Waiting on It (2021)
Waiting on It; commissioned by Dance City, supported by Northumberland County Council and made possible with the support of public funding from Arts Council England.
Waiting on It examines the pace of the everyday, the space inbetween and our relationships to time. It was recorded in September 2021 and premiered at Dance City, Newcastle. It has since been shown as part of Durham Fringe Festival and at Tyneside Cinema.
Choreographer: Beth Veitch
Producer: Sophie Halford
Filmmaker: Alex Ayre
Dancers: Ashlin Huck & Emily-Fleur Peake
Musician: Anna Hughes
Production Assistants: Helena Meadows & Eve Walker
With special thanks to Anthony Lo-Giudice for all his support and guidance and to Claire Turnbull at Dame Allan’s School for providing us with space.
Illustrations by Jodie Lightning; artist anf founder of Oh Lightning.
Written response by Lauren Vevers:
‘Life is what happens when you're making other plans’ is the kind of phrase you might cross-stitch into a wall-hanging, or write on a post-it and stick to your fridge. It speaks to how we experience time, or rather don't experience it. Time marches on at a pace and we don't notice. The racing hum of life is such that we barely stop to breathe, to take stock. When I think about the moments that I've been acutely aware of time passing, they have one thing in common: waiting.
There's nothing like anticipation to halt time in its tracks. Waiting for news, a delayed flight, the summer holidays, an important phone call. Waiting for change. Waiting for the last bus home, the movie to start, test results. Waiting for love. Waiting for the light to turn green, the water to boil. Waiting for permission. We think of waiting as a liminal state but it seems to me that we're always waiting for something. So if there's a lesson in waiting, it's to revel in it.
I'm writing this from a coastal cottage in Dorset where I'm staying with a friend. In an unfamiliar place, time bends in mysterious ways. The cottage has original 70s wallpaper and other period features. It's uncanny, like stepping back into the past. I don't know what day it is and I let the hours wash over me like waves.
Today, I waited in line for chips at The Lobster Pot. I spend most of that time scrolling through my phone but when I looked up, I saw others around me waiting too. I watched them fidget and moan and wrangle their children into line. I watched them laugh and argue and kiss. I watched them lean on each other and stomp their feet and draw circles in the sand. When we wait, we're also living and that's easy to forget.
Waiting On It was a brilliant project to be part of, not only because of the people involved but because, with a theme so vast, it was bound to unearth rich conversations. If I'm honest, I'm still processing all of it. Waiting, as a woman in my early 30s, is a painful subject laden with complicated emotions: it's missed opportunities, shame and regret. But it's also hope, joy and future possibilities.
From Emily-Fleur; dancer in Waiting on It
My solo feels very personal and intimate … the audience have to ‘enter my space’ and be in there with me to be part of, and experience the story. I have a strong connection to the idea of Penelope (ref. Greek mythology), biding her time weaving, just waiting, trying not to be pushed by others’ timelines or expectations. Having said this, there is the strong idea of being battered by these timelines and expectations, almost having to fight them or embrace them, allow them to happen, to stay on my pathway and stick with my decisions.
It is quite a freeing solo to perform, especially in the woods, to be really out of control and be taken where you’re taken with no real set pathway, facing or destination. While also having those calmer moments to take in the environment around me; the view of the sky through the trees, the sandy mud under my feet, the sounds of the birds, the river or twigs snapping. It is a piece in which I don’t notice the time passing. It makes me appreciate the now and to appreciate the in-between space you are in when you wait.
From Ashlin Huck; dancer in Waiting on It
The way we perceive time, and what we decide to wait for is fascinating.
We tend to wait for things without ever fully knowing that they may happen.
Waiting is something that we spend so much of our lives doing.
This piece feels like it’s a blend between the frustration of wasting time balanced with the uncontrollable nature of waiting. Is it out of my control, or should I be doing more?
Am I waiting for better or worse, and what makes me so sure that things will change?
Have you ever been stuck in traffic, at a red light or in a queue?
This piece feels like that.
Photo credit: Jodie Lightning, artist and founder of Oh Lightning