Story of a Night Pianist
The Space
28th August 2013

★★★★☆

With a really good site-specific production, it's usually quite hard to see it working anywhere else. Director and choreographer Anna Buonomo however has managed to find a new home for Story of a Night Pianist, relocating it from Trinity Buoy Wharf, the area which inspired most of the plot, to The Space, a theatre which was converted from a 19th century church. Perhaps it's because we didn't see last year's production and can't easily compare the two, but The Space does seem like a natural fit.

In finest Pixar tradition, the main event is preceded by something shorter. Each night you see a piece by Exzeb Dance Company, and another by either Quirk or David Waker, the performances of Echo and Rising Pheasant alternating. The way these pieces blend disciplines is exciting to watch, performer Nefeli Tsiouti melds pointe work with breaking, and Waker contemporary dance with martial arts. Exzeb's Artism is a multimedia piece, a short film preceding the live dance from David Gellura, one of the most memorable performers of the evening.

But there's very little to link these to Story of a Night Pianist, the narratives and styles are entirely separate. After the interval, there's a complete change of pace, with the promenade action beginning. The first half hour is spent following the Violinist (Barbara Zdziarska) outside. Playing a haunting melody, she is always entirely silent herself, sweeping through the Isle of Dogs with a graceful poise, dressed in a long, black, Victorian mourning dress. She takes us on an immersive journey where we encounter lost souls, drawn to them and drawing them, as they replay their unfinished business. The lack of natural light at this time in the evening, combined with the harsh neon glow from the streets giving a spooky and ethereal mood. The dancers use their surroundings to the fullest, stretching through the railings may seem like an obvious move, but we also seem them wandering in the playground, twisting their bodies on top of a phone box, a high wall, draped over a street sign, pacing between doors - any space they find they utilise well.

There are roughly 30 dancers in total, a mixture of professional, semi-professional and amateur - but as they keep slipping in and out of the crowd, racing on ahead and reappearing, it feels like there are even more of them, the area full of ghosts. Wherever you choose to stand, how long you linger at any of the scenes playing out - your experience is unique. You find yourself focussing on a few of the ensemble, recognising their faces and movements, each with their own set of actions they repeat - your link to those performers keeping you engaged with the entire narrative.

We saw one clearly displeased local resident effing and blinding at the disturbance (philistine), but many others opened their windows, listening to the violinist and watching what was going on. There were dog-walkers reassuring their confused pets, spooked by the large movements of the dancers and the Greenwich fireworks in the background. Bemused teenagers, young children mimicking the dancers - you couldn't have asked for a more varied response from the community. Of course, some may be more welcome than others by Bricolage Dance Movement, but the point is, the unpredictable nature of the late journey is what makes it so special and keeps people talking about it afterwards. When you open up a performance like this, taking it outdoors, you do lose some control. But we would argue, what you often gain is worth it.

Two of the characters who stood out for me were the Husband (Gellura) and the Wife (Sacha Flanagan), constantly running to and from each other, pushing and pulling in a constant beautiful and ugly battle. On reentering The Space, we see their story told in full, with their turbulent relationship unsurprisingly ending in death. The music at this point suggests a sense of freedom, with that release bringing some sense of peace.

And it's at this point that we finally hear Lorenzo Turchi-Floris on the piano. Billed as a maestro in the programme, it's easy to understand why he has earned that title, his score is deeply intricate, moving and delivered as naturally as we might find breathing in and out. His music - both the composition and the delivery - is truly compelling.

As well as the couple, this inside part focuses on the Dealer (Soledad De La Hoz) and her involvement with the Pregnant Woman (Irene Wernli) and Chained Boy (Cindy Claes). At times she seems to be helping, at others taking joy in their suffering. Of all the characters we meet, hers seems to be the most conflicted.

This is a production made up of stories - as for the night pianist himself, it goes that Turchi-Floris was driven to compose a score, this one, by an unexplained presence. Having no use for the result, he gave it to Buonomo to do as she saw fit. Of all the tales, that is the only true one, the other characters so loosely based on real life events that they are almost entirely fictional. But there's a truth in the night being the time where the line between past and present can feel blurred, a time where people feel past memories most strongly.

The dancers may shock you more than they move you, but Story of a Night Pianist is an engaging, immersive piece and an unmissable experience.

Story of a Night Pianist opened on 26th August and runs until 1st September 2013 at The Space.

