Ella-Rose Trew in Fishwick’s Proximal to A Dance. Image credits: Emma Fishwick
Uncle Joe’s Mess Hall in King Street, Perth is not known for regular performances, but more for its quirky take on coffee, vegan food offerings and hipster haircuts emerging from the barbershop within its premises. Looking at these narrow premises in the designer label part of town, the venue seems far from ideal for presenting dance, but the challenge has been accepted by these performers and the resulting site-specific presentations turn the structural obstacles into strengths that add to the memorable nature of the event.
Six presentations in an hour give scope for plenty samplings of styles and pieces in development, a taster plate of talent.
Choreographer Isabella Stone realises the potential of horizontal levels in an open courtyard for the opening piece, another lying position. Russell Thorpe demonstrates steely nerve by lying still as Harrison Alexander Elliott flings himself around the limited space, touching down on bench, floor and bouncing off walls. The pair work with deadpan synchronicity to utilise all the space, with Elliott particularly impressive with some stop motion turns that look more like filmed animation than live dance performance.
Score #100 is choreographed by Nicole Ward, incorporating pedestrian, everyday movements to generate an exciting experience. Silent Disco headsets allow the peripatetic audience to choose between three channels of music, with ambient café sounds offered as an alternative. Switching between the options,it is remarkable how Emma Fishwick and Ward work with the musical developments as well as with the basic beats, rapidly cycling through their set movements.
Ella-Rose Trew is confined to a small circle in front of the cash register to perform Fishwick’s Proximal to A Dance. The small space is exploited, allowing each inhalation and exhalation of breath to count towards the intense expression of movement. Working the entire space available to her, Trew’s body creates landscapes in the air, interacting with and changing the perception of her environment as she follows Kynan Tan’s soundscape in developing something new and beautiful, where the customers wait in line.
Penny Dolling, Megan Exton and Louise Henshall bring a burst of exuberance to the night, returning to the now-covered courtyard to present an Urban Snap Shot. From an incrementally turning tableau rich in stereotypes, urban youth staring coolly as they flash their props of hipster iconography, this piece offers the most accessible musical accompaniment, with dance moves working with lyrics and text voiceovers to create the most joyous of the six offerings. Inspiration arises from the concept of pursuing your loves to find your life vocation, presenting three talented dancers who appear delighted and passionate with their engagement with original, contemporary art. Slow, controlled movement is followed by pacier developments, moving beyond the courtyard into the restaurant for a sense of progress through the day of these three modern youths.
Returning to the inner space of the cash register area, Louise Honeybul and Thorpe use the coffee machine as a backdrop to their own interpretation of the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice in O&E. A neatly structured short work, with a clear opening section echoed strongly in the closing moments, the sensual interaction between Honeybul and Thorpe combines with the musical selection to create a sense of longing, love and tragic loss. The pair casually embrace as they move together and apart, alluding to an intimacy greater than anything requiring deep gazes into each others’ eyes, the two moving as one with constant fluidity.
Closing with Don’t Pop, the most overtly energetic piece of the night, choreographer Kathleen Szalay has her performers use the long access ramp to dash forwards and backwards in an inevitably linear work. The concept is based around inflating balloons, with the four dancers engaging in rapid movements while also creating some of the accompanying sound effects, in a strenuous display. Using bodies to also form their own balloon being inflated against the wall appears simple but the success of the conceit depends on the concerted skills and coordination of the group. The closing moments, with the performance literally taking to the street, is sweetly melancholy, and provides a lovely end to an evening of diverse dance entertainment.
Rating: 4 our of 5 stars
IN SHORT: In Situ
Presented by Unkempt Dance in association with STRUT Dance
another lying position
Choreographer: Isabella Stone
Performers: Russell Thorpe and Harrison Alexander Elliott
Music: “Air Attack Over Kabul Airfield” by James Whitehead
Score #100
Choreographer: Nicole Ward
Performers: Emma Fishwick and Nicole Ward
Music: Loscil, Robert Palmer, Stafford Brothers, Lil Wayne & Christina Milian
Proximal to A Dance
Choreographer: Emma Fishwick
Performer: Ella-Rose Trew
Sound: Kynan Tan
Urban Snap Shot
Choreographed and Performed by: Penny Dolling, Megan Exton and Louise Henshall
Music: Parov Stelar, 11 Acorn Lane, Alan Watts (Text), DJ Shadow, DJ Blue-sky (Music mixed by John Knowles)
O&E
Choreography: Louise Honeybul in collaboration with Russell Thorpe
Performed by Louise Honeybul and Russell Thorpe
Music: Seekae, editing by Paul Reid
Don’t Pop
Choreographer: Kathleen Szalay and dancers
Performers: Emily Bowman, Harrison Elliott, Emma Fishwick and Nicole Ward
Music: Kathleen Szalay and The Books
Uncle Joe’s Mess Hall, King Street, Perth
29 October – 2 November 2014
