Blog
THE COMPANY
The Company is a Contemporary Dance Company for young people who live in Hamburg.
Being part of this group offers young talented dancers the chance to be involved in various dance productions, often multi-artistic projects, workshops from invited guest teachers and even exchanges with other youth dance groups.
The focus of the company is to encourage and build on their own creativity. They become familiarised with choreographic tasks, become accustomed to various improvisational assignments and appreciate the opportunity to collaborate with other artists.
THE COCOONS
Dance classes for young people from 14 years of age, with some dance experience, in Hamburg Bahrenfeld.
We train every Tuesday from 17:30 to 18:45.
The Cocoons are a stopover: Not quite ready to be part of the COMPANY but well on the way.
For prices CLICK HERE
THE CATERPILLARS
Contemporary Dance for beginners from 10 years in Hamburg Bahrenfeld.
Weekly classes are on Tuesdays from 16:15 to 17:25. This group has the chance to go a long way together with Fiona Gordon. The dancers start with the beginners' course. With a little more experience they can then join THE COCCOONS and later become a member of the BUT I FLY DANCE COMPANY. If you have always wanted to gain dance experience, then you should not hesitate.
For prices CLICK HERE
BOWSPRING
Her newest passion is the Bowspring practice, of which she dedicates many hours deepening her knowledge in this new form of functional training. She is creating her new dance technique style, incorporating her two passions, Contemporary Dance and Bowspring. Fiona received research money from Dis-Tanz Solo in 2021 to dedicate some time to create her new dance training style called Contemporary Bow.
For more information go to www.fascia-nation.de
Contemporary Bow Dance Class
Introduces the dancer first of all to Bowspring practice, developing into a contemporary class using the Bowspring principles throughout. This allows the dancer to discover their natural double S-curve in the spine, it gives them a sense of rooting and an amazing inner strength and stretch into their extremities.
In the course of the class Fiona focuses on allowing the dancer to find her/his own expression in the movement and loves to get the dancers moving, playing with different dynamics, level and spatial changes and often encourages the dancer to use their own creativity, by giving the dancer improvisational tasks, letting them discover new movement ideas through movement research or let them play with movement images, focus awareness and group connectivity.
Here you can find out what BUT I FLY DANCE does throughout the year. Scroll through and read the reviews of the participants!
"Add a quote you would like to feature. Maybe it's a message from the founder or something that reflects your brand's character. Click to edit and add your own."
Christmas-Showing
***********************
Family,
Friends,
But I Fly Dance Followers,
potential members,
Dance Lovers
***********************
Please join But I Fly Dancers- Caterpillars, Cocoons and Company on the 3rd Advent at 17:00!
The dancers of But I Fly Dance wish to share a small insight into what they have been working on over the past weeks . We would love to have the chance to feel connected to you, even if it is only online and have the opportunity to dance together if you feel like it!!!! It’s going to be heart-warming!!!!!
We are looking forward to seeing you online!
KEEP THE DATE
12.12.2021-17:00
Then came the big day! We were allowed to all come together for the Premiere and my dancers were just as excited about the film as the audience was…I had kept the end product a surprise from them too!!!!
First of all it was so exciting to see so many people logging in at 19:30 on that Sunday evening! It really felt like the audience members were walking into their seats in the theatre!
After the short introduction it was time to sit back and watch the film!
The dancers were nervous but then overjoyed! The feedback we received was overwhelming! So many positive words and beautiful impressions that each audience member expressed.
The picture was apparently a little robotic in parts, but this didn’t seem to disturb anyone!
We have now uploaded the film for you all to watch whenever you want on YouTube:
Please feel free to watch it, like it and share it, if you haven’t done till now!
We would also like to thank everyone for the generous donations you gave us towards the costs to get Topsy Turvy on stage! If anyone wishes to support us in any way, we would be truly grateful….we are quite a long way from our goal, unfortunately getting a piece into the theatre is quite a costly matter!!!
CONGRATULATIONS FOR YOUR MOTIVATION, YOUR HARD WORK AND YOUR AMAZING FEELING OF BELONGING TOGETHER EVEN THOUGH WE WERE SO MUCH APART. YOU MAKE ME FEEL VERY PROUD!
Thank you audience members for taking the time to watch our film. We are thankful to every single one of you! You made our Premiere very special! We partied well on a high afterwards!!!
