Triple Threat

On Saturday, I was at The Harbourfront Theatre to watch a retrospective celebrating Art of Time (a musical group) 20-year anniversary. For this particular performance, it was the collaboration they have done with dance companies.

Fifteen Heterosexual Duets (James Kudelka) found 5 pairs of dancers, accompanied by violin and piano, displayed various male-female dynamics. It was a propulsive start to evening with a flurry of lifts, spins, and pas-de-deux. Two actors played out Romeo and Juliet Act 3 Scene 5 before the scene was reprised as another Kudelka piece.

After a short pause, National Ballet's Tanya Howard explored contemporary movements while Andrew Burasko hammered out a John Cage composition. The most affecting performance for me was the final work Misesere. Five dancers, constantly entwined and connected, moved with deliberation through various tableaus. If these often carried religious overtone, it was due to Allegri's composition, and the exquisite singing of the 20-member Tafelmusik Chamber Choir. Standing on two levels behind the dancers, their voices rang out with such grace that they'd make believers out of almost anyone.