ΑΓΡΙΜΙ (FAUVE) at the Lilian Baylis Studio

★★★

“Deeply visceral and undeniably blunt”

The concept of Αγρίμι (Fauve) is simple, yet primitive: humans and animals, coexisting, changing, merging in the wild and unexplored corners of the forest. It’s not new or groundbreaking, but its focus on the constant transformation and the hints of an underlying progression makes this piece intriguing to say the least. Created and choreographed by Lenio Kaklea, it attempts to comment on our place within the natural world and order with the forest as its backdrop.

There are clear sections that give the audience a sense of evolution. At first, the three performers, Lenio Kaklea, Georgios Kotsifakis, Ioanna Paraskevopoulou, are fully clothed and following a distinct set of steps and repetitions, some might say in a sequence that resembles contemporary dance the most. There is an unyielding collaboration, a direct playfulness that quickly turns into something dangerous. Suddenly, the performers are aware of one another the way a pack would be, observing and adapting to the others’ behaviour. All this happens in perfect harmony and synchronisation, while a sense of mistrust and tension is boiling underneath.

It doesn’t take long before the three performers take off their khaki costumes (Olivier Mulin) and truly let go of any modesty linked to human behaviour. Here, on this stage, there is no room for that. They demonstrate different degrees of nakedness and we’re told a tale involving bears and humans which shows to the audience that in the forest, reinvention is possible. At one point, the performers grab torches and light different parts of their body, as if discovering them for the first time. There are no restrictions, which can be both freeing and threatening. By the end of the show, it almost feels like we’re observing animals in their natural habitat.

Although Clio Boboti’s set, consisting of three poles and two black balloons hanging from the ceiling, and Bruno Pocheron’s light design are quite plain, the use of video (Éric Yvelin,  who is also the sound designer), props and the performers’ constant shifting around the stage keeps the show heavily focused on its theme. A chain is produced and there is no denying that it’s a bit too on the nose. However, it is used in a sort of contradictory way: instead of limiting and restraining, here it offers shapes and texture. It’s mostly what it signifies that does the trick and reinforces the animalistic nature of the performance.

The exploration of patterns and the subsequent abandoning of them is what truly stands out. Kaklea, Kotsifakis and Paraskevopoulou coexist, but also thrive individually, each bringing a unique quality and rawness to the piece. There is no pretence, no shame, no hiding. The transition towards the beast within and around us climaxes when the performers climb the poles and rest in various positions, looking calm and ferocious. Though impressive, by the end of the show it feels like an idea has been left incomplete. The style and the performances are there, but there is a sense of hanging, of slowing down and even dragging at times.

It’s not a conventional dance performance by any means, but Αγρίμι (Fauve), with its multidisciplinary approach, is a great example of how to show rather than tell. Deeply visceral and undeniably blunt.

 

ΑΓΡΙΜΙ (FAUVE) at the Lilian Baylis Studio

Reviewed on 31st October 2024

by Stephanie Christodoulidou

Photography by Maria Toultsa

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Previously reviewed at other Sadler’s Wells venues:

STORIES – THE TAP DANCE SENSATION | ★★★★★ | October 2024

FRONTIERS: CHOREOGRAPHERS OF CANADA | ★★★★ | October 2024

TUTU | ★★★ | October 2024

CARMEN | ★★★★ | July 2024

THE OPERA LOCOS | ★★★★ | May 2024

ASSEMBLY HALL | ★★★★★ | March 2024

AUTOBIOGRAPHY (v95 and v96) | ★★★ | March 2024

NELKEN | ★★★★★ | February 2024

LOVETRAIN2020 | ★★★★ | November 2023

MALEVO | ★★★★ | October 2023

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