Chunky Move's "Connected" opened on Thursday, October 18, at Lincoln Hall and ran for three performances. There has been a great deal of commentary on this work, including reviews from Catherine Thomas in The Oregonian, Ben Waterhouse in Willamette Week, and Barry Johnson in Oregon Arts Watch. These reviews are listed under our News Heading.

Nim Wunnan of Research Club and Sean Ongley contributed two very  perceptive blogs on the performance.

To read Nim's blog, click HERE.

His conclusion is worth highlighting--but do read the entire blog to appreciate his perspective:

"The skillful choreography of the show -- sculptural and not -- matters not as symbol or suggestion, but as movement and real action in space. It is remarkably effective at being the thing it is and making us care about it without having to relate it to something else we might more readily desire or comprehend."

Sean Ongley has contributed the following review, another interesting take on this fascinating work--

Connected

Developed collaboratively with sculptor Reuben Margolin, composers Oren Ambarchi and Robin Fox, direction and choreography by Gideon Obarzanek, hailing from Australia, Chunky Move returns to Portland with the North American premiere of a nearly brand new show called Connected. For the third time presented by White Bird, Chunky Move captivates audiences. But for myself, it was the first time viewing their work in person. It is the opportunity to witness such innovative work that keeps my little fingers busy. Each component of this cross-disciplinary collaboration is strong and inseparable, to the extent that I want to seek out the music, dance, and sculpture from the above-mentioned geniuses individually. I am hesitant to say anything about the piece for one simple reason: truth is best kept to as few words as possible.

Speculation is always part of critique and analysis of the performance, but work as concrete as this piece is best kept to empiricism – it is a science. The mechanism garnishing most attention on stage has the quality of a mysterious contraption that was pulled from DaVinci’s workshop, or perhaps built posthumously from his notebook. Mathematically perfect, mechanically sound, Margolin’s machine mesmerizes with gasps from the audience when strings attached to bodies moving interconnected cause flux in the matrix that this contraption is built to control. There is nothing hidden under a veil, the mechanism shows how we are connected – the truth is plain to see.

Movement, as choreographed by Obarzenek, too demonstrates human connection. The choreography is less narrative than the average, and there may not have been any linear story, but the interaction between dancers certainly pulled heartstrings at times, without making it about the romance or conflict between characters; the important aspect is to observe the interplay of existence. There is a real feeling of humanity and spirituality to it, but it may be the latent side of our potential that only post-modern, integral performance such as this can accomplish. Also, the work doesn’t smack of any specific message or moral, it simply explores the facts of our existence, mostly the how, not the why. Without movement, the sculpture and the score would be incomplete. It is the talent of Obarzenek to see and connect people to make a powerful, unified body.

The precision to which dancers manage to pull cues from the very abstract score, almost entirely lacking recognizable meter, is impressive, and surely requires much attention and practice. Abruptly, the performance leaps in to movement with industrial sounds in a minimalist polyrhythm, evolving unpredictably as one comes to expect from a minimalist score. Granular noise at very low volume, epic guitar chords with feedback, silence, and a lot of electronics pace the entire show through a compelling series of physical feats of varying intensity. From silence to softness to mania, the score sounds like the outer edges of our universe may sound when amplified.

The music, the movement, and the sculpture are stand-alone fascinations and compelling all to their own. Chunky Move will be without Obarzenek constant direction before long. We can only hope the company can carry on his tradition of psychically expanding work. Go see this show and make them all want to come back.