SPRINGBACK // REVIEWS !!!! MAN II Harry Koushos, Greece CHRISTEL MOLIN For 17 minutes I’m totally spellbound by Man II, a performance that reminds us that nothing exists without both light and dark. Two male dancers, one of them choreographer Harry Koushos, let us into the world of a man and his monstrous counterpart. Like a phoenix he raises himself, first nearly-naked and still but, as time passes, more darkly intense. Light, music and dance collaborate in a way that lets us feel the intensity of these two personalities – how the darker part tries to break loose yet is still controlled by the other. When the darker part leaves he takes the lighter part with him, using the stage lights themselves to show the way out. It’s as if he’s saying, ‘I’m still now but don’t worry, I’m still here in you, ready to break out. Don’t forget that.’ SALLY MARIE A man stands almost naked in a small arena formed by four neon bars. He begins to move, sliding and shifting through different planes, negotiating the space and himself within it. HIs body is almost waxy in the dimmed light - unadorned, trying to find a sense of self, of belonging - a place of clear conscience. Suddenly from behind an almost identical man appears in a deep yellow national costume, crushing him like a spidery mythological force. The neon lights are eventually pulled into a path and the original dancer, now wearing traditional costume too, begins the slow walk of no choice. In his search for truth, both political and personal, is a great integrity. It matters immensely to him and so to us as well. DONALD HUTERA Is it choreographer Harry Koushos who stands in a ‘box’ of literally low neon light, a mechanically-moving god-body in skimpy flesh-coloured undies? Whoever this being is he un/folds like semi-human origami to heavy, muffled, beaty electronica. From behind the first male a second (Nondas Damopoulos, I presume) emerges clad in a jacket-topped tutu. Man 2 supplants Man 1. Their ensuing, floor-based duet has a robotic, totemic, trompe-l’oeil quality as spiderish limbs creep out and retract. A loud buzz signals Man 2’s eventual departure and the descent from on high of a colourful, coat-like costume. This Man 1 dons and begins to exit via a path defined by the dragging of neon bars… Created with Mina Lampropoulou, Man II is an experiment, a sketch, a possible make-your-own-interpretation gem. HANNAH TOOKEY In a compelling and intense political comment, Harry Koushos skilfully twists and turns his body, contorting every muscle into a state of rigid tension, his movements becoming a series of jolts and angular images. Pulling on Nondas Damopoulos legs, Koushos commands them to extend outwards – a powerful act which reeks of the growing pressure and ever-increasing threat of the masses on the state in so many turbulent nations. All the while his head lies trapped beneath this forceful controller, perhaps a suggestion of the inevitable fruitlessness of struggling against those in power. Sophisticated lighting design allows the tension to build rapidly in this affecting work, whilst a final repositioning of the set creates a searing and poignant image. https://youtube/watch?v=9nQU8uWvSow MAN II in Athens / 6th of June
Posted on: Wed, 07 May 2014 10:07:54 +0000
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015