One Infinity, Beijing Dance Theater & Dancenorth Australia, Melbourne International Arts Festival, The Coopers Malthouse, Merlyn Theatre, Tuesday October 16th 2018
"One Infinity" a co-production by Beijing Dance Theater and Dancenorth Australia had its world premiere for Melbourne International Arts Festival, at The Coopers Malthouse, Merlyn Theatre, on Tuesday October 16th 2018.
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"One Infinity" was directed and choreographed by Gideon Orbarzanek, with associate choreographer Amber Haines. a co-production by Beijing Dance Theater and Dancenorth Australia had its world premiere for Melbourne International Arts Festival, at The Coopers Malthouse, Merlyn Theatre, on Tuesday October 16th 2018.
Banks of seating were positioned at either end of the Merlyn Theatre with a large rectangular staging area in the centre. There were four instruments placed towards the four corners of the stage.
An announcement in Chinese began the production, and then the English translation to welcome patrons.
Gideon Orbarzanek entered the space with a translator, who, I think was Gao Jing the Rehearsal Director for China. They welcomed us to the world premiere and explained the process of what was to happen. We as the audience would be a part of the performance.
To prepare the audience for the performance, we followed directions from Gideon Orbarzanek to copy the dancer seated in the back row of the opposite bank of seating. As we sat in Bank One, we copied the dancer in the back row of Bank Two seating. The movements we had to copy were not difficult but required co-ordination and observation. Each bank of seating was given an easy first example to copy the dancer in the opposite bank of seating. The second example we were required to copy was a little more challenging: as you had to cross arms and was design to improve observation and co-ordination skills. The first example for the demonstration drew admiration from the opposite audience members with their applause. Applause and encouragement came after each demonstration as the entire group of people copying the moves was magical. These examples were conducted in full light.
During the show, it became obvious that when the lights rose on the dancer in the back row of the opposite bank of seating, they were to be copied, then your bank of audience members were to follow suit. Occasionally the audience were not in full light, while the dancer they copied was in full light. Each side seemed to have a different theme of moves.
A group of five dancers was centrally placed on the step like seating. The dancers from Dancenorth Australia sat on the steps in Bank One, while the dancers from Beijing Dance Theater sat on Bank Two steps.
At times one group of five dancers were featured in the light, to move their hands and arms around the centrally placed dancer. Then the dancers in the opposite bank of seating were featured. The structure became predictable, and this was part of the charm, to try to create a unified ensemble (including the audience).
Occasionally the dancers would converge into the central stage area to perform as a duo or as an ensemble. There made some lovely shapes and tableau at times.
The dancers at one stage were prone on the stage and still for a short period. Gradually they began to move. They looked like worms writhing across the stage, until they rolled up through the spine to be either upright or semi-upright stance.
Towards the end of the piece, the ten dancers stood shaking and pulsating until they formed a large diagonal formation. Here the group copied the moves of Mason Kelly to varying degrees of accuracy. Some interpretations of his moves made me question their observation skills. For example, stretched fingers compared to some dancers using curled or spread hands. I appreciate they are not a corps de ballet for synchronicity, but the theme seemed to be of a shared experience and to perform with your ability level. I am afraid that professional dancers should be more accurate in replication of moves, as it lost its impact with some sloppy and uncoordinated interpretations. Plus the quality of texture of the moves varied from the leader of the group to some of the other dancers.
The large diagonal turned gradually and a new dancer led the group and was being copied. The quality of replication was better on this side, though a few dancers seemed to be predicting the next move and the ports de bras was ahead of the leader, as was the shape.
This made me think of the audience and how difficult it is for dancers to copy moves for the stage. It highlighted how much I was impressed with the cooperation and skill of the audience. In fact, I was more impressed with watching Bank Two than some of the dancers. This is not to say I did not enjoy the show, I did, though I think it went ten to fifteen minutes too long.
The structure of performance was a bit cliche with the one side, then the other side for either the audience or the dancers.
At times, "One Infinity"reminded me of the work of Ruth St Denis and Ted Shawn and some of their "musical visualisation" work. There was something about some moves that reminded me of Ted Shawn's book "Every Little Movement" and the nine positions. This was most evident with the hand gestures of stretching, strumming, curling fingers etc.
At times the show felt a little didactic, but was enlightening for many audience members as it heightened their appreciation of the dancer's skills.
Costumes Designer, Harriet Oxley had the dancers open with costumes that were later taken off to reveal more fitted attire. Sadly, when revealed the fitted garments varied in quality for each dancer. The cut of the fabric was wrong in many cases, as some of the shorts had creases that were unflattering for some dancers. The tops were a little more successful with the lines and finish of the costume.
Lighting Design by Damien Cooper was successfully integrated into the production. The lighting played a huge part of the production and was crucial for providing clues to the audience of when interaction was required.
Music was provided by Jun Tian Fang Music Ensemble. The most interesting sound was provided by the voice of Xiao Gang to counterpoint the other flute like instruments being played by Genevieve Lacey.
Sound Designer, Jim Atkins provided segues between the music and the action.
The ending was predictable as the audience would be simultaneously performing a united series of moves as per the title of the show. The other cliches included in the production included the way the lights rose on each side to acknowledge the different seating banks of audience members. This of course was conducted in stages. This finale did not build to any united crescendo that I have seen in other works that build to create a unified conclusion.
"One Infinity" could have been a much better work with more integration between all production departments to unify a seamless show. There was something missing that did not ignite the "wow" factor that should have occurred.
I enjoyed "One Infinity" and it was a unique experience to be a part of this performance. Parts of the show reminded me of another work from a previous Melbourne International Arts Festival where the audience were separated at the Meat Market and the audience had to change sides.
