Reflections Post CDF

Last week, I attended three out of four nights of the Canada Dance Festival. I saw Montreal's Jacques Poulin Denis as well as Lara Kramer, Vancouver's 605 Collective and Ottawa's own Bboyizm, led by Crazy Smooth.




605 Collective. (c) Wendy D Photography

 
I could probably say a lot about how fantastic this edition of the CDF was and how relevant its programming was. I think it's more important to give a few key comments about the artists who performed as it says more about canadian dance.

I've blogged about Jacques Poulin Denis and relayed interviews with Helen Husak and Kevin Ormsby from Kashedance as well as with Brian Webb, the artistic director from the CDF.

Kashedance



A few things were particularly memorable, in my view, in Kramer's, 605 Collective's and Bboyizm's choreographies.

Kramer's Fragments retold the story and more importantly, the emotions felt by her mother when she attended residential schools in Manitoba as a child. The first part of her show was very slow moving and much less focused on dancing, but the second half was very well constructed; it featured blood stoping facts on audio clips and very compelling choreography and music. The latter merged both contemporary and traditional aboriginal music and movement.

605 Collective. (c) Wendy D Photography

The second half of that evening's program presented 605 Collective's Inheritor EP, exploring the relationship with time, age and the concept of heritage in all forms, whether cultural or genetic. This group of five dancers was incredibly energetic and fun. Their range of performance extends from contemporary and ballet to hip hop  and martial arts. Their 3-piece number progressed towards more dynamic sequences and seemed to explore different aspects of heritage, such as genetics, environment and individuality. Their closing piece was definitely the one that had the crowd moving in their seats; it presented the dancers in a combination of choreographed group sequences and selected seemingly improvised solo jams, hence the notion of individuality within a group or set circumstances.



BBOYIZM

The Festival's very last show was offered to an Ottawa troupe: Bboyizm. The show, IZM, was about introducing the audience to the essence of hip hop culture - a very contemporary wave. The group, although mainly composed of male dancers, showcased the talents of three b-girls who held their own in a style that usually plays to the male physique and strenghts. Crazy Smooth (aka Yvon Soglo) opened the number with a small prologue and an introduction to hip hop and how it's a concrete representation of cultural disapora and ideally, of cultural dialogue. The athleticism, the aesthetics, the reflection and the sheer fun that went into pulling this together and sharing it with the audience was truly inspiring.