OneTouch Theatre, Eden Court, Inverness, 12 March 2008

Liv Lorent's Tenderhook (photograph by Andrew Ross)

ATHLETIC, raw and dynamic, SDT’s latest performance is well suited to the intimate and semi industrialised space of Eden Court’s new OneTouch Theatre. Three challenging works – ‘Tenderhook’ choreographed by Liv Lorent, ‘In The Middle of the Moment’ by Uri Ivgi and Johan Greben and ‘DOG’ by Hofesh Shechter – delivered a resonant and emotionally charged programme.

Pure expression through an astonishing range of movement makes this ensemble a powerful creative force that speaks directly to an audience. The exploration of “layers of honesty” in human experience defined the programme and its delivery. From the alienation of contemporary life, the restriction of dependency and our habitual evolution in the final work, there is a sense in which the experience of the individual is highlighted by all three works.

‘Tenderhook’ explores beautifully the “singular and personal experience” of isolation in relationships. A wonderful score by Ezio Bosso in six sections; “Walkin on the truth, Petite valsepour violin et chords, Concerto, Lento Les Abandon (versione perquartetto D’Archi), The sky seen from the moon and Seasong 9″ with dominant strings and piano drive the tension in this work, like pressing repeatedly on a raw nerve.

The structure is consistently like parallel lines that merge and overlap momentarily. ‘Tenderhook’ is the antithesis of a pas de deux and of dance as a vehicle for romantic sentiment. Here a parade of partnerships are characterised by strain and support in synthesis with the two halves of the title. Costuming in opposites of cool green and hot red further accentuate the nature of engagement.

Poignant and emotionally intense, Lorent’s work emerges out of darkness en point with twirling ribbons an integral and aspirational element in the work. Held aloft and spinning in circles, individuals struggle to keep their hopes alive whilst they grapple with partners who cling, restrain or seem completely unaware of them. The disconnection between human beings even in a state of physical engagement is acute and exquisitely realised. Muscular and at times painfully poised Lorent’s choreography also reveals great delicacy in a way that exposes emotion rather than simply reflecting it. A brave and insightful work this is a great addition to SDT’s repertoire.

‘In the Middle of the Moment’, with music by György Kurtág (Ligatura Y) and the superb Estonian composer Arvo P&aauml;rt, was aided admirably by Tim Skelly’s lighting design. Lit starkly from above and confining the two dancers in a square of light, the boundaries of the space heightened the choreography and the level of interaction between dancers Ruth Janssen and James MacGillivray. The surrounding darkness made every limb, joint and sinew visible within this caged emotional territory.

At first Janssen’s solo movements patrol the space hostile and bird-like, balanced on the edge of light. After MacGillivray’s character enters movement softens but it is never far away from the outcome of one partner facing away from the other, straining their gaze into the darkness standing at the very edge of their confinement, while the other squats contorted on the floor. Raw and reactionary this dynamic of movement is uncomfortable to watch, it is like an invasion into personal space, witnessing the mechanics of a real relationship stripped bare.

The final work, ‘DOG’, features a fascinating layered soundtrack and voiceover by choreographer Hofesh Shechter, sampling diverse sound including excerpts from “Fanfarra (cabua-le-le) from Brazileiro by Sergio Mendes, Verdi, Bach, Aleph, ATM and dance music by Ophir IIzetzki”. Beginning on all fours and ending on two legs, Shechter’s voiceover introduction suggests the idea of evolution based on a belief by the metaphorical “Dolphin” of their superior and exclusive ability to communicate.

Movements are articulated by sharp and violent sections delivered like body blows, and layers of soundscape such as tribal percussion, industrial noise and Bach-like harpsichord progressively become saturated and integrated into the dance stylistically as it progresses. Sound has been cleverly used to suggest cultural civilisation (although it resists any neat linear interpretation) and at the same time disintegration into industrial white noise.

The movement of animals is ever present throughout in the movement between behavioural structure and chaos. The interaction of the group and the habituated response to touch are compelling elements within this work which begins and ends with the individual, raising the question of where we, as individual audience members fit into this whole evolutionary vision (or nightmare). Shechter doesn’t offer any answers or neat resolutions in a work that suggests the powerful and instinctual communication of movement over language.

SDT continue to develop and perform highly original work that challenges both the dancers and the audience. The programme is repeated at Eden Court tonight (13 March), and SDT will be performing in Scotland, England and Ireland from March to May as part of their Defined 2008 spring tour.

© Georgina Coburn, 2008

Links

• Scottish Dance Theatre
• Eden Court Theatre