Academic Work

My Research

Performing (M)otherhood: Excavating Identity and the Role of Neuroscience in Performance Preparation

The Journey

A Personal
Introduction

I am Hara Kyriazi; I am a Greek woman, wife, mother, dance artist, archaeologist, scholar.

It was October 2022 when my research journey started, and through my MA dissertation 'Performing (M)otherhood: Excavating Identity and the Role of Neuroscience in Performance Preparation', alongside an online virtual gallery 'The Flamingo's pink colour', I am welcoming you into the world of this two-year research journey.

Dance Artist Archaeologist Scholar Mother

2022 – 2023

Year One:
Motherhood & Identity

During year one, I was investigating the relationship between motherhood and performing — the ways in which the mother's identity could be brought into my dance practice. In this broad question, I wanted to explore the notable changes I experienced becoming a mother.

Referring to my studies in archaeology, I considered myself as a series of layers: embodiment, identity, kinaesthetic awareness and empathy, and love.

I explored the ways in which my embodied pregnant self, and the understanding of my identity while dancing pregnant and then again with my two-year-old daughter, were sources for my art making.

During this research, I found an unspoken way of bonding with my daughter through dance and overcoming difficulties that might arise in our everyday life — and importantly, I approached more profound issues such as her stammering. In other words, I turned my everyday life into research.

Embodiment
Identity
Kinaesthetic Empathy
Love

2023 – 2024

Year Two:
Neuroscience & Performance

After conducting my year one research, I took all the 'findings' from this discovery to the 'laboratory' for further investigation.

In year two, I wondered if I could develop a dance practice or workshop 'technique' for triggering emotions in the performer before a dance performance — and test this technique on participants, who are not necessarily parents. I wanted the participants to consider their everyday life, for inspiration to enhance their expressivity on stage.

I conducted experimental workshops; the foundation of this work was research into neuroscience as a tool to activate and induce emotions in the participants.

'Science investigates the invisible, art makes us experience it.'

— Bläsing, Puttke & Schack, 2010

My research gets a broader perspective and spreads into a wider context — people who do not have a family or do not plan to have a family in the future can resonate, as they could understand the dancers/parents in a deeper, more empathetic way.

Companion Piece

The Flamingo's
Pink Colour

A visual journey through two years of research — scroll to explore.

Scroll to explore

Read the Thesis

At a Glance

Research Timeline

October 2022

MA Programme Begins

Rambert School of Ballet and Contemporary Dance

Year One Research

2022 – 2023

Motherhood, identity, and bonding through dance.

2023 – 2024

Year Two Research

Neuroscience, emotion, and performance preparation.

MA Completed with Distinction

2024

Dissertation and virtual gallery 'The Flamingo's pink colour'.

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