And thank you to all of those that have watched, liked and shared our film afterwards! We are so happy to share our work with you!
Till the next time!
Stay healthy, keep moving!
Fiona x
Topsy Turvy Premiere
For the audience member the “End Product” is what matters…does the theme of the piece say something to me? Are the dancers expressing themselves well? Are the dancers doing a good job? Is the piece put together well? Am I feeling touched in some way?
For the dancers and the choreographer the Premiere is the gift that they hopefully can enjoy after of all the hard work that has been put into the piece. Up till that point the group has to even become “a group”, forming a trust in each other. Then one has to dive into a topic, allowing it to be expressed through movement. Then begins the creation process, improvising, trying out, decisions, learning, letting go, polishing, getting frustrated, injured, feeling delighted but sometimes also unmotivated or exhausted. In our case during this process, we had to also overcome other obstacles…not being able to meet up as a group and having to rehearse from our own bedrooms, challenged with little space through the online rehearsals.
Through these challenges, I decided to make the piece into a film, realizing, like this, the dancers will be able to have some kind of a feeling for a Premiere, even if they weren’t dancing live.
We were lucky enough that shortly before the end of the process we were allowed to meet up in a park to do some filming! Then the piece really came alive. The joy and the togetherness we all felt was astounding, after so many months apart. Maybe the sequences didn’t get “polished” as one might try to achieve when in normal circumstances, but they were a mirror of the process and I liked that.
Dear Fiona,
Since I was so spontaneously tongue-tied on Wednesday :-), I would like to take this opportunity to thank you once again for this great course!!!! You have such a great way of motivating your participants and I also found the personal aspects of your own story very inspiring and touching. For me it was very exciting to get to know such a new and different movement concept and to try out movements that I have never done before :-). I like the concepts very much, also that there is a whole world of philosophy behind them. So thank you very much again and I look forward to seeing you again, preferably offline of course.
One question at the end, on your website there is a video with professional dancers "Contemporary Dance Class for Professional Dancers and Teachers" below the text "Your Classes". I could watch this video on endless replay, sooooooooooooooooooooooooooo great!!!!
Thank you so much!
Have a great time and all the best to you,
Bettina 55 years old
(participant from Contemporary-Bow Class at Volkshochschule Online Class March-April 2021)
Reviews
Summer Dance Days 2020
In the summer holidays of 2020 still during the Corona Pandemic time, we offered something special!
SUMMER DANCE DAYS
The offer was for young people who were really interested in experiencing Contemporary Dance and improvisation over a 1 week intensive period!
I really enjoyed your dancing days. I liked the structure of working on technique in the morning and especially on new technique and the creative and improvisational part in the afternoon. It was impressive and super brave to combine the Comtemporary Class with Bow Spring, it was worth it. Thanks for the great time, I would like to do it again
Best regards Linn, BUT I FLY DANCE Company
Photo: Fiona Gordon
I have enjoyed these days very much. I liked that you guided us through the exercises and gave personal corrections.That helped me a lot to work on myself. What I enjoyed most were your and our self-made choreographies, because with these I could feel the previous work, implement new knowledge and then just dance. I took a lot with me, for example:
-
to become aware of the Shadowheart
-
to create a lot of space in his body and thus fill the room
-
to get involved with new ideas in dance (inside rotation)
-
to turn off the head a little and trust the body to remember
-
and then of course I discovered for me, completely new form of dance technique.
(Aurelia Goetting, dancer)
I felt very comfortable and seen from the first moment on. Everyone had the opportunity to grow, was individually corrected and supported in relation to their own level. I liked that very much and it gave me the opportunity to discover new things and develop myself further.
I was also absolutely thrilled by the open and friendly atmosphere in which I felt super comfortable and could work well.
Thanks for that!
I also liked the fact that I gained a whole new perspective on my body, because you brought Bowspring into it. Thanks!
(Nana Kamp, dancer)
The two days that I was there were a lot of fun!!💞I liked the fact that you danced really intensively for several hours in a row (with a little break in between), because you could best get into the movements and your own body. The combination of 2h training and 2h impro work was a really good mixture, because during the normal training you "danced together" as a group and then you could be together as a unit and harmoniously during the improvisation - that was such a nice feeling. As always Fiona: the safe space you create and the way you motivate us and work with everyone on their own possibilities is something very special and I really appreciate it 🥰 thanks for the great days! Please do it again very frequently!
