My name is Shuyu Chen, from MA company. I had my undergraduate degree at Shanghai Institute of Visual arts in China and my major is musical theatre performance and education. I remember there was a time when we were having ICP class, we needed to introduce our experience and described which role we played in the past collaboration. In my opinion, thinking about this question was a great beginning of ICP class, also a great beginning of my assignment. 

I used to be a contributor in the most past time. There are some reasons. Firstly, my major was musical theatre performance and education. however, I didn’t have many course in education. We only had a course about child psychology and we did the practice which played the role of teacher having the class. I think if I have more courses in education and do more practice, maybe I can learn more about how to be a leader, like a teacher. The second reason is there were directors, MDs and choreographer to organize the show, I felt comfortable when I was a pure performer and I haven’t try to give my ideas to them. All I did was tried to finish my tasks and focus on every detail. The third reason is because I had a little experience of being the leader of a choreography group. I didn’t know how to express my thoughts in a kind way but made it effective, others didn’t share their ideas and feelings so we all had less communication with my team. We all felt uncomfortable during this collaboration. Since then, I seldom decide to be a leader.

ICP changes me a lot. This kind of change is the change of what I thought. I will give some instance to explain it. Firstly, we did the practice of discuss your collaborated experience, then give our questions and feedback with your classmates. I was in the group with Fanny, Lara and Chris. Lara’s experience is she did a project with her best friends who from different backgrounds. What made me surprised was she could work with her best friends and the reason of it is what I mentioned in last paragraph. I asked her how to make a balance between friends and work projects. She told me that collaborating with friends is not a bad thing. Friends can tell their true feelings and ideas and as a friend you might understand other’s requires more. Chris mentioned his experience is doing the bend and their pattern of collaboration is Family collaboration, which from Candy’s patterns of Collaboration. There are three people in his bend. Chris is responsible for the singer and guitar. He also told us a lot of jobs he has did. What I surprised was he did such many jobs. My question is do their bend has leader, he told me he could be the manager cause he also responsible for the financial. We finished the first part of our collaboration practice, which was knowing about each other. Then we did the second practice, doing a project. The topic was “Vacation”. We decided that Chris played the writer to write a monologue, Lara played the part of dramatic structure and Fanny and me played the dancer. I also did the choreography. I think we use the pattern of Complementary collaboration because we are from different major. Our division of labor stems from our respective unique expertise. After that we did the third practice, called “Yes, and…”. We always followed a certain order. Each person wrote down a word. After many rounds of this cycle, these words formed a story. I think this time we used the pattern of  distributed collaboration because the practice showed our separation. In my opinion, this was a very balanced collaboration. I had a better understanding of these collaboration patterns through these practice. I prefer Family collaboration and Complementary collaboration because I think they are efficient.

On October 6th’s class, we prepared the workshop by our unique design, being the leader and leading others join our workshop. What I designed was using very basic dance elements(head, shoulders, chest and hips), we attempt to create some unique postures and movements. The aim is to help everyone better understand their bodies and explore how many different poses can be formed. I think it was a good way to practice how to be a leader. I also like the workshop from Sophie. Sophie’s first practice was for everyone on the space without speaking. Instead, we sensed each other’s energy through our senses and bodies. We walked together, stop together and clap our hands together. I know that “feeling each other’s energy” sounds rather abstract, but we actually did it well. We also did the “Fish” practice. Everyone stood in a cluster, facing the same direction, and extended their hands to resemble the direction of a fish’s mouth. The group moved together in the direction of the leader. The most amazing thing was that the leader would constantly change direction according to the direction of the group of fish. The third practice was from another classmate, we needed to walk in the space and everyone had own choice. Whether walking, standing, running, sitting or lying down, we can choose our own actions or follow others. My felling was that when I do some quiet actions, such as standing still or sitting still, and see others moving, I would be influenced and felt anxious. My overall feeling of these practice is that participating in the workshop as a contributor could make me feel the energy from ensemble. This might help learn to listen and feel the ideas of others in collaboration.

There is an ICP lecture class impressed me. We were discussing about the challenges, opportunities and discoveries that collaboration might bring after watching a video. After discussion, our group came up with a viewpoint, which was “Artist can feel less defensive constructive feedback culture”. We are international students, we were thinking about the different culture in a group. In collaboration, especially in cross-cultural groups, the way of communication often determines the way of collaboration goes smoothly. People have different understandings of “feedback” in different cultural backgrounds. For instance, some cultures prefer direct criticism, while others consider it “impolite”or “offensive”. When artists come from different cultures, they tend to feel defensive or misunderstood in their collaborations. If a “constructive feedback culture” can be established, which is a culture encourages open, respectful communication. Artists will be able to lower their defenses and accept suggestions more openly, thereby promoting creativity and collaborative outcomes. I believe that considering this perspective as an international student has been of great help to me in my collaboration projects for the coming year.