Nearest tube station: Mudchute (DLR)

Story of a Night Pianist
The Space
28th August 2013

★★★★☆

With a really good site-specific production, it's usually quite hard to see it working anywhere else. Director and choreographer Anna Buonomo however has managed to find a new home for Story of a Night Pianist, relocating it from Trinity Buoy Wharf, the area which inspired most of the plot, to The Space, a theatre which was converted from a 19th century church. Perhaps it's because we didn't see last year's production and can't easily compare the two, but The Space does seem like a natural fit.

In finest Pixar tradition, the main event is preceded by something shorter. Each night you see a piece by Exzeb Dance Company, and another by either Quirk or David Waker, the performances of Echo and Rising Pheasant alternating. The way these pieces blend disciplines is exciting to watch, performer Nefeli Tsiouti melds pointe work with breaking, and Waker contemporary dance with martial arts. Exzeb's Artism is a multimedia piece, a short film preceding the live dance from David Gellura, one of the most memorable performers of the evening.

But there's very little to link these to Story of a Night Pianist, the narratives and styles are entirely separate. After the interval, there's a complete change of pace, with the promenade action beginning. The first half hour is spent following the Violinist (Barbara Zdziarska) outside. Playing a haunting melody, she is always entirely silent herself, sweeping through the Isle of Dogs with a graceful poise, dressed in a long, black, Victorian mourning dress. She takes us on an immersive journey where we encounter lost souls, drawn to them and drawing them, as they replay their unfinished business. The lack of natural light at this time in the evening, combined with the harsh neon glow from the streets giving a spooky and ethereal mood. The dancers use their surroundings to the fullest, stretching through the railings may seem like an obvious move, but we also seem them wandering in the playground, twisting their bodies on top of a phone box, a high wall, draped over a street sign, pacing between doors - any space they find they utilise well.

There are roughly 30 dancers in total, a mixture of professional, semi-professional and amateur - but as they keep slipping in and out of the crowd, racing on ahead and reappearing, it feels like there are even more of them, the area full of ghosts. Wherever you choose to stand, how long you linger at any of the scenes playing out - your experience is unique. You find yourself focussing on a few of the ensemble, recognising their faces and movements, each with their own set of actions they repeat - your link to those performers keeping you engaged with the entire narrative.

We saw one clearly displeased local resident effing and blinding at the disturbance (philistine), but many others opened their windows, listening to the violinist and watching what was going on. There were dog-walkers reassuring their confused pets, spooked by the large movements of the dancers and the Greenwich fireworks in the background. Bemused teenagers, young children mimicking the dancers - you couldn't have asked for a more varied response from the community. Of course, some may be more welcome than others by Bricolage Dance Movement, but the point is, the unpredictable nature of the late journey is what makes it so special and keeps people talking about it afterwards. When you open up a performance like this, taking it outdoors, you do lose some control. But we would argue, what you often gain is worth it.

Two of the characters who stood out for me were the Husband (Gellura) and the Wife (Sacha Flanagan), constantly running to and from each other, pushing and pulling in a constant beautiful and ugly battle. On reentering The Space, we see their story told in full, with their turbulent relationship unsurprisingly ending in death. The music at this point suggests a sense of freedom, with that release bringing some sense of peace.

And it's at this point that we finally hear Lorenzo Turchi-Floris on the piano. Billed as a maestro in the programme, it's easy to understand why he has earned that title, his score is deeply intricate, moving and delivered as naturally as we might find breathing in and out. His music - both the composition and the delivery - is truly compelling.

As well as the couple, this inside part focuses on the Dealer (Soledad De La Hoz) and her involvement with the Pregnant Woman (Irene Wernli) and Chained Boy (Cindy Claes). At times she seems to be helping, at others taking joy in their suffering. Of all the characters we meet, hers seems to be the most conflicted.

This is a production made up of stories - as for the night pianist himself, it goes that Turchi-Floris was driven to compose a score, this one, by an unexplained presence. Having no use for the result, he gave it to Buonomo to do as she saw fit. Of all the tales, that is the only true one, the other characters so loosely based on real life events that they are almost entirely fictional. But there's a truth in the night being the time where the line between past and present can feel blurred, a time where people feel past memories most strongly.

The dancers may shock you more than they move you, but Story of a Night Pianist is an engaging, immersive piece and an unmissable experience.

Story of a Night Pianist opened on 26th August and runs until 1st September 2013 at The Space.

Nearest tube station: Mudchute (DLR)