June 22, 2023

Morning practice at Chapter Cardiff

Next dance, morning practice part of Groundwork Pro’s improvisation programme of classes and events
Friday 30th June @Chapter Cardiff 10-11.30am
All are welcome.
The guided practice is designed so anyone can be involved whether you are a professional dancer, someone who would like to dance or if you simply would like to embark on a process that is about relating to your own body.
Jo lives in Wales and her creative work reflects the need in these times for people to come together. Her artistic practice is an evolving, collaborative approach which puts ideas around belonging or forming community in the forefront.
“What I need might be a sensation, connection, vibration, space, higher ceilings, skipping…part of my joy in being alive, or simply being me, is me in my physicality. My dancing is changing every day, the dance has changed, no doubt everyone’s dance has.
I sense this process is not so much a choreography, but rather, a creative action.
Just a moment,
to be in the moment,
Everyone dances for different reasons, fashions come and go and this particular time has its own difficulties and opportunities. My own study seems to be about finding more moments to be my fullest self, about acceptance, about channeling rage, about taking up space, saying the truth and about returning to a body that has changed. I’m considering how everyone is an artist, how this time needs more experiences that bring us into ourselves and to practice being witnessed in that.” – Jo Fong
If you have any questions or access needs you would like to tell us about, please do not hesitate to contact us at: Groundwork Collective
Capacity is limited, so please do book in advance.
More About Jo Fong
Jo is a Creative Associate with the Wales Millennium Centre. She has been dancing, peforming and making for 30 years and began her career with Rosas, Rambert and DV8 Physical Theatre to name a few. Some memorable moments include Wallflower with Quarantine Theatre, movement direction for Le Vin Herbe with Welsh National Opera, dancing in and contributing to the re-staging of Nigel Charnock’s Lunatic for National Dance Company Wales and creating English with National Theatre Wales. Jo regularly facilitates on a number of creative practice, community arts and visual arts MA courses and leads open studio events and workshops throughout the UK and further afield.
Recent performances and events; Ways of Being Together, Neither Here Nor There, To Tell You the Truth, Our Land, What Will People Need? Nettles: How to Disagree? and The Sun’s Come Out created in collaboration with artist Sonia Hughes. A Brief History of Difference with Das Clarks, Marathon of Intimacies with artist Anushiye Yarnell, Jo contributed to Luke Hereford’s Grandmother’s Closet at the Wales Millennium Centre and she is currently touring The Rest of Our Lives created with clown and circus director George Orange. How Shall We begin Again? was created and performed by 50 people in a 16 hour performance on the Donald Gordon Stage at WMC in February this year. Wales’ artists, facilitators, actors, directors, writers and people at the very beginning of forming relationship with their bodies took to the stage. How Shall We Begin Again? Holds a space between portraiture, protest and something like a prayer. On its simplest level it’s about how we reconnect with ourselves, our bodies and each other.
Ways of Being Together has evolved into an artist-led community creating space and time to reconnect, repair, replenish and explore performance making and co-creation. The annual convergence is layered, centring learning, support, co-mentoring and actioning change.