@ Paradise in Augustines, Edinburgh, until Sun 30 Aug 2015 @ 14:30
Time Lapse forms an investigation into how we perceive the passage of time, and how our perception may be altered by various external influences. SVJdance, explore this idea using a blend of dance, video and recorded sound in the small studio space at Paradise in Augustines.
The two main dancers, Sarah Vaughan-Jones and Vicci Viles, are presided over by a third figure—a sort of ‘Mother Time’—who, rather like the archetypal magician figure in classical ballet, appears to command the action, fate-like. The work itself is split into a number of shorter sections, each section introduced by a short hiatus overseen by this mysterious figure.
There are many good aspects to the show. The projection of a digital countdown of the elapsed time is a simple device but surprisingly successful. This subtly speeds up and slows down, and affects our awareness of time in a direct and disorientating manner. The countdown would have us believe the show lasts around hour, for example, when in fact it only take fifty minutes. The projection of an image of a dancer onto fractured gauze, who Vaughan-Jones subsequently dances with, is similarly effective.
However, the chorography in general is very unfocussed, and the sections would benefit from being shorter. They are based on fairly simple choreographic ideas which although not bad thing per se, does not allow them to sustain repetition for long. The realisation of the multimedia elements is quite rough, and their presentation in the venue has not been entirely handled with care (although this is no doubt partially due to limited rehearsal time typical of the Fringe). Finally, the “rewind” that concludes the piece, although in many ways nicely realised, is too obvious a ruse, and doesn’t add much to piece.
So although there is much good material here, it doesn’t quite fuse together to form a proper whole. Rather like the curate’s egg, this is only good in parts.