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Mamacallas |
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PERFORMANCES |
Backf |
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BAKARABIA and ZIRIAB |
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FR « En combien d’autres sociétés, d’autres climats, d’autres époques aurais-tu pareillement été un raté ? Et ne mentionnons pas les tribus. Là, pas de repêchage. Elles ne t’auraient pas laissé vivre. » Henri Michaux, Poteaux d’Angle
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creation 16. of February 2004, theatre PONEC, Prague, Czech Republic creation
and interpretation
Jana Hudeèková (Cz), Michaela Komárková (Cz), Andrea Miltnerová
(Cz/GB), Jacques Eloi Génot (Fr), Pierre Nadaud (Fr), Jaro Viòarský
(Sk) music concert of ZIRIAB, Marwan Alsolaiman (Sirie) (ud,nai, and voice), Haitham Farag (Sirie) (voice and darbuka) and Abu Chagáne (Liban) (voice and daff) arrangements Marwan Alsolaiman and Pierre Nadaud music first version J.S., J.M. and J.C. Bach, arrangements Pierre Nadaud and Jan Burian light
design Jan Beneš-McGadie (Cz) specials thanks Marie Kinsky (Fr), Tomáš Krivošík (Sk) |
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ZIRIAB
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Presentation |
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How to create oneself a population?:
Bach-arabia is an exile, its process from the
baroque world of Bach to the deserts, the white deserts of the Antartic or
of the Sahara. The exile of a people white like the desert sun or the ice
fields of te pole. A strange people who experiences the height of
courtlife, wanderings in its towns and its social receptions and its
crossing of the desert. P.N. |
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Press |
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HOUSER, Prague, 23/12/2004 houser_23-12-04.jpgGod, clown and people
For a dance composition to be inspired by a literary model is not an unusual phenomenon. For the most part however, the choreographer concerns himself only with the content of the writing – elaborating upon the individual themes and seldom does something of the form of the literary text find its way into the dance. A notable exception confirming the aforementioned rule is without a doubt the last production of the dance company Mamacallas. The performance Bakarabia, a work by the French philosopher, dancer and clown Pierre Nadaud, is not merely a staged illustration of the literary work, but it refers to it even in its manner of rendering. If the style of Henri Michaux, the author of the text, is on the surface very unaffected and childlike in its playfulness, the same can be said of the dancers on the stage. If Michaux’s main theme is always complex and existentially weighted, we can say the same of Pierre Nadaud’s choreography – or does it seem to you that “the quest and demarcation of territory for life” is like a picture from a child’s colouring book?A very economic, but nonetheless metaphorically loaded variant, proved to be the choice of an empty space defined only by a white square lit from three sides, changing in intensity according to the actual circumstances of the story. The entire performance makes do without a single prop; disregarding the bicycle briefly introduced into play perhaps to entertain the audience or as a reference to another famous bearer of the name Michaux – the inventor of the velocipede. Truly significant within the performance are especially the movements and sounds, whether recordings of baroque arias or short bursts of singing and the spoken word delivered by the dancers themselves directly from the stage. The soundscape is based on clear contrasts: decorative baroque music with a rich texture follows immediately after a long and pure silence, classical arias alternate with the ‘crude’ singing of the performers. We can let ourselves be inspired and enchanted by each individual element, but the real essence lies hidden precisely in the unidentifiable space which is born of the comparison between the two, at first sight, opposing poles – stillness and movement, silence and music.The minimalism of the set is reflected in the conception of the dance itself. The characters and situations are most often characterised by small, even minute gestures or steps; in the synchronised movements of the group there is enough room for each dancer to express himself individually. Possibly then the resulting impression corresponds to the noncommittal (though for all concerned, deadly serious) child’s “game of a solid group”. It seems that the dancers occasionally allow themselves to be carried away by their enthusiasm for the game and they develop the situations into small improvised studies.Like a separate part of the performance is the danced meeting of Pierre Nadaud and Jacques Eloi Genot, embracing the very core of the production. Their fragile duets, full of nonerotic-friendly teasing, suggest, by the closeness of touch and the impossibility of complete communion, the mixing of oil and water.Extraordinary, complicated and for me captivating is the parallel existence of several planes or rather levels permeating through on to stage. Besides the mass of people itself, symbolised by three female and one male dancer, there is also the lonely figure (Jacques Eloi Genot) searching for his place in the group and the man in the shadows remains the author of the dance piece himself, Pierre Nadaud, who has retained his creative privileges even within the framework of his stage character.Bakarabia is a wonderful piece of choreography interpreted by outstanding dancers. Everything on stage appears to be wholly natural and, within the scope of the voluntarily defined borders, even complete – playfulness, which is a basic principle in the creation of the entire choreography, has become dominant, even in its own dance expression. Above all what I value even more, is the freedom given to the audience – we can be led by the outer layer and let the chosen aesthetic of the music, costume and movement address us, or we can try to decipher the inner message of the production and roam the complex paths of philosophy, it simply depends on taste. Choose what you prefer. Go to Ponec!Jakub Jahn |
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Uph | |
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modified 01.25.2008 Photo Jan Suša |
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