http://eprints.qut.edu.au/25854/

QUT Digital Repository: http://eprints.qut.edu.au/

Stock,Cheryl. (2002) here/there/now/then (Creative Work) commissioned site-

specific work for Brisbane Powerhouse

© Copyright 2002 Cheryl Stock and artists

CONTEMPORARYdance returns to theBrisbane Powerhousewith performances thatget into the crevices of

public spaces.A flight of stairs leading nowhere.

the space under a stairwell and thewaiting space of a theatre foyer arethe sites for works in the danceproject, hereltherelthenlnow.DeYised by Queensland University

of Technology head of dance, andformer Dance North artistic director,Cheryl Stock, the five promenadeperformances are backed byAusdance as part of Australian DanceWeek which runs until Sunday.Stock says it's a chance for indi-

viduals, forced to work solo becauseof a lack of company spaces, to workcollaboratively."\Ve are training a lot of dancers. I

am head of an institution whichtrains them, and they tend to go outand explore their own work, ratherthan someone else's work through acompany. Call them individualartists, solo artists. In fact it is apretty tough environment and oftennot something done by choice butnecessity," she says."So I started to think of this

change and of the way contempor-ary dance performance has evolved."Site-specific performances are

being choreographed around thePowerhouse by Brian Lucas,Vanessa Mafe and LeanneRingelstein. Their work will culmi-nate in a joint performance, a workby Stock which will use the spaceinside the Brisbane PowerhouseVisy Theatre.The four performers who will

guide the audience through theevenings have been hand-picked byStock to work within the spaces.Ringelstein has danced pro-

fessionally for eight years, includinga time at Dance North where shefirst met Stock.Ringelstein was shortlisted for an

\

get er

Isadora Duncan Dance Award thisyear after performing and studyingdance in San Francisco through aChurchill Fellowship.Thai-born composer/singer

Watchiraporn (Nok) Thumrongsat isfinishing her Master of Music degreeat Queensland University of Techno-logy and also has a natural talent fordance, although no formal training.Ko-Pei Lin has had more than 10

years' dance experience in Taiwanand has been seconded toExpressions Dance Company whilecomple~ing studies at QUT.And Brisbane Powerhouse resi-

dent performer Lucas is heavily in-volved in dance education and per-

formance which takes him to venuesaround Queensland.Lucas wants to show the contrasts

between metal and flesh in the move-ment piece here, accompanied bysound artist Brett Collery and visualartist Ian Hutson. Ringelstein andThumrongsat will explore the con-fines of an enclosed space in therewith original Thai music composedby Thumrongsat, while Mafe and vis-ual artist Jondi Keane are workingon acontempcirary still life perform-ance of then with' Ko-Pei Lin andcomposer Stephen Stanfield.Stock has taken two weeks out of

her academic schedule to O\'erseethe project, and choreograph thefinal performance piece, now. She

will return to QUT just in time forthe Gardens Theatre performanceof Dance Bytes and thepostgraduate showcase."!t's hard after 30 years as a pro-

fessional to all of a sudden be calledan academic and go into a very biginstitution, although it is also veryexciting with QUT's CreativeIndustries," Stock says."It is very nice to be able to do

some of my own work for a time anciI have had this idea for quite a long"time now without having a specificvenue in mind."Here/lhere/lhen/now, Brisbane Powerhouse,

promenade performance leading theaudience through three locations. Tonight toSunday:~du}ls: S20. Bookings: 3358 8600.

PerformanceInfrastructure forDance

The following pages provide abrief survey of some of theinfrastructure which exists andsupports the diverse practice ofAustralia's independent artists.Tbis survey is by no means',complete, and should alsoneread in conjunction with Stateand Territory Ausdance news(p.5-6). This provides addition<illcontext for the role of Ausdance in.itssupport role for the profes, ion.

Finding place with danceHere. The place in which you find your-

selr. Fro 111the viewing level, the rear stairs or

the Turbine Hall drop though 2 tiers like a

medieval descent into purgatolY and hell.

Brian Lucas begins his stolY eye to eye with

his audience, a story of victim/aggressor draw-

ing on the impulses of serial killcrJcfr,·cy

Dahmer and lures us from safety into less cer-

tain waters.

Voice and movcment elllbody his 1""1, arecollection or cvents onc cold New Zeabndnight. Our gaze tTavels down through t.his

torch-lit temple to an intimate space-a dining

table, a serve or raw livcr, a romantic dinner

date. The symhiosis or word and gesture set

against [ken Collely's aural backdrop or a girl

pop group, return.s us to another version or

events. Repetition lulls, then puts us on alen.

