VIVID - review by Lív Smáradóttir Frodell

I saw VIVID on the 29th of December 2014 in the National Theatre of Iceland. The piece premiered the day before.

VIVID is about daring to be different. Allowing yourself to jump outside the box and experiencing new things. Daring to experience.

The piece is choreographed by Unnur Elísabet Gunnarsdóttir, an Icelandic dancer and choreographer which has been very noticeable in the last years. The music is very present during the piece and is composed by Viktor Orri Árnason. Costume and set-design is by Raluca Grada-Emandi and the motion-graphics are designed by Olivu Lugojan-Ghenciu. It is very obvious that Unnur has picked very fitting strong dancers for her piece that complement each other and fit together very nicely.

As soon as the performance starts you get a clear atmosphere which invites you into a different world. Everything is very minimalistic and clean. From the white tables and chairs that are both on stage and hanging from the ceiling to the loose see through open-back dresses they wear. Their costume is similar to hospital wear, with their loose underwear under the over sized dresses and on the contrary their hair is fixed in a very tight bun in the front over their hairline. For the most part I did not connect with the concept and I feel like the piece is more about the movement itself. The dancers perform with incredible softness and the movements are incredibly intricate. They dance in a perfect synchronisation and I was especially intrigued by the part where four of them sit next to each other by a table and manage to somehow look like one in their movement. The piece is split up on solos, duets and group pieces but the whole group does not dance together until the end which sum up the piece nicely. You notice very soon that one of the dancers does not move for almost the whole performance. She sits on a chair floating in the air, her face fixed in a blank stare. This paints a very strong image immediately but for some reason she then separates from the chair and performs a strong solo but I am unsure what causes this.

In this performance viewers could try to not get too caught up in the meaning and just enjoy pure, well rounded movement complimented by interesting music and a beautiful set.

Trailer from rehersals:

The whole piece is watchable on this link:

https://vimeo.com/channels/vividfull

Choreography: Unnur Elísabet Gunnarsdóttir

Music: Viktor Orri Árnason

Costume- and set design: Raluca Grada-Emandi

Motion graphics: Oliviu Lugojan-Ghenciu

Lighting design: Jóhann Ágúst Friðriksson

Dancers: Berglind Rafnsdóttir, Ellen Margrét Bæhrenz, Elín Signý W. Ragnarsd., Sigríður Ólöf Valdimarsdóttir, Þórey Birgisdóttir.

Camera: Antje Taiga Jandrig

Producer, camera and edit: Gunnar Hansson