” I was by now probably red in the face “I like any kind of music that pleases my mind or my emotions” followed by “I’m sorry but I have to leave now”. Up I stood and walked out. I went up the stairs to find the one space where students could sort of crash out. I think I lay down on a mattress and cried. It cost me to speak up. But it was somewhat in my nature to protest at unfairness. Student responses had been mostly inane and ill considered, but it was really a very daft question.

Later when I had gathered myself together a bit I walked down the stairs and Anna was there. She grinned at me and said “Hi”.  

Anna I later realised was a great choreographer, but she was not a pleasant or good teacher in that situation. No doubt all of her focus was on the rehearsals for LCDT. The BBC (Bob Lockyer director for this programme) chose to focus the documentary mostly on her work. Including a composition class that I was in. I’m one of the students dressed in black leotard, tights and knitted leg warmers. This was all around the time of my  relationship with Solomon! So heady times.  At an age when we tend to be rather emotional anyway.        

LSCD in the 1970s You Tube BBC Extract  

(Duration 4 Minutes)