Danger intensific'S, and Lucas disappearsbelow as into the mouth or hell. Calmly, he re-emerges rrom the basement-as Ihough obliv-

ious to the ravaging animallhat had just givenvent to its 11I0Stdepl~lved desires.

l-IadrJIfrerrltel1/Now, an initiative or

director Chelyl Stock, brings together imk-

pendent solo dance artists and their collabora-

tors (visual, Inuit i-media, lighting ami sound

designl'l's). Fom unique siles around the

Brish:lI1l' Powerhouse were nomin;lInl for Ihe

creative response or") discrele creative tcam,

who came IOgether under Slock's direction in

the Il,unh space, thc Visy Thealrc, li,r Mill'.

Tllne. We !iJlIow our guide and pecrdown into a concrete edl resonaling wilh NokTh,"nrongsat's plaintive Thai singing.C11"Jl'I).L:I~II'!Il.,.I_c;lImeRingelstein relclllks,l)'

assailillg the w'll1s of their confinement.

Trapped, neither acted upon the space in Ihe

way Lucas did, but instead made themselves

suhordinate to ii, responding within the !:In-

guage range of their respective disciplines.

Purporting to examine cultural responses to

stress and confinement, TilerI' ended with ilS

first actioll-the assertion or one individual

against an/other, unrorlunalely leaving ofrjust

when it got interesting.Tilell. Time past. Embodied ill still lire, a

painting in 3D: Vanessa Male andJondi

!(eane's response to the theatre royer site. Still

Iild And )'et the dallcer mo\'l'S, e"l'lt1ring theinstallat ion-an arrangclllcnl of stOlle\V~rc on

a suspended glass Iable. Picking up, puning

down, rolling around all orange. I<o-Pei Lin

looked lovely in her orange-lined hoop peni-

coat, lovely in Ian HUlSon's stills that line the

walls. So ... why is she moving? Tllell might

have. worked just as well in a ClJllVelliiomll

black box for the dance added no new mean-

ing, anempted no joumey, held 110 dialogue

with Ihc place Ko-Pci Lin was ill.Beyond its visual design, TI,ell was an acs-

thetic frolic within the languagc or coillempo-

1"")' dance as accumulaled in Ihc perlimnative

body or Ko-Pei Lin. (A smanerillg or oriental

hand movemCl1ts slightly enriched the vocab-

ulaty.) For direclor Stock, an ;Lspect or the

project was the way ill which the hody's accu-

mulated histOly or lechllitl' Ie and cultlll'e

inform crcalivc outcom,·s. The cxclusive phys-

icality of these dancers' hislorics sOll1etimes

seemed to remove them liulTl the immediacyof Ihe present. I~ingelslein's voicclessness in

T/ICrc seemed an unnatural gag Oil her C)'1xes-sive potcnli'll, where sillger ThumrongS:lt

movcd wilh a natul~11Iluidity (holislieally)

acro5.Sthc horders of discipline. Thumrongs'lt

was actor/singer/dancer, her perrmmative hody

providing sound, gesture ((/Ill Illeaning.

Now. Whcre we culminate, where we

converge. Stock speaks or Ihc "site as a sparse-

Iy fragmented reposilory or what has gone

before", and or "stairs 10 nowhere, deep

crevices with no purpose." ,I' the Sill' began as

a void of ambiguous negaLion, Now didlinle tofill it..Juxtapositiolls that arc merely serendipi-tous call'l be relicd on to engender new narra-

Iivcs. nO;lI ing ohjecrs--hoop skin, finger cym-hals, 'I Gllldic-rcrerenced Ihe previous wmks

as pari or a sea or memory: amorphous and

impact-rrec. Three discrete themes, wovcn

together ill time anti space, never bore upon

each other to pmduce a I<lllllh element.

Al"tera while Ihough, a tllbleaux evolves.

Gid ('(Ifs OIWI,~(', tr'1I1slimning stililili:. ;\ '('lIy

is 1'(/01.1,Ir;1I1sllll'lning the p:Lst. r:inally, a step

1C]lw~lI'll,into the unknown, inlo rUlllre slories.

