For my CAS project I partnered with Rukshi and Matthew from my class to create the Colombo dance project. Inspired by Jordan matter’s “Dancer’s Among Us’  Our CAS project focuses on the experience of everyday life in Colombo through the lens of dance. While our initial plan was to film a dance video after careful evaluation we decided to alter it to a series of photos portraying mundane chores in innovative ways. 

Linking to the nostalgia of being in our senior year of high school and having spent our last year in lockdown we wanted to also portray the beauty of Colombo and the minute things we take for granted within our locality. 

The project intertwines creativity and activity seeking to portray Colombo through a new perspective. Our goal was to capture the photos, edit them and then post it on a Instagram account dedicated to the project. To give ourselves a concrete goal we hoped to read 150 followers by the end of the project. We divided the tasks amongst ourselves; Rukshi would be in charge of photography and editing, Matthew in charge of behind the scenes photos and editing and I myself would cover the dancing. The photographs were taken on the 14th of March at the following locations; 

• Arpico supermarket (Hyde park) 
• Diyatha station 
• The Old Cargills building 
• Green path 
• Galle face hotel 

The photographs took a whole day and we ended up with nearly 400 drafts! Taking the photographs was much harder than anticipated.

We have now completed our project by uploading the edited photos onto our account @cmbdanceprotject on Instagram.

Learning outcomes addressed by the CAS project; 

Learning outcome 1 : Identify own strengths and develop areas for growth

Since my part of the project was based on dance I was able to focus on posing with correct technique while also coordinating with Rukshi to ensure that poses fit the background. Through the experience I also realized that I need to work much harder on my balance and core as I found it difficult at times to hold poses for long enough on pointe. 

Learning outcome 2: Demonstrate that challenges have been undertaken, developing new skills in the process

One aspect I found challenging was to carry out the project without the direction of a dance teacher. I had to be independent and constantly evaluate myself to ensure that the dance poses were done correctly.

Additionally we also did a few pas de deux photos as part of the project and this was also challenging as I had never done these without direction.

Learning outcome 3: Demonstrate how to initiate and plan a CAS experience

The planning of the project was extensive as we had to select our locations, organize a route and also build a consistent posting schedule. In addition we had to also pre-plan the poses and outfits for each photo to ensure that the composition of the photos was aesthetically pleasing.