Directed and
choreographed by Liz Lea for Liz Lea Dance Company and Belco Arts. Belconnen Arts Centre 29th April until
May 1.
Premiere on 29th April Reviewed by Bill Stephens
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| "The Point" - Nicholas Jachno |
Since settling in Canberra in 2000, Liz Lea has quickly established herself as an outstanding contributor to dance in Canberra. Much admired as a dancer, choreographer and mover and shaker, her innovative dance works have won awards and attracted International attention for their originality and innovation.
“The Point”
which premiered at the Belconnen Arts Centre last night is another in a long
line of memorable creations by Lea.
Unfazed when
her original concept for “The Point” as a collaboration with Singapore’s Maya
Dance Theatre was stymied by Covid-19 travel restrictions, Lea simply to turned
her gaze inwards to the local Indian Dance community to bring her concept to
fruition, and in doing so has uncovered a treasury of classical Indian dance
which she has incorporated in her compelling new dance work.
Conceived as
a celebration of the 150th Anniversary of Marion Mahony Griffin and
her contribution to the design of Canberra, and the Indian connections of the
Griffins, Lea has taken the interconnection of design, movement and music and
the notion of “Bindu”, the point of creation in Hindu mythology, as the focus
for her work.
However you
need know none of this to appreciate this brilliant creation.
Combining
the skills of six classical Indian dancers expert in Bharata Natyam, Kathak and
Kuchipudi dance styles, with those of six individually chosen contemporary
dancers, Lea has created an extraordinarily cohesive dance work, beautiful to
look at, and compelling and exciting in its execution.
Incorporating spectacular lighting by Karen Norris, a mesmerising sound scape, and eventually, haunting background projections by James Josephides inspired by Marion Mahony Griffins drawings, the work commences with a single dancer, Jareen Wee, alone in a spotlight centre stage. To a droning sound, she executes a series of athletic, complex variations until joined by two Indian Kuchipudi dancers, Vanaja Dasika and Suhasini Sumithra.
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| David Huggins - Jareen Wee - Eliza Sanders - Billy Keohavong - Nicholas Jachno |
Other
dancers take the stage, all costumed individually in black. Elegant
body-revealing styles for the contemporary dancers and variations of
traditional Indian styles for the Indian dancers. Dramatic shards of light from
above and across illuminate the dancers as they perform complex choreography,
athletic and exciting, some obviously based on Indian styles but given a
contemporary twist, executed with precision and purpose by the entire company.
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| Ira Patkar - Kathak dancer |
The entrance of Ira Patkar, also in black but with bright red trimming on her costume and with her hands and feet dyed red, introduces the first colour into the costumes. Patkar performed a whirling Kathak dance while the others continued their variations.
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| Bharata Natyam dancers |
Bharata
Natyam dancers, Reshika Sivakumaran, Soumya Sudarshan, Shweta Venkataraman and
Dhivya Vignesa, now costumed in brilliant green and gold costumes, dazzled with
a highly complex routine involving intricate eye and finger movements. Later
Vanaja Dasika and Suhasini Sumithra, costumed gorgeously in blue and gold, performed
in graceful Kuchipudi style.
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| Vanaja Dasika - Suhasini Sumithra - Kuchipudi dancers |
Seamlessly
interwoven throughout are a continuous stream of solos, duos and ensemble
dances highlighting the individual skills and virtuosity of David Huggins,
Nicholas Jachno, Billy Keohavong, Eliza Sanders and Jareen Wee, each of whom
impressed with their mastery of the complex Indian inspired choreography, as
did their Indian counterparts with the contemporary elements.
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| Billy Keohavong - Nicholas Jachno |
By combining
these disparate elements with taste,
respect and flair, Liz Lea has created
an important, highly original and accessible dance work which deserves to be
seen by a much larger audience than will have the opportunity this short season.
Images by Andrew Sikorski
This review first published in CITY NEWS 30.4. 2021.