AUDIENCES can witness a “moment in dance history” at a festival in Glasgow this month.
Pioneering US dancer and choreographer Trajal Harrell will return to the city’s Tramway to present a rare solo piece inspired by his selection as dancer of the year in 2018 by respected dance publication Tanz Magazine.
The UK premiere of Harrell’s Dancer Of The Year is a hot pick of Dance International Glasgow (DIG), a three-week celebration of work by “some of the most important choreographic figures of our generation” along with new pieces by some of the most exciting artists in Scotland today.
Highlights include a new work by veteran choreographer Deborah Hay, the Scottish premier of Crowd, a “chaotic dance party” by French choreographer Gisele Vienne, a double bill from Scottish Dance Theatre and a new piece by key Scottish choreographer Colette Sadler.
This year’s DIG has Tramway’s senior curator of performance LJ Walsh feeling “like a kid in a sweetie shop”.
“DIG is about creating that balance between the best artists in Scotland today and some of these behemoths of dance, these iconic figures which people like Trajal and Deborah certainly are,” says Walsh.
She continues: “We’re very much talking about new work, new forms, trying to reconsider what dance is and how we receive it. Though we are asking questions of what is dance now, having these voices which essentially formed the history of dance come back in as innovative voices in this constantly-rolling form is really quite exciting.”
In 2013 Walsh saw Harrell in a Tramway performance of (M)IMOSA, a collaboration brought to Glasgow by edgy arts organisation Arika.
“That was one of the best things I’ve ever seen in my life,” says Walsh. “Trajal came from the American voguing scene and broke into this white-dominated, westernised contemporary dance scene. He was one of those key forces.
"What he’s doing with Dancer Of The Year is reflecting on what it means for him to dance, this idea of getting back to the nitty gritty of what it’s like for you to dance in a room on your own when you’re this iconic figure.”
Walsh adds: “I think a lot of people who saw it will remember (M)IMOSA as a special moment. Dancer Of The Year, which has hardly been performed anywhere, will also be on of these moments in dance history”.
Among the big Scottish names to appear at DIG is Colette Sadler, who explores posthuman bodies in the UK premiere of Temporary Store and Ultimate Dancer aka Louise Ahl, a Glasgow-based artist originally from Sweden acclaimed for her experimental performance work.
The full-length version of Temporary Store follows an excerpt of the work performed at Glasgow’s Gallery of Modern Art as part of Present Futures, a weekend of performance and discussion Sadler curated in June.
“Colette is one of the most successful dancers to have come out of Scotland in recent years,” says Walsh.
“Her profile is fantastic and we are absolutely delighted to have her come back with this piece.”
The hour-long work sees dancers as “post-human bodies” which speed up and slow down in an infinite loop of movement.
“I’ll be honest in saying I’ve not seen anything like it,” says Walsh. “The movement on stage is almost non-human, in a very delicate way. When we’re trying to work in VR, the virtual world meeting physical reality, what we’re doing is commenting on the human condition a lot of the time.
"Colette manages to do all that with live bodies-on-stage, and I’m excited about that.”
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READ MORE: Present Futures: The horizon of a post-human world
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Visitors to DIG on October 12 can spend six hours in the company of Ahl, performer Michelle Hannan and respected Australian choreographer Angela Goh in Ultimate Dancer’s Hevi Metle, a durational work mixing movement, film and sculpture.
“They literally will be working with sculptural materials in the T5 gallery space,” says Walsh. “Louise is an amazing artist who works with visual describers, used for a blind audience, very early in the creative process. She makes work that is truly accessible in that sense.”
Walsh adds: “Louise calls Hevi Metle an 'epic saga' and she really is inviting people to be there with her for six hours. Of course, for people less inclined, they can walk in and walk out as they wish.”
Walsh says the role of dance and movement has heightened in recent years.
“Everything is very precarious just now and it’s so destabilising,” she says. “That’s sad, in terms of some of the issues that these pieces are dealing with, that it feels like traditional conversation would only get us so far.
“When words seem to be failing us, there’s something very direct and honest about movement practise and dance.”
