Angel-Monster | Phluxus2 Dance Collective
“This is our confession”...
Upon collecting my ticket tonight I was reminded by the staff that this show contains strong themes and to prepare myself. ‘Angel-Monster’; a contemporary dance production is a contextualised conversation about sexual assault, domestic violence and the resulting issues; in this telling, specifically for women. If this triggers a trauma response for you please refer to the resources at the bottom of this article.
This image + cover image: FenLan Photography
From the moment I presented my ticket at the door, a performer quickly ushered us in small groups, directly into the theatre and onto the stage. We were immediately immersed in the performance space, surrounded by ethereal seed-like pods, suspended across the stage. Bathed in a soft pink light, eliciting feelings of the womb; the ethereal soundtrack and guidance of the performer, immediately breaking the fourth wall, created a knowing conversation between you (the audience) and the performers. You know these women, maybe you have been one of these women or friends with her; and that sense of familiarity makes you unwittingly invest even more deeply in the story and the emotions that they are about to convey.
The audience is seated, the soundtrack shifts and the performers come to life. From that first moment until the final crescendo, the sound design by Andrew Mills truly guided my emotional experience. I keenly felt the powerful slow build of nuanced emotion. It roared over me at times creating intense feelings of discomfort and grief and pain; although never far away was the respite given by moments of silent reflection or manic joy which pulled me back out of the lows of that compassionate anguish. Peppered throughout the production are narratives from women and girls of all ages; this enforces the connection to the trama response you see in the dancers; the narrative particularly outlining the statistic that 1 in 6 Australian women have reported a sexual assault and also the unreported rapes experienced by women within a comitted relationship.
Throughout this piece the dancers use vocalisations like breath, laughter, sobbing and spoken word. This is all completed while executing technical contemporary dance choreography by Nerida Matthaei, the Director of Phluxus2 Dance Collective; and matched to incredibly emotive facial expressions. It is a tremendous skill shown by these performers, their strength, fluidity and emotional range was world class; coming to Brisbane from a tour at Edinburgh Fringe Festival, there was not a misstep from these dancers; who executed their timing and synchronicity to perfection; and given the stage was strewn with costumes; an integral part of the story-telling medium; there was not a slip or break in character, a very impressive talent shown by each dancer: Jade Brider, Hsin-Ju Ely, Makira Horner, Nadia Milford and Lauren Sherlock.
The success of this show was including both highs and lows of emotion. As a professional undresser (burlesque performer) I can confidently remark that there was some of the most technical on-stage costume inclusions that I have ever seen…including the most amazing combination of teeth, booty shorts and choreography of 3 people that I may have ever witnessed - you’ll just have to buy tickets to see what I’m talking about!
As a trained dancer I went into this show expecting a high level of maturity through the choreography and storytelling techniques and I was blown away by the finished product. It is a clever way to have this conversation about such serious subject matter. I was moved to tears (Rare! I’m not usually one to cry); and I would go and see it again, next time sitting in a different part of the theatre to get an experience from another vantage point.
Statewide Resources - QLD
13 HEALTH 13 43 25 84
Statewide Sexual Assault Helpline 1800 010 120
1800RESPECT 1800 737 732
DVConnect 1800 811 811
Lifeline 13 11 14
