SeaSaw was inspired by our human relationship with the sea, and was perfectly staged on the promenade at Black Rock, in the disused spaces near Brighton Marina.
As one would expect from a show that starts at 11am on a Saturday, there were a lot of children present. It’s a credit to the varied choreography and contrasting styles of the short pieces that interest was maintained throughout, despite distractions of passers-by and the brightly coloured Mini convention happening just a few hundred yards away.
One of the most memorable performances portrayed seabirds in an oil slick, a dance with three performers rolling and thrashing on a slippery surface. As they flailed in synchronisation, arms flapping like broken wings, it was a very powerful scene evoking a very serious issue, but to the children it appeared comical. This skill in making the dances diverse enough to provoke different reactions ran throughout many of the pieces, due to clever choreography from Marisa von Stockert. Some of the costumes were created using plastic bottles sewn into clothing, which made humorous monsters out of the performers but also highlighted the issue of pollution and the longevity of dumped waste and littering.
Yet it wasn’t all serious: a creative dance showing two characters struggling to assemble deckchairs had the audience laughing and gasping as the performers folded themselves around the wooden frames.
Mixing contemporary dance, performance art, physical theatre and comedy, SeaSaw created an hour of entertainment which remained with the viewer. It was beautifully performed, coordinated and delivered, and wonderfully different.
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