Visceral Dance Theatre

The Rite of Spring and Petrushka

Fabulous Beast Dance Theatre

Sherman Cymru – Theatre 1

8^th-9^th April 2013

Michael Keegan-Dolan and his Fabulous Beasts use their beautiful but brutal style to celebrate and re-imagine two of Stravinsky’s most famous ballets.

First up was Rite of Spring, known for its raw sexuality and pounding rhythms. The company did not shy away from this pulsating force of nature, evoking hare-coursing with their incredibly elaborate hare and dog masks.

The threat of violence always lurked under the surface and for one woman caught dressed in man’s clothing the aggression bubbled over to brutality. The shifts from controlled force to unstoppable power made the piece exhilarating from beginning to end. It’s impossible to fully express the raw power and drama that coursed through this piece – exciting in a visceral and primal way.

Throughout the forceful action a solitary female figure, dressed head to toe in black, calmly intervened. During a tea ceremony danced by a trio of women this shadowy figure, Mother Nature perhaps, seemingly poisoned their cups. It was impossible to tell whose side she was on, the pursued women or the predatory men – she remained a cold outside force, observing and intervening only when necessary.

Perhaps she wasn’t on anyone’s “side”; rather her job was to restore the balance of power between the sexes. The once sexually obscene men ended the piece in floral day dresses, whilst a strong woman danced a powerful and commanding solo. As the stage was flooded with orange a new season and new hope were ushered in.

The second half of the double-bill was somewhat more abstract, seemingly cut loose from any recognisable place or time. The set was blindingly white, with white costumes, only punctuated by a tall platform on which sat our Mother Nature, still in black, acting as puppet master and god. The lilting fair-ground music and tribal dance initially placed the action on a beach, but soon it turned into an audition room and perhaps even a hospital.

Engaging large group sections were interspersed with solos, duets and trios that sometimes felt like a showcase of each dancer’s skill rather than an integral piece of the work. Again gender boundaries were confused with the most touching performance coming from a female dancer dressed as a man, who was the one chosen to climb to the heavens in the final image.

In a post show talk Keegan-Dolan expressed his opinion that there is a lot of angry work being made by all kinds of artists, work that screams and protests at the establishment. For him it is time to start making more inviting and comfortable work. This outlook is very evident in Petrushka and although it does create a much more welcoming atmosphere the work is less exciting, less engaging and is certainly nowhere near as dramatic.

Rite of Spring kicks, screams and tears at itself and the audience and although this makes it quite difficult to watch at times, it is, for me, the better of the two.