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A double bill that exhilarates; staging Stradinsky’s The Rite of Spring alongside common ground[s] roots audiences in the nature of humanity and transgresses the boundaries of traditional dance.Summary
Rating
Excellent
In a double bill of extraordinary dance, The Rite of Spring/ common ground[s] brings an emotionally charged performance to the Sadler’s Wells stage.
The production opens with common ground[s] performed and choreographed by Germaine Acogyn, the ‘Mother of Contemporary African Dance’, and Malou Airaudo, who has worked extensively with Pina Bausch throughout her career. Plunged into darkness for what feels like an extended period of time, the lights eventually raise to reveal the two dancers staging a repetition of emotional embraces, arm oscillations and shoulder blade flutters. Though small, simple movements, their technical ability is evident.
Jumping between moments of emotional closeness to separation as they individually wander the stage, themes of history, emotional experience and the ‘common grounds’ of dance emerge. These dancers prove age is certainly just a number, celebrating their careers as dancers to show that dance has the power to surpass cultures and generations. The meaning of this dance though is confusing and each person I spoke to during the interval offered differing interpretations of its symbolism. It seems as though this choreography demands an emotional response from its audience rather than seeking to be examined for its meaning.
After an intermission, the stage is remarkably reassembled and covered in dirt, and 34 dancers from 13 countries across Africa grace it for The Rite of Spring. The dance follows the ritual of a ‘chosen one’, sacrificed as the season changes from winter to spring.
Thrust straight into the action, Strandisky’s music pairs impeccably with the horrifyingly beautiful choreography of Bausch. Repeated jaunty movements materialise in arched backs, pulsing bodies, panicked pacing, stomping feet and contorted limbs. Though this repetition is not comforting but rather it is unsettling. Tenderness, despair and lust mix together to create a primal imitation of the human condition.
What becomes most evident is the juxtaposition between the sexes, with male violence scored against feminine resistance and comradery. The chosen one is selected and whilst at first resists, ultimately she succumbs and passively accepts her fate, dancing to her death. Despite a wardrobe malfunction resulting in her dress becoming undone, this didn’t impede the performance (and I didn’t even notice this was not supposed to happen until the end), underscoring the resilience and dedication of the dancers, who you can tell thoroughly enjoy performing the piece.
The majority of the audience gave a standing ovation, and deservedly so. It is not often a piece of dance leaves you exhilarated and pumped with adrenaline from merely watching from the theatre seat.
Whilst common ground[s] is slow and delicate, The Rites of Spring is filled with rage and tragedy. They both demand emotion, providing a masterclass in experimental dance. The concept of exchange links them in this collaboration that transgresses cultures to present dance as ever-evolving and communal expression of humanity.
Choreography by: Pina Bausch, Germaine Acogyn, Malou Airaudo
Music by: Igor Stravinsky
Set and Costumes by: Rolf Borzik, Petra Leidner
Artistic Directors: Josephine Ann Endicott, Jorge Puerta Armenta, Clémentine Deluy
Rehearsal Directors: Çağdaş Ermiş, Ditta Miranda Jasjfi, Barbara Kaufmann, Julie Shanahan, Kenji Takagi
Composed by: Fabrice Bouillon LaForest
Lighting Design by: Zeynep Kepekli
Dramaturgy by: Sophiatou Kossoko
The Rite of Spring/ common ground[s] plays at Sadler’s Wells Theatre until the 10th November.
Further information and tickets are available here.
A digital online recording of The Rite of Spring is available here.
