Issue 15

For a 31-year-old event, the Singapore Arts Festival still feels as fresh and young as ever. This year it continues its tradition of showcasing avant-garde, adventurous and edgy dance performances. 

Singapore Dance Theatre presents a triple bill under the umbrella title Continuum (13-14 June), which features the work of choreographers David Dawson (UK), Jorma Elo (Finland) and Graham Lustig (US). Elo – who has choreographed athletic yet sophisticated movement for the likes of American Ballet Theatre and the Boston Ballet – will premiere Glow-Stop in Asia; expect dancers moving at breakneck speed in what will be an adrenalin rush for the audience. 

The hyperactivity continues with La La La Human Steps’ ballistic, acrobatic dancing with a hint of punk. The iconic Quebec contemporary dance company is famous for perfecting the full-twisting barrel flip – think of a body twisting in the air parallel to the ground, like a horizontal pirouette; then imagine many dancers doing this at once, and the resulting image is spectacular. 

At the festival, La La La Human Steps will premiere, for Asia, its 2007 piece Amjad (6-7 June). Choreographer Edouard Lock mixes edge with a balletic approach in this new work; it includes interpretations of sections from classics such as Swan Lake and Sleeping Beauty. 

The final must-see performance is the multi-arts extravaganza The Architecture of Silence, which combines dance, live music and projected images. Polish composer Zbigniew Preisner’s glorious score ‘Requiem for My Friend’ will be combined with Mozart’s Requiem and performed by the Singapore Festival Orchestra. This union provides the impetus behind awardwinning choreographer Edward Clug’s sensuous dance. 

See here for more information.