Reviewed by Matthew John Plummer, Saturday 19th February 2017On One Condition is presented by Dan Daw Creative Projects and Graham Adey, in partnership with Murmuration (AUS), and is being performed at Tandanya as part of the Live From Tandanya program in this year's Adelaide Fringe. The work is written and performed by Dan Daw, choreographed by Graham Adey, and has scenography by Stephen Metcalf.
This powerful performance is immeasurably personal, welcoming us into the private life of Daw, who was born with cerebral palsy, and his journey through his career, past, present, and proposed future. Now based in the UK, his early work was with Adelaide's wonderful Restless Dance Company. He was the South Australian finalist in 2009 and the Western Australian finalist in 2010 for the Young Australian of the Year Award.
With a beautiful and bravely honest intention behind the work we are given permission to see into Daw's world. The title, On One Condition, connects to the neurological condition with which Daw lives, and is also a connection to a work by Adey, The Modern Condition, which inspired Daw to collaborate with him. This window for us to view through is a gutsy and raw effort from Daw, Adey, and Metcalf, with an outcome that stamps a lasting memory on the audience, a rare opportunity to see an array of experiences of a beautiful soul in this sometimes cold and harsh world.
There is an obvious and deliberate connection between performer and audience member throughout the show. Daw makes a connection to individuals in the auditorium with the intention of welcoming them, acknowledging and validating their existence and perspectives. This is an important gesture, and relevant in so many ways at this time for so many people, a powerful aspect to what is a very intelligent work in very many ways. The simple yet extremely effective set created by Metcalf is a view of the childhood bedroom in which Daw grew up, whilst the performance we see takes us on a journey through this period and into much more of this man's life, good and bad. Adey's choreography, exploring the everyday movements of Daw, drawing to, on the efforts made to realise his wishes to be a dancer in earnest, but also with tongue in cheek, creating wit and a lighthearted dynamic from rather a serious topic. The work of these artists walks us through a complex and otherwise very private life from beginnings right up to the here and now, an extremely present and alive performer, standing there, at the very front of the stage, right in front of you, connecting with you, accepting you into his world and asking to come into your world through this art.
A must see, and you will be glad you did, with so much to offer and with the potential to affect and inspire people in a myriad ways. Prepare to be surprised, confronted, elated, challenged, happy and sad but, above all, expect to have your expectations shattered. This work will stay with you.
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