Last night, I saw my last fringe show, For Body and Light's "Bear Dreams" at the Metro Studio. In short, it was excellent.
There. Done. Can I go now?
Not really. It's probably useful to now write some words that help the reader understand why I liked it so much, so they can judge whether my reaction is something they would share. Some description, some short analysis, and then we can be done.
Recently, the UK Guardian's literary critic wrote a piece about how bad Terry Pratchett is as a writer, and how is mediocre writing is a waste of everyone's time. Problem is, he hasn't read the authors work beyond a few pages, and his break down of the work he's reviewing is somewhat lacking. Contrast with this piece by Jacqueline Rose on "Gone Girl" and "Girl on a Train". Here the critic breaks down the work, in context, on why they are disturbing and un-rewarding books.
That makes a great piece to read. The author has given you something to muse over, and you can think more about whether you'd like to read the books anyways. You can understand much more about them, and also, if you've read them, think about your own reaction to them in a different way.
What's this got to do with "Bear Dreams"? Well, it got a One Star review from the Times Colonist arts reviewer. Of course he can give any level of review he so likes. But the review itself, to me, was not a good review, as it left anyone reading it with a view of the show that is different from what I saw, and throughly enjoyed. If you are giving out such low marks, it's really got to be something devoid of merit.
"Bear Dreams" is a mix of spoken word poetry, dance, spectacle and audio guitar loops. The poet, Ian Ferrier, recites in hushed tones a story about travel, discovery and a love of Canada. A journey through time and memories of the cold, dark winters that the original (and later) settlers to this place came across, struggles against and made their home.
The music is simple, emotional and moody. Use simple chords and rhythms, looped and varied, the sounds keep a tempo with the words, and with the on stage action. At times it's simple movement of the three dancers, moving light around, cast shadows and beams over the audience and the stage. At other times, the music and movement intensifies, with the two principals running, diving and rolling over the entire space. They use lights, pillows and their own bodies to recreate and retell the words spoken.
Stephanie Marin-Robert, the choreographer, paints the pictures of love, of winter and the voyageurs with her dancers, and herself. The two principals, Danika Cormier and Joachim Yensin-Martin, use the space to retell a love story of the Thompsons. The Thompsons, David and his Metis Wife Charlotte, discover and explored many parts of central Canada. They show the finding new space in the wilderness, and use a large silk net to create further images and patterns on the stage, as Ian narrates an audio tapestry.
In the finale, some of the audience is invited on stage to create a tent with this large silk net, and use small green and violet torches to re-image the aurora borealis. The shows builds to this point, with the music and the dance becoming more and more urgent, until we are left with the tension relieved as the tent whisks away, and the music and story ends as the Bear awakes from his dreams.
This show is more than it's parts. It's creating a large, mood driven piece, that's intense, that's trying to create a tight emotional response in your belly. That's trying to make you feel something more than laughter or joy. A sense of belonging and sense of place.
How it does that may not be for everyone. But it does what it's trying to do well. There's no bum notes, or overly earnest appeals to the crowd. It's a piece of moving, living art, that you look at, and either accept or reject. It's a time for reflection, and a space for thinking.
It's really not the sort of thing on paper that I would of thought I'd like. But I did. I loved it, like I loved "Coming and Going" last year.
I hope I have fulfilled some of my brief as a reviewer, and you can now judge whether you think it is a show worth seeing when it comes to Vancouver, or if its not for you. If I have swayed you in either direction, mission accomplished.
[[ I know Ian Ferrier, the poet, from last year's fringe when he billeted with me, and he billeted here again. I say this for full disclosure of any bias. ]]
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