4Tell

The latest show by youMove, under the direction of Kay Armstrong, featured some truly exciting and terrifically performed work presented under the umbrella of ‘Form’ – formerly known as Western Sydney Dance Action, the presenter of much marvellous dance at Parramatta Riverside Theatres since 2000.

The opening work, Boundaries, choreographed by Ian Colless, had an obvious Bangarra-like influence, and combined both traditional Aboriginal dance and modern/contemporary styles, performed by six dancers wearing black shorts with artistically rent tank tops. This short but glorious work included traditional women’s line movements as well as representations of kangaroos and other animals, blended with exciting sculptural choreography and lots of floor work.

By Looking, choreographed by Kevin Privett, began with a pyramid of light, the dancers entering on the apex. A lot of the choreography was circular and rippling .Were the dancers in their beautiful blue outfits mermaids? Darting, bubbling fish? This work had some most unusual lifts and tableaux and I would like to see it further developed and expanded.

3rd Time Over, choreographed and performed by Angela French, was an intense, very dramatic and disturbing solo. Based on the idea of subconscious recollection and dismissal of thought, it saw French descend into madness, Ophelia-like, with repeated phrases of frenzied movement. Much of the solo concentrated on French’s wonderful arm movements – rippling, folding, stretching, entwining, searching for something, and frantic beating of the chest.

Last Pace to Go, specially developed as a virtual residency with David Williams in Ingolstadt, was a wonderfully intimate and powerful pas de deux for Healey and Marcs. In some sections they appeared to be drastically quarrelling, in others luminously linked. Some of the lifts and partnering were exceptional, and the opening section, including mime, emphasised the distance between the two.

Multiplicity, choreographed by Anton, saw the dancers in pink, green and beige tops, and lit by very eerie, effective lighting. Most of the work was very strong ensemble work, as if the dancers were cogs in a machine or robots (shades of Metropolis and German Expressionism?) Rolling floorwork was contrasted with the ensemble repeating phrases of movement – e.g. some particular head movements and very effective blurry, almost Bollywood-like arm gestures evoking the movements of machines.

All of the above were interspersed with the dancers performing various movements and monologues about the rehearsal process and the making of 4Tell from their blogs. A highlight was Lauren McPhail’s monologue about the dancer’s use of space, which included a Hoberman minisphere and audience interaction. Some of the monologues were revealing and funny, and expanded the dancer’s use of voice – one, a musical theatre spoof which saw the performer hanging upside down with a huge umbrella, was very physically demanding. Another featured a fascinating look at a dancer’s muscle memory.

In all, 4Tell was a most exciting evening – an excellent chance to see some great new short works and some marvellous dance talent.

Rating: Four stars

Parramatta Riverside Theatre
October 27 – 29