Reykjavík Grapevine - 13.11.2015, Blaðsíða 50

Reykjavík Grapevine - 13.11.2015, Blaðsíða 50
The Reykjavík Grapevine Issue 16 — 201518 The show is the second part of a piece called ‘Stjörnubrim og himinninn kristal- last’. When asked to describe “stjör- nubrim,” Sigga Soffía explained that it comes from a poem by revered poet Davíð Stefánsson (1895-1964). The term is a composite of the words for star and the perilous white froth of a wave that sinks ships out at sea. The first part, the “stjör- nubrim,” was the Vodafone fireworks dis- play at Culture Night this past August, in collaboration with the search and rescue team HSSR. For this second part, she col- laborated with Iceland Dance Company (ID), aiming to produce a similar effect through dance. Setting the stage In the style of classic musicals, the open- ing scene was an overture of sorts. The curtains opened to an empty set with sus- pended cloud of bubbles and fog cascad- ing off the lip of the stage, all to soft music, creating a dream-like ambience. Without dancers, the scene remained visually in- teresting via lights shining into the bub- bly cloud, giving the impression of being in heaven. The opening was beautiful, but the heavy reliance on props and effects continued throughout the show, often dis- tracting from the dancers. Sigga Soffía explained how set design- er Helgi Már Kristinsson created the bub- bly cloud sculpture as a backdrop for light- ing, much like Sigga uses smoke to build landscapes to light up in her fireworks displays. At one point during the perfor- mance the sculpture was released and the bubbles spilled down onto the stage. “And just like the smoke in the wind, we cannot control where the sculpture lands on the stage. So we also have this element of ex- citement, will the dancers be affected, will the sculpture be in front of them, or work with them,” she said. First-class choreography The phrases of movement were excellent, smoothly alternating between breathy and athletic. You could really see the dancers reaching beyond their personal space with every step. “In my mind there is a close connection between fireworks and the classical dancer,” Sigga said, ex- plaining her choice of using classical bal- let vocabulary. From where I was sitting, any real ballet technique was well hidden beneath contemporary styles and influ- ences. However, the precision and flowing quality of classical dance were definitely present. Undoubtedly, the two main high- lights of the performance were the solos by Hjördís Lilja Örnólfsdóttir and Halla Þórðardóttir. Each dancer was assigned one kind of firework as inspiration. Throughout the performance, Hjördís was dressed in a fluffy, white, layered costume that made her look more like a cake-topper than an explosion. Then, just before her solo, concealed LED lights lit up the costume and transformed her into an elegant and graceful wisp. She did not execute any spectacular jumps or poses, but rather spun around the stage in gentle, concentric circles. The effect was truly beautiful. Halla’s solo, by contrast, had a much different dynamic. Sigga described Hal- la’s “character” to me as “Falling Leaves, which is a like a slow cloud of glitter.” In a costume of a unitard covered in small mirror-like flags, her powerful solo was performed weaving in and out of beams of lights like a disco ball. But, if you strip away the costume and the set you would still have Halla seamlessly moving through luxurious extensions and mag- nificent jumps. Don’t tell me, show me Most new contemporary works I have seen have had some form of dialogue, with the dancers either uttering obscure poetic phrases to complement the music, or act- ing out a scripted scene between dance pieces. ‘Kafli 2’ took this one step further with a narrator. For me, this was a poor choice. It explained too much and did not leave enough to the imagination. Rather than letting the audience draw connec- tions between the similarities of dancers and fireworks, the narration bluntly stated what should have been left to the choreog- raphy to illustrate. Dance is by nature more obscure than other art forms. If a painter is moved by a sunset he can draw a picture, an actor can talk about it, but the challenge of