The re-aetion heeomes (Inion; relationships

move be)io:lL1design al~d sensation and beginto initiate nll'anings lor the spectator, allowing

us to heOH1h' :leI ivl' lislcl1cr, not just V()'l'llr

LUC:Ls'creali,'" re~ptllL,e W;LS bUlh al'lil"t·

am] re'1L'lil'L'.If Ihe sill' was poilll A, hi,

Dahmer tcxt gave hinl pointB, betw('enwhicl,

a productive lension took pbce. This tension

liJrced him to apply conceptual (rather than

cO'1mreal) agility in oreler to command the

given space to 5Clve a greater purpose. ,\rter

Lucas' byered and multi-disciplined opening,

whal seemed lacking elsewhere in the pm-

gr~lnl was an explicit intl'llectual response, an

l'quiv;lknl engagement with a resource of

ideas. Iln-.- was where J wanled Ihem all 10 be.

I it'rdl'herdThcn/Now, dilc(/ol Chervl

SW(/I; dlOlmgmphfl" 13ri(1IILllws, Lmllllc

n;II,~c/,(cill, Vallessa Mare, Cilnyl S(ocll; ,I,,"cns;

I\o-!'!'i Lill, Lnl/llle nillgel.lfdll; ,illgc1' Noll

TllIlJIIIOII,~'(I(;(omposer Stepl,clI SWlljic/d; '01111.1

(/1(;1/ H,d( Co/lny; vi.\I1(// ar/;,fs/olldi /\C<lIIC. /(1/1

Illltsoll; 1i,~JI/;lIgdcsigllj"'011 ()I:~(I/I,IlI;S!'<lIIC

l'OIVCl'iIOIlS(,,'vlay 15-18

Here/there/then/now directed by Cheryl StockReview of narrative by Rosie Klich

Throughout history it has been the cultural function of narrative to represent and to make

sense of the human experience. However the performance installation Here There Then

Now, set in the intimate shadows of the Brisbane Powerhouse, both explores and---challenges the limitations of traditional narrative by offering its own truly beautiful and

..,/

As the audience is lead through the hidden spaces of the Powerhouse, they are presented

with four individual-irrstallations that explore and interpret the basic elements of space,

object, sound and movement. The four performance pieces may be individually regarded

as whole and separate, each unique in its aesthetic and narrative significance. While the

'multi-form' structure of the creation fractures the narrative, the audience is obliged to

causally link the individual works and accept an unfamiliar narrative progression that,

while fragmented and layered with many levels of narrative meaning, is actually linear.

This progression is climatically heightened in the fourth scene which combines and

counterpoints the thematic and aesthetic histories of the preceding performances.

The journey begins on the ground floor of the Turbine Hall and slowly moves through the

structures of the building into the depths of the Visy Theatre. Each performance draws

the audience physically lower into the building, reflecting the deepening immersion

experienced by the audience. This concept of depth resonates throughout the work and

the space itself is integral in the growth of thematic meaning. The very idea of belonging

to a specific space introduces concepts such as restriction and the idea of being trapped,

which are furthered pursued through the movement and complimentary soundscapes.

The first three performances establish abstracted fictional worlds, each with its own

rhythms, patterns and performers. Characters and action are created through expressive

movement and the interaction of the performers with the space and objects of their

individual worlds. Each short work develops it own thematic expression, exploring

subjective notions of betrayal, aggression, decay and deception. These themes develop

direct relativity in the final performance, with the morphing of the spaces and the

individual worlds creating a beautiful exploration of new relationships and stories. The

final performance provides satisfying conclusions to the lines of compelling dramatic

tension, a 'rounding-off' of the entire performance that complies with traditional notions

of linear narrative endings despite the ambiguity of the--meanings.

./

The ability of the work to create meaning is actually embedded in the very nature of its

intertextuality. The text is the body, the voice, the space, the music, and meaning is

produced through the interaction of these elements. The specific locating of the four

individual pieces wit1'finth~ enormous building allows the natural design of each site to

offer its own emotive and aesthetic contribution to the experience of the creation.

Every note of music and movement of the body interacts with the space and becomes

significant to the progression of the narrative. While the progression itself is causally

linear, the elements of the performance creating numerous layers of meaning that

disguise the linearity Gf the nan"ative and enhance the audience's experience by engaging

their senses as well as their intellect.

The aesthetic beauty and intensity of this performance piece alone make the work a

valuable experience for the audience. It is also indicative of an emerging nanative

expression in the theatre, where performative montages and fragmented intertextual

creations are exploring and deconstructing the essential properties of both theatre and

narration and creating new ways of experiencing narrative.