In a Tuesday’s class, we did a project with the topic “Together”. I really enjoined this practice, especially the feedback part. After each student presented their work, there were three steps in the feedback process. First, we had to share what we liked about someone’s work. Second, we asked a question. And third, we gave an opinion but we had to use a special sentence structure, like: I have some opinion about…, would you like listening? I think this feedback style has a lot of benefits. It’s fair, objective, and offers multiple perspectives. The creator can see many different possibilities in their work. It also helps broaden their thinking because they can step outside their own perspective and see their work through different audience from different experience. After collecting all these opinions, I think the most valuable part is how the creator connects that feedback to their own work. That’s where collaboration happen. Then I thought about how to connect these to the ICP class. First, collaboration is the result of shared thinking. Even though a project might be. Created individually, through presentation and feedback, everyone becomes part of the second creation. So collaboration also happens on a thinking level. Second, equality and respect are the foundation of collaboration. Using the sentence to give opinions shows respect. It makes the discussion more constructive. Third, diversity drives creativity. Collaboration between different culture can inspire new ideas and innovation. And finally, after listening to others’ feedback, the creator often feels more motivated and inspired to reflect and improve their work. This process is really helpful for personal growth.

In this paragraph I will use the example of Butterworth’s Didactic-Democratic Spectrum to summarize. I will connect and analyze of my experience to explain. As a “dancer”, I used to be more like a contributor, actually similar to process 2 in Butterworth’s Spectrum. I was like an executor, the director gave us a clear structure and we could create freely within that framework. I was really good at working that way. But in my recent learning experience, I’ve tried something different, which is the teacher only gives us a very simple theme, and then we  make their own decisions and create by ourselves. The teacher only steps in when we really need help. That’s more like process 4. So in the feedback part of our ICP class, classmates give feedback as the audience and the creator integrates those ideas. I think that’s actually a collaborative process. It shows the transition on the Spectrum from “I lead” to “we create together”. Collaboration here is not just about combining the final works, but about sharing ideas and feedback throughout the process. As a “choreographer”, I used to be more of an instructor, because I thought that was the most efficient and straightforward way to work, especially when time was limited. However obviously, the result was very personal. It was totally based on my own ideas.Now, in our performance project, it feels much more like process 4. We share ideas respectfully, work toward a common vision and truly create something together. I find that really inspiring. I can feel the strong energy of collaboration and I really value this process. I think that although moving toward democratic collaboration can be more time-consuming and complex, it also has so many benefits. It is interactive, which fits well with modern learning. It is diverse and allows more space for different cultural perspectives and personal expression. So It is really a shift, which from focusing on the final result to valuing learning and collaboration throughout the process.

“Collaboration is the horizontal glue that holds an ensemble together and makes the work collective, mutually supportive, and the composite of many minds, bodies, and imaginations. Leadership is the vertical glue that gives the ensemble a direction, a focus, a goal, and a set of deadlines.” (Cohen & Veenstra, 2024, p. 46)

While reading a book recently, I came across a sentence that perfectly describe how I now understand collaboration. In the past, I’ve always been someone who values logic and pays great attention to detail, I have a strong sense of order in everything I do. At the same time, my inner world is rich with ideas, and when I’m deeply interested in something, my creativity really shines. Because of this, I think I have the potential to become a leader. At the same time, I also really appreciate my classmate, Lara. Because I had the group talk with her, after she listened to my experience she encouraged me to try to be a leader. She also told me that I can share my ideas with others when collaborating, which gave me big confidence. After ICP class, I’ve gained much more experience and insight compared to before. I’ve learned that leadership is not only about creating a space where everyone van share their ideas freely. I am an empathetic and observant person, so if I ever lead a team, I want to make sure that everyone has the chance to express themselves and contribute. I hope that I can maintain in the process 4 and 5 from Butterworth’s Didactic-Democratic Spectrum. Making the collaboration equality, respect, and shared creativity. In my recent learning and performance experience, I’ve felt a real change in myself. I’ve become confident about sharing my ideas at the right time and I also received a lot of respect and understanding from my classmates, which has made me even more confident. I’ve realized that collaboration is not just about completing a project together, but also growing, learning, and inspiring each other throughout the process.

-Cohen, R. and Veenstra, J., 2024. Working together in theatre: Collaboration and leadership. 2nd ed. London: Methuen Drama.