In Difference, performed at the Riverside Theatre as
part of this years Mardi Gras celebrations was a chaotic whirlwind of balance
and harmony that explored the physical power of human connection, regardless of
gender. Opening with two men staring
intently at each other in sheer silence for ten minutes until a beat starts to
breathe life and movement onto the stage in a fluid and inspiring symbiosis
that looked at times like the dancers were weightless. Eventually, layers of
music were added creating an unsettling musically discourse climate that worked
beautifully with moments of emotive tension in the physical narrative.
This
performance took spectators on a stirring journey using intense rhythmic
vignettes that pieced the story of two couples in fully charged motion across
the stage. Displaying a culmination of performance art, physical theatre, ballet
and poetry in movement.
In Difference was an overtly political performance,
yet understated in its simplicity in the Lennox's black box theatre. The highly
skilled and energetic dancers incorporated immense wheeled scenery into
the piece as a visual device.
And yet, amongst the frenetic energy there were moments
of hypnotizing stillness; the actors using nothing but breath created images, re-living
climaxes that had the whole audience collectively holding theirs and were
eventually breathing as one giant entity engaged, tethered and responsive to the
palpable feast set before us.
This visual melange was brought to an engaging
conclusion using an audio pastiche of weighted political opinions opposing
gay marriage.
However
strongly this message needed to be communicated,
I somehow felt visually
disenchanted from the beauty that had unfolded before us, as this was such a
juxtaposition to the continuity of movement. My inkling was, the sound bites could
have been mixed in such a way that the audios became part of the dance
themselves.
In difference was playing until the 4th
March and is the creative brainchild of Craig Bary and produced by Katy Green
in association with Form dance projects. And truly was a visual feast.