Arlette George, Landing Stage

Review in Issue 7-4 | Winter 1995

Landing Stage consisted of two works by Arlette George: Doskaidoskai, made a couple of years ago, and Tide, which is very new. Both were performed by Arlette George and Fiona Milward. Doskaidoskai is just as engaging as it was when it was first shown, with its deadpan humour and obsessive synchronisation. At first Tide seems more cryptic. The first of its two sections is different in movement and style to Doskaidoskai: it is contemplative and more fluid – drifting and swaying as if moved by the tide – and the mood quieter and darker. The second section returns to a world closer to Doskaidoskai: with the two performers engaged in percussive patterns precisely organised in space and time. It was exuberant, and its barely suppressed hysteria may have been partly due to the newness of the work. Time will clearly give the performers a greater grasp of the organisation of the material and confidence in moving through it. Despite this, I thought that some of the less than perfect balances added to its hectic charm.

Arlette George's combination of new dance with the undertow of Scottish folk-dancing and her sense of humour make her work both engaging, entertaining and extremely satisfying.

Presenting Artists
Presenting Venue
Date Seen
  1. Sep 1995

This article in the magazine

Issue 7-4
p. 24