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Season of New Choreography 2008
78# QE Hall workshop
By Andrew Close on Mon, 11 February 2008 at 12:09:21 PM
Agree with comments - 'See Me' was very striking, powerful and moving - a repetoire piece.
As was 'Meltdown' - this was a clever take/representation on modern life, which some may think it dumbing down, but the clear message came through - you laughed and then took stock of your thoughts as the piece progressed to its finale. This would be an education for all disaffected youth.
God I sound old.... lol
77# QE Hall choreographic workshop
By Avril Hurst on Thu, 7 February 2008 at 02:47:37 AM
Phantasy
Loved this, very well crafted and danced and exceptionally musical choreography. This is the one I would like to see in the rep.
Sleeveless Scherzo
Liked the idea but I felt it was a bit lost on the big stage, would have liked to see it in the more intimate environment of The Place
See Me
Agree with Ghislain Pascal about the intro being "axable".
Meltdown
Call me strange if you like but I didn't find it tasteless -funny in parts, poignant and ultimately sad and I thought the singer was fab! The 14 mins flew by which sadly for me could not be said for all of the pieces. An interesting evening in all.
76# New Season
By Peter Mitchell on Sun, 3 February 2008 at 02:27:02 PM
"See Me" was a stunning piece of dance theatre. It gripped me from the opening sequence and kept me on the edge of my seat right to the very end - the piece worked as a complete whole with a real creative integrity running thoughout - and it matched the eloquent music by Arvo Part. I agree with the comments above - this piece MUST enter the Rambert repertoire.
75# New Seanson comments
By Julie Bowman on Sun, 3 February 2008 at 06:32:07 AM
An interesting night of very different pieces of choreography.
As for the dances in the first half, in most cases they were ok but my friends and I felt that the movement was very typical of that seen in a contemporary dance class and not very original which soon became boring to watch. Also, the choreographic devices used were often blantanly obvious. There was too much repetition of motif development, untidy unison and unclear canon. Perhaps the dancers were under-rehearsed?
However, the dances of the second half were the two exceptions to these comments.
"See me" by Martin Joyce and Angela Towler was an amazing piece. It left the audience buzzing and wanting more. I thought the opening of the dance was particularly strong, the use of lighting here immediately grabbed the audience's attention. The music, lighting and costume design worked well together and gave greater impact to the movement. This piece MUST be put into the repertoire.
"Meltdown", on the other hand, was a disaster. Why it was used to close the show is beyond me. When the dance started with four dancers dressed in black, I first thought the work was going to be an abstract piece inspired by William Blake's quote that was printed in the programme. However, when the "Britney" character entered in a bright pink hoody, I soon realised that the piece was not as abstract as I had hoped. The variety of music used was too much within one work. Just when you thought the work could not get any worse, "Britney" loses her hair and doctors and nurses enter! Was the work meant to be humorous? Needless to say, this last piece of dance theatre certainly shocked and left the audience talking but for all the wrong reasons. I think the choreographer should go back to Blake's quote (which I pressume was the stimulus for the work) and re-think how it could be used to create a dance. There could potentially be a very strong work if this powerful quote is used in the correct way.
Well done to all the choreographers who were choreographing work for the first time and having it performed to the public. I know that I could certainly not be as brave as that.
74# New season review
By Ghislain Pascal on Sat, 2 February 2008 at 03:38:06 AM
Mixed evening: some good some bad. Always enjoy watching the raw talent but here goes the review:
Phantasy: good start: fast paced, skilled dancing, supported by live musicians playing Vaughan Williams. Works well. Particularly good: Alexander Whitley.
Sleeveless Scherzo: Was more interested in watching the violinist Charlie Siem than the dancer Patricia. If you are going to do a solo make it engaging!
Solo?: Uninspiring. So unmemorable I cannot remember it!
See Me: The best of the night. Brilliant piece choreographed by Martin Joyce and Angela Towler. Rambert at its best. Put this on the repertoire. The intro could be axed (bad music + bad lighting), but then the main piece was sensational: fast paced, excellent dancing, and brilliant score. Stand out dancers: Alexander Whitley and Angela Towler. Lets see more of Angela?!
Meltdown: a disaster! I thought I had gatecrashed an amateur performance of Rent / Rocky Horror Show! What were you thinking?