The show was sold out, with people standing out front hoping for tickets like it was a Grateful Dead show, and yet I lucked into a sweet seat in the 2nd row. I could have been in the first, but didn’t realize the normally-reserved-for-disabled-seats were open due to the crowd. In the end, I was kind of glad I didn’t sit in the very front row. When parts of the set start crashing down at the end of the 1st act, front-rowers were noticeably nervous for their feet. And what a show it was. If I have any complaints, it is how quickly and completely they abandoned the marionette. The 2nd act has none of the actuality of the doll, but they do go to great length to present the idea of a dancer controlled by an outside force. An interesting soundtrack, sort of late 90′s industrial techno-y for most of it. It was a worthy show to pay for.
Posts Tagged ‘dance’
Kidd Pivot Frankfurt RM – Dark Matters
Monday, February 21st, 2011Oh, it’s IN Polish?
Friday, January 14th, 2011In retrospect, it’s one of those things that should have been obvious. When every member of the cast has a bio of films with names you can’t pronounce, it’s a good bet that the production won’t be in English. And I was right, there was someone who got naked on stage before the eve was done. He was even cute. But of course I’d sat on the side of the stage with the yelly guy. Oh well, next time =p
In the Solitude of Cotton Fields is self-described as “Styled like an Eastern European punk concert”. The music, the band Natural Born Chillers (99% sure not the same NBC that has an single of Rock The Funky Beat) plays live behind the actors for 90% of the show, was good. Moving somewhere between rock n’ roll and industrial techno, it was loud and effective in setting the moods as it changed paces through the night.
As I mentioned, there were two actors with ‘speaking’ parts. Lucky for me they had one of those overhead libertto display screens, with an english translation. I put quotes around speaking because one of the guys did a lot of yelling and crying, alongside some amazing expressions. The other guy did more dancing, and got naked. When that time came, it was a slow, piece by piece removal, with careful folding and stacking of each garment as it was removed, dimly lit from above, so strong on the shadows. He doesn’t stay naked long, just enough to underscore the sense of vulnerability and surrender (I’m guessing). When it comes time for him to re-dress, it’s done more in the dark, with our attention drawn back to the other actor by the spotlight.
I enjoyed the show, overall. The yelly guy…had I realized, I would have sat on the other side of the stage, or brought ear plugs? I would have hated to miss his facial expressions; he puts a lot of effort into them all, they both did. So much of the show had a sort of stereotypical artsy-ness to it. Edgy in a predictable way. They have a portion of the show that’s more video presentation. The actors face away from the audience and a large screen on the back wall takes over for 10-15 minutes. It occurs to me now, all the words that appeared on that screen were already in English, was that done for this show, or would they have been in english during a performance in Poland?
Gloria’s Cause at On The Boards
Friday, December 3rd, 2010Went and checked out the show tonight. Got in the door early enough to be front and center, and a good thing too since it ended up a pretty packed show.
Overall, I have to say I was most impressed with the casting. Everyone in the group had to dance, speak in character, and play at least one instrument, and they seemed to be good at all three. Some people danced more than others, some people talked more than others. It was very abstract in it’s presentation of ‘history’. Full of amusing moments of word and movement that l found fascinating. It happens all in one go, no intermission break in the action. The music ranged from jam band drone to metal to folksy guitar strumming and tribal drums. Occasionally they had some video going on the screen above the dancers. It was well synchronized with the music and helped provide a bit of insight into the subject of a particular piece.
The space is interesting. The stage is not raised, but is carpeted and probably padded for dancing and tumbling. There is no curtain, so when two of the players have to start out on stage, they are sitting and standing there for ten minutes or so while people are getting seated. I am curious to see another show there, where a chunk of the stage isn’t taken up by a bandstand.
It’s only on for another two nights, so hurry and see it if you can.
PNB 2009 Season Encore
Monday, June 14th, 2010Went and saw the PNB‘s 2009 Season Encore performance yesterday. They skipped the Mopey, which I had been really looking forward to. They also hadn’t gotten enough people to fill the upper level economically vs the staff required, so they’d re-seated everyone in 2nd tier…except they forgot the box seats. So I ended up getting re-seated into the first tier box, for only half the price. I’ve always wondered how those high up on the side seats would work out. There was 1 scene where some non-dancing performers were standing so far to the close side of the stage, that I couldn’t really see them, but all the action was in perfect view, plus an extra view of the orchestra pit. When they were about to announce canceling the Mopey, I could see someone coming to tell the conductor, before the announcer had started her announcing.
All in all, an interesting experience. Those dancers sure have muscular legs and tight tights. Too bad I didn’t find my binocs before I went.
UPDATE: Looks like the ‘encore’ for the Encore was “Rug Dance” from “Ordinary Dances” by Sara Pearson and Patrik Widrig. Unfortunately, that information isn’t sufficient to find me a recording of the music behind it =(
UPDATE2: The guy gave me the wrong name, it’s “Ordinary Festivals”, and he’s looking into what the music was that was played.
UPDATE3: I decided to make this show my box-seating-experience based on an email from a facebook group called “Seattle Comp Tickets”. I saw an email that started with “PNB presents…” and ended with “featuring sinners, demons and drag queens. The Devil (played by the fabulous Anita Goodman) will be your host, as audience members are encouraged to volunteer their “sins” for judgment.” What I didn’t notice was that the second paragraph was for a completely different show. It seemed like a significant disconnect between what I saw, and what the e-flyer had said I’d see. Silly me =p