H A S E R
the duality of being which recognises silence in strength.
H A S E R by Syimah Sabtu
This work is about the duality of being which recognises silence in strength. There is constant compensation and negotiation to achieve equilibrium - yet at the same time embracing the adversities that comes along.
Showcase:
OFFSTAGE M1 Contact Contemporary Dance Festival, Singapore (July 2019)
Dance Bridge Festival, Kolkata, India (August 2019)
Premiering:
Co.Lab.Asians M1 Contact Contemporary Dance Festival, Singapore. (2021)
Choreographed by: Syimah Sabtu
Dancers: Jonit On, Syarifuddin Sahari, Syimah Sabtu
Images by Kuang Jing Kai, Malcom Fu and Shania Regina.
REVIEWS
"The work questions the limits of man versus nature, probing the binary nature of the human body, and the power of control from within and without of our bodies. As the trio enters a synchronized routine, there is a sense of energy building up, and soon the three individuals evolve into one single being (or a three-headed creature), where the power of control gets even more ambiguous. Like this one single entity that stands on stage at the end, the dance work itself also holds the potential to take on different shapes as it continues to be developed in different venues. "
Isaac Lim | FiveLines
"It was a funny piece. It was a mysterious piece."
"One thinks of them as akin to the three witches of Shakespeare’s Macbeth, as their movements become wilder, frenzied, and ritualistic, as if getting ready to summon some kind of creature. We think also of the idea of colonialism, or of taming the wild, primal side of us with clothes, synchronising our behaviours and evolving into a member of society as they begin to dance with each other. Towards the end, they being to assimilate into a single being, crossing their legs over each other, and we think perhaps, of a settling of the spirit, of our internal and external selves finding a happy medium and finding peace, as the piece draws to a close."