Paper_Hanger’s Weblog
Performances, movies and book reviews …Archive for Contemporary Dance
Gravity and Other Myths et al in Civic Square
I went to Fused Productions’ 2008 version of “Gravity and Other Myths” at Civic Square. The permanent fixture suspended above the Square, a sphere composed of silver ferns, added to the atmosphere.
The main act was an evolutionary step from Fused’s 2007 work of the same name. Footnote opened the evening’s entertainment and I was disappointed - less on this later. A stand-up comedian then warmed-up the crowd for the main act: Vinyl Blank.
Vinyl had to really work, to get the crowd onside and generally relaxed. To his credit, I think he did a good workman like job. He struggled a bit to get to grips with the audience, but he got there. His sense of humour did not always sit well with everyone - there was wide range of ages in the audience; but when he started working circus moves in, the timeless ageless magic brought everyone together. He had some good diablo moves. How many people can unicycle and play the guitar !
Fused’s Big Rig was set up so that the audience was under the silver sphere or could see it over the venue - a constant reminder of ‘gravity’. Fused were up to their usual high standards: spectacular aerial work on tissu, hoop, rope and swining trapeze; and some nice hoops, juggling, strength and flexibility work on the ground. The girl-in-a-box was back too !
Fused have tweaked their work from last year and made general enhancements across the board. For me the most spectacular change is that placement of two performers on the swinging trapeze. Only one of which have a safety harness! I am told by those in the know that having two harness would actually decrease safety - as the harness ropes get tangled up. It certainly added a real wow factor. The man on a burning rope was the finale - boy it is spectatcular.
This year, things were a little more polished: there was slightly more ‘acting’ and stronger portrail of the ‘aliens studying gravity and other phenomena’ theme. Full marks for working the tricks into a theme.
Fused need to pay a little bit more attention to their surroundings: some of the fire juggling, hoop throwing and girl-in-a-box was hard to see if you were not sitting on the steps or at the front. While a stage maybe impractical, if these acts could have raised up, they would have been more visible. Maybe a temporary platform that can be worked into the theme. Fused have an entertaining product, and they need ensure that they show it off at its best.
Footnote opened, and they have made no significant advances since they air-ed their piece last month at the Fringe Festival. I am still waiting for the mature dance&aerial work - with a smooth integration of aerial elements into the general story telling or concept. Where the use of aerial moves is used because it is the best move in the toolkit to advance the story; not look I learnt this trick, and this other trick. At the moment it is a modern dance piece immediately followed by a display of aerial skills. What ever was going on in the dance portion - beaches, swimming ? - was not supported by the aerial portion.
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Dance and Circus Aerials
I went to a work that was the result of a collabooration between Footnote and Fused, put on as part of the Wellington Fringe Festival 2008.
The name of the work is a combination of the two groups: Footnote - a contemporary dance company; and Fused a collective that puts on circus aerials shows. The collaboration was in five distinct parts: some street theatre, modern dance, aerials, aerials and more aerials.
The street theatre piece was interesting and gave the audience some light exercise, as three, then six dancers lead the audience from The Bats Threatre around to the aerials rig in Oriental Terrace. The dancers danced and clowned their way around Oriental Bay - occassionally slowing traffic. Much of what they did could not be seen all of the time - especially when there were two groups of dancers on separate sides of the road! Still, it was an enjoyable walk to a mysterious location.
The location of the performance was not publically available: you had to text you SECRET to mobile number and have the starting location texted back to you. I found the process a little disconcerting, as there was a very long delay between my TXT and the answering TXT. Next time they need to make the response immediate: TXT is an electronic medium, and there should be no reason why I had to wait over an hour.
I have not watched dance outside, in a while. The setting for the dance peice was on a driveway that had a partial view of Oriental Bay; I found it very disconcerting not having a presidium arch to frame my world ! I really had to concentrate on individual dancers or tight groups of dancers, to avoid being distracted by the views. Still some interesting stuff.
Then the audience decamped from the driveway into the frontyard of a large property, where the rig - The Big Rig - holding up the aerials apparatus was set up.
The first aerial display was by two members of Fused. They was pretty good, up to the standard that I have seen Fused put on before.
The second aerial display was by members of Footnote. They were pretty good from an aerials perspective. They demonstrated that a group of people who have well trained bodies can pick-up basic and intermediate forms in 20 hours. There was even some inventiveness around two dancers on a single tissu - doing mirror shapes.
This fourth part was introduced as a work in progress. I had expectations of dance with an integrated aerial component. There wasn’t. I was a little disappointed. Still it is early days, hopefully once the dancers get over the fun of aerials they can concentrate on incorporating (grounded) dance into the aerials, and vis-a-versa.
I wait for the more mature work with some anticipation - particularly dancing in the air, that owes its origins in aerial shapes, without being a series of static shapes.
The final aerial display was a short - but cool - sequence on the rope by a member of Fused.
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