York Theatre Royal – Friday 18 October 2019
Reviewed by Michelle Richardson
3***
After last year’s successful, award winning Windrush, Phoenix Dance Theatre once again visited York Theatre Royal with an energetic double bill. The order was reversed from the programme, so opening the show was Left Unseen, choreographed by Amaury Lebrun.
Left Unseen is an exploration of inclusion and isolation, and how we rely on our senses to make our way through life. The stage is dark and barely gets brighter, just altering the shading on the stage for the duration, totally mirroring the accompanying music, and silence. Dressed all the same in grey shirts and beige trousers, the company of eight dancers, who all performed in both shows, often working in pairs, showed strength, power and fluidity in all their movements, at times it was mesmerising.
After a short interval, barely time for the dancers to recover, the second piece, The Rite of Spring, choreographed by Jeanguy Saintus and in collaboration with Opera North, was performed. This piece has been re-imagined to encompass Haitian rituals and voodoo sacrifice. This piece was a lot more energetic with Stravinsky’s exhilarating score.
The dancers, all dressed in white, with the back of their garments the same colour as their skin tone, black lips, pulsated in their movements. As the story unfolds, we seen them donning red gloves to depict, what I can only imagine, to be blood. The energy intensifies with bodies twisting and contorting, before the frenzy of the final ceremony. This story was easier to understand, but it was unclear when I was watching it, that we were following three central figures from Haitian folklore, that was until I read the programme.
The dancing in both shows was quite intoxicating. I was in awe of the dexterity, flexibility and sheer effortlessness of their dancing, though I was unsure about the stories they were telling. Overall, this is a show of power and intensity, from the very talented Phoenix Dance Theatre.