Review: TIME FOR US Connects with Atlanta Audiences

In Time for Us, French choreographer Fabien Prioville and his wife, Azusa Seyama, explore the codependent need for intimacy and the physical exertion that goes into relationships through a series of touching vignettes. Connected by their time under the tutelage of legendary avant-garde choreographer, Pina Bausch (founder of Tanztheater Wuppertal), they contemplate her legacy and how her work brought the two of them together.

The American premiere of Prioville's Time for Us opens the first series of the performance anthology Tanz Farm, which was created and curated by the Goat Farm Arts Center and glo. The experimental dance piece is a great introduction to the growing contemporary art scene in Atlanta. In a city known for its commercial theatre, the Goat Farm Arts Center and glo showcase contemporary art being made around and outside of the Atlanta area. It's the collaborative partnership between these artists that make Time for Us, a dance piece exploring the closeness of intimacy, feel genuine for audiences.

Time for Us, like many of Pina Bausch's dance pieces, experiments with elements of sound, movement, and dialogue to tackle a specific theme. The show begins with Prioville and Seyama acting as polar bears wrestling in the arctic tundra. Aside from the adorable factor that comes from two adults wrestling each other in polar bear costumes, the playful interaction between the couple is but a taste of the quirky tasks they play out to explore how people need and work together through intimate touch. From inflating an exercise ball with their lips to balancing acts on top of park benches, the couple explores how they work together as performers and as lovers.

Watching a show, an audience can forget the performers on stage are separate from the characters they play. In the case of Time for Us, there is little separation between Prioville and Seyama's personal relationship and the piece itself. While not invasive, Time for Us is an ongoing exploration of the couple's shared history and intimacy that audiences can both examine and relate to. The inherent honesty in Time for Us doesn't alienate the audience, but rather connects them to the performers. Where so many shows try to distance themselves from the audience, Time for Us values people's need for intimacy, and doesn't hestitate to connect with those watching.

For more information on Fabien Prioville's work, check out his dance company's website: www.fabienprioville.com
You can also find out more about future events happening at the Goat Farm Arts Center by visiting their facebook page, and be sure to catch series two of Tanz Farm by heading over to the anthology's website: www.tanzfarm.com