Dunas

Overview

In recent years Moroccan-Belgian choreographer Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui has bewitched Sydney audiences with his major works Sutra (2010) and Babel (2012), and now he summons desert landscapes for Spring Dance 2012 in Dunas.

Joining Cherkaoui is the formidable Spanish bailaora Maria Pages, whose command of flamenco once led Jose Saramago to declare that "nor the sky nor the earth is the same after [she] has danced". Such an elemental pairing leaves no doubt as to the epic scope and atmosphere to be found in Dunas, where the relentless shifting of sands swallow humanity both ancient and modern.

The desert evoked in Dunas is not of the New World, but that of the Middle East and North Africa. Szymon Brzoska, who previously composed the score to Sutra, joins with guitarist Ruben Lebaniegos to create music that fuses the flamenco rhythms with Arabic sounds, providing a sinuous accompaniment to the piece.

What will Cherkaoui and Pages eventually unearth from their dunes? The conceptual strength of Cherkaoui's previous work is found at the point where cultures press against one another, and Dunas continues this theme when the strong form of Pages meets Cherkaoui's flow. Whether this meeting is the totality of their collaboration or the beginning of a deeper cultural duet is an exciting prospect for audiences at Spring Dance.

Image by David Ruano.