Review: IL CIMENTO DELL’ARMONIA E DELL’INVENTIONE - ROSAS/A7LA5, Sadler’s Wells
Fusion and elevation
Writing about certain choreographers can be daunting. Enter the room Anne Teresa de Keersmaeker. The founder/choreographer of Rosas, De Keersmaeker has been on the scene since the early 80s, and continues to be the point of reference for many. There was a recent blip concerning working conditions but things seemed to have settled…though I'm an elephant when it comes to these kinds of seismic moments.
Regardless, Rosas return to Sadler's Wells for the UK premiere of Il Cimento dell’Armonia e dell’Inventione, a choreographic collaboration between De Keersmaeker and Radouan Mriziga of collective A7LA5.
It's a work for four men and uses Vivaldi’s "The Four Seasons" as it's score. How wonderful to be reintroduced to a work you think you know…but of course, anything exposed to the De Keersmaeker level of analysis will take on new life.
Fundamentally the work feels like a love affair with the score and the broader topic of the climate crisis debate explored via the seasons. The blurb asks a pointed question: do we still have four seasons? I'm sure there's plenty of scientific research to support both sides of any possible argument, but according to De Keersmaeker and Mriziga we have at least six. From my counting we experienced all four and then autumn and winter again, but I'm absolutely not complaining.
De Keersmaeker’s canon is well known for musical analysis, and Il Cimento dell’Armonia e dell’Inventione is no different. Long (ish) periods of movement with no music explore rhythm and phrasing at their own leisure, then Vivaldi blasts from the speakers and everything makes even more sense than it did. Pleasure in rhythmical cohesion, satisfaction in melodic and dynamic harmony. You get the picture I'm sure.
Image Credit: Anne Van Aerschot
The dancers are a revelation. Four idiosyncratic movers who eek everything out of what they've been given, be that with boundless energy or almost barely perceptible subtlety. What continues to amaze me about Rosas is the ability to fuse and elevate. The fusion is the seamless interweaving of genre; here we see contemporary dance and street (specifically spinning), and the elevation is the journey of pedestrian, action based movement into something simultaneously accessible and profound.
Is there another maker who can take the humble walk into celestial territory? With Vivaldi as a backdrop, the four dancers trace figures of eight, walking forwards, then reversing, with commanding arm gestures, then reflective repose. It continues for a while, one starts to wonder why, then the experience supersedes rational thinking - don't question just give in. No issues here.
This is probably the first Rosas work where I've experienced overt humour. Throughout the movement included literal gesture that one could interpret as aligned with the seasons; sowing seeds, mosquito swatting, falling leaves, ice skating. The dancers seemed to relish the literalism so who are we to argue?
The environment is a black box with symmetrical tubular lighting; think generic office. The lights flicker signifying rhythm I assume, but it could also be messaging from another civilisation. At times the stage has no lighting, and the auditorium is bathed in a calming but disconcerting orange hue. Is this a warning of sorts? Is something out of kilter? I think we all know the answer to that question.
I left as I always do after a Rosas experience. In awe of the craft, asking questions about genre boundaries and ready to reconnect with the music I was just re-exposed to. Being a maker can't be easy, a genius even less so. And one wonders what the future holds. Does Mriziga have the same sensibilities as De Keersmaeker? Will De Keersmaeker ever be able to step away from the hallowed creative space she created? We shall see…and in the meantime; relish whatever happens as these questions are finding their true answers.
Il Cimento dell’Armonia e dell’Inventione was performed at Sadler’s Wells Theatre 8 – 9 May
Image credits: Anne Van Aerschot
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