In contrast to previous productions by Belgian contemporary dance company Les Ballets C de la B, in their new work Out of Context there’s no live band (vsprs), no opera singers (pitié!), and no trained dogs (Wolf). Instead, choreographer Alain Platel has sought to ‘return to the fundamentals of dance’: no narrative, few clothes, little music, just nine of his dancers and the spasmodic, ‘ecstatic’ style they’re famous for. Stripped of any of the usual points of reference that orientate an audience, Out of Context becomes a reflection on performance itself and the privileged space it provides for the dancers’ extreme, unexpected and otherwise inexplicable movements. Somewhere between animals, puppets and inmates, they dance as if compelled by their own obscure momentum, even when coinciding with their fellows in surreal pas de deux and group formations. It’s frequently unnerving, occasionally frustrating, but genuinely humorous, and surprisingly moving.
Until 13 Feb, 8.30pm.
www.theatredelaville-paris.com
