'Forecast', four works by artists from Australia and Singapore, is a very well-curated collaboration. With a running time of nearly three hours, there was a danger it could have become a little… Overwhelming. The show runners instead chose two innovative performances which combined dance with drama and comedy (and film!), interspersed with two more traditional works.
The first performance was manic gloriousness. ‘Cheerleader Of Europe' by Daniel Kok from Singapore was part memoir, part gymnastics and somehow, part makeup-less drag. Daniel really camped it up when performing his cheers, complete with a tiny blue wrestling 'Borat'-style uni-kini which left very little to the imagination, and shiny gold pom poms. This was contrasted with memories from his own military service, and an interview with a European audience member on what it means to be European in the era of Brexit. It was unclear what the show was about, exactly, although one line shone through, to paraphrase, Kok claimed that Europe needs to be held together to ward against “Ching Chong Chinamen” ruling the world. In a very bright, happy, frenetic show, it was a line that gave the audience pause, and perhaps forced reflection of what we mean by, and whether we truly embody, the term “European values”. It was a wonderful, electric piece which left the audience wanting more.
The second offering was from the Australian Expressions Dance Company, with two male and two female dancers performing a piece by Stephanie Lake. There was no audience interaction or specific story telling, so it worked very nicely as a follow-on from Daniel’s work. The change in tempo and style served to refresh the audience. The dancers began by making clicking noises with their mouths, which set the rhythm for the piece. Dressed in earth tones and with their jerky movements, they sometimes recalled the zombie apocalypse. It was engaging and well edited; a great piece in the tradition of modern dance.
Next up was ‘The Crossing by The Farm’, from Australia. Opening with a snapshot from a documentary on Kayah, a male dancer with Down syndrome, giving his perspective on his art, this could have been a very serious work on the importance and value of diversity in performance. It wasn’t. Instead, it was an incredibly humorous and humanising look at collaboration and ego. Gavin, Kayah’s collaborator breaks the spell of their dance to talk about how the documentary on Kayah didn’t explore his own struggle as a 50-year-old dancer, that he ended up on the cutting room floor. It was tongue-in-cheek and helped the audience to see Kayah as a person, rather than a one-dimensional emblem. What follows is a cheeky struggle for dominance and a metaphorical murder or two. The show really succeeded at elevating the audience’s understanding of their partnership, taking assumptions and ripping them apart. They received a standing ovation and two curtain calls for their efforts.
Finally, 'Forecast' offered its crowning piece. ‘Pure’ by T.H.E Dance Company from Singapore was exquisite. Again a more formal, traditional dance piece, it explored the relationship between the male and female dancer, both clothed en ethereal white so they appeared to float across the stage. They seemed both futuristic and otherworldly, and they were lovely to watch. Ending the night with this most pure expression of modern dance was fitting, and the juxtaposing of this type of dance with the shows that pushed expectations and boundaries was a very successful way to demonstrate the differing view points contemporary dance can offer.
