Venue: Reginald Theatre, Seymour Centre (Sydney NSW), Aug 21 – 24, 2013
Choreographer: Byron Perry
Music: Luke Smiles
Dancers: Kirstie McCracken, Lee Serle
Theatre review
In Force Majeure’s Double Think, the space of dance theatre is explored to its fullest extent and possibilities. The company pushes aggressively at the boundaries of dance and music, introducing concepts from all aspects to dismantle and to re-create a form of performance that is about dance, but not the way we know it. The use of inanimate objects and its relationship with light, for example, or the substitution of music for silence and speech, open up ways for the presentation of a kind of show that is not only fresh and unusual, but also seductive, communicative and intellectual. It is the ultimate application of talent and opportunity that one witnesses in this production.
Dancers Kirstie McCracken and Lee Serle are about a foot apart in height, but their symbiotic closeness delivers a sense of divinity and awe that gives their performance a feeling of sublime magic. Their ability to portray one being in two bodies, with unimaginable unison can only be a result of discipline, coloured by blood, sweat and tears. There are breathtaking sections where they display superhuman memory with the most intricate and lengthy choreography, astonishing their audience with the seemingly infinite capacities of their bodies and minds. It is noteworthy also, that both, but especially Serle, have the ability to reach out and connect with a crowd like true entertainers, rather than lofty professional dancers who tend to be more detached in their approach.
Production values are very accomplished, and thoroughly enjoyable. Lighting design is crucial in physical theatre, and Benjamin Cisterne’s work here is a triumph. The final sequence in which the dancers move very quickly in very dim light creating images that the eyes perceive but the brain fails to comprehend, is probably going to be an effect copied by many in the future. Choreographer Byron Perry has his fingerprints all over this creation. Nothing has escaped his attention, and we are beneficiary of his wonderful vision.
Suzy Goes See 