After a relaxing morning the students met up for the first performance of the day. Kaddish designed and choreographed by Qudus Onikeku was an hour long performance with only one dancer, one speaker, an amazing soprano singer, and two musicians. The set was a small stage with a large white screen stretched unevenly through the middle of the space, this created a barrier between the performers. The screen had text projected on it and strategic lighting that highlighted what was going on either in front of or behind the barrier. The costuming was cohesive but also specific to each character. The most unexpected part of the performance was a wheel chair that seemed to be pushed on stage by an unknown performer but began to move independently as if it was controlling itself. As the dancer, who just so happened to be the choreographer and designer of the piece, battled the chair that had a mind of its own the speaker, musicians, and singer rose to a climax only to finish as the dancer exhausted himself and the chair exited the stage. This piece was very representational and metaphoric with the specific imagery used. The dancer/choreographer made his emotions very clear and chose music/text that carried the same mood. As the performers took their bows it was impossible not to notice how grateful they were. This theme was very prevalent in the work.
Our last performance for the day took us to a remote location in Avignon. As we traveled by bus to the venue I anticipated some type of indoor theatre or performance space. To my surprise this is where we would be seeing the next performance, Sheda
The cast was very large and passionate about the work. There was a perfect mix of humor, intensity, and thoughtfulness in the performance. Here is a link for more information about the show, cast, and creator Sheda
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