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Tao Fei

DANCE

Tough to be a Man, Tough to be a Woman

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Complexe des genres, Théâtre La Chapelle

by Tao Fei
17.09.2011

If there were a yearbook made for Quebec’s next wave of dance, choreographer Virginie Brunelle might be named ‘Most Likely To Succeed’.  With her third and latest full-length work, Complexe des genres, 29-year-old Brunelle cements her local darling status and confirms her talents as a serious dancemaker destined for bigger stages.  Complexe des genres received [...]

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DANCE

Unlocking Lock

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La La La Human Steps, Salle Wilfrid Pelletier

by Tao Fei
07.05.2011

After a four-year wait since Édouard Lock’s last creation, hyped-up Montreal dancegoers streamed into Salle Wilfrid Pelletier on Thursday night for the North American premiere of Lock’s New Work, featuring international ballet star Diana Vishneva.

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DANCE

Cannonball Muse

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Louise Lecavalier / Fou Glorieux, Usine C

by Tao Fei
30.04.2011

Louise Lecavalier’s ropy musculature, punk androgyny and ballistic barrel rolls defined Édouard Lock’s choreographic signature for nearly two decades. Now, 12 years after retiring as the platinum-maned icon of his company La La La Human Steps, Lecavalier still astonishes as a dancer of rare and singular presence; a force of nature, simply.

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DANCE

A Kinetic Onslaught

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Entity, Théâtre Maisonneuve

by Tao Fei
12.02.2011

Dubbed by critics as the current rock star of international ballet, 40-year-old British dancemaker Wayne McGregor is leaving more than just his dancers breathless. With a high-speed, wholly distinctive movement language and commissions by the world’s leading companies piled high, Britain’s top contemporary choreographer definitely has his mojo in full swing.

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DANCE

FTA Offers A Full Card

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Highlights, Festival Transamériques

by Tao Fei
27.05.2010

Montreal’s biggest dance theatre festival, Festival TransAmériques, asserts itself among the city’s slew of summer events with a hearty, adventurous fourth edition with several exceptional dance offerings.

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DANCE

Title-Rich, Meaning-Poor

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DIS/(SOL/VE)R, Centre Pierre-Péladeau

by Tao Fei
08.05.2010

Just when you thought the age of bad post-modern titles was really, really over, veteran Canadian choreographer Christopher House returns to the Danse Danse series with Dis/(sol/ve)r, a recent work for Toronto Dance Theatre. The name is misleading, puzzling even (as is the involvement of a dramaturge), because the hour-long dance is an exceedingly legible [...]

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DANCE

Technical Brilliance, Emotional Depth

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SOIRÉE KYLIÁN, THÉÂTRE MAISONNEUVE

by Tao Fei
25.03.2010

There is probably no living European choreographer more internationally beloved than Jiri Kylián. His non-narrative, dramatic ballets blending classical technique and modern expressionism are season favourites and repertory mainstays of established companies around the world. Les Grands Ballets Canadiens presents three of the influential Czech choreographer’s works in its Soirée Kylián at Théâtre Maisonneuve.

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DANCE

Prickly Nest

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DO ANIMALS CRY, USINE C

by Tao Fei
25.02.2010

In-the-know North American audiences do not miss an opportunity to see a Meg Stuart work, and her latest Do Animals Cry reminds why. Making their first Montreal appearance in over four years, Stuart’s Belgium-based company Damaged Goods goes to the volatile core of private family life to wrestle out two hours of visceral, unruly physical [...]

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DANCE

Check The Backseat

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ROADKILL, CINQUIÈME SALLE

by Tao Fei
12.02.2010

Disclaimer: roadkill is actually, seriously scary. Cinematic horror is not the most popular choreographic pursuit, but collaborative Brisbane-based company Splintergroup suggests it’s a frontier in contemporary dance worth visiting. With roadkill, their dance theatre thriller set in Australia’s mythic outback, Splintergroup makes its Montreal debut to conclude Cinquième Salle’s three-part Australian dance series.

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DANCE

And It’s Beer, Beer, Beer!

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BIG 3RD EPISODE, USINE C

by Tao Fei
28.01.2010

Auteur cinema does not put us in a resting, gaping state; beer commercials do. French-Austrian performance group Superamas explores the straight-to-the-bloodstream effects of mass media by producing a freshly-squeezed concentrate from the familiar pulp of romantic comedies, soap operas, commercials and music videos.

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DANCE

High-Flying But Thread Lacking

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SUTRA, THÉÂTRE DE MAISONNEUVE

by Tao Fei
06.11.2009

What does happen when East meets West, really? Culture-crossing Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, one of Europe’s most highly-courted young choreographers, gives his most ambitious two cents to date with Sutra, a 70-minute work that brings to the stage 17 high-flying warrior monks from China’s famed Shaolin Temple. Montreal’s Danse Danse gave its North American premiere at [...]

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DANCE

The World Is Flat

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IS YOU ME, USINE C

by Tao Fei
24.09.2009

Is You Me is a multimedia dance piece created and performed by an unlikely hometown pair, Benoît Lachambre and Louise Lecavalier. Both have star-power in their respective worlds – his an experimental cool-kids Europe stemming from “downtown” New York improvisation; hers an iconic contemporary dance career with La La La Human Steps.

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DANCE

Dancers Doing It All

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THE DANCERS’ CHOREOGRAPHIC WORKSHOP, CINQUIÈME SALLE

by Tao Fei
10.09.2009

There are better ways to get intimate with the dancers of Les Grands Ballets Canadiens than buying their used pointe shoes during Nutcracker season. The best opportunity comes once every two years, and doesn’t cost a dime. The Dancers’ Choreographic Workshop is a free biennial show at Cinquième Salle conceived entirely by Les Grands company [...]

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DANCE

Supergroup Power Failure

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ÉONNAGATA, FTA 2009

by Tao Fei
04.06.2009

Féstival TransAmériques’ mammoth headliner combined the signed-and-sealed talents of three international stage stars: Sylvie Guillem, rebel prodigy of classical ballet; Russell Maliphant, wonderboy of British contemporary dance; and Robert Lepage, revolutionary theatre director and one of Canada’s creative greats. Audiences flocked to Éonnagata like firework-revellers around a harbour. In the end, we got cool lights, [...]

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DANCE

The Body, Brutally

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SASHA WALTZ & GUESTS, FTA

by Tao Fei
28.05.2009

There are dances that conceal the body’s materiality and those that do not. Go to a classical ballet and you won’t witness flesh and bone, visceral weight and dimension. Want the brutal truth? See Körper. Created in 2000 for 13 dancers, the work that brought international fame to German choreographer Sasha Waltz seizes the body [...]

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