Edinburgh Fringe Dance & Physical Theatre reviews: VENUS 2.0 | Intertwined! | Evelyn
In her latest dispatch from the Fringe, Scotsman dance critic Kelly Apter reviews a dance piece about a suffragette who lost her way in life
VENUS 2.0 ★★★☆☆
Zoo Southside, (Venue 82), until 24 August
If you can pick your way through the overgrown forest that is VENUS 2.0, there are moments to stop and savour. Bristol-based company Impermanence has thrown everything at this ambitious production, but often you can’t see the wood for the trees. The basic premise is worthy of exploration, focussing as it does on Mary Richardson – a major player in the women’s suffrage movement who ended up supporting fascism.
Despite her poor decisions in later life, Richardson’s story deserves to be remembered. Arrested, imprisoned and force-fed for slashing Velázquez's Rokeby Venus in the National Gallery, she was a woman of action. But just as she lost her way, so does this show to a degree. During an introductory chat with the audience, we’re told that contemporary dance and narrative aren’t always the best of friends. To combat this, large amounts of expositional text are used – sometimes at the expense of emotional resonance (something contemporary dance is indeed best friends with). A busy cast of characters, including Oswald and Diana Mosely, Unity Mitford and Filippo Tommaso Marinetti, take us into the dark heart of fascism, and there are some nice visual ideas here. But the entire structure is crying out for narrative clarity.
Intertwined! ★★☆☆☆
Greenside @ Riddles Court (Venue 16), until 22 August
If a dramaturg, voice coach, choreographer and designer took this production in hand, something very special could emerge. For although there is a haphazardness to this two-part show from students at Toronto’s York University, there is also an edge that’s quite beguiling.
It comes as no surprise to hear one of the dancers reference experimental choreographer Steve Paxton during a brief palate cleanser between pieces. This giant of post-modern American dance was one of many avant garde artists challenging the dance status quo at New York’s Judson Church in the 1950s. And watching these young performers depict Ophelia’s last moments pre-suicide, then carry out a wonderfully scrappy routine throwing backpacks and using each other’s bodies to vacuum up debris, there was definitely a whiff of Judson in the air.
Evelyn ★★☆☆☆
theSpace on the Mile (Venue 39), until 23 August
The pressures of modern life, our constant search for contentment (often in the wrong place), and the internal voice in our head telling us we should do better, all feature in this solo show from Italy’s Piccolo Teatro Libero. A promising start, during which performer Elena Guitti emerges from inside a washing machine, sets her out as a clown of experience and skill.
But despite having its heart in the right place, and conveying a worthwhile message, Evelyn is lacking two essential components. Firstly, none of the humour lands, which it very much needs to. Perhaps more concerning, however, is the central character is never introduced to us in a way that evokes empathy. Even when Evelyn tries multiple ways to kill herself (in itself a dubious move in a show such as this), it’s hard to feel anything approaching the emotional intensity this show is clearly aiming at.
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