Some people stood on Bank One for the ovations. Other audience members also stood, including myself, as an "I can't see and I need to see" standing ovation. More people stood in Bank Two for the ovations, though not all of the audience. It was not a volcanic eruption of a standing ovation.
My partner and I agreed that it went about ten to fifteen minutes too long. We both thought the production was under-cooked and under-developed. The quality of the audience participation exceeded the quality of the dancing.
"One Infinity" will become a successful festival touring production, though it requires some work to create a polished production. The show reminded me of a 1960's happening.
My partner adores contemporary dance and described it "as a distraction".
"One Infinity" obtained a 7.5/10 from me, while my partner gave it a 5/10.
Banks of seating were positioned at either end of the Merlyn Theatre with a large rectangular staging area in the centre. There were four instruments placed towards the four corners of the stage.
An announcement in Chinese began the production, and then the English translation to welcome patrons.
Gideon Orbarzanek entered the space with a translator, who, I think was Gao Jing the Rehearsal Director for China. They welcomed us to the world premiere and explained the process of what was to happen. We as the audience would be a part of the performance.
To prepare the audience for the performance, we followed directions from Gideon Orbarzanek to copy the dancer seated in the back row of the opposite bank of seating. As we sat in Bank One, we copied the dancer in the back row of Bank Two seating. The movements we had to copy were not difficult but required co-ordination and observation. Each bank of seating was given an easy first example to copy the dancer in the opposite bank of seating. The second example we were required to copy was a little more challenging: as you had to cross arms and was design to improve observation and co-ordination skills. The first example for the demonstration drew admiration from the opposite audience members with their applause. Applause and encouragement came after each demonstration as the entire group of people copying the moves was magical. These examples were conducted in full light.
During the show, it became obvious that when the lights rose on the dancer in the back row of the opposite bank of seating, they were to be copied, then your bank of audience members were to follow suit. Occasionally the audience were not in full light, while the dancer they copied was in full light. Each side seemed to have a different theme of moves.
A group of five dancers was centrally placed on the step like seating. The dancers from Dancenorth Australia sat on the steps in Bank One, while the dancers from Beijing Dance Theater sat on Bank Two steps.
At times one group of five dancers were featured in the light, to move their hands and arms around the centrally placed dancer. Then the dancers in the opposite bank of seating were featured. The structure became predictable, and this was part of the charm, to try to create a unified ensemble (including the audience).
Occasionally the dancers would converge into the central stage area to perform as a duo or as an ensemble. There made some lovely shapes and tableau at times.
The dancers at one stage were prone on the stage and still for a short period. Gradually they began to move. They looked like worms writhing across the stage, until they rolled up through the spine to be either upright or semi-upright stance.
The large diagonal turned gradually and a new dancer led the group and was being copied. The quality of replication was better on this side, though a few dancers seemed to be predicting the next move and the ports de bras was ahead of the leader, as was the shape.
This made me think of the audience and how difficult it is for dancers to copy moves for the stage. It highlighted how much I was impressed with the cooperation and skill of the audience. In fact, I was more impressed with watching Bank Two than some of the dancers. This is not to say I did not enjoy the show, I did, though I think it went ten to fifteen minutes too long.
The structure of performance was a bit cliche with the one side, then the other side for either the audience or the dancers.
At times, "One Infinity"reminded me of the work of Ruth St Denis and Ted Shawn and some of their "musical visualisation" work. There was something about some moves that reminded me of Ted Shawn's book "Every Little Movement" and the nine positions. This was most evident with the hand gestures of stretching, strumming, curling fingers etc.
At times the show felt a little didactic, but was enlightening for many audience members as it heightened their appreciation of the dancer's skills.
Costumes Designer, Harriet Oxley had the dancers open with costumes that were later taken off to reveal more fitted attire. Sadly, when revealed the fitted garments varied in quality for each dancer. The cut of the fabric was wrong in many cases, as some of the shorts had creases that were unflattering for some dancers. The tops were a little more successful with the lines and finish of the costume.
Lighting Design by Damien Cooper was successfully integrated into the production. The lighting played a huge part of the production and was crucial for providing clues to the audience of when interaction was required.
Music was provided by Jun Tian Fang Music Ensemble. The most interesting sound was provided by the voice of Xiao Gang to counterpoint the other flute like instruments being played by Genevieve Lacey.
Sound Designer, Jim Atkins provided segues between the music and the action.
The ending was predictable as the audience would be simultaneously performing a united series of moves as per the title of the show. The other cliches included in the production included the way the lights rose on each side to acknowledge the different seating banks of audience members. This of course was conducted in stages. This finale did not build to any united crescendo that I have seen in other works that build to create a unified conclusion.
"One Infinity" could have been a much better work with more integration between all production departments to unify a seamless show. There was something missing that did not ignite the "wow" factor that should have occurred.
I enjoyed "One Infinity" and it was a unique experience to be a part of this performance. Parts of the show reminded me of another work from a previous Melbourne International Arts Festival where the audience were separated at the Meat Market and the audience had to change sides.
Some people stood on Bank One for the ovations. Other audience members also stood, including myself, as an "I can't see and I need to see" standing ovation. More people stood in Bank Two for the ovations, though not all of the audience. It was not a volcanic eruption of a standing ovation.
"One Infinity" will become a successful festival touring production, though it requires some work to create a polished production. The show reminded me of a 1960's happening.
My partner adores contemporary dance and described it "as a distraction".
"One Infinity" obtained a 7.5/10 from me, while my partner gave it a 5/10.