(Anni Burmester, BUT I FLY DANCE Company)
[...] For me personally it was just perfect. The training was exactly what I needed. Since I haven't taken classes in a while it felt like coming home. I thank you for that!
The mixture of training of "known" and completely new things, for example the Bowspring elements, was a wonderful change. Personally it was really good for me and I discovered so much. And I love to discover new things, hihi :)
And you succeeded in not making people feel overwhelmed by the input you gave. I felt a lot more confident right away.
Improvisation and choreography are two things I have practiced very little until now. My lessons have mostly focused on technique and I have never really tried out and choreographed on my own. [...] Your instructions have helped a lot to get over insecurities and inhibitions and have introduced me to the tasks really well. Improvisation is something free and it was very nice for me that you gave me the feeling that I had done and created something great. I haven't felt so much joy in training for a long time and it really felt good.
Your passion for Bowspring and Contemporary has been a wonderful inspiration and I really hope you will repeat this program.
(Camila Chavez Lopez, dancer)
Train with BUT I FLY DANCE online and at home! Have look and enjoy!
DANCE CHALLENGE
Have a look at our Photos&Video page in the folder #butiflydancespreadtheirwings
all the wonderful videos that have been released. This is an @but_i_fly_dance initiative that tries to spread the feeling of positivity in these very negative times.
#butiflydancespreadstheirwings
Join in with our aim to bring the positivity back into the words:
GIVING.SHARING.SPREADING.CONNECTING
These words have been given a negative touch during the Corona Virus times and our goal is to change that through
DANCING IN OUR OWN HOMES
Here’s how you can join in with this choreographic challenge:
These four words…GIVING,SHARING,SPREADING,CONNECTING are your inspiration. Create or improvise your own short sequence, feeling inspired from these words. Begin the sequence with catching something imaginative or use a prop. Play with what you caught and then pass it on by throwing, blowing, sprinkling it away into the camera.
Be inventive!
Then post your dance sequence on Instagram or Facebook using the Hashtag #butiflydancespreadstheirwings and tag @butiflydance and anybody else you wish to join in with this choreographic task. We want to keep track of what is being posted so that we can collect some of your offerings and make them into one long film!
Don’t forget to add this text and/or share this Video which also explains how to join in with the challenge.
I’m so excited to see how our home dance sequences can send a bit of positivity out there into the world during these times filled with negativity!
DIE KOMMENDE TRÄUME
It is a performative media installation with picturesque video portraits of 63 Hamburg children and young people (including 5 of our CATERPILLAR dancers). In the videos they are located in imaginary virtual worlds. On the real stage, adult performers* simultaneously integrate the dreams of the children into their movements. In the videos, the young protagonists create choreographies from postures, looks and gestures for a future in which the digital industries have already opened up the next market in which entertainment and communication technologies such as mixed, augmented and virtual reality have become a natural part of our everyday lives. The arrangement of the videos is determined by a self-learning code that searches for similarities in costumes, faces and movements in the film material. The result is a technical narrative similar to the one that digital surveillance technologies and social media are already producing of each and every one of us.
Die CATERPILLARS haben die Möglichkeit bekommen bei eine Medieninstallation mitzuwirken. Am 28.05.19 verwandelte sich eine Umkleidekabine in ein Filmset, das Bad in ein Make-up Tisch und der Tanzsaal in eine Spielwiese von Museen, Popcorn und abstrakten Formen. Glitzer, Lippenstift und tolle Kostüme durften hierbei auch nicht fehlen. Was das ist?
Review of the year 2019
365 days and BUT I FLY DANCE looks back on a successful and dancing year! Now we would like to review this and give you an outlook on the coming year.
BUT I FLY DANCE on tour: The year started with our new series eXchange. Students came in February from the DTAdans School in Holstebro together with Lene Bonde. Together the dancers could enjoy a great workshop full of energy, curiosity and under the motto "Dancing is our language".
BUT I FLY DANCE meets atonale21: Fiona Gordon has received the request to choreograph the opening piece of this year's Altonale under the motto "Wealth". After a creative thinking process our dancers were determined and hard work was done. Together with guest dancers an exciting rehearsal period for the BUT I FLY DANCE Company began. This project was realized by the choreographies of Fiona Gordon, the video artist Paul Gerlach, the Poetryslammer Anna Wessel, the Hamburg Voices under the direction of Alexander Grimm and the project management Iwona Liberek. Thrilling, thrilling, exciting, dynamic and simply a great time.
