Kidd Pivot presents Lost Action
November 26-29 @ Fleck Dance Theatre
By Leandra de Valois-Franklin
“Dance disappears almost at the very instant of its manifestation; it is an extreme expression of the present: a perfect metaphor for life.” (Crystal Pite)
The advantage (and disadvantage) of dance is that it’s an elusive art form: while its presence is fleeting, it hopefully contains a lingering message or emotional response. It’s generally not something that can be rented or downloaded and is impossible to preserve through posterity. It is usually not something that can be discussed among acquaintances during the act itself, but it hopefully generates enough interest to elicit dialogue afterwards. Despite being surrounded by others, dance can be an entirely personal experience for both the viewer and performer.
Dance is a form which exists in a constant state of vanishing, a theme closely investigated in Canadian choreographer/performer Crystal Pite’s brilliant work Lost Action, which ran until November 29th at Toronto’s Fleck Dance Theatre before continuing its international tour. First performed in Vancouver in 2006, Pite and her team of world-class artists integrate a variety of components including movement, original music, bilingual text, and visual design to express the transient nature of love, loss, and memory.
Pite, proudly considered to be one of the best dancemakers in the country, possesses an extensive background in ballet, having danced with Ballet British Columbia and Ballett Frankfurt. She has received numerous awards for outstanding choreography, and has been creating works abroad and at home since 1990, having formed her own company in 2001. Pite’s high aptitude for movement is not surprising, considering the calibre of artists she has worked with — specifically William Forsythe, who served as artistic director of Ballett Frankfurt before establishing his own company in 2004.
Forsythe — considered the Einstein of contemporary ballet — creates complex compositional strategies that rely on the deconstruction and reworking of classical technique, combined with the abstract movements of modern dance and structured improvisation. Pite was involved in the creation of Forsythe’s CD-ROM, Improvisation Technologies, and has participated as both performer and creator in his recent works. This mentorship is evident in Pite’s current explorations, which reference Forsythe’s high-speed precision and dynamic physicality, while retaining a uniquely Canuck sensibility embedded within the surrounding theatrical elements.
Lost Action uses the death of action as a metaphor for the death of men. “Sometimes it’s not clear if we are witnessing a killing or a rescue,” explains Pite, in which the struggle of the dancer is aligned with that of the soldier. “The title, Lost Action, brings to mind that tragic phrase of war: lost in action.” In a tribute, perhaps bordering on the obvious, Pite dances in near darkness, her head completely covered by a black sack adorning a poppy, while a spotlight magnifies an ominous figure against the dimly lit wall. Empty winter jackets are delicately and repeatedly carried on and offstage, and are placed upon fallen men who are resurrected momentarily.
Lighting paints the stage blood red, bouncing off the heavily textured backdrop and adding the appearance of a thickly forested, isolated environment. Fellow Ballett Frankfurt artist Owen Belton’s situational electro-acoustic soundscape indicates a melancholic atmosphere, adding moans, shrieks, shots, and chanting with terrifying effect.
The subject of impermanence is perceived abstractly through a kinespheric language of images, pacing, and style without depending on narrative content. The seven dancers communicate with each other kinesthetically and through phatic sounds and text. There is a constant sense of vulnerability expressed through covered eyes and dependency on others. A female is suspended above a quartet of males, twisting, stretching, falling and flying for minutes in the air, challenging the fine line between life and death.
An equal sense of urgency is communicated as each member of the quartet attempts to assert his individualism, furiously breaking away from the other three only to find himself back with them shoulder to shoulder. Likewise, bodies move across the space with upward reaching arms, commanding attention and demanding not to be forgotten. The dancers exhibit their bodies as inherently contradictory vessels. Their pleas for recognition suggest sensitive, empathetic characteristics, but their sometimes violent execution of immensely detailed choreography implies superhuman qualities.
A highlight was Juilliard-trained Jermaine Spivey’s demonstration of the quintessential disjointed fluidity of the Forsythe technique in an unbelievably virtuosic solo eliciting gasps and cheers from the opposite side of the stage. Disregarding gravity, Spivey balances at severe angles, fiercely flings himself to the ground, and recovers instantaneously in order to amaze with the speed at which he links a dozen minute articulations into a single beat. Absolutely incredible!
Ever the intellectual, Pite was clever even in naming her company. Kidd refers to the figure of an outlaw, a superhero, an irreverent and reckless being. Pivot describes a small, precise movement that changes one’s direction, allowing for another point of view; in short, it changes everything. The connotation of “leader of change” seems appropriate for a company whose compelling choreography has garnered support from both sides of the heavily-divided dance world. Pite’s combination of strong classical technique with a modern sensibility which seeks to rebel against classical ballet’s rigid constraints, satisfies even the most dedicated balletomane (evidenced by the attendance of ballet icons Karen Kain and Veronica Tennant).
In fact, Pite’s exciting work will be showcased, alongside that of two other Canadian artists, in the National Ballet of Canada’s upcoming production Innovation (March 4-8 at the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts). Sure to be a success, I look forward to seeing Kidd Pivot in the near future.
