DELIVERS ON PROMISE WITH REMARKABLE VIGOUR

Footnote continue to challenge and engage New Zealand audiences with their latest show, truly embodying their call to inspire ‘dance lovers and movers and shakers’.

 

We are treated to three substantial pieces that show off the dancers’ technical virtuosity and demonstrate the artistic flair of the choreographers who are creating and exploring new zones in dance.  

 

The first, Purlieu by Malia Johnston is set to stunning new music by Eden Mulholland that on its own intrigues and captivates the ears.

 

Dancers creep across the stage clutching their precious boxes and then the spaces these boxes mark are carefully explored during the dance. Their bodies whirl, balance, arc and undulate in a beautifully constructed choreography. A breath-taking section for this reviewer was the down-lit undressing of three women in long skirts as they explored the body’s relationship to confined spaces using sometimes jerky, tiny, frenetic movements.

 

I am reminded of the old radio children’s programme song: “Little Boxes” (made of ticky tacky…)! The human desire to escape and head for more freedom is communicated in the last magical image of captive birds fluttering and flapping their wings. How we interact with our big city (mostly box – like) environments will be of great interest in Shanghai at the World Expo where this visually and aurally satisfying treat will be performed. 

 

Stealth, set to music by Jody Lloyd, is another surprise treat. It is a solo work choreographed by Ross McCormack and winsomely danced by the athletic Jeremy Poi.

 

The idea of urban street art is introduced as he enters interacting with a large canvas and then, using a fusion of hip hop and contemporary dance moves inspired by the shape of letters and the graffiti of Aotearoa hip hop legend DLT, he executes a blast of rapid and dazzling moves. The frenzied repeated patterns are conveyed with dynamic energy and danced with alacrity. The body becomes a place for art as in the stunning final sequence the blue - fingered hands mark out a tattoo.

 

MTYLAND [not included in the Nelson, Dunedin or Wellington seasons] comes fresh from the NZ International Arts Festival, and is Claire O’Neil’s thoughtful exploration of human emptiness. In a series of almost random pieces, ideas are presented and delved into. The mood weaves from sorrowful and lonely to playful and mischievous, punctuated by the odd scream and guffaw. This piece pushes the parameters of contemporary dance and leaves the audience much to ponder over.

 

Footnote’s selection of works demonstrates the remarkable vigour in our contemporary dance world and delivers what it promises to do: “to engage, excite, challenge, question and inspire”.
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