We’re digging it: picks of Dance International Glasgow
Nick Cave: Call and Response
DIG runs during UNTIL, the first European exhibition by Chicago-based artist Nick Cave. Several artists and collectives were invited to create a response to Cave’s show – Claricia Parinussa’s and Aya Kobayashi’s will be presented during DIG.
See www.DIGlasgow.com for updates
Rob Heaslip: Endling
Heaslip’s reimagining of mourning rituals through dance, vocals, visuals and design has its world premiere at DIG before going on to be presented at Aberdeen’s Lemon Tree on October 17, the opening day of ten-day contemporary dance festival DanceLive.
Tonight, T1, Tramway, Glasgow, 7pm, £12, £10 concs.
Colette Sadler: Temporary Store
The Scottish choreographer returns to DIG for the first time since its inaugural festival in 2015 with a piece exploring the interface between virtual and physical reality.
October 9, T1, Tramway, Glasgow, 7pm, £12, £10 concs.
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READ MORE: Looping: Scotland Overdub fuses Brazilian and Scottish culture
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Nora Invites Deborah Hay
Dance trio Nora perform a new piece created for them by veteran US choreographer Deborah Hay, a founder of the pioneering Judson Dance Theatre.
October 8 and 9, T4, Tramway, Glasgow, Oct 8 7.30pm, Oct 9 8.30pm, £12, £10 concs or £22, £18 concs as part of a double bill ticket with Temporary Store.
V/DA: Grin
Body, costume and lighting unite in Mele Broomes’ redevised duet, described as an “autobiographical story without words.”
October 11 and 12, T1, Tramway, Glasgow, 7pm, £12, £10 concs.
Farah Saleh: What My Body Can’t Remember
The Palestinian dancer and choreographer explores what her body remembers of living under curfew in Ramallah in the latest installment of her Archives of Gestures project.
October 11 and 12, Upper Foyer Gallery, Tramway, Glasgow, 7pm, £12, £10 concs.
Ultimate Dancer: Hevi Metle
Total Theatre Award nominated Ultimate Dancer (aka Louise Ahl) presents free six-hour dance performance Hevi Metle. Performed by three dancers, the durational work explores alchemy and transformation. Audience members can stay for six hours or dip in and out as they please.
October 12, T5 gallery, Tramway, Glasgow, 12.30pm to 6.30pm, free.
Gisele Vienne: Crowd
Choose which stories to watch in the Scottish premiere of renowned French choreographer’s 15-strong new work, set in a chaotic party.
October 16, T1, Tramway, Glasgow, 7.30pm, £15, £12 concs.
Trajal Harrell: Dancer Of The Year
A rare solo performance from Trajal Harrell focussing on what being named “dancer of the year” means to him as a choreographer and performer.
October 18 and 19, T1, Tramway, Glasgow, 8pm, £15, £12 concs.
Kate E. Deeming: Four Corners
Dance activist Kate E. Deeming presents a dance event and art exhibition in partnership with children from four local primary schools as part of Moving Out, an initiative supporting artists to adapt work for public sites.
October 20, Maxwell Square Park, Pollockshields, Glasgow, 2pm. Updates at www.deemingdreaming.com; twitter.com/PollokshieldsP1;www.facebook.com/DeemingDreaming
Scottish Dance Theatre: The Circle
Eleven SDT dancers wear stunning sculptural pieces while performing a new piece by Emanuel Gat set to a score by electronics god Squarepusher.
October 25 and 26, T1, Tramway, Glasgow, 7pm, £15, £12 concs.
Scottish Dance Theatre: Looping: Scotland Overdub
All are invited to join the political dance party, with text by top playwright Kieran Hurley and electronic score by Torben Lars Sylvest.
October 25 and 26, T4, Tramway, Glasgow, 8.30pm, £12, £5 concs or £22, £13 concs double bill ticket with The Circle.
Dance International Glasgow runs until October 26, Tramway and venues around Glasgow. Tel: 0845 330 3501. www.DIGlasgow.com
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