Night and Mortar is a chance to add a drop of dance with your drink of choice, bringing contemporary dance into the non-traditional location of an urban bar.

The work begins with the duo walking down a set of stairs to their performance space in the corner of the room, their jackets entangled. Dressed in business attire and moving as one organism, the relationship between the dancers builds as they navigate their attachment, creating a sense of tension and suspense that seems to rise and thicken the atmosphere as the work continues.

Motifs of cigarette smoking, clinking glasses, and looking over one’s shoulder set the moodiness as the bar space is transformed into a world inspired by film noir.

The physicality of the work is very clever, and every movement has been well thought-out and clearly intentioned. A particular highlight is a section where the dancers match their movements to film dialogue. Some of the movements performed take a direct influence from the words spoken, and the way the dancers match the timing of the movements to the drama of the spoken words and footsteps is satisfying to watch as the scene unfolds through gestures and quick shifts of position in the space. Hilarity ensues in a fight scene where the dancers struggle with each other to a soundscape of slaps in a theatrical back and forth.

I found myself wanting more interaction with the dancers, and more acknowledgement of the unique space we were in – though this may have been an intentional choreographic choice, and it did have the effect of a sense of separation between the audience and the dancers, as though we were watching the dancers through a movie screen, in their orchestrated realm. Perhaps some further use of the space beyond the corner of the bar and some weaving of the dancers between bar patrons would have been enough to satisfy this desire for interaction.

Overall, the work is slick and sophisticated. The dancers move through intricate gestural phrases with attention and ease, and the fuller body movement is just as engaging for the viewer. Both wholly occupy their space with their embodied presence, and dance with skill and style. The different portions of the work, and the uneasy relationship between the dancers, are expertly crafted to provoke the dark, noir aura.

Night and Mortar is a quick plunge into a world of noir, the perfect accompaniment to your evening drink at your local. I appreciate the way that this work brings contemporary dance into new and various spaces, in a way where people who may be unfamiliar with dance, can access it in a non-confrontational manner.

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