Earthfall's GIG
Sitting in the intimate auditorium of the Cochrane Theatre, the audience is greeted with three flat screen televisions playing a video interview with members of a touring rock band, setting the context for a plot that unravels itself through a mixture of dance, live music, spoken word and song.
Through these we witness the musicians’ struggles with fame, friendship, rivalry, drug addiction and depression. Gig, Earthfall’s 26th production, revels in clashing genres and styles, from the clarinet infused Rock ‘n’ Roll opening track to the spoken verse chant complete with Spice Girls-esque arm routine. In theory this production should not have worked, but it did, and to outstanding effect.
Ten minutes into the video a girl enters through the back, hopping over seats and greeting audience members; annoyed, I turned my attention back to the stage only in time to witness said girl leap onto it in a bizarrely drunken manner. Making the connection that she was indeed a performer, I prepared myself for a performance full of surprise and theatricality. I was not disappointed. And I was gald to be a few rows from the back when water was thrown into the audience in true rock-star fashion; likewise when the drunken girl from earlier was energetically dancing by my friend sitting next to me, before grabbing her face in both hands and kissing her.
The cast - Rosalind Brookes, Beth Powlesland, Lara Ward, Michael Williams, and musicians Sion Orgon and Frank Naughton - is infinitely talented, the four physical performers dancing with the raw passion and violent energy of a tumultuous musician on the way to cataclysm before picking up a clarinet, or a saxophone, or a violin in accompaniment to the music played on stage. Directors Jessica Cohen and Jim Ennis made sure to extrapolate the individual skill each cast member had to create a performance full of variety. Dynamic and powerful pair work is thrilling to watch, as the performers interweave leaps, falls and spins around a drum set, several microphones and a keyboard, miraculously appearing unscathed.
Holding onto one another’s ponytails whilst dancing is innovative and arresting, showing the rivalrous nature between musicians and also their dependency on each other. The strength of the choreography, which included girls lifting girls and catching the partner mere centimetres from the ground, was juxtaposed with the sensitivity lacing their technically strong voices. One particular scene had the audience holding their breath - a girl on the brink of self-destruction, dancing with aggressive movement, violent fallings and pained expression, before her male dance partner simply held her in a heart breaking gesture of comfort.
Earthfall combine dramatic, visually profound choreography with great variety in the intermittent musical numbers, adding a sense of dimension to an exhilarating performance. Marking their 20th anniversary this year, they are a company of unrivalled talent, with a hint of cheekiness who keep the audience on their toes.
Visit www.thisisgig.com for more information, including soundtracks, video performances and tour details.
