posted September 30, 2001 15:24            

09.29.01
kondition pluriel (Marie-Claude Poulin et Martin Kusch) [CANADA/AUSTRIA]
schème
Agora de la danse
Festival International de Nouvelle Danse

Conception and Realization: Marie-Claude Poulin and Martin Kusch

Choreography and Performance: Line Nault and Marie-Claude Poulin

Media Environment: Martin Kusch

Sound Installation: Alexandre St-Onge

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"Despite the imposing number of technical devices, schème is attentive to the aesthetic effects of the installation and to the emotional presence of the actors."

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That's what is says in the schème outline on the Daniel Langlois Foundation website. I had hard time seeing that represented in this work. Unless you want to count "emotional presence" as occasional vocal sounds akin to those made by very small children. I understand that using some of this technology limits the choreographic development to a degree, but I would have liked to see more from this piece. I wasn't left with the impression that it was a conscious decision on the part of the creators to remove any trace of character from the work; it just appeared a little underdeveloped. It's admirable to want to create something that has an equal emphasis in all of its facets (in the use of performers, and the technology, etc.), but a socialist perspective doesn't always produce the best results in art. That's probably why there are so many mini-dictators working in the field. When you present a work within a performance context it's worth addressing that as an essential factor in its construction. If it's an installation then that's another story, but sitting people in seats in a theatrical venue suggests to the audience that some kind of drama will unfold. I did like some of the images that were projected on to the small scrims that were propped up in the space but they didn't really serve to take the piece anywhere.

posted October 01, 2001 07:37            

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Showing them how it's done
This group is just plain irritating. Given that the cost of kondition pluriel's equipment and technical crew could feed Ethiopia for a year, they could, at least, create a more imaginative show.

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