Big Bang

From Montreal - The perfection of a hand on a breathing ribcage, the smell of a lover's skin: moments of sadness bringing tears of joy.

“No limitations, no barriers, never the same,” says artistic director Kathy Casey, referring to the ground rules for Montréal Danse's principal mission: developing vibrant new works with an international roster of choreographers. That the celebrated company has produced 40 of them in its 18-year history is a testament to a restless creative search much in evidence with this trilogy.

The Heavens, Burning with Hours, by Venezuela-born José Navas, is at once a torrid, physically demanding duet, as well as two solos juxtaposed to unfold a story of human isolation. Belgium's Karine Ponties gives us Desirabilis, in which two couples confront temptation-from the first glint of longing to the purest manifestation of desire in the human repertoire. There is an absurd quality, noted Montreal newspaper Le Devoir, in this “band of curious, dysfunctional players.We see them sometimes as characters from a comic book and other times as protagonists in a strange, slightly grotesque travelling carnival. They live for love or boredom.”

The final piece is by celebrated Korean choreographer Ae-Soon Ahn. One Second was inspired by a near-drowning experience and the multitude of memories that can occur in a single moment. Urgent yet sensual, this work fluidly vacillates between chaos and order.

Jan 26, 2005 at The Vertigo Playhouse Theatre, 7:30pm
Tickets : $25

Ticketmaster: Buy Online

Artistic Director: Kathy Casey
Lighting Design: Pierre Lavoie
Sound Engineer: Michel-Antoine Castonguay
Technical Director and Lighting Adaptation: Lee Anholt

The Heavens, Burning with Hours

Choreographer: José Navas
Performers: Manon Levac, Frédéric Marier
Music: Alexander MacSween
Costumes: Vandal Costumes

Desirabilis

Choreographer: Karen Ponties
Performers: Manon Levac, Annik Hamel, Frédéric Marier, Peter Trosztmer
Music: Dominique Pauwels, Tom Waits
Costumes: Annie Gélinas

One Second

Choreographer: Ae-Soon Ahn
Performers: Maryse Carrier, Rachel Harris, Manon Levac, Frédéric Marier, Peter Trosztmer
Music: Phrygian Gates by John Adams
Costumes: Annie Gélinas with Marie-André De Courval