Everyone can dance

Pichet Klunchun and Jerome Bel

On the very same day, the final curtain closes on Bangkok's Ninth International Festival of Dance and Music on October 11, Esplanade's "da:ns 2007" will begin, aiming to encourage everyone to move in various styles. Judging from the success of the festival's inauguration last year, there are many reasons to go to Singapore and experience this dance feast.

"Da:ns is part of Esplanade's annual calendar of arts events that features key festivals and series which aims to present and develop all forms of art," says Faith Tan, a programming officer of The Esplanade in Singapore. "Da:ns hopes to grow dance audiences and develop and showcase dance artists and an annual festival will help provide a regular platform for both audiences and artists to look forward to."

Last year, the organisers stretched out their hands and asked, "Shall We Dance?", presenting more than 90 events from six different countries that attracted more than 55,000 people.

"The response was indeed encouraging," Tan says. "It was really heartwarming to see people who don't ordinarily dance get up and move at our free mass dancing sessions. It showed there were so many 'closet' dancers in Singapore."

This year, the tagline is "Fall in Love with Dance", with more than 100 events from 10 countries featuring a mix of regional and international productions showcasing some of the best talents across varied dance genres from classical to the contemporary.

Much work has gone into preparing audiences for the extravaganza.

"Last year, our prefestival dance workshops 'Footwork' were very well received, so this year we've increased the number of workshops from 17 to 24, and challenged participants with less common dance forms like Spanish classical dance and Raggaeton. This paid off as all our workshops this year are sold out," Tan says. "The direction for da:ns focuses on providing new experiences for all audiences and is not limited to either traditional or contemporary works."

Similar to last year, the festival this year has a mix of both traditional and contemporary works. There will be classical ballet ("Stars of Russian Ballet") and flamenco (Compagnia Maria Pages' "Sevilla"), as well as traditional dances from around Asia alongside provocative contemporary works, like Batsheva Dance Company's "Telophaza".

For the first time, the festival hopes to attract a younger crowd with a hip hop dance party, "Overdrive", to get everyone on their feet. "Marty Kudelka, choreographer for Justin Timberlake, will perform and show where the superstars get their moves from," Tan says. "Local hip hop dancers will also perform alongside DJs and a beatboxer [Stylustiks]."

JP Nathan, Esplanade's director of programming, explains the thoughts behind this: "We all have an irrepressible urge for movement within us. Nowhere else do we see this more clearly than in the uninhibited expressions of the young. This year's dance festival focuses more closely on children and youths with workshops conducted specifically for students, our first ever parentchild dance workshop and free dance sessions along our waterfront especially for kids. Through these workshops and the diverse presentations in the festival, we hope for more people to enjoy dance."

The festival will make full use of The Esplanade's range of performance spaces.

In last year's festival, Lanna dance artist Krit Chaisilboon participated in "Rasas: Traditional Dances from Asia", a series of free programmes highlighting the region's cultural heritage, presented at Esplanade Concourse. This year, it's Silpathorn honoree Pichet Klunchun's turn to present his new work in the "Shift" series, which features more experimental works than the  "Centerstage" roster.

"We dedicate our smaller studio spaces to the more contemporary works and have themed the series 'Shift', because we want to shift everyone's stereotypes and notions of what dance is," Tan says. "Each work presented in 'Shift' showcases different discussions of contemporary society. Pichet Klunchun wants to find a place for his traditional khon dance, Jerome Bel plays with the concept of 'spectacle' between the audience and performer.

"I first saw Pichet and Jerome's work in another dance festival in Montpellier, France. I knew immediately how special their work is and how important it was to bring it to Singapore audiences.  They have such great chemistry on stage - so intelligent and witty. Jerome's philosophical concepts and ideas about performance are groundbreaking in redefining what dance or a performance can be.

"'About Khon' is a culmination of Pichet's most successful pieces - [another collaboration with Bel] 'Pichet Klunchun and Myself' and [his solo performance] 'I am a Demon'. Pichet is an amazingly charismatic dancer to watch. He displays much control, developed from years of strict classical training."

Da:ns offers audiences the chance to see top international dance companies as well as fresh dance makers all at one festival. Not only will there be a variety of performance styles, there's a change to gain handson experience via participation in workshops of all levels, from beginners to professional, across a wide range of genres from Bollywood to line dancing.

"And for those who love to boogie, they'll get a chance to show off their moves under the stars at Esplanade's waterfront area with a series of free weekend mass dancing sessions called 'What's Your Move?'" Tan says.  "Audiences can join in these sessions which start with a brief demonstration by professional dancers teaching basic steps before everyone joining in, jiving to live music.

"So, whether you want to get into the groove or sit back and watch some of the best talents of dance today, da:ns 2007 will have something for audiences to enjoy. Dance can be serious, it can be fun, and the festival will show all sides of this art form," sums up Tan.

Special thanks to Mark Sinn and Fiona Soh for their assistance in this interview.

Pawit Mahasarinand

Weekend Magazine

Published on September 28, 2007