• Vortex Temporum. Photo: Jamie Williams.
    Vortex Temporum. Photo: Jamie Williams.
  • Vortex Temporum. Photo: Jamie Williams
    Vortex Temporum. Photo: Jamie Williams
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Rosas: Fase, Four Movements to the Music of Steve Reich -
Drama Theatre, Sydney Opera House, 10 January -

Rosas and Ictus: Vortex Temporum -
Bay 17, Carriageworks, 16 January -

 

Rosas is the Brussels based company of choreographer and dancer Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker. Given that it was founded more than thirty years ago, De Keersmaeker has amassed a significant body of work and Rosas presented two separate programs in the Sydney Festival this year. Fase, Four Movements to the Music of Steve Reich is significant as one of her earlier, breakthrough works while Vortex Temporum premiered just a couple of years ago. What’s interesting about showing works which were created decades apart is that it gives audience members who attend both programs, (many of whom may not be familiar with Rosas or De Keersmaeker’s work) some insight into how her choreography and dance practice has developed over time.

Having watched both programs, it is clear that De Keersmaeker’s work bears little resemblance to the hyper-athletic nature of mainstream contemporary dance in Australia today. In fact it appears much more closely related to the stripped back post-modernism that emerged in New York around the 1960s and 70s in which the more theatrical elements of dance were rejected. Yvonne Rainer’s famous manifesto in which she declared, “No…” to many things, including spectacle, virtuosity, transformations, magic, make-believe, glamour, the involvement of performer or spectator, etc. is now fifty years old but it so perfectly encapsulates De Keersmaeker’s approach to dance as seen in both Fase, Four Movements to the Music of Steve Reich and Vortex Temporum.

In both works De Keersmaeker incorporates seemingly everyday movements into her choreography where they are broken down, simplified and repeated over and over again in patterns which subtly shift and evolve as the work progresses. This choreography does not look as if it requires much skill but, make no mistake, these are highly trained dancers and this can be seen in the measured diligence and focus each dancer maintains throughout the work. The costuming is simple and functional but somewhat shapeless and does not reveal the lines of each dancer’s physique the way many dance costumes do. Even the footwear - thinly-soled flat sneakers, do not allow the aesthetic pleasure of a well-articulated foot that a split sole shoe or absence of shoes would enable.

Both Fase, Four Movements to the Music of Steve Reich and Vortex Temporum were only around an hour in length yet Vortex Temporum felt much longer because it was not structured and divided into sections as neatly as the former. Vortex Temporum had the added potential interest of a larger cast of dancers as well as six musicians (contemporary music ensemble Ictus) playing Gerard Grisey’s score live but was dragged down by a number of tediously slow moving scenes. Neither work was particularly ‘easy’ or enjoyable to watch – but if you can leave any preconceived notions about dance as entertainment at the door there are visual highlights in both programs. Among others, the varied lighting design by Remon Fromont and Mark Schwentner for Fase, Four Movements to the Music of Steve Reich really helped to differentiate between sections and added greatly to the viewing experience.

- GERALDINE HIGGINSON

Above: Vortex Temporum. Photo: Jamie Williams. 

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