Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Hagit Yakira - Oh Baby @ Cloud Dance Festival, Jacksons Lane

Headed all the way to Highgate to Jacksons Lane for one night of the Cloud Dance Festival (it ran Friday 24 - Sunday 26 April) for what was a pretty long evening of dance (7.30pm start, end past 10.30pm)

And following some good (Jennifer Essex in Washed and the quote of the year: "Have you ever been on a date because you were too lazy to commit suicide?", Rancidance's Musicology) and quite bad stuff, came on Hagit Yakira and Takeshi Matsumoto with Oh Baby, choreographed by Yakira.

It started with Matsumoto singing what sounded like some sort of Japanese nursery rhyme (though I can't be sure!), smiling to the audience, gently and with humour, before he was joined by Yakira, who was her singing in Hebrew (I believe!)

The choreography was very physical, with lots of jumps and collisions between the two, reflecting the dynamism and crazy mood of Yakira, who started giving orders to her partner: Hug me! (he hugs her, drops her, she falls on the floor) Hug me! Stay! Fall! (they both fall on the floor) Hug me! Stay! Fall! Turn to the left. Another turn to the left. - in their relationship, she is the one making the decisions, she is the choreographer.

But when she orders him Talk to me! He stays silent, until, after she repeats her order again and again, getting angrier and angrier, he makes a face and starts screaming like crazy, venting his frustration.

The mood of the piece throughout is very humourous and witty. They flirt, play with each other, she bosses him around, they kiss... All in all, this was my favourite piece of the evening: fun, full of energetic movement, it left me with a big smile on my face.

I wish I was that good at PR

Wow big credits to the PR person who managed to get the Guardian to write and publish this piece about Shobana Jeyasingh's new work Just Add Water?

'A dance about paella and pumpkin pie? Judith Mackrell on the long love affair between choreography and cooking'

What da what???!!!! Thin thin thin it seems to me.

Their video of the rehearsals (with an interview of Jeyasingh) is worth it though.

Thursday, April 23, 2009

Make war on yourself

Extract from Order my steps by Evidence, a dance company. Coming to London 7-8 May at Southbank Centre.