SOLO COMMUNITY
The New Edinburgh Folk Club, 50 Dundas St, Dunedin
05/02/2016 - 06/02/2016
Production Details
Hahna Briggs uses bodily knowledge of community participation to create and perform a variety of distinct solo works. In particular, they draw from memories of choreographed movement from past collective interactions with GASP! Dance Collective and Clsterfck, as well as childhood movement memories.
Connected to multiple communities, some connections are ongoing and others are fleeting. These various connections contribute to Hahna’s bodily knowledge…”[my] personal histories, resulting from a lifetime of habit, experience, expression, physical challenges, cultural heritage and sense of place [that lie] resting in the bones, muscles, sinews and skin, awaiting reference.” Rank, K. (2004).
Although Hahna performs alone, the connection to everything and numerous others remains intact.
| VENUE | THE NEW EDINBURGH FOLK CLUB | |
|---|---|---|
| 50 DUNDAS STREET, DUNEDIN | ||
| TIMES | SAT 5 MAR | 7:00PM – 7:30PM |
| SUN 6 MAR | 2:00PM – 2:30PM | |
| R15 | ||
| PRICE | $7.00 – $10.00 | |
Performance installation , Contemporary dance ,
30 mins
Five short life stories
Review by Hannah Molloy 06th Mar 2016
Hahna Briggs’ performance of Solo Community is a series of five short pieces, choreographed by Briggs (of Dunedin’s Gasp! Dance Collective), and seem to tell a very personal story of a life spent experiencing and experimenting with movement.
My experience of Briggs’ previous work has always been of gentle and kind movement and Solo Community has these elements but it feels somehow stronger and more fiery as well.
On arrival, each member of the audience is asked to place a medal around Briggs’, neck – she is dressed in a leotard and standing on a chair, and is rewarded with an effervescent smile, a very personal and engaging way to start any performance. This exchange gives the audience a vested interest in the dance work and a recognition of their participation in the experience of Briggs’ movement.
There are very intimate moments, such as Briggs changing from spectacles to contact lenses, all of which draw the audience into Briggs’ story. Hynnah Rouse (who also creates a charming Cheshire cat lamp named the ‘Melancholy Crap Lamp’) joins Briggs on stage for costume changes and prop movement and she is also gentle and graceful, a delicate, minimalist foil for the strength in Briggs’ movement. While it is difficult to see some of Briggs’ floor work due to the level seating, the choreography combines with the visuals (by Gala Hesson) to be full of clear lines and beautiful shapes.
I believe this is Briggs’ first solo work and, as always, I stand in awe of the courage and generosity that goes with putting one’s whole self out for others to see, with no crowd to take refuge in. As a reviewer – with only a personal perspective to speak from that stems from a love of dance – I am grateful for the opportunity to watch Briggs’ evolution as a performer.
Copyright © in the review belongs to the reviewer
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