Cara de Mimbre

Coreography and performing: Jordi Vilaseca in Teatro de la Estación The leaflet explains that it is supposed to be a personal journey through past experiences, showing how we all can become strong and resilient against the adversities we meet every day.

Modern dance makes me think, but on the downside, when I think, I get distracted in my own head and miss out on stuff that happens on the stage. So too this time. Is this supposed to happen? I have the idea that contemporary art is much about the viewer participating, thinking, reflecting, but part of me wants to be so caught up in what I see that the thinking happens later, when I get home. The next day..That it moves me, not only intelectually.

The piece is easy to like I think, and the 50 min? 45? passed quickly. One dancer on stage the whole time, he enters nude, with a big straw basket at his hip, carried in a very female way, like women would carry a laundery basket. The movements are slow and sinous; ever muscle seen in the back and neck.

 A second part with underpants on, movements are frantic, nervous, repetitive, hesitant followed by moments of calm.

Then with a old-lady night camisole on, tottering around like on high heals, like an past middelaged miniskirted lady at 6 in the morning walking home after too many drinks. There is something so very lonely about that image.

The dress is used as a screen for proyected words and recorded voices speak sentences and words about nervousness, valor..here I drifted off somewhere in my head. Again.

Then the dancer put on pants and a jersey and at some point start dancing with the basket, or maybe better described: the basket leads the movements, and the dancer hold on to it. Then comes the scene I liked the best where he fights with himself until putting the basket over his head. The expressions on his face were those of me going to an exam: fear, determination, the feverish wish of being anywhere else, doubt...

Then a series of calm poses a la Vouge, sitting on the floor. It was good to smile after the tense moment before.

Then he put on a jacket and lowered several baskets from the cieling, some with light, and played with them for a while, before lying down as the lights faded out, to the sound of a heartbeat.

The music was alternating between classical/quiet and electronic/hectic. The movements are familiar, both the dance moves that are traditional with a strong classical base, and the contemp stuff. The human-daily-life movements are fragile and spot on: this dancer even manages to move like Mr Bean at times.

Does the description match what I saw? I think so. But I also think the coreograper could have gone further, taken more risks, maybe experimenting more with some of the movements, feelings..It felt a bit safe at times, and the theatre is small: At a distance of 3 metres to the dancer I sort of expect to be blown away by the presence on the stage. Maybe my brain gets in the way.