Site-specific
dance creations captivate with contemporary explorations of imagery of history
and ancestry. (Review by Verne Rowin Munsamy)
Monday
nights are usually our dark nights in the theatre but when the Jomba! Festival beckons,
the Calle must be answered. No
stranger to the festival, the KZNSA Gallery played host to three site-specific
dance creations which teased us with hints of strong technique but instead
captivated us with contemporary explorations of imagery of history and ancestry.
Making use of
the street and entranceway of the Gallery, the French company, Compagnie
Ex Nihilo, rendered a
recitation of the work Calle Obrapia#4. As
is the nature with site-specific work, the piece changes shape in relation to
the new space.
The restaurant
tables made way under the night sky as the outdoor area played house to Across, not Over, a dance creation from
India, choreographed by Preethi Athreya and danced by Vikram Iyengar. With the
rhythms of classical, Kathak dance drummed by shoes and his hands, Iyengar meticulously
deconstructs our fast-paced notions of classic dance through a slow, floor
rolling, gentle choreography. What is
most interesting about this choreography is that it cuts off the hands and the face
which, if you are familiar with classical Indian dance, are the most expressive
parts of the body used to create meaning through this form. This slow-moving
deconstruction strips away much of the meaning found in classical dance but at
the same time re-invents meaning through what remains. It challenges this
notion that classical dance has become more Bollywood in contemporary times.
The third
and final contemporary dance creation was performed in the main gallery. Titled
Migrations (at the feet of Kali), it
is choreographed by Lliane Loots in
collaboration with Iain Ewok Robinson, Manesh Maharaj and the ADD Flatfoot
dancers. Fusing Kathak with Slam poetry and contemporary dance, the choreography
reminds us of our history, challenges our ancestry and nudges us to wash away
our history and start fresh. This contemporary creation by Loots, draws on our colonial
past to infuse life into a retold story of Hindu mythology and the destructive
dance the Kali performs, to slay a demon. We are reminded that it is only in
our humility that destructive forces may be quelled.
Tonight we
lay down in humility before the dancers on stage as they reconstruct their own
histories in a space and site. They remind us that our histories can be rediscovered.
- Verne Rowin Munsamy
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