chore- ography is to describe the sunset through movement. “It’s so beautiful, but tragic to be a fire- work. They are shot up into the sky, spring out and bloom before decaying swiftly into nothingness. They give themselves to their audience. The same can be said of a dancer that dedicates their life to tuning their body into a perfect instrument. They train, they flourish, but always tire before their time,” Sigga Soffía explains when asked about the motivation behind the piece. What she explained in these five sen- tences, the narration drew out over entire sections of the piece. The description of a dancer’s fleeting career carried out so long that it came across as jaded or apathetic: “I do not enjoy it anymore. I crave the at- tention and pain. I crave your eyes on me.” The narrator then detailing the chemical make-up of the fireworks was akin to a US senator reciting the phone book during a filibuster. This is not to say that narration would not be a welcome addition to many works where the choreographer fails to get the point across. I imagine announcing during the opening act of ‘La Sylphide’ that “It’s all about a magical scarf and a prince who leaves his fiancée for a ghost,” would clear up a few valid confusions later on and all in all make it a more enjoyable show. But, Sigga Soffía did such a great job with the choreography that the narration was un- necessary. The movement had grand dis- plays followed by weariness showing the fireworks’—and dancers’—awe-inspiring, yet limited, lifespan. Ultimately, I give it three out of five stars. The narration was unnecessary and the set was too heavily relied on. This is not to say the costumes or props were in anyway poor quality—any performance that credits a “pyrotechnician” is bound to be impressive—but that it became more of a distraction than an aid. The strength of the piece was definitely the choreography, and it should have been allowed to stand on its own. rauða húsið r e s t a u r a n tEyrarbakka “Very good food, excellent service and a very friendly restaurant.” “Amazing seafood in this little town...” “Not to be missed. Food fabulous and staff wonderful ... This spot is worth the trip to the small village alone.” raudahusid.is Búðarstígur 4, 820 Eyrarbakki • tel. 483-3330 open for lunch & dinner 7 days a week 1 1 Selfoss Hveragerði Eyrarbakki to Blue Lagoon ca. 50 min. to Reykjavík ca. 45 min. to Þingvellir, Gullfoss, Geysir ca. 45-60 min. 39 “One of the best restaurants in Iceland. Fresh lobster, amazing cod fi sh!!” Maybe A Little Too Much Of A Good Thing Walking into a packed Borgarleikhús to see the premiere of Sigga Soffía’s new work ‘Kafli 2: og himininn kristallast’ (“Chapter 2: And The Sky Crystallizes”), I was surrounded by the excited whispers of little girls, middle-aged couples, and cool twentysomethings. Interview- ing the choreographer, Sigga Soffía, before the show, I had some idea of what to expect, but I was eager to see how the dancers would transform the excitement and energy of fireworks into movement. Photo Jónatan GrétarssonWords Anna Manning BorgarleikhúsIceland Dance Company 2,900 ISK Kafli 2: Og himininn kristallast
Blaðsíða 1
Blaðsíða 2
Blaðsíða 3
Blaðsíða 4
Blaðsíða 5
Blaðsíða 6
Blaðsíða 7
Blaðsíða 8
Blaðsíða 9
Blaðsíða 10
Blaðsíða 11
Blaðsíða 12
Blaðsíða 13
Blaðsíða 14
Blaðsíða 15
Blaðsíða 16
Blaðsíða 17
Blaðsíða 18
Blaðsíða 19
Blaðsíða 20
Blaðsíða 21
Blaðsíða 22
Blaðsíða 23
Blaðsíða 24
Blaðsíða 25
Blaðsíða 26
Blaðsíða 27
Blaðsíða 28
Blaðsíða 29
Blaðsíða 30
Blaðsíða 31
Blaðsíða 32
Blaðsíða 33
Blaðsíða 34
Blaðsíða 35
Blaðsíða 36
Blaðsíða 37
Blaðsíða 38
Blaðsíða 39
Blaðsíða 40
Blaðsíða 41
Blaðsíða 42
Blaðsíða 43
Blaðsíða 44
Blaðsíða 45
Blaðsíða 46
Blaðsíða 47
Blaðsíða 48
Blaðsíða 49
Blaðsíða 50
Blaðsíða 51
Blaðsíða 52
Blaðsíða 53
Blaðsíða 54
Blaðsíða 55
Blaðsíða 56

x

Reykjavík Grapevine

Beinir tenglar

Ef þú vilt tengja á þennan titil, vinsamlegast notaðu þessa tengla:

Tengja á þennan titil: Reykjavík Grapevine
https://timarit.is/publication/943

Tengja á þetta tölublað:

Tengja á þessa síðu:

Tengja á þessa grein:

Vinsamlegast ekki tengja beint á myndir eða PDF skjöl á Tímarit.is þar sem slíkar slóðir geta breyst án fyrirvara. Notið slóðirnar hér fyrir ofan til að tengja á vefinn.