Re-enaction of Rough and Tumble Game by Hermans Carolien

This artistic project takes rough-and-tumble play (R &T play), also referred to as fight play, as the central starting point. R &T play refers to ‘vigorous behaviours, such as wrestling, grappling, kicking, and tumbling, that appear to be aggressive except for the playful context’ (Pellegrini & Smith, 2005, p.79), and that are almost always performed without hurting each other (DiPietro 1981). In the first phase material was collected from different events (‘mattress’, ‘rope’, a short film and a working session at the Conservatory of Amsterdam). A selected set of imagery was then handed over to first year students of the Modern Dance Theatre department at the Amsterdam University of the Arts. The following themes emerge from this working process:a sense of being alive, serious attention to having fun, energy level, joint attention,and the importance of both imagination and touch in this type of play.In this project also archive material is included that resonates with the theme of fight play.

Back to Group 1

I worked with the modern dance students on re-enactment of the rough-and-tumble play of four boys. I selected set of imagery was then handed over to first year students of the Modern Dance Theatre department at the Amsterdam University of the Arts. The following themes emerge from this working process:a sense of being alive, serious attention to having fun, energy level, joint attention,and the importance of both imagination and touch in this type of play.

Play of four boys:

Teun van der Grinten, Michel van de Linden, Luuk Scheers and Maas Theuwkens, all in the age of 13 years.