NZ’s Java Dance Theatre Co. brings us a compelling and delightfully entertaining show for all ages, titled The Tantrum.

This one-hour show of complete wonder held the attention of every child and adult in the audience. A playful astro turf set, designed by Asha Barr, hides trap doors that magically disappear or introduce cast members on their adventurous journey, and a window acts as a great portal into “there and back again”!

Choreographer Sacha Copland brings to life an adventure playground that deals with big emotions, and she certainly captures a sense of wilderness, space and volatility that exists in human nature. The dancers’ characters twist and turn with each other in acrobatic adagios, at times competitive and aggressive, then with joyous trickery, humour and gentleness. The lighting design by Janis Cheng is just right, nestling the action in all the right spaces.

Initially, the piece was in research and development during the pandemic, with original cast and fellow creators Ella Williams and Bjorn Asland spending time with a hundred 5-year-olds from Cashmere Ave School as part of the (now defunct) Creatives in Schools scheme. It seems the research has created a truly inspirational piece of dance theatre relatable to kids and parents alike, delighting and grounding us in our common worlds of feelings and conflicted states.

The cast, Lachlan Broughton, Stela Dara (pictured above with another Java member, Natalie Hona and Sacha Copland second on the right, plus audience member and musician Charley Davenport) and composer Tristan Carter (far left) all perform with vitality, vulnerability and respect, connecting with the audience without uttering a word except for rhythmical sound effects which we all happily engage with.

I come away feeling so thankful for this show, a reminder to keep hoping, show more kindness, compassion, forgiveness and acceptance of ourselves and each other.

This would make a great pilot for a kids’ TV Show. And to quote a little 7-year-old boy who giggled throughout, “…it was just FUNNY!”

www.javadance.nz is coming to a town near you, South Island! Their tour rocks into….

Central Otago 14th-18th July

Canterbury 21-25th July

Nelson, Marlborough 28th July – 1st August

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With The Tantrum Java Dance Theatre has created a magic work for children about navigating emotional terrain and how to cope with big overwhelming feelings. It is charming. The little people in the audience were enthralled from start to finish. There is a lovely balance between action and audience participation. Director/Choreographer Sacha Copland and her collaborators have an authentic and sophisticated understanding of how to connect with a younger audience. Their crisp modus operandi incorporates humour, rhythm, music, sounds and simple movements into a compelling 45 minute work. 

As is the nature of this company the boundaries between performers often blur so that composer and musician Tristan Carter also dances and the movement artists Bjorn Aslund and Ella Williams can rustle up tunes on the key boards. Carter breaks out a mean spoons solo and pounds out a compelling drum solo on a wooden bowl. They all have cheerful generous personas and the fluidity between idioms is refreshing. Carter has great comic timing and the children delight in him. Aslund and Williams are clean and precise movers. Asha Barr creates playful and vibrant costumes, and has done a sterling job on the production design with a playful set that is a narrow domestic strip where everything is covered in fake grass. There is a portal through a mirror which the performers eventually go through into a gobo speckled realm where all the known restraints disappear and large overwhelming feelings begin to emerge.

This brilliant use of space is a clever way to evoke the terrain of the psyche.

Inevitably things get a bit out of kilter and chaos ensues. Aslund and Wiliams could go much further with their emotional maelstrom.

The work is beautifully rounded off with a nice cup of tea and a chance to settle down.

By commissioning these Bite Sized Treats Capital E continues the valuable curation of high quality performance for children.

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