In May we rehearsed and rehearsed again as the premiere was getting closer and closer. The biggest fear: "That it will rain" (Fiona Gordon) But we were fortunate. The place filled up, the chairs remained dry and the performers were impressive! Many thanks to all involved for this great project. Together with everyones amazing commitment was this made possible. If you would like to know more about it. Then check out our Instagram page @ebbe_und_flut_2019! There you will find many more impressions from this huge project.
BUT I FLY DANCE and the training: Of course the weekly training between our projects should not be neglected. "It is important to ensure that my dancers receive good training so that they can deepen their dancing techniques". "My dancers should have the opportunity to open their eyes to their own creativity." The CATERPILLARS train every Tuesday from 16.15-17.30 and are between 10-14 years old. The COCOONS also train on Tuesday from 17.30-19.00 hours and are between 14-16 years old and the COMPANY trains at the weekend between 17.00-20:00 and are between 16 and 21 years old.
BUT I FLY DANCE is continuing its development: To develop themselves is important, therefore BUT I FLY DANCE offered the possibility to see a piece by Diego Tortelli at Kampnagel in April in the context of Explore Dance: "shifting perspectives” . This was inspiring for all of us. Everyone was thrilled by the fabulous performance. Also in December the BUT I FLY's have the possibility to see a premiere of the musical film "Cats". Everybody is very excited, because we are not really familiar with the musical dance! The anticipation is there.
BUT I FLY DANCERS like to have a chance to try it out: In June the CATERPILLARS got the opportunity to participate in a media installation "DIE KOMMENDEN TRÄUME" (by BARBARA SCHMIDT-ROHR & DANIEL HENGST). We are not allowed to reveal much yet, but one thing we can say: The premiere will be on 07.02.2020 at Kampnagel. The CATERPILLARS are a part of 63 Hamburg children and teenagers, who will participate in a picturesque video portrait. Get your tickets here!
BUT I FLY DANCE on Tour Part II. In October we got the chance to go to Holstebro and visit DTAdans. Excited, with anticipation and a bit nervous we went there and came back with a backpack full of inspiration. Many thanks to all the dancers for having welcomed us so well. There were great workshops, technique lessons and discussions. We hope to see you soon again in Hamburg. Between the classes and workshops we also had the opportunity to start an in-company project. Under the motto "eXchanging perspektives" and under the direction of Sarah Edna Schneider. Through the inspiration of the workshops, the building and the great dancers we created a one shot video. Not seen until now?! Then come and see us!
BUT I FLY DANCE and Dance for Tolerance: Fiona Gordon was again part of the team of Dance for Tolerance this year. A great project for everyone! Community is very important here. Next year it will continue. More information under Mit TANZ zur Toleranz
BUT I FLY DANCE loves workshops: Together with Yashasvi Shrotriya, a strenuous but also inspiring workshop was held in December. With the company, the cocoons and dance guests it was a complete success. We are therefore very happy to welcome Yashasvi Shrotriya again next year.
BUT I FLY DANCE offers THE possibility: Finally we would like to mention that our former members continue their dream of dancing! Hella has been accepted at the Iwanson international School of Contemporary Dance in Munich, Emelie is an apprentice at the CDSH and Johanna has left Germany to study at the Northern School of dance! We are very proud of our company - members and wish him all the best for the future.
The next 366 days will also be filled with workshops on various contemporary techniques, attending dance pieces and training not to forget! We are looking forward to the coming year with joy.
YOU want to be a part of it? Just get in touch with us at butiflydance@gmail.com
We are looking forward to you and that we can create a great year 2020 together.
Besides the lessons BUT I FLY DANCE had a project of its own. They created a One Shot Video under the direction of Sarah on the Dansk Talent Academy. You can see the result here on our video of the One Shot.
If you want to see more impressions, check out Instagram or Photos and Videos!
@but_i_fly_dance and #butiflyontour
Our eXchange to Holstebro at dtadans was a great success!
