The idea came from Eric Gauthier (b. 1977), choreographer and artistic director of Gauthier Dance. He approached several well-known choreographers and offered to produce an evening of free renditions loosely based on the iconic, classical ballet Swan Lake.
Finally, four twenty-minutes long dances were chosen under the title Swan Lakes. Since the new works enjoyed total artistic liberty, each of the four choreographers kept his own unique artistic attributions with distinct imprints.
The evening opened with Cayetano Soto: Untitled for 7 Dancers, showcasing fierce, volatile corporal statements, referring to changes between soft touches and profoundly strong ones that interpret the quick changes as a battle between the sublime delicacy of a white swan and a wicked black one. The dancer’s projection of the subtexts was compelling.
The second work: The Song of the Swan, by Canadian choreographer Marie Chouinard, (b. 1955) known for her original, provocative works. Here, her swans wore pointed shoes on their right hands and at one point turned the dance into a raging political rally, with flimsy context.
Hofesh Shechter
When Hofesh Shechter’s name was announced, the audience cheered. Hofesh, who left the Batsheva Dance Company to find his fortune in progressive music in London, couldn’t have guessed that he would become a well-known choreographer and musician within a couple of years. In TAPAC he showed his Swan Lake, a work with upbeat Israeli energy, free-spirited dancers, perfectly timed choreography and enjoyable space control. Hofesh cleverly laced in his Rock music, a well-known motive of the original score of ballet. It was impressive to realize that his hand was totally involved in the music, choreography, lighting and wardrobe design.
Yet, the most outstanding piece of the evening was, by far Shara Nur by Marco Goecke. (b.1972). It was the perfect glove that fitted the right hand and Goecke, a unique choreographic voice, chose to set his work to haunting music by Bjork and Jessy Claret.
His work reminded of a visually unsettling art creation made of dark, gloomy materials, yet underneath there is a thin inner layer that seems to vibrate as if it contains particles of a living entity that mysteriously supports the upper layer.
The body motions were perfect, while each limb seemed to have its own mission and rhythms that were hypnotizing. Sometimes, it felt as if the movement derived its power from the cerebral origin and others flowed straight from the body’s core, from within, and both harmonized. The dancers applied quick fingers’ fluttering autonomous dance like hummingbirds’ wings in flight. It’s unclear whether the quick repeated moves controlled the mind or vice versa, yet the result played unexpectedly on one’s inner cords with its sublime beauty.
For sure, Goecke’s work touched hidden layers within. Like a magician, he distilled artistic intensity from each slight movement. Once again, we see that Goecke is a highly impressive artist with uncommon sensitivities and sensibilities.