>>PREVIEW
FURIES ALPHA 1/24 (THE MONSTERS WITHIN)
Saturday, October 21
Montréal Danse
Choreography by Estelle Clareton
Eric Harvie Theatre (The Banff Centre)
What is it that makes Montreal such a hotbed for contemporary dance? In the past few years, Calgary audiences have sunk their teeth into Carbone 14, Compagnie Marie Chouinard, Les Ballets Jazz de Montréal, La La La Human Steps, O Vertigo Danse and more.
This weekend, Montréal Danse is back in the boom province performing its latest, Furies Alpha 1/24 (The Monsters Within), at The Banff Centre’s Eric Harvie Theatre.
Kathy Casey has led Montréal Danse for exactly half of the company’s 20-year history. Originally from North Carolina, Casey came to Montreal after a number of years dancing in New York City.
"It was love. I fell in love with a guy from Montreal who really wanted to get back there," says Casey. "And what I found is a place where culture is considered an essential part of the fabric of life."
Casey now plays a curator’s role in identifying and working with new choreographers, such as Estelle Clareton, who choreographed Furies Alpha 1/24 (The Monsters Within).
"What I am looking for is a potent and individual voice," she says. "For Montréal Danse, we are looking for what is fresh and innovative while being accessible to an audience."
The 1/24 in Furies Alpha refers to Clareton’s feeling that this is but the first of many canvases to address the burst of rage and energy she felt after visiting concentration camps in Germany.
"I think it changed her thinking about the role of the artist. Is it necessary to comment? Is it necessary to do something more than a nice little dance? At the same time, she was reading a lot of Greek mythology, which is where the Furies come into this piece."
The non-linear, hour-long piece pairs Clareton’s choreography with music by composer Éric Forget and background visuals by painter François Vincent. Furies Alpha 1/24 is choreographed for six dancers and a door, that Casey describes as the seventh character in the piece.
"Of course the door suggests a lot of questions about what’s behind it. It may be extremely sexual, it may be a place where people do terrible things, but boy does it light fires."
Casey, who has now developed three pieces with Clareton at Montréal Danse over the past six years, says, "This is by far her most complex dance work. It’s not a nice, gentle piece. It’s a powerful and potent mix of dance and music." |
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