NATIONAL DANCE COMPANY WALES | THEATRE REVIEW
Sherman Cymru, Cardiff, Mon 10 Feb
I remember when this group were called Diversions. They came to my school once, and we (all girls) were thrilled and astounded to see such a plethora of near-naked, highly athletic men (and, for some of us, women) jumping and gyrating in front of us.
For me, not a lot has changed. I still love the fitness and physical finesse of the dancers’ bodies. But it is the freshness and vitality of this particular company that is perhaps most apparent, and the reason, no doubt, that they are now our National Dance Company.
In a bill of three pieces, we were first treated to Mythology, “a work about community, one unified by a common vision and language, coming together to achieve something greater than the sum of its individual parts”. Dressed in white shorts and tops that reminded me of early 20th century gym wear, figures left and entered the stage in various formations of robust synchronised movement. A soundtrack played and re-played, that of a male voice, perhaps in some sort of institution designed to improve physical, emotional, or mental health, recounting details of his time in that place. At times, he recited this calmly; at other times, his voice was strained, near-screaming. The synchronised movements of the dancers continued, like moving atoms or parts in a machine, and I wondered if everything was as perfect as it seemed in this brave new world.
They Seek to Find the Happiness They Seem was a two-person piece, the pair being a couple in this case. Dancing together, and then separated by a column of darkness and dancing alone in two seemingly distant spaces, themes of togetherness and dislocation were here explored deftly, with delicacy and depth.
Finally, we came to Water Stories, with dance inspired by Welsh rivers, reservoirs, and streams. Images of watery scenes were shown on the large screen behind as the dancers themselves ‘became’ like water– at this moment fast flowing; at another moment, still and moving more languidly. Beautiful flowing outfits added to the magical dreaminess of the dancing as well as the sense of ‘flow’. A mesmerising piece indeed.
In all, then, an excellent trio of terrific dances, all very different and all very well done. Not nearly as naked as I remember, but still, wonderful.
words MAB JONES