FLIGHTS OF FANCY at Parc And Dare Theatre, Treorci, Friday 17th May. Review by Elizabeth Sumner.

 

The Parc and Dare Theatre at Treorci celebrated its centenary with a truly magnificent Flight of Fancy.  The evening of dance and music was a joy.  Here was a beautiful, traditional theatre for the using, and use it they did.  By placing the audience on stage and thus using the auditorium and circles for the performance meant an innovative use of space.  Even getting to our seats involved walking through corridors used by the artists in various poses.

 

The first part of the performance was a vibrant whisk through time from 1913 to 2013.  I loved the World War One introduction by the Cofio Reminiscence Dance Theatre.  These more mature ladies were, I’m sure, the originators of girl power. (How dare the Spice Girls think they invented it?)  The beautiful costumes, gentle movements and heartfelt singing depicting the departure of loved ones and a determination to keep the Home Fires Burning was truly lovely.  These ladies proved that you don’t have to be a youngster to participate in movement and music.

 

From here The Academy / Take Part Dance Group led us to a catwalk of Haute Couture. They gave us gorgeous costumes and an elegant Vogue theme.  We continued our romp through time, jitterbugging and getting lost in space with Expressions Dance Company, then being involved in the Miners’ Strike with Treorci Comprehensive School dancers.  The wonderful jack booting arrival of placard carrying strikers showed the conflict of that particular struggle, the dancers using the stage with ease and structure.  We then entered Dr. Who’s fantasy world before being invaded by aliens of Connections Youth Dance who looked incredibly cute in their costumes rather than frightening.  I liked that.

 

This whole session was accompanied by The Siren Sisters. They were sensational.  Why aren’t these girls topping the album charts?  They have incredible voices with wonderful harmonies.  Nothing appears to be outside their range.  The music chosen was appropriate to the eras depicted and enhanced every performance.

 

Staging changes took place during the interval with six windows facing us all having their curtains tied back providing a uniform background. 

 

The second part of the performance proved quite different.  The orchestra took to the pit accompanying the Expressions Dance Company with haunting, mysterious music so beautifully composed by Jak Poore.  The music, for me, depicted water, valleys and mountains of our Welsh landscape, its changing rhythms and beats evoking the beauty that surrounds us.

 

I confess that I do not know how to interpret dance but I felt the choreography so wonderfully arranged by Phil Williams evoked in me images from the Mabinogion. Mythical, magical and oh so elegant.  The costume designer, Paul Shriek, gave us exquisite, floating, delicate fabrics, which moved with the dancers.  I was fascinated by Phil Williams` use of space.  The circles above and around us, the seats, and the aisles all provided surfaces for the dancers who were magnificent.  Every move was elegant yet controlled.  The one lone male dancer was not the only one to provide lifts and throws, the girls proving themselves equal to the task. This was graceful and inspiring right up to the magnificent climax where the principal dancer was raised aloft as the glimmering banner fell behind her.

 

The evening was a wonderful experience.  From the oldest performer to the youngest they deserved the heartfelt applause.

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