OBSERVER: Humans 2.0 – Review
Humans 2.0 merges contemporary dance with circus, creating a work where risk, excitement, and danger are ever-present
The performance opens with prone bodies stretched out onstage
As the music begins to soar, the bodies roll and spin from side to side.
Before long, they are upright, and their bodies fling from one performer to another.
Ori Lichtik’s original score, a tempo of clashing strings, pulsating cymbals, and an effervescent drumbeat, matches the movements driving the performers as they intertwine into amorphous human machines, all parts working together.
Shapes evolve into other shapes.
Human pyramids evolve into three-storey, tall towers where performers fly from the top, defying gravity.
A handstand holds steady on someone else’s head, while another performer bounces between bodies to land on the base’s shoulders.
Interludes of aerial spinning on silks, rope, and a trapeze swing slow the pace down, allowing the audience to catch their collective breath.
But not for long.
An electronic beat thumps and thuds while lighting designer Paul Jackson bathes the stage in dramatic red as we move into the third act. A parade of amazing balancing talent and acrobatic skills spins, flips, and tumbles across the floor in rapid staccato.
At one point, the choreography demonstrates the high stakes as someone moves aside to allow a performer to crash.
Another attempts to jump from a base’s shoulders. A stumble follows, but the flyer is thwarted.
The flyer regains their balance, reminding the audience that human endeavour sometimes fails.
A boundary-breaking fusion of dance and acrobatic skills created by Yaron Lifschitz, Humans 2.0 presents a captivating exploration into human capability.
Until May 24.
artscentremelbourne.com.au
Review by Kathryn Keeble