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| Canberra Dance Theatre's -THE GOLDS |
Reviewed by
Bill Stephens
Sue Healey
is already recognised as one of Australia’s most creative and successful dance
film-makers. Her feature length documentary film “Virtuosi” has been screened
around the world, and won two National Awards – Most Outstanding Achievement
for Dance on Film at the 2013 Australian Dance Awards, and the Silver ACS Award
for Cinematography.
Her latest
film “The Golds” was premiered in Canberra on Friday, as part of the final
screening in the Silver Screening series in the National Film and Sound Archives
Arc Cinema. Regretfully, this initiative has now languished - a victim of funding cuts at the archive.
“The Golds”
is a visually arresting, occasionally poignant, insight into the activities
of a Canberra dance troupe of over 55’s founded by Canberra choreographer, Liz
Lea at Canberra Dance Theatre. Their name stands for “Growing Old
Disgracefully”, and some members claim that they were drawn to the troupe by
this possibility. However, there is little evidence of disgraceful conduct in
this film, and indeed, surprisingly little that could be described as dance, in
the accepted form. But there is a plethora of beautifully photographed slow-motion
sequences of members of the troupe moving artfully and unselfconsciously through
cascading gold flutter tape, among floating gold veils and among flickering
candles, to evocative background music composed by Ben Walsh, and featuring viola player Cleis Pearce.
The movement
sequences are punctuated by comments from various members, spoken directly to
the camera. Their individual personalities shine through as they annunciate their
reasons for being involved in The Golds. Most comments have to do with ageing...”I
can’t do the splits”, confides one, “but is it necessary? I don’t think so”. However
one forthright lady declares unexpectedly “There’s nothing positive about ageing.
I don’t see any positives at all” which serves
to underline another particularly
poignant moment when another participant, considerably older than 55, struggles
to retain the exact word that is eluding her attempt to express her thoughts.
There are
many other memorable sequences including one in which a retired Brigidine nun
dances with her pet dog and another involving a playful quartet interacting with
gold picture frames.
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| Members of THE GOLDS at Reconciliaton Place |
In fact, Sue
Healey’s finely tuned choreographer’s eye is perfectly reflected in every image
of Judd Overton’s exquisite cinematography to produce a film which is in effect its
own form of dance. The effect is
mesmerising and even though it is relatively short, just 23 minutes, the film
moves at a gentle pace between a series of visually stunning sequences filmed
at various locations around Canberra, including The National Portrait Gallery,
Reconciliation Place and the National Arboretum.
This exquisite
little film may well be Sue Healey’s Valentine to positive ageing, capturing the
particular beauty of the group of people who make up The Golds, but it is also
a Valentine to Canberra, which looks stunning throughout. Canberra Tourism could
do much worse than embrace this film to promote this very special view of our
city nationally and internationally.
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| Members of THE GOLDS at the National Arboretum |
