São Paulo Dance Company
A dazzling display of elegance, strength and stamina
Norwich Theatre
São Paulo Dance Company's long-awaited visit to Ireland and the UK (it was originally scheduled to happen in 2020, but then Covid got in the way), concludes this week in Norwich, with two shows at Norwich Theatre Royal. It brings to a conclusion their gruelling debut tour, that began in Dublin on February 6th, and will have visited fourteen of the nineteen theatres that make up the membership of Dance Consortium.
Norwich Theatre Royal’s audience was certainly rewarded for their wait, treated to a dazzling display of elegance, strength and stamina, all abundant and abounding within the three dance pieces chosen for Friday night‘s performance. The evening began with 'Anthem', a powerful and primal piece, choreographed by Spain's Goyo Montero and with music scored by Owen Belton. Thirteen dancers emerge from a smoke-filled stage to explore themes of identity and nationhood. It is an epic and emotional journey, enhanced by dark and moody lighting, the dancers' tattered and stained clothing, and the work's sojourn-like cycle of life, oppression, rebirth, and pride. Spectacular and stunning to watch, and even though the piece lasted only 25 minutes, I think we all needed the 20 minute interval, simply to reflect on what we had just seen.
The second work, 'Gnawa', choreographed by Spain's Nacho Duato, and with a score written by seven separate composers, turned up the heat with a vibrant fusion of Mediterranean and North African music and dance. Fifteen dancers more than fill the stage as the piece explores and tells the story of the Gnawa people, originally brought to North Africa as slaves by the Berber. Dramatic and intense, the work was punctuated by a delicate and dream-like pas-de-deux from Ammanda Rosa and Nielson Souta. Fluid and physical, and in some ways recapturing the essence of Nijinsky's 'L'Après-midi d'un Faune', it became a jaw-dropping moment of pure beauty and physical control, and perhaps the highlight of the entire evening for me.
The third tier of the evening's exciting dance triage came in the form of 'Agora', created by Brazilian choreographer Cassi Abranches, and featuring a bass-laden soundtrack from Sebastian Piracés. It is an exhilarating ride of exotic rhythms and percussive beats, yet commences with just the metronomic ticking of a clock. ’Agora’ builds to its climax in a tangle of wildly sculpted, yet unbelievably synchronised, movement, including a number of spectacular leaps and catches – not just acrobatic, but at times aerobatic. The tempo flays wildly between funk, jazz and rock, the mood is playful, colourful, and even flirtatious, but the result is exhaustingly satisfying to watch.
We have waited patiently for this, the first visit from São Paulo Dance Company, but it was so, so worth it. A truly fabulous evening of dance, made even more rewarding by the short Q&A session at the end. Featuring two of the evening's performers as well as the company's Artistic Director, Inês Bogéa, the session reinforced just how passionate and committed these dancers are, and how important music and dance is to the entire Brazilian way of life. And, for just a few hours, that passion and love was shared with a very enthusiastic and appreciative audience at Norwich Theatre Royal.
