Two very different dance pieces from two emerging choreographers in Wales were presented to an intimate audience at Wales Millennium Centre's Western Studio last night.
New Work, from artists selected by Welsh Independent Dance – an organisation which supports independent professional dancers in Wales – was the final stage in a three-part programme designed to promote new choreographic work from freelance artists based in Wales.
The double bill from choreographers Jessie Brett and Jo Shapland was a preview of promising work to come.
Fire Shadow Silence from Brett was inspired by the life of Tina Modotti, an Italian model and photographer who worked as a dark room assistant in Mexico in the 1920s. The set represents this era – with a low hung lamp over a smoking table as the centrepiece. The two dancers gradually unveil an intense and complicated relationship – punctuated by Charlton tunes and camera clicks, interwoven with elongated periods of slow motion dancing. In these sections the puppet-like slo-mo moves led by the shoulders are captivating but can become tedious through repetition. The lighting steeps the room in a gloomy and stifling atmosphere to reflect the relationship, encasing the work in a mood of depression which lingers as the light dims.
Dance for Neanderthal from Jo Shapland contrasts the first piece by focusing on creative stimulus and movement as opposed to emotion. Shapland's choreography is a direct reaction to a piece of music – Simon Thorne's Neanderthal. Three dancers convulse and pop on the floor to visualise the tribal vocal sounds. As the dance progresses the audience is drawn into their funny world of animal movements, seemingly arbitrary use of props and playful interactions with each other. The tone is comic and at times mesmerising – finishing with a memorable crescendo of breathless belly sounds made by the dancers while moving their hands wildly in a shaft of light.
Welsh Independent Dance are based at Chapter Arts Centre. They have a workshop for professional dancers over 45 years of age at Chapter on Saturday 10 and Sunday 11 April.
