Review: Stephen Petronio Company
Venue: The Lowry
Date Reviewed: 26th May, 2008
Closing the Queer Up North Festival 2008 is this, the only UK performance by the internationally acclaimed Stephen Petronio Company. Comprising of three separate pieces, two of which are UK premieres, this is a thought-provoking, but ultimately lacking evening.
Opening the show is the Fischerspooner-scored Beauty and the Brut; a meditative, loosely narrative tale of one French girl’s beach encounter with a series of unlikely strangers. At times engaging, at times just plain pretentious (the score resembles Visage’s “Fade to Grey” more than anything else), the piece never quite finds its fifth gear. The blissed-out stoner narrative needs more kinetic precision to fill this massive blank canvas.
By contrast, This Is the Story of a Girl in a World is uneven – some parts wildly successful, some a little flat, and others beautifully realised and fully formed. It’s hauntingly scored (mostly) by Antony and the Johnsons. Michael Badger and Elena Demayenko’s wry duet, Snap, manages to connect successfully with this enormous auditorium for the first time, and showcases the breathtaking versatility of the eight-strong company. Likewise, Davalois Fearon’s solo, For Today I am a Boy is sublime; a beautiful exploration of yearning and hope, it’s a standout moment in an evening that often leans towards the emotionally devoid.
The second half, comprising Bloom is a real coup; specially commissioned by Rufus Wainwright, and featuring two Manchester choirs, it soars beautifully, allowing the full range of contemporary vocabulary breathing space in this stunningly-lit (by Ken Tabachnick and Burke Wilmore) void. Arranged (brilliantly, by Wainwright, surely his generation’s Gershwin) to the words of Emily Dickinson and Walt Whitman, the ensemble performance is testament to the balletic strength of the movement, though it lacks the dynamism and visceral kick of other world-class companies. It’s as brilliant as it is frustrating.
Trying to evaluate the evening is like approaching a patchy meal in a restaurant; some elements are wondrous in their scope, and a worthy platform for these truly exceptional dancers. Others, though, reveal a seeming stubborn refusal to truly connect and speak to its audience. A more intimate venue may have been a better choice, as (even up close) it can seem a little clinical.
That said, it’s a privilege to see world-class dancers of this calibre, and though this might lack the fierce electricty of a DV8 or a La La La Human Steps, these pieces show the company on strong form as they approach their twenty-fifth anniversary.
-Matthew Nichols