iTMOi: In the mind of Ikram Kahn

In The Mind of Igor
Akram Khan Company
Auckland Arts Festival
Aotea Centre
Until March 21

Igor Stravinsky’s and Vaslav Nijinsky’s Rite of Spring is at the core of most contemporary dance, rejecting classical forms of dance and music they set dance in a new direction. The work has become a touchstone for exploring ideas about contemporary thought and art. Since its first performance in 1913 it has been appropriated, adapted and repackaged by most dance companies and choreographers.

In the Mind of Igor shows us more about the mind of choreographer and dancer Aram Khan as he tries to enter the mind of the creators to gain an understanding of The Rite. But in an attempt to provide a commentary on the composer and the work he has produced a frustratingly complex work.

He has created a dance vocabulary which fails to fully communicate narrative, emotion or concept. Individual sections and sequences are brilliantly devised and performed but there is a lack of cohesion. The forces of light and dark, of nature and society of the primitive and the civilised are all there but there is a slippage between these notions which is confusing, perplexing and tantalisingly incomplete.

The great thing about the work is the dancers themselves who provide displays which are richly textured, with wonderful gestures and startling movement. At times they responded like automatons to the music while at other times their rapid dancing was like that of whirling dervishes. They could be frenetic, controlled or achingly slow but always attentive to the music and the other dancers.

Some of the sequences owed much to the dance of India, Africa, Central Asia and even Spain with the dancers deftly moving from one form to the other.

Kahn himself is a figure of exceptional agility displaying a tautness and fluidity which conveys an inner power.  He gave a visceral opening performance – a mix of Gollum, Abraham and a vengeful god.

While there is the odd reference to Stravinsky’s music the score featured Eastern inspired rhythms from Nitin Sawhney, some expressive music from Jocelyn Pook, and stark waves of dissonant sound from Ben Frost, the composer of The Wasp Factory (NBR October 12 2013) who also seems to have influenced the work stylistically.

Not adding to the overall impact of the dance was the sound engineer’s decision to over-amplify and distort the music and the lack of programmes available for the audience.