Knowing nothing about
An experimental dance canvas upon which you can paste your own desires, fears and beliefs
The work of Canadian experimental arts company We All Fall Down (WAFD), Papillon brings us three dancers, three musicians and a stage. What ensues is a human canvas upon which you can paste your own desires, fears and beliefs.
Inspired by chaos theory and complex mathematical equations I later learn, Papillon asks what – if anything – can we predict in a world governed by unpredictability?
The dancers move individually, in their own worlds, playing with diverse styles and pacing to keep us rapt for the full hour. I attempt to ascribe meaning to the fierce facial expressions of Nindy Banks and her electric intensity, imagining intimacy between Mecdy Jean-Pierre and Maude Laurin-Beaulieu, two of the most captivating dancers I’ve ever had the pleasure to watch. My intellectual mind oscillates from considerations of gender, race and sex, never settling on one.
Though the three dancers exist within their own spheres, they are pulled into sync at various moments, sharing brief physical connection and fleeting eye contact. The music meanwhile is common ground for all of us, a hypnotic soundscape produced by Roger White and his band who blend discordant electronic beats with jazz, hip-hop and drum’n’bass.
At some point, I realise that my inability to ascribe meaning is kind of the point. The effort is the art. Sweat stains the dancers’ clothing and drips freely from proud chins, pushing the bar of physical expression to its limits. And though I leave clueless as to the intentions of director Helen Simard, I understand that where our minds land is where the truth lies. We want the dancers to connect, we want them to fall into a pattern, we long to understand.
Which means, ultimately, your guess is as good as mine!
