The Poetry of Dance: Roger Sinha’s `Apricot Trees Exist’
Maisonneuve Magazine
October 05, 2004
by Kena Herod
While we tend to think of poetry and dance as separate art forms,
throughout human history the two have been intimately linked. Even in
today’s highly specialized world, choreographers occasionally use
poetry (and other forms of the written word) as inspiration for
movement, or even within a performance as a complement to the
dance. Montreal choreographer Roger Sinha, however, intertwines poetry
and dance more than usual in `Apricot Trees Exist.’ Sinha’s newest
piece is based on Inger Christensen’s book-length poem, Alphabet.
Roger Sinha, born in England to Indian and Armenian parents, began his
dance studies at the School of Toronto Dance Theatre. In 1986, he made
his professional debut in Quebec City; he continued his performing
career in Montreal, where in 1992 he choreographed his first work, the
acclaimed solo Burning Skin. Since then, Sinha has looked back to his
Indian roots for choreographic material. Drawing inspiration from
classical Indian dance and Asian music, Sinha has become renowned for
his East-meets-West contemporary choreography. With his latest work,
Sinha decided to challenge himself anew, feeling that he has explored
his personal history enough for the time being. `I wanted to get out
of myself, my preoccupations,’ he says of the autobiographical
material that infused his earlier choreography.
Interpreting the formal constraints of Christensen’s poem was Sinha’s
first challenge. The Danish poet used the alphabet (as the title
implies) in addition to Fibonacci’s number system as a basis for the
structure of the poem. Taking up this structure, Sinha substitutes
body parts that begin with eachletter of the alphabet and puts them in
motion for the amount of time it takes to read the corresponding lines
of the poem, creating an `anatomy of the alphabet’ that moves through
time.
Benoit Leduc and Magdalena Nowecka, above, performing in “Apricot
Trees Exist.” Sinha coreographed his dancers to create an “anatomy of
the alphabet.”
PHOTO BY ROLLINE LAPORTE
To facilitate the Montreal audience’s understanding of the poem, Sinha
is using a new French translation in voice-overs and projections on a
screen. But he is less concerned about the audience `getting’ the
poem=80=99s meaning (that’s just icing on the cake) than that they
appreciate the movement on stage. Non-dance elements are kept as
simple and economical as possible, he says, in order not to detract
attention from the choreography.
In the past, Sinha says, `I’ve always avoided anything hi-tech; it
puts me off. It’s so time and money consuming.’ And yet, in order to
push himself in a new direction and take full advantage of a
three-week residency at L=80=99Agora de la Danse, Sinha wanted to use
more theatrical bells and whistles in tandem with choreography for
`Apricot Trees Exist.’ `Even if it doesn’t work out,’ he says, at
least `I will have tried it.’
A first, too, for him was the high level of involvement of his dancers
in the creative process of the work. It was born partly out of
necessity-an ankle operation left Sinha temporarily immobile. He
appreciatively acknowledges not only the inventiveness of his dancers,
but also their ability to work within his guidelines and understand
his style. He notes that their efforts `took a lot of pressure off me
to always be the center’ of creation.
Coreographer and dancer Roger Sinha, pictured above in another
production, invited his dancers to play a part in the creative
process, in part becausean ankle operation left him temporarily
immobile.
In another bid to stretch himself as an artist, Sinha decided to
eschew the highly rhythmic Asian music he has favoured in previous
work and hired Bertrand Chénier, who composes mainly for film, to
write the score. Sinha callsChenier ‘s score `ambient’ (perhaps as a
consequence of thecomposer’s experience in film, the music seems to be
more in the background), allowing `other things to come out’ of the
dance. With a pulse-driven composition, Sinha notes, it is all too
easy to `become a slave’ to the rhythm.
The same week as the premiere of `Apricot Trees Exist,’ Sinha will
unveil another new work, a meditation on globalization commissioned by
the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation for its Public Policy
Conference. Regarding boththese pieces and his work in general, Sinha
says his motive for choreography is not just self-expression. He
admits, `There is always that ego-aspect of the artist that wants
=80=98my stuff’ to be shown.’ But, artists, he argues, should also
take the public `away from their familiarities,’ in ways that `will
allow them to grow.’ Like Christensen in Alphabet, Sinha hopes to
clarify our vision, helping us see the world and its wonders of nature
afresh. For him, choreography is `an opportunity you have as an
artist, part of our responsibility that we don ‘t see in commercial
art.’
`Apricot Trees Exist’ runs October 13-16 and 20=80`23 at Le Studio de
L’Agora de la Danse.
Kena Herod is the dance critic for Maisonneuve Magazine. The Dance
Scene appears every other Tuesday. Posted at 00:00:00 on 10/05/04
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress