Following the success of Entangled, a showcase of contemporary dance performed at the Actors Church in August, Rapture brings together four emerging dance companies.
Opening the evening with balletic grace and tenderness is Tempered Body’s affective work Amuse Bouche. Choreographed to a beautiful and eclectic score the work highlights the intricacies and complexities of relationships with a gentle clumsiness true to real emotion. The dancers softly carve the space around them creating connections between each other and the audience in this accomplished work.
Following in stark contrast is Guerilla Dance Project and Not Looking for Anyone; a frenzy of teacups, newspapers and chairs attempting to ‘find the dances in everyday life’. Daring but not daring enough, this prop-heavy work is disappointingly lost to all but the front row as most of the movement takes place on the floor and the venue is a church.
Slick, witty and distinct, MOHOdance were the highlight of the evening’s performance with their social networking based work, Edit Profile. With effortless fluidity and control the synchronized duo pout, pose and perform to the amusement and delight of the audience.
Bearing more than a fleeting resemblance to Joss Arnott’s work Threshold, shown as part of Entangled, Antique Dancers returned to the Actors Church stage with an altogether more forceful work; Terion RE:WORKED. The fierce and flexible dancers perform the sharp, balletic choreography with robotic precision and alien detachment. Strong and sexy, this work displays the talents of its dancers expertly; ending the evening on a high which should keep audiences returning to these cutting-edge showcases.
By Jennifer Teale