Review: Sylvain Émard’s WAVE

From the very first images that surface in WAVE, we recognize Sylvain Émard’s touch. Bodies are lit from the back with moving spotlights, casting shadows that appear over transparent but blurry screens. The swiftly shifting lights create a non-human body, a being that can move far quicker than any human possibly could, not to mention one that can change shape before our eyes. Already we are subjected to visuals that remind us of his previous work, Temps de chien.

Sylvain Émard’s WAVE, photo by Robert Etcheverry

When the dancers emerge from behind the screens, these become the background for video projections, usually (and not very surprisingly) of water. This is sometimes alternated with video static, which we come to realize looks highly similar to water, as if it were nature’s becoming into the digital era. The movement first exhibited by the dancers will become a recurring motif: highly circular, with lots of pivots, and legs outstretched into high kicks.

On one hand, we can say that it’s hard to get bored during WAVE because the action never lets up. On the other, we could admit that maybe the action should let up every once in a while, that maybe the audience needs a space to breathe, because if Émard’s creation has a fault, it is its evenness, which borders on homogeneity. There is little variety in the movement, the video projections, and even the bodies of the performers, five women who are about the same height. That being said, the dancers are definitely talented. Though the movement is repetitive, the fact that WAVE is non-stop action means that it is a physically demanding work for its performers.

There is a glimpse of hope when a flash of yellow light comes like a sharp break in the scenography, but unfortunately there is no such rupture in the choreography and it remains much the same. There is little progression in the movement, which ends up looking like a lack of direction. And again I am reminded of Temps de chien, which also had stunning scenography while its choreography failed to leave an imprint on my mind.

In short, WAVE is about just as middle of the road as a work can get. It mostly holds the attention of the audience, but doesn’t push anything too far in any direction. If it were a narrative, the word predictable would fit it perfectly. Seeing the first half is like seeing the second. With its scenography ending in a completely different place from where it started, the stage eventually bathed in smoke and yellow light, one wishes that the choreography had traveled a similar path. Still, Émard and his dancers earned themselves a standing ovation from most of the audience on opening night. It might have been excitement for the first official dance show of the season, or it might have been genuinely heartfelt. There is only way for you to find out…

WAVE continues until September 20 at Usine C. Regular tickets are 28$, 23$ for those 25 years old and under, and 20$ for students. For more information, cal 514-521-4493 or visit www.usine-c.com.

PREVIEW Also this week and until September 20 is Sarah Chase bringing her “dance stories” format to the dancers of Montréal Danse in Sur les glaces du Labrador. For more information, contact Agora de la danse at 514-525-1500 or visit their website at www.agoradanse.com