My number one tip for someone going to see this production: read the card they give you as you walk in.
Do not do as I do, which is skim it before putting it away, while waiting for what I very much assumed was to be a play of some sort. I will make it clear here: this is an interpretive dance performance set to string music, with nothing much to do with Shakespeare’s play aside from the theme of love, and the names of the famous pair being shouted at certain points throughout.
It’s a performance which arrives in thirds, as one by one we are introduced to three distinct sets of couples. These pairs are comprised of four dancers, two older, two younger, and one pair of musicians. The combined efforts of these 6 form a chaotic performance of romance and self-discovery. At least, I think so. There is also full nudity, which I feel compelled to express as, Englishwoman that I am, it certainly shocked me at first.
It’s a very loose performance, which can probably be taken an infinite number of ways. The dance is unique and expressive, though also quite obstructive to straight forward analysis. A very vague narrative is formed through the interactions of the artists, where the older couple offers an example for the young, as the musicians play on in their own dance. Meanwhile, the younger couple must learn to embrace the confidence and passion required to fully express their love for each other, before it’s too late. That’s my interpretation of the piece, anyway.
It’s baffling, it’s bold, it’s artistic. If that’s all a bit of you, go and see if you can find more words to express the experience than I can.
This Is Not Romeo and Juliet, Zoo Southside, 16:30, until August 18.
