Baseworks Transmission

Catherine Gaudet is a Montreal choreographer. Her piece Les jolies choses won the Grand Prix de la danse de Montréal in 2022 and has toured Canada and Europe since. In this conversation with Asia Shcherbakova and Patrick Oancia, she explains how she builds a performance.Her working tool is ambiguity: several possible meanings laid down at once, so the spectator keeps looking for one. She begins in the studio without a plan and guides her dancers through images and physical forces until they stop watching themselves, and she treats every piece as a ritual. She talks about fatigue and music as part of the state a piece produces, about what she wants to happen in the body of the person watching, and about the working conditions of dancers in Quebec and France.Her new solo for James Phillips, Hors-d'œuvre, runs at Théâtre La Chapelle in Montreal from September 23 to 26, 2026.The conversation is mostly in French, with Asia and Patrick speaking English. The video version has English and French subtitles. Full transcripts in English, French and Japanese are on the episode page:https://baseworks.com/podcast/catherine-gaudet-ambiguity-ritual-audienceChapters(00:00:00) Introduction(00:03:41) Three bodies in a performance(00:05:14) From dancer to choreographer(00:09:18) Ambiguity as a vector of sensation(00:10:37) The aesthetic shock(00:14:31) State over message(00:17:19) No plan in the studio(00:19:34) The rabbit ears(00:22:32) Directing with forces and images(00:26:59) The thousand faces(00:30:19) "The audience is me"(00:33:51) Reducing a piece to one figure(00:36:57) Hypnosis and meditative ritual(00:40:01) Trust without understanding(00:43:38) The pink ball(00:45:26) Ritual as a state machine(00:47:43) The head as antenna(00:48:52) Exhaustion and the second wind(00:52:07) The music: a four-minute loop(00:56:05) Jung and the truths of the blood(01:01:10) The spectator, through herself(01:02:03) The movement in the spectator(01:08:03) Why the videos don't do it(01:09:54) Twenty years of creation(01:13:09) Creation as religion(01:14:54) The poster downstairs(01:16:02) Working conditions for dancers(01:20:27) Adversity and comfort(01:22:23) Idealism and compromise(01:25:43) Hors-d'œuvre at La Chapelle(01:26:56) A shared language(01:28:17) Closing messageLinksCompagnie Catherine Gaudet: https://catherinegaudet.com/en/Hors-d'œuvre at Théâtre La Chapelle: https://www.lachapelle.org/fr/spectacles/hors-doeuvreDisembodied by Dance, Asia's article: https://baseworks.com/communications/disembodied-by-dance-embodied-mind/Baseworks events in Montreal: https://baseworks.com/events/Recorded at Espace Libre (Studio NTE), Montreal, on September 3, 2026. Podcast artwork photo by Julie Artacho.

In this episode of the Baseworks Transmission Podcast, Patrick Oancia sits down with Edward Clark, writer, theater artist, and director of Tripsichore Yoga Theater. Their connection goes back to 2007 in Bali, where Edward's uncompromising teaching style and critical approach to yoga immediately stood out.This conversation traces Edward's journey from Calgary to London's physical theater scene in the late 70s, through the influence of Stephen Berkoff and Lindsay Kemp, to the pivotal 1992 discovery that yoga held untapped choreographic potential—leading to three decades of creating work that physicalizes phenomenological landscapes.Topics covered:Physical theater training: Stephen Berkoff's Metamorphosis and Lindsay Kemp's extreme performancesThe accidental birth of yoga theater in 1992Fundamental differences between asana and vinyasa philosophyTeaching to fund artistic practiceIntensity, injuries, and the reality of long-term practiceSocial media yoga and the authority problemTwo books with anthropologist Laurie A. Greene examining contemporary yoga teaching and practiceWhy Patanjali's Yoga Sutras became "classical yoga" (historical accident)Academic yoga studies with Mark Singleton, Jason Birch, and James MallinsonCritical acceptance: embracing hypotheses while evaluating themInternational touring and ending teacher trainings to focus on artEdward Clark is a theater artist and director of Tripsichore Yoga Theater whose work emerged from London's physical theater scene in the late 1970s. He has co-authored two books with Laurie A. Greene: "Teaching Contemporary Yoga: Physical Philosophy and Critical Issues" and "Yoga and the Body," both published by Routledge.This conversation was recorded on May 30, 2025, at Circuit-Est Centre Chorégraphique in Montreal, Canada.For full show notes, chapter timestamps, transcript, references, and companion reflections, visit:https://baseworks.com/podcast/edward-clark-physical-theater-critical-practiceTransmission is copyright to Baseworks | Shaspo LLC.

In this episode of the Baseworks Transmission Podcast, Patrick Oancia sits down with Palisa Anderson in a park in Montreal, sipping wine and diving into her multifaceted journey as a restaurateur, organic farmer, mother, and movement practitioner. Palisa shares the story of her family’s legacy with Chat Thai, a renowned Thai restaurant group in Sydney, Australia, and her transformative shift to regenerative farming at Boon Luck Farm. From her roots in Sydney to her global experiences in cities like Tokyo, she discusses how her work in food, farming, and movement intertwines with her philosophy of intentionality, community, and resilience. The conversation explores cycles in nature and life, the challenges of sustainable agriculture, and the importance of grounding oneself in the present while planning for a sustainable future.For time-stamped show notes, references to the topics discussed, other associated links, show transcript, full bios, and the companion reflection access, visit ⁠the episode page⁠ on the Baseworks site.

In this episode of the Baseworks Transmission conversation, Asia Shcherbakova⁠ talks with Johanna Calderon, an interdisciplinary researcher, educator, and music performer from Colombia. Johanna's background is rooted in her studies of cello and music history in Colombia, furthered by a master's degree in early baroque music from the Conservatory of Amsterdam. She presently holds a position as an associate professor and researcher at the Autonomous University of Bucaramanga, where her work focuses on integrating musicology, cultural heritage, and peace-building through music and arts.The discussion explores the intersection of music, movement, and self-expression. Johanna provides insights into using music as a medium for rebuilding connections in post-conflict environments, especially in Colombia. The episode is presented in both English and Spanish, offering perspectives enriched by linguistic diversity. The episode on YouTube features subtitles in both languages (use the CC option to select your preferred language). If you're not bilingual, we recommend watching the video version there.For time-stamped show notes, references to the topics discussed, other associated links, show transcript, full bios, and the companion reflection access, visit the episode page on the Baseworks site.

This is the companion REFLECTIONS transmission for the conversation Patrick Oancia had with Jozef Frucek, co-founder of the Fighting Monkey practice. To gain detailed insights and understand the philosophies discussed, we recommend listening to the original episode first. You can watch or listen to that here: https://baseworks.com/podcast/jozef-frucek-fighting-monkey-practice-communication-adaptation/In this Reflection, Baseworks Method co-developer Asia Shcherbakova explores Jozef’s approach to movement practice, examining how he integrates concepts of biological systems and communication within the context of Fighting Monkey. Asia contrasts these methods with the Baseworks Method, providing thoughtful comparisons and connections. As there is a lot of contextual graphics that accompany this episode, consider watching the video instead either on Spotify or Youtube. For show notes, transcript and other resources for this Reflection, please visit :https://baseworks.com/podcast/jozef-frucek-fighting-monkey-practice-communication-adaptation/