It was enriching, impressive and full of energy at the same time. The dancers of BUT I FLY DANCE and the COCOONS have had great and versatile lessons in different styles from great teachers (Lene Bonde, Melody Putu, Theresa Jarvis, Simone Svane, Daniel Villadsen, Caroline Petter, Anne TØlbØll)
The students of dtadans and the Balletskolen Holstebro, welcomed our dancers with open arms.
Our dancers went home full of energy, newly awakened dreams and goals.
Holidays 2019
Now, after the relaxation that the summer holidays have given us, we are ready to fill the last half year with energy! The CATERPILLARS and COCOONS have already had their first training sessions. This weekend the company meets for the first time for, hopefully, an intensive rehearsal, because we have big plans!
The first exciting thing after the break will be our exchange to Holstebro in Denmark, to DTADans School in October. It will be our first trip together, to another city and a new country! The dancers will be able to dance in several classes daily. For example in Contemporary, Improvisation and also Ballet. We will also have a performance of Visit THE BLACK BOX DANCE COMPANY.
Follow our journey, on Instagram: @but_i_fly_dance and #butiflyontour
BUT I FLY DANCE COMPANY on tour.
We have established a special relationship with the talent academy DTAdans in Denmark. We have designed a workshop together.
From 06-10 October the company was in Holstebro, Denmark to experience a dance exchange with DTAdans!
#butiflydanceontour
We would like to thank all participants for this successful cooperation! We would be pleased if we could present this play on another stage again.
You can find further impressions on our social media channels: ebbe_und_flut_2019 or Ebbe und Flut.
#butiflydancemeetsaltonale21
This project by the choreographer, Fiona Gordon, together with her company, BUT I FLY DANCE COMPANY and guests, is intended to deal with the "wealth" of Hamburg as well as to raise awareness of how much poverty there is in a large metropolis like Hamburg.
With the support of the poetry slammer Anna Wessel and the movement choir "Hamburg Voices", directed by Alex Grimm and the video artist, Paul Gerlach, we will present an exciting, politically critical performance with a "wealth of arts" in dance, word, projections and song.
Art knows no poor or rich, no race or religion - it connects.
@ebbeundflut2019
Ebbe und Flut
What a success!
On 31.05.2019 was the day of the opening of the Altonale21 and on the Platz der Republik there was a lively atmosphere of the most different people who enjoyed the various offers. After a short time, the squares filled with curious spectators, eagerly awaiting the start of our dance performance. A three-dimensional stage was provided, with the energetic dance of the BUT I FLY DANCE COMPANY and guests, the atmospheric singing of the HamburgVoices, on the Black Form the political-critical poetry of the poetry collector Anna Wessel and the impressive video projection of the visual artist Paul Gerlach.
The piece began with the choir singing, representing the greed of humanity. They were replaced by the dancers representing capitalist powers and during the course of the piece, they asked themselves the question "Why? It was supported by words and video mapping on the facade of the city hall.
eXchange
On 10.02.2019 our exchange with committed students of the DTAdans from Holstebro in Denmark took place. We dealt with "eXchange", as a guide of the divided morning with BUT I FLY DANCE COMPANY and the Cocoons. The workshop was taught by Fiona Gordon and Lene Bonde.
"Dancing with the Danish dancers and exchanging ideas - in the sense of the motto "exchange" - was really interesting and something completely different for me. You noticed how quickly dancing connects... within 3 hours you broke through the distance and kinesphere of the "strangers" before and at the end it felt as if you knew them already quite well, although you "only" danced with them. The language barrier was also unproblematic, because you can dance and discover from each other without big words! " - Britta S. (Dancer of the But I Fly Dance Company)
_JPG.jpg)
International, talking with our body, inspiring, never stop learning, fun, looking forward to repetition - Linn P. (Tänzerin der But I Fly Dance Company)
_JPG.jpg)
Workshops
YOU MISSED IT!
On 08.12.2019 there was the possibility to experience an intensive workshop with Yashasvi Shrotriya.
It was a great success!
And he'll be back!
Workshop with Philipp van der Heijden in 2017 on the topic: "Taking and giving impulses".
Photographed by Ina Oertelt
Flyers
Where else can we be found
We participate in the project "with dance to tolerance". It is a very exciting process! We will not only show our own choroegraphy, but dancers will also participate in a variety of workshops. Follow the events on: http://www.nader-etmenan-stiftung.de/mit-tanz-zur-toleranz