The Here Trio
2020
When all around is changing, all we have is now...
This piece from acclaimed choreographer, Liz Roche, challenges preconceived ideas about site, history and the right to belong in a place.
CHOREOGRAPHER’S NOTE
At this time when there has been so much confusion around our shared future on the island of Ireland, it is definitely the right moment to come together as artists and reaffirm our position of openness and interconnectivity.
In preparation for the making of The Here Trio I thought first about the history of the actual site of The MAC in Belfast. I was thinking about all of the traffic of life that passes through a particular point in space over the years, a ‘here’. It made me question what and how things get remembered. I thought about how physical scars are permanent on the body, acting as triggers for memory, and how that can be in contrast to a site, where the memory can be erased with the destruction of the old structure and rewritten with the construction of the new. The movements convey bodies that are slightly ‘outside’ of themselves, agitated and driven, even stressed. Voices are independent from their speakers, images fracture and reform, and the senses are stuck in over exaggerated comparisons. Time doesn’t flow, but hiccups along, with memories and imagined histories erupting throughout. The body is a source of sound, with the beating heart and drum setting the pace.
Dance captures the body; its patterns, movements, expressions and energies. A person can say a thing but if their body isn’t behind it, it doesn’t have any weight or conviction. In dance we highlight what the body does before words are formed. We explore instinct and gut reaction, and in The Here Trio we have really tried to trust what the body says before the thinking mind has too much time to get in the way.
Maiden Voyage gratefully acknowledges the support of Principal Funder Arts Council of Northern Ireland; and Multi Annual Funding from Belfast City Council.
Liz Roche Company is funded by the Arts Council of Ireland and supported by Dublin City Council.
AUDIENCE COMMENTS
“I want to move like that! Loved the connecting forms, especially finger tips and toes and love the shadow sequence, Thank you.”
“So intricate, sensitive great depth. Composed and beautifully and in synch with each others’ emotions – such empathy”
“Intense, powerful, loved the narration. Amazing physicality.”
“I loved the green space the intricate connections and the dancers’ trust, the sound especially the narration, the part with the projections of the drum on to the smaller canvas.”
“Very thought provoking in relation to personal space and relationships.”
“Fabulous, loved the whole energy. The three dancers moved beautifully together. I love the sense of the ‘senses’. The control (or not) of the self and others. The heaviness of trauma not forgotten. I could have watched you for hours.”
“Excellent show, very intricate movement and terrific energy, visually arresting. Difficult to describe, non-verbal is beyond verbal!”
“Amazing, so well choreographed. Such energy, fabulous lighting and sound, use of shadow.”
“Beautiful moments of choreography throughout great connection between dancers and such trust. Loved the lighting and use of projection on the board and the use of text and voice was great too.”
“Unbelievable loved the performance – 3P’s precise, precision, poise. So sharp and tentative. The time ticking was so poignant – loved the drumming and escaping the mind to be of timeless and limitless essence. Movement was so sharp and flawless, a beautiful piece of great magic.”
“The three dancers had beautiful respect for one another. The piece was a wonderful ensemble, every voice equal and heard. The green, the lighting, the rhythmic music was eye catching. Bravo!”
“Intense – loved the stop start of the drum beat and movement. The moments of breathlessness in between I found uncomfortable during the voice over about the head injury and then the following movements took on new meaning. Refreshing.”
“Very insightful and intriguing work. Beautifully danced and really stunning production – lighting video and music to support the excellent choreography – loved it.”
“The presence of the dancers, their humanity emotional quality of the performance. The relationship between music and movement. The appearance of the small screen reflection of image on it and the juxtaposition of in and out of the space and dancers demeanours.”
“Silence is sound. Interesting and effective. Casting of dancers was perfect. Visually beautiful and supported the theme. Loved the use of white square prop to give contrast to the backdrop and focus audience towards pulse of music. Thank you.
“Incredible skill – cannot imagine the time effort that went into the choreography – Impressive.”
“An incredible dancer performance by the trio. Loved the visuals. It was dark at times so mixed emotions. At some points I was emotional and at others I was excited. Excellent.”
“Our senses guide us every day. We need someone to show us what else they are. Thank you.”
“Visceral, turbulent, intense insightful. Great to see Liz Roche work in Belfast.”
CREATIVE TEAM
Choreographer: Liz Roche
Composer: Bryan O’Connell
Dancers: Ryan O’Neill, Sarah Cerneaux, Glòria Ros Abellana
Lighting: Stephen Dodd
Sound design & visuals: Luca Truffarelli