Unravel documents the process of healing from trauma, from the inciting incident to the eventual integration of pain. Suffering from a traumatic event is common, coping with it is uncommon. Unravel illustrates the fact that healing is not linear - the feelings of isolation, repression, and self-hatred are present throughout. This performance uses props, such as rope, to represent the feelings of suffocation, as well as incorporating sound design using the sounds of crashing waves and harsh winds to convey the internal turmoil that a person affected by trauma experiences.

Healing from trauma happens in three phases:

Phase 1 - emotional regulation, avoiding risky behaviors, recognizing your triggers

Phase 2 - acknowledging what has been lost from trauma, integrating your pain

Phase 3 - empowering yourself, realizing you are not your trauma, using your experiences to make an impact

Research

Design Concepts

Choreography

Film!

Video!

The crowd's walking pattern in the first scene is direct, sustained and free. Luca's fall is quick, free, indirect and heavy. This is the first scene where Luca is triggered from the traumatic event.

Emotions

Shock

Confusion

Loss

Normality

Luca's movements in this scene go from sustained and direct to indirect, free and quick as she starts to go against the group's swaying. This is supposed to represent the isolation one feels while coping from a traumatic event.

Emotions

Isolation

Refusal

Imbalance

Avoidance

Emotions

Anger

Pain

Self-Destruction

Defeat

The "mirror scene" represents the pain and the self-destruction involved in trauma. The movements are mainly hard and fast. They are meant to be aggressive and unpredictable to show the volatility of emotions throughout trauma.

Regrowth

Healing

Unity

Peace

The final scene shows the healing process after trauma, with movement meant to match the natural breathe of the dancers. We used slow organic movements to show the process of personal growth. At the end, the dancers come together into a final unified formation with outstretched arms, resembling a blooming flower and all the prosperity to come.

Emotions

Next Steps

• Look into ways to incorporate the audience
• Create wearables to immerse the audience
• Further integrate our set design