Like me,
I am certain that many people in the large audience were intrigued by
the title of this Arts Fission performance and fascinated by the true
story of choreographer Elysa Wendi's marriage proposal from a
Moroccan that included a dowry of a thousand camels. With the added
inspiration of Sufi poet and philosopher Rumi, 1000 Camels
embarks on a journey of discovery that explores transcultural issues
as Wendi travelles to the Sahara Desert and revisits Arab Street in
Little India.
The company opened up the stage by placing seats on two sides and revealing
the bare walls of the space. Lying on the floor covered by huge silk
cloths - the image immediately evoked the desert and the sands
of time - the dancers suggested camels as they moved under the
fabric. Then they wound the cloth together to make a tent and broke
off spinning in a wild, joyous dance. This was a promising beginning
that gave a sense of desert life, the fraternity of women and the rituals
that revolve around life at a bazaar.
Metaphors and symbols were used throughout the choreography, and this
created a sense of place and time while giving meaning to the narrative.
These moments were often poignant and poetic. For instance, a stylised
sharing of tea on a rug offered dancer Scarlet Yu and Egyptian musician
Tarek Abdallah the opportunity to explore aspects of an inter-cultural
relationship. As they drew closer to each other, he placed his scarf
around her neck and then over her head; as she brushed it away again
and again, it became a representation of living another sort of life
in another culture. This moment, heavy with symbolism, was handled well
by the choreographer and the performers.
Projections of camels on the walls represented another connection to
the imagery of the dance - these are observed in many places in
Arab Street on cloth, cushions, cigarette packets and the like. Cloth
was a permanent feature of the production and it was used effectively
throughout, particularly the bundles of cloth that the dancers carried,
and those that covered them as they moved from place to place left a
strong impression.
Such use of imagery punctuated brief sections of movement. But these
became disappointingly insignificant as the dance progressed and the
choreography was mainly reduced to long passages of walking around the
perimeter of the space. Occasionally the dancers came together for some
phrases of movement to give bodily expression to the narrative -
these opportunities could have been explored in greater depth and with
more dynamic and spatial variation.
When the piece began, the free-flowing movement was original and evolved
from a new contextual approach to the choreography that was grounded
in the choreographer's Middle Eastern experiences - it would
have been exciting to see more of this. As the story unfolded, the mood
became sombre and the powerful images of the opening were lost while
the dance slowed to a slow, introspective, pace.
While a literal re-enactment of the events that inspired the choreography
was not expected, 1000 Camels did not sustain the layering
of complex imagery as a catalyst for personal reflection that was promised
in the opening scenes. |
"As the story unfolded, the mood became sombre and the powerful
images of the opening were lost while the dance slowed to a slow, introspective
pace."
Credits
Choreographer: Elysa Wendi
Musician: Tarek Abdallah
Sound design and composition: Philip Tan
Dancers: Scarlet Yu, Bobbi Chen, Yan Xiang Yi, Shirley Wong, Lynn Huang,
Wu Yi Xin.
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