The Land of Yes and the Land of No – Sydney Dance Company

Overview

Sydney Dance Company artistic director Rafael Bonachela has established himself as a leader in contemporary dance choreography, and this performance is a representation of that. The storyline of The Land of Yes and the Land of No captures how our chaotic world is so crowded with signs, directions and instructions on such a large scale that overwhelmed people miss all of them as they go about their lives. The beauty of the performance is that it clearly highlights that at different times everybody goes through the same feeling of isolation within a busy, crowded world, and though we may sometimes feel alienated, people will always come to our assistance.

The particular collection of dancers from the SDC form a very attractive cohort indeed. Their attire may not be pointe shoes and tutus, but it's a perfect fit for the production regardless: bare feet and simple white outfits. Although all unique in styling, they were obviously linked to each other through a repeated use of fabric and pleating. This choice in wardrobe worked well for the performance, as it again highlighted the link between humans despite their differences.

The large number of fluorescent light bulbs arranged on stage would not look out of place in a Daft Punk or Justice concert but add an interesting, youthful element to an otherwise plain stage. Throughout the show there's a level of anticipation to see how the light changes relate to the scene ahead, as they occur prior to dancers entering. The performance opens with a blackout, and then from the light bulbs, a single doorframe emerges. The first dancer on stage is a lone female whose solo to a quiet classical piece represents a struggle with living in this century. Shortly after, a male companion with the task of 'saving her' joins her on stage.

There are clearly two different levels of choreography that Bonachela has created for the piece, as after the slow beginning, a larger number of lights are turned on, the music becomes more dominating and a larger cohort enters the stage. Throughout the show, these two levels continually alternate, but the sections where either all or the majority of dancers were on stage were my favourites; the choreography very cleverly highlights how everybody goes about their life doing the same activities without generally noticing each other.

The Land of Yes and the Land of No is worth seeing, as it addresses some very current and universal themes about the way society is conducting itself and the detriment it is doing to humans. It's a lecture on humanity, in dance form.