Belong
QL2 Dance
Artistic Director:
Ruth Osborne
Choreographers: Jodie
Farrugia, Olivia Fyfe, Luke Fryer
Theatre 3 to 20
October
Reviewed by Len Power
19 October 2018
QL2 Dance’s junior project, ‘Belong’, was a thoroughly
beguiling and stimulating program of dance.
Focusing on young and less experienced dancers from age 8, it is an
entry point to, and preparation for, the unique dance programs of Quantum Leap’s
youth dance ensemble.
‘Belong’ explores issues important to all of us. We all need to feel that we belong but
sometimes we encounter situations in our lives where we feel the opposite. How people react to our individual beliefs
and ideas can make a difference to a feeling of safety and belonging.
Choreographed by artistic director, Ruth Osborne, and Jodie
Farrugia, Olivia Fyfe and Luke Fryer, the dancers performed a series of seven highly
energetic, imaginative numbers that played seamlessly one after another. This wasn’t simple choreography. It made serious demands on these dancers and
they all rose to the challenge, making it look effortless and fun. You could see how much they were enjoying
themselves and that feeling was infectious for the large audience.
The incorporation of physical objects provided an additional
dimension to some of the dance sections.
One item used mobile phones in a way that was especially apt in this day
and age. The ‘Six Degrees of Separation’
section was particularly clever with the use of stretch tapes to create
intricate patterns with the dancers weaving through the designs they made. You could have easily forgiven these performers
any mistakes but the show was so polished, no mistakes were evident.
In a quick, rough count at the curtain call at the end of
the show, there seemed to be about 55 young dancers on the stage together. With the high energy levels, consistently
fine dancing and the sheer joy of performing for us, it was hard to believe
that the company had already performed the show twice that day.
Len Power’s reviews
are also broadcast in his ‘On Stage’ performing arts radio program on Mondays
and Wednesdays from 3.30pm on Artsound FM 92.7.