Contemporary
dance has been pushing boundaries and challenging audiences for almost
a century now, and it has spread from the United States to Canada, Europe
and the Asia Pacific. Imagination, innovation and flair abound even
in works from countries such as Slovenia where one may expect more traditional
approaches to have endured. This year's Singapore Arts Festival
features the Slovene National Theatre Maribor in two works by Romanian-born
choreographer Edward Clug, and his Radio and Juliet pays homage
not only to the poetics of Shakespeare but the British rock band Radiohead
as well - and, of course, the dancers.
These dancers look like they have been drilled in classical ballet
since they could walk. Their skill is extraordinary: the dancers bring
the essence of movement to the stage with great beauty and understanding.
Through their accurate interpretation of the complex movement that Clug
requires in his work, they articulate the choreography with a poignancy
that is unmistakably European. The dance has elements of darkness that
hide behind the arching of the torso which is often combined with needle-like
stabbing movements of the feet and legs. A signature move is the crooking
of a wrist while the elbows work overtime, often initiating dance phrases
and determining the direction the body moves.
Radio and Juliet juxtaposes a bittersweet quality with the
virtuosic athleticism of six male dancers. Clad in dark suits, they
constitute an urban clan and muscle their way through scenes that refer
to, rather than re-enact, familiar parts of the plot such as the marriage,
the clan fight, Romeo with his friends and the balcony duet. This famous
pas de deux is contrived with mathematical precision as the dancers
weave in and out of each other, beginning with small head movements
that develop to extended lifts and complex partnering. The show finishes
with these same small head movements in a spotlight, executed by Juliet
over Romeo's lifeless body.
What makes this work brilliant is Clug's decision to hone in
on the essence of Shakespeare's tale and map the universal elements
of seduction, love, violence and friendship. Starting with an evocative
film projection that zooms in on body parts, eyes and knees of the sleeping
Romeo, Juliet wakes up and realises he is gone. Then the dance unfolds
in reverse order as we look back on the life of a young man. The music
of Radiohead is an intrinsic part of this ultimately futile journey
of self-discovery. "You make pretty speeches / you feed me to the
lions / I'm living in cuckoo land"- such lyrics reinforce
the tale's underbelly about the struggles within relationships.
Lighting designer Andrej Hajdinjak reinforces this atmosphere with clever
use of blackouts and spotlights; the minimalist design and lighting
give the work its edge.
Radio and Juliet was an extraordinary evening of dance although
it came with a sense of detachment. The extremities of the body were
manipulated with pace and precision but the centre of the body -
and the heart - was rarely engaged. Raw emotion never came to the fore
and I was left contemplating the spaces in between.
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"What makes this work brilliant is Clug's decision to hone
in on the essence of Shakespeare's tale and map the universal
elements of seduction, love, violence and friendship."
Credits
Choreographer and director: Edward Clug
Dancers: Bojana Nenadovic Otrin, Christian Guerematchi G., Demetrius
King, Matjaž Marin, Tiberiu Marta, Gaj Žmavc and Edward Clug.
Music: Radiohead
Lighting designer: Andrej Hajdinjak
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