Multi-media masterpiece may be glimpse of future
It is strange watching a dance performance live on computer – it is, of course, not the same as being at the theatre, but the great Rambert dance company has adapted so well to the challenge of these difficult times.
Celebrated Norwegian choreographer Jo Strømgren has presented Rambert’s new production Rooms as a multi-media experience, featuring lots of televisual and film devices so viewers at home can get a real close-up of the action.
The dancers appear on a small screen reminiscent of Hollywood’s silent movies.
This latest production, a world premiere for the Theatre Royal, Bath, is a dark and fascinating piece about modern living.
The title Rooms refers to the storyline, cameos of people’s lives in various rooms as seen from outside and it can be disturbing and melodramatic.
Reminiscent of Hitchcock’s classic Rear Window we, the audience, are allowed a glimpse into the domestic lives behind the glass.
Performers have to act, speak, mime and dance and it all feels very new for Rambert to make live streaming as interactive and engaging as possible.
There are different and disturbing cameos going on in each room, scenes of domestic violence, a live birth, sex, wild parties, families in turmoil, loneliness, desperation, suicide.
Rooms is so much more than a dance, it evokes the genre of opera, ballet, theatre, mime, music as well as breathtaking modern movement.
It is a very clever innovation for the award-winning dance company during these difficult times for performers.
The use of video and film, particularly
in the close-ups, means audiences are for the first time allowed to get close to the action, to the dancers’ faces.
This works really well and is a real challenge for the performers.
Strømgren has chosen beautiful pieces of music to accompany the extraordinary modern dance movements, and it is monumentally sad at times.
The final scene is a grotesque series of images fleeing past on the screen as the performers come together for a fast-moving and at times disturbing crescendo of action.
To ramp up the drama there is a very lifelike human baby doll thrown into the action, which adds to the catharsis at the end.
The performances over last weekend were filmed live from Rambert’s studio in London and streamed to the Theatre Royal, Bath.
So even though audiences were sitting at home by their computer they were treated to a real live performance on screen.
You could hear the musicians and dancers getting ready before each performance and this adds an element of excitement in these performance-starved times.
It is a highly technical production, with some extraordinary dance movements and cinematic melodrama.
We love Rambert in Bath, we can’t wait to see them here live again but while we are waiting this really is a very interesting alternative. You get the feeling the televisual experience on stage will be something permanent for the company in the future.
Rooms is funny, heartbreaking, sad, disturbing, macabre at times but there is no denying it is a masterpiece in experimental technical performance.
Rooms was performed for the Theatre Royal, Bath last Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday at different times.
Watching productions online is a great way to support the Theatre Royal.
Tickets are around £10 and help both the performers and theatre while we wait until the great day when we can return in person, hopefully in May.
To watch Rooms and for further information about forthcoming performances, visit www.theatre royal.org.uk