I remember fondly one of the very last outings I went on before the world was turned upside down: Saturday 7 March 2020, closing night of Be More Chillat the Annex Theatre, University of Southampton.
Itās only about six weeks ago, but it feels like at least a year has passed. Therefore, I couldnāt possibly call this a review because I couldnāt be objective (can anyone ever be, really?) ā that night is already rose-tinted with nostalgia. So I would like to offer my apologies for the delay, Showstoppers ā I got majorly distracted, I hope you understandā¦ but Iām here now, ready to sing (not half as well as you) your praises.
Two of our University of Southampton Arts Ambassadors – Kate Briggs-Price and Thea Hartman – were in attendance at John Hansard Gallery’s bumper opening event on Saturday 25 January 2020. Join them as they explore the exhibitions, mingle with the artists, interview some of the people behind the shows and generally have a good time.
To our shame and huge excitement and curiosity, the opening night of ZoieLogic Dance Theatreās Heist was the first time either of us had seen a dance-only production. And on top of that, whilst between us we have a few yearsā worth of mostly amateur dance experience, we know nothing about contemporary dancing, which was the showās predominant style. In a nutshell, we went to the opening night of this show with absolutely no expectations and completely ready to see contemporary dance with fresh eyes.
And that is
exactly what happened. As ZoieLogic Dance Theatre Artistic Director Zoie
Golding expertly put it (she created the show after all), Heist mixes āthe adventure of Mission
Impossible, the gaming of Crystal
Maze, and a little bit of the heart of The
Gooniesā ā an emotionally dynamic, cleverly woven, action-packed show
bursting with the most graceful moves which kept us on the edge of our seats
throughout.
One of the most
striking aspects of Heist was in the
way it established the tone so promptly and accurately from the very first minute
with the help of soundtrack and a villain with robotic moves, deeply unsettling
facial expressions and Matrix-like costume. We like to think that we donāt get
scared easily, but we definitely found ourselves huddling close into each other
as the villain slowly approached our end of the stage. This almost instant
characterization was also instilled into the four āgoodā guys ā despite there
being absolutely no words spoken for the entire duration of the show, we
quickly got a real sense of the dynamic between the characters in the first
act, as their movements started to organize themselves into patterns and motifs
to show their quirks and mannerisms, their teamwork and their willingness to do
whatever it takes to escape the prison.
Interestingly, the
storyline was quite minimalistic. Whilst the general plotlines were conveyed by
the charactersā interaction with the set, the soundtrack and the dancersā
movements and facial expressions, the lack of words brought with itself a lack
of specificity which Heist turned on
its head into a vagueness encouraging audience engagement. We did not know
exactly why the four men were imprisoned, or what they tried to set free at the
end of it, but when we talked about it after coming out of the show we both
thought it had something to do with identity. Whether or not thatās what it
actually was about is a different question.
The great thing
about the show is that none of this guesswork actually matters: you donāt get
brownie points for identifying one specific metaphor the author wanted to
convey. The focus was simply on how the incredibly skilful and graceful
movements affected the audienceās emotions (and trust us, they did). The plot
was merely shaped by some classic heist film tropes (e.g. the chase scene), and
the fantastically adaptable set which enhanced the experience of the show by
being as fluid as the dancersā movements; the essence was all in the
relationship between movements and emotion. As the dancers were climbing the
prisonās walls showing some real parkour skills, we waited anxiously for them
to fall. As they supported each other through their feeblest sequences of
choreography we felt feeble with them. As they were running from the villain
through the set which became a maze we were rooting for them to get away.
For us, that was
the essence of Heist. It did not
matter that we knew close to nothing about contemporary dance. It only mattered
that we opened our eyes and hearts to see and feel this show, and we left NST
City all the richer for it.
Watch the trailer for Heist below, and catch ZoieLogic Dance Theatreās next show @zoielogic or at www.zoielogic.co.uk.
MA Global Media Management student Kate Briggs-Price talks about her time at university, her passion for film-making, her experience with University Societies and what she brings to the team as an Arts Ambassador!
Now in my fifth year studying at the University of Southampton, Iāve spent my time trying to discover what I enjoy and am passionate about. Both in my professional and personal life, I have pursued many avenues and have ultimately come to the conclusion; art has always been something that connects the people and the decisions.
Being busy and pushing myself to achieve everything I possibly can is a major driving force of my personality. I am very lucky that my Masterās degree involves practical film making, but also gives me the freedom to shoot and direct in my spare time. The arts have given me the chance to not only to push myself creatively but given me the discipline, scope and the technical skills to create both professionally and for pleasure.
My passion is definitely film-making, whether that be a documentary film or creative shorts. I have a range of projects on the go – a short film up for release at the end of January and a documentary that will be released both as a short and hopefully a feature-length film by the end of September 2020. Being a Photography and Videography Ambassador gives me a chance to develop and work on technical skills whilst also helping to give people access to art around Southampton. Whether that be through their phones or through media, we can help bridge the gap of intimidation that people often feel about attending events in the āart worldā.
Iāve always focussed on multi-media storytelling. As Head of Marketing for Surge Radio –Ā live shows, podcasts, graphics and social media are all things I have been developing. The interconnections between all the different strands of media working together to create an experience is what interests me. Although not directly connected to media, I am also President of the Erasmus Student Network Southampton. This is the largest student organisation in Europe, taking care of all the visiting international students who come to the university – my interest in this came from my experience of my year abroad in Germany. This really developed my interest in people, which is at the heart of my love for art and really everything I have done at University.
As I have been involved in over 9 different societies during my time here, I have had the opportunity to learn and grow from a huge range of people. We often connected through the process of making art or through experiencing it together as a way to express something we had in common or something that was different about us. I want to make sure that students discover not only the art available to them in Southampton but also the people behind that art. The artists, often from around the world, have so much experience and perspectives that they are willing to share.
MA English Literary Studies student Thea Hartman talks about her passion for escapism, textual analysis, her experience of the Southampton art scene, and what plans she has for her time as an Arts Ambassador!
As
far as that goes, I am an expert fugitive. My Mum taught me how to read early
because I would always ask her to read me one more story and she couldnāt catch
her breath. And that hasnāt really changed (well, I did learn to read, but you
get the idea) ā āone more storyā became a BA English degree, and then an MA
English Literary Studies degree, with a focus on twentieth century literature.
Turning a text on all its facets, understanding it in its present and in our
own ā to me, thereās nothing quite like it, even if it does sometimes push my
limits so much that I canāt touch a book for monthsā¦ Luckily, there are other ways
to keep escaping.
And
because weāre in Southampton, we have loads of them right on our doorstep! I
started discovering the Southampton arts scene due to The Edge, the Universityās student entertainment magazine, which
sends writers to a wide range of theatre shows and concerts (even after over
three years of writing for it Iād probably have a hard time naming all the
music venues in Southamptonā¦), but it wasnāt until my summer internship with āa
spaceā arts that I had the chance to get to know the arts community in
Southampton and learn just how complex and welcoming it is!
Iām
not an artist, so Iām not a stranger to thoughts like āIām not artsy enough to
go there,ā or āI donāt belong thereā ā but I realised I couldnāt be more wrong.
And thatās what Iām most excited about doing as an Arts Ambassador ā helping to
spread the word not only about what the arts scene in Southampton has to offer
generally, but also about what it has to offer to those who think like I used
to. Iāll be found mostly on this blog and on social media, trying to put all
these feelings into words as I explore Southamptonās art scene with Molly and
Kate this semester ā I hope you join us on this journey!