Accusations
Ann Van den Broek / WArd / waRD
##Rumours/ raw/ honest/ confusing/ trance/ personal
reflection
Concept
& choreografie Ann Van den Broek
Nederlandse Dans Dagen, De Bordenhal 07- 10- 2017
Beautiful, breath-taking, and fluid are not
words that seemed to be in place for Ann Van den Broek’s new piece
‘Accusations’. Raw, honest and throat-gripping are the words that came to my
mind instead when I experienced the performance at the Nederlandse Dans Dagen
in Maastricht. A live- camera mirroring Ann’s personal characteristics and
thoughts into the performers, spoken out loud and honest with rock-voices. It
all could have been too much.
Bron: kunstmin.nl
A prominent beginning, a square that lights up
in front of the stage. Contrast is very present in Ann’s work, and black and
white are the colours that dominate the space. Ann Van den Broek herself, walking
to the square. Her eyes squint, she looks at us all. This is about me, is what
her eyes say. In the dark silence her voice sounds strong: ‘I failed.’
A sum-up of confessions follows, made by the
performers who seem to be living in a setting of a catwalk. The confessions
express guilt, anger, flashes of memory. One by one the dancers speak into the
microphone, but they seem to be telling someone else’s story still in their own
body. This could be explained because the whole piece is about Ann. But in what
way are the dancers still themselves? This dark work is about her. Is that
self-centred?
A strong build-up follows, the movement doesn’t
bore at all. There are new things to see. The raw and rhythmic music is getting
pumped up slowly, emotions break out more and more through the cold catwalk
movement-style. Use of the camera’s facing from on the ground, use of light,
use of text brings us deeper into Ann’s seemingly complicated mind. Things get
dark when actor Gregory Frateur, starts to sing like a rock-frontman, causing
desperate movements by the dancers.
Even though one of the dancers got butt-naked,
and the performers finished with walking between the audience, there was still
a big emotional distance. A lot of expression, but it was like Ann was saying:
‘don’t you dare to try to help me’. Again, this is a contrast which she uses
very consciously in all of her work, but this was sometimes unclear, and
contact with the audience wasn’t really present. The piece was quite distant
and almost attacking the audience.
The interesting setting was definitely a plus.
Forming a catwalk to the ‘confession-square’, Ann herself on the side of the
stage. Cold lights, and a big screen at the back of the space. Ann used the
live video-material in a clever way. A performer could talk into the microphone
in a very arrogant way, but could look away to the camera, frightened. The
truth on the screen. These abstract ways of portraying the darkness of an
individual human mind are very well-thought out and not cliché at all, even
though at some points you can expect this. As for the text, sadly, these
clichés do come in some times. It would have been right if the level of
self-pity and being an ‘outsider’ would be dominant. If these certain sentences
were supposed to serve the piece, I am not completely convinced.
Ann does finish the piece herself, which had to
be more than perfect. Her, and her demons say goodnight. Not to you, but to
herself.
Concept & choreografie Ann Van den Broek
Van & met Ann Van
den Broek, Louis Combeaud, Gregory Frateur, An Hackselmans, Frauke Mariën, Nik
Rajsek en ook metRiedon van den Berg / Davide Calabrese / Wolf Govaerts / Laila
Gozzi
Tekst Ann Van den Broek & Gregory Frateur
Video- & lichtontwerp Bernie
van Velzen
Decorontwerp Ann Van den Broek & Bernie
van Velzen
Geluid & compositie Nicolas Rombouts
Styling kostuums Veronique Branquinho
Tekst advies Hans Timmerman
Advies Marc Vanrunxt
‘Accusations’
is een productie van Ward/waRD (BE/NL)
Curious? Click below for the trailer.
Accusation
akjʊˈzeɪʃ(ə)n
noun
plural noun: accusations
1.
a charge or claim that someone has done something
illegal or wrong
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