Mad Dance
I know modern dance isn't everyone's thing, but I usually enjoy it and I've missed seeing performances this past year. So, Thursday I went to see three pieces by an 80 year old English company called Rambert. Pretty interesting stuff.
Walking into the theatre I was met with a gigantic orange cat face filling the proscenium with the words "I Love You" printed below. Okay . . .
It had a slight connection to the first piece. The dance was about romance or romantic moments and there was a large (I think about 3' high at the back) fluffy orange cat standing upstage right. Don't ask me what it had to do with romance. Despite this oddity, the dance was fun and engaging. There was even a dancer pretending to be a dancer who "controlled" flying a bouquet of flowers in and out of the flies. Pretty much the point of the whole thing was that one male dancer kept trying to meet a female dancer (behind a moving door) while the rest of the stage filled with several other couples in various stages of enamored pursuit. There was five-piece brass band coming on and off and the whole performance had a slightly brighter than reality feel (the artistic director later said that it was meant to refer to the 70s). I particularly liked the ending, when the two central characters finally meet, but the girl has the bouquet and the boy is in the harness to control it. Despite the fact that with the harness, he should control the line, she does. Whenever she gets close, he rises into the air. So, for him to be on solid ground, she has to keep her distance. Interesting, huh?
During the second piece I kept drifting off. It was set to a soundscape and was very repetitive AND it was about 3PM (my sleepy time of the day). I felt bad, but it was like being back in Astronomy class - I just couldn't keep my eyes open.
The third piece was multi-layered and based on a Northern painter named Lowry. I can't describe it very well, but I enjoyed it. Unfortunately, there were several teenagers in the audience and one thought it appropriate to whistle at the shirtless dancer during a section with no music. Oh, the laughter. I have really mixed feelings about bringing younger people to modern dance. On one hand, they should have a chance to see different kinds of art. On the other hand, their behavior shouldn't disturb people who came to enjoy a dance performance. Oh well, they were pretty good through most of it.
When I described the show to a housemate, she said it sounded mad. Thus the title of the post.
I need to wrap up. I'm kind of using this to avoid readings. Hope everyone had a good weekend.
Walking into the theatre I was met with a gigantic orange cat face filling the proscenium with the words "I Love You" printed below. Okay . . .
It had a slight connection to the first piece. The dance was about romance or romantic moments and there was a large (I think about 3' high at the back) fluffy orange cat standing upstage right. Don't ask me what it had to do with romance. Despite this oddity, the dance was fun and engaging. There was even a dancer pretending to be a dancer who "controlled" flying a bouquet of flowers in and out of the flies. Pretty much the point of the whole thing was that one male dancer kept trying to meet a female dancer (behind a moving door) while the rest of the stage filled with several other couples in various stages of enamored pursuit. There was five-piece brass band coming on and off and the whole performance had a slightly brighter than reality feel (the artistic director later said that it was meant to refer to the 70s). I particularly liked the ending, when the two central characters finally meet, but the girl has the bouquet and the boy is in the harness to control it. Despite the fact that with the harness, he should control the line, she does. Whenever she gets close, he rises into the air. So, for him to be on solid ground, she has to keep her distance. Interesting, huh?
During the second piece I kept drifting off. It was set to a soundscape and was very repetitive AND it was about 3PM (my sleepy time of the day). I felt bad, but it was like being back in Astronomy class - I just couldn't keep my eyes open.
The third piece was multi-layered and based on a Northern painter named Lowry. I can't describe it very well, but I enjoyed it. Unfortunately, there were several teenagers in the audience and one thought it appropriate to whistle at the shirtless dancer during a section with no music. Oh, the laughter. I have really mixed feelings about bringing younger people to modern dance. On one hand, they should have a chance to see different kinds of art. On the other hand, their behavior shouldn't disturb people who came to enjoy a dance performance. Oh well, they were pretty good through most of it.
When I described the show to a housemate, she said it sounded mad. Thus the title of the post.
I need to wrap up. I'm kind of using this to avoid readings. Hope everyone had a good weekend.