On stage, three solos on the edge of the impossible, at the limit of physical performance, and so interesting -for that very reason- to be thought of from a disciplinary approach that, curiously enough, also seems to strain its own principles. There is something risky and at the same time fascinating about being there in front of Croatto and her dances, as solitary as they are passionate.<\/p>\n
Solos Ext3mos <\/em>(Three Extreme Solos) are three pieces that mix classical ballet, expressionist dance and butoh techniques with multimedia resources. Against this, I believe I own the theoretical tools to face the task of thinking about a complex body which, from the outset, is not presented subtly, far from the figure of the sylph. However, today those tools sound pure slogans to me.<\/p>\n Then, I choose a different path. I turn to Nicol\u00e1s Rosa’s fascinating text \u00abThe nature of passion\u00bb[2]<\/sup><\/a> from which the almost spontaneous question arises: What moves that body, and I discover that in Solos Ext3mos <\/em>a body crossed by desire \u00abspeaks\u00bb to us\u00a0 or, more precisely, I hear the clamour of three bodies affected by three absences<\/em>.<\/p>\n Solo 1<\/strong><\/p>\n By way of social criticism, this first section of the presentation consists of the hyperbolic thematization of the female body immersed in a social device which assigns both a role and a rhythm. Different scenes depict sociological stereotypes such as that of a woman who holds her gaze defiantly in front of the public while smoking a cigarette, another one who goes for groceries to the supermarket, or the one who succumbs to the gift-trap of a red rose.<\/p>\n On the sound level, this piece uses repetitions of German words (voiced off as if it were a language course). The costumes consist of all-in-black leather and mesh attire with black ankle boots, in reference to the punk style, in accordance with the visual background by the artist Silke Mansholt, which evokes the graffiti of the Berlin Wall. From these elements which are\u00a0 sustained in a rhythm of unbalanced effect -exacerbated by the loop of certain phonemes-, the body fluctuates through an alternation of agile movements and frenetic walks; thus, constructing an artificial, uncomfortable dance. It is about a tense body, fearful of the possibility of no longer belonging and, for this very reason, it attends to and executes its role with energetic and repeated movements until exhibiting a nervous breakdown or exhaustion. This body twists, shakes and pushes itself to the limit. Long-suffering but always driven by the desire to remain part of it.<\/p>\n @lurivero.ph<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Solo 2<\/strong><\/p>\n This scene begins with a soft instrumental melody that, at first thought, suggests to the viewer that what follows will be of great relief in relation to the intensity experienced a few minutes before.<\/p>\n The black-box stage together with the use of minimal costumes make the light prominent. The dance is performed based on a poem[3]<\/sup><\/a> that is heard off and on which the performer performs a lip sync<\/em>.<\/p>\n yesterday I did a new dance – a dance of fear – small movements – perfectly choreographed – alarm gestures\u00a0 – jolting moves – laboured breathing – it was such – its success – that I will dance it – today again – and tomorrow – and the day after that[4]<\/sup><\/a><\/em><\/p>\n The artistic undulation that the movement acquires combined with the surface of the body through subtle games of shadows emphasise the recitation.<\/p>\n The tempo is permanently varying, on which the body produces compulsive movements by thumping and shaking, turning as well as release-and-fall gesturing that produce a sense of helplessness, of being out of control (the unpredictability of these actions causes an anxiety effect). Gradually, the body comes to a halt, becomes small and vanishes.<\/p>\n It is the most subtle and bereft solo of the three, however, it is the one that exhibits an absolutely overwhelmed carnality, lost in sadness and solitude. A body leaning over an abyss, counting on nothing but itself to keep from falling.<\/p>\n @lurivero.ph<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Solo 3<\/strong><\/p>\n It is based on five songs in voice (off) by Elizabeth Woollett with texts by Goethe, which explore the themes of nature, love and loss. The dancer moves accompanied by a martial arts Bo stick.<\/p>\n In this third solo, the body ceases its subjectivity to become pure materiality subsumed under the pulsed movement and the extensive gesture. As a partner, a long wooden cane is added to the scene, which collaborates as a pendulum needle with the mimesis of a metronome; its base is the performer herself positioned vertically, or rather it could be a spear used by the dancer to repeatedly address the spectators. In this way, bringing them to the unwavering rhythm of the time that marks her movements. From a body point, attached to a regular tempo, to a body trajectory (aspects aligned by the paintings that serve as a backdrop[5]<\/sup><\/a> ). A body that at times extends itself through the object to focus on the figurative effects of a personal space projected towards the extrapersonal. In this third solo, we observe a present body that interrogates, challenges and strains itself within its own limits but in search of something beyond.<\/p>\n @lurivero.ph<\/p>\n<\/div>\n On Balance<\/strong><\/p>\n The variations in the movement and posture tone, appearing at times whimsical and extravagant, modulate three distinctive emotional moods in complement or counterpoint with the verbal expression together with the sound and visual element.<\/p>\n The Cowie-Croatto duo wields (there is no better term) some physicality that links the social and the individual figuratively. The act becomes distinctive by varying in its typification, which oscillates between presenting itself as a mirror of instincts or as pure physiognomy.<\/p>\n Then, what could be said from a semiotic point of view? Well, that we are dealing with three solos, or rather, with one body and three ways of being affected. Three variations in dance that allude to an embodied emotion which takes shape in lacking states. Where the absent subdues but also mobilises, leading to linger on in resistance.<\/p>\n In short, and from the position of expectation, three ways of being impressed and transformed. Three passions.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Notes<\/strong><\/p>\n [1]<\/sup><\/a> From the rediscovery of the body by Semiotics in the last decades of the twentieth century to the present day, about forty years have passed. The main research currents have positioned themselves, at a greater or lesser distance, from what Nicol\u00e1s Rosa (2005) called \u00abA general theory of emotions\u00bb with long philosophical, psychoanalytical and aesthetic roots, such as the Semiotics of Passions by Greimas and Fontanille (1991), or the studies on referentiality and perceptual judgments developed by Humberto Eco (1997) present different descriptive aspects with a phenomenological-structural tendency in the way they have constructed the body as an object of analysis and theorisation. In recent years, the queries that have emerged in the light of studies focused on materiality refer to the place of embodied memory; the functioning of perception as a multidimensional interface as well as the status of the body and its artification within the framework of mediatisation.<\/p>\n [2]<\/sup><\/a> The Nature of Passion (2016). Digital Studies<\/em>, 17<\/em>, 35-49. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.31050\/re.v0i17.13496.<\/a><\/p>\n [3]<\/sup><\/a> Authored by Billy Cowie.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/loie.com.ar\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/solos-extremos-2024-17-1200x800.jpg\")
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