Energetic, engaging dance makes its way to Tel Aviv
By ORA BRAFMANAntithesis by Company Aterballetto(photo credit: NADIR BONAZZI)
Company Aterballetto (Italy)‘Antithesis’TAPAC, January 1Italy’s renowned contemporary dance company Atterballeto is a repertoire company, and on its current tour to Israel the program included three works by different choreographers. It opened with Wolf by Hofesh Shechter, choreographer/musician and an ex-Batsheva dancer with flourishing international career. His company recently performed his latest full length creation, Grand Finale, in Tel Aviv.Although it is a short piece, that concise work gives a pretty good idea about his artistic orientation. His original electronic music is partially meshed with several varied musical sources, added by Ophir Llzetzki. Shechter, best known for his energetic movement, and powerful, often aggressive dancing to a strong bit, revealed more than a few tender, dare I say, delicate moments which indicate compassion. Moving over to the slow lane in between the fast tracks is a rare, refreshing phase for Shechter’s creations which had been often perceived as full steam engines.A short duet and perhaps the most pleasing piece of the evening was the brain child of a true dance master, Jiri Kylian. Performed by Serena Vinzio and Damiano Artale that did justice to 14’20”; the title of the work and its length. Kylian is one of the more refined choreographers of the past century. His control of time, using the right syntax of movements’ sentences, his sophistication, make his work relevant, and often touch an inner chord.One cannot say that today, Kylian’s works are at the contemporary dance front line, but the better ones are doing well on their own frontiers. Vincio, with her finesse, and the strong Artale gave an impressive performance full of inventive moves and surprising lifts and won us over with beautiful rendition of 14’20”.Andonis Foniadakis’s Antithesis started off with a sculptured, almost bare body, holding two light sticks and ended with a dancer holding a florescent ball. In between, the entire company depicts “current reality, stormy, dynamic and violent,” to quote Foniadakis’s own words. The dance certainly was a dynamic and an image of violent event and the stage was filled with action, exits and entrances that created a feeling of continual restlessness. Half-way through there was a strong shift toward uncomplimentary “artistic” gymnastics.Resorting to use strobe lights was a novelty in the past. It is an effect that makes a streaming movement looks like old film with fast frame-by-frame motion. Yet, dance is not a fight for attention out of context and can do disservice to the artistic intents.
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