Tanzschreiber writers Eli Frasson and Evgeny Borisenko decided to go to three Tanz im August 2021 performances together, and then to meet up after each show to talk about what they saw. In this first part of their conversation, Evgeny and Eli discuss “WEG” by Ayelen Parolin / RUDA, the show that opened the festival at HAU1 on 6 August 2021. In the second part of their Tanz im August talkabout, they will discuss Thiago Granato’s world premiere of “The Sound They Make When No One Listens” and Milla Koistinen’s “Breathe”.
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Evgeny
Hello, Eli! So, what are your first thoughts after seeing “WEG”?
Eli
My first thought is that it was a very energetic dance piece that had a constantly changing and invigorating rhythm right from the very beginning. I was impressed by the piece because sometimes in a dance performance, we usually look for a climax. In “WEG”, however, there were many different climaxes in terms of its dramaturgy. Furthermore, every little gesture was made visible, and, even though there were seven dancers, you could really see what each one of them was doing very clearly, like in a group picture.
Evgeny
I was also amazed at how well-structured “WEG” was dramaturgically. These days most choreographers seem to stage solos or duos, while evening-long pieces with more than three or five dancers become increasingly rare. In “WEG” we see a team of seven dancers constantly on stage for more than an hour, weaving together a beautiful patchwork of solos, duets, and synchronised group scenes. Ayelen Parolin has created an audacious dance script in which solos smoothly morph into duets, and then, suddenly, all the dancers come together to make part of a larger group that soon breaks back down again into solos. The work was absolutely seamless! Just before leaving the theatre, I read the programme notes and discovered that Parolin’s intention was to create a dance piece about chaos theory. She says that she was “fascinated by the invisible links and interconnections that exist in nature,” and that her main goal was “to create an unstable balance and a tension between individual singularity and common abstraction”. I don’t know very much about chaos theory, and, to be honest, I’m not sure I learned anything new about it tonight. How about you?
Eli
Regarding the programme notes, I was also curious about this “tension between individual singularity and common abstraction” and how this could be translated into a movement score for seven dancers and a pianist. On stage, I noticed an individuality of expression, both in the movements of the bodies and in facial expressions. Together these multiple singularities and rhythms created a theatrical tension that led me towards abstract thought processes.
Evgeny
I felt that “WEG” was saturated with references, including from commedia dell’arte and Tanztheater, step sequences from cha-cha-cha and salsa, dance patterns from Pina Bausch’s “Café Müller”, influences from Merce Cunningham and Martha Graham. I noticed that many of the dancers were taking up typical clownish postures, and there were even bits in there from Beyoncé’s “Single Lady” video! It felt like an unstoppable avalanche of references, and I didn’t fully understand the motivations behind this choice of dance vocabulary. The dancers took on different roles, and the show felt very theatrical and thought-through — not at all ‘chaotic’ as Parolin describes it in her programme notes. I don’t usually like narrative dance, but tonight I really wanted Parolin to tell me a story, make a statement, or at least question the influences she brought into the show. If I were to consider my criticisms of this piece as a whole, I would say that the ambitions it set for itself were too modest and achievable. On the other hand, it is worth remembering that “WEG” was the opening work of the first major Berlin dance event since the relaxation of pandemic restrictions. Taking that into consideration, I think this energetic and gleeful work was the perfect curatorial choice.
Eli
Regarding the references, the choreography reminded me of a piece of Baroque art where a wide array of different materials are brought together. It was quite an emotional experience to see this piece premiere live in a theatre, after almost a year of mainly online and open-space performances. It was a touching experience to have the chance to engage with all the references taken from other dance subjects and different kinds of dance.
I think Parolin also used this approach to increase the rhythm of the work. Even though the piece was extremely fast right from the very beginning, there was no let-up in the increase of pace or the implementation of references. You could see references from Cunningham and Graham together in the same scene but in different places within the scenic space. In the end it felt as though the dramaturgy increased the reference level purposefully. Maybe we could analyse this as a method of dramaturgical development.
Evgeny
I noticed that the shivering was the main movement pattern that sewed different parts of the show together. Some dancers trembled constantly, while others even collapsed in seizures. Parolin often used such movements to mark the transitions between the references we already discussed.
Eli
I noticed that too! There was also one other element that held the performance together — the use of sound!
Evgeny
Yes, the dancers constantly mimicked speech by mumbling or whispering inaudibly. This technique worked very well with the performance by the pianist Lea Petra …
Eli
I found it interesting that Petra made music by destroying things — such as the CD cases and somehow the piano too. It reminded me of the way the choreographer made dance by taking references and then destroying them.
Evgeny
I loved Petra’s performance! It was absolutely stellar. I often found myself watching her because it seemed that her work was pure improvisation. She didn’t seem to have any score to follow, and she stared at the dancers constantly, following their moves as if it were not her who was directing them, but rather, that the dance was directing her improvisation. For instance, when one of the performers collapsed in jerking spasms, she began a very dramatic phrase on the piano. She also accompanied the dramaturgical transitions perfectly by smashing empty CD cases onto the top of the piano. This unexpected percussion created a sense of urgency and built up anticipation for the next element of the show.
Eli
The use of the piano and CD cases as percussion reminded me of the role of the piano in silent films. But here, Petra’s physical presence was intrinsically connected to that of the dancers.
Evgeny
If I had to take just one image of “WEG” away with me, it would certainly be Lea Petra smashing empty CD cases onto her piano — and the dancers having to avoid stepping on the sharp fragments of the cases as they danced!
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“WEG”: Choreography – Ayelen Parolin. Musical Creation, Performance – Lea Petra. Performers – Jeanne Colin, Daniel Barkan, Dan Mussett, Bianca Zueneli, Daan Jaartsveld, Piet Defrancq, Baptiste Cazaux. Assistant Choreographer – Julie Bougard. Dramaturgy – Olivier Hespel. Light Design – Laurence Halloy. Technical Direction – Gaspar Schelck. Costume Design – Wim Muyllaert. Production Management, Booking – Gabriel Nahoum. Administration, Production Management – Manon Di Romano.
“WEG” by Ayelen Parolin / RUDA asbl was shown on 6-8 August 2021 at Tanz im August – 33rd International Festival Berlin, the festival is running until 22 August 2021 at HAU Hebbel am Ufer and ten other venues in the city.
Read here Tanz im August 2021 Talkabout #2 by Evgeny Borisenko and Eli Frasson.
