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94 Time Out Budapest February 2009
Following a tough act
On the heels of one of the best contemporary dance shows this country has produced, TranzDanz has a premier at Trafó. Sue Foy clocks the moves.
After more than 20 years of running TranzDanz, a small Budapest based contemporary dance company, choreographer, Gerzson Péter Kovács is really hitting his stride.
His recent piece “Bankett”, release din 2006, was the best contemporary modern dance Hungary has seen in a long time. Along with mesmerising movement, superb music and a great sense of drama, it had something that is rarely found in dance in this country: a sense of humour and irony. Kovács displays an ability to criticise, and laugh at, himself.
Coming off the back of this success, Kovács and TranzDanz are premiering their latest presentation, re-DNA (called re-DNS in Hungarian) at the Trafó this month. If Kovács can come close to matching the spectacle of his previous piece, the new show will be well worth watching.
Kovács experiments with his own movement language - a mixture of two kinds of dance: folk dance and contemporary modern dance. Don't go to TranzDanz expecting to recognise either of those genres in their 'traditional' forms, though the discerning eye can detect many influences and layers of reference. The result is strange, funny and even beautiful. .
Kovács started with folk dance definitely one of Hungary's dance fortes - and then went on to study contemporary modern dance techniques, collaborate, perform and choreograph. The results have petted awards in Hungary, in Europe and beyond. .
For “Bankett" (Banquet), Kovács gathered a group of six talented dancers who clearly proved to be brilliant interpreters of his humour, choreography and style - especially Zoltán Zsuráfszky jnr. who turned in an amazing performance.
As Kovács describes it, “Bankett” is about the jumble of plots and subplots we live through in our daily lives: 'Everyone is everyone else's partner, ally, intrigue, enemy, friend, backbiter, lover and cheating lover.' It is intended to be 'a critical caricature of the character, archetypes and absurdities of the lower middle class Central-Eastern European existence.'
Those who do not recognise a story line will still be able to enjoy a wonderful show.
The music for “Bankett” is provided by DJ Palotai. Perhaps the best-known Budapest D J, he has matured to combine a broad range of styles, including very danceable concoctions of retrohouse and beat mixing. Palotai is placed at center, back of a stage, and his presence and sound are a vital part of the show. The DJ is outlined in a fine line blue light, part of the striking set, which was designed by choreographer Kovács.
The new piece, „re-DNA”, also employs a locally famous musician, amazing jazz saxophonist Mihály Dudás Dresch. Fitting dance to Dresch's unusual, folk-inspired and atmospheric sounds will be challenging, because his work is more free-form and less beatdependant than Palotai's. But if the coordination of sound and movement works, the results could be stunning.
The dancing talent should be available, as Zsuráfszky, who shines in “Bankett”, also performs in “re- D NA”, along with two other male dancers, Gábor Bora and Gábor Katona.
Kovács says the themes of his latest piece are continuity and change. Changes in DNA are essential to evolution, but it is also D NA that ensures continuity of a species.
Whatever. The message sounds interesting, but the proof will be in the music and movement. Hopefully Kovács, Zsuráfszky and the rest of TranzDanz can maintain the level of entertainment provided in their previous piece.
 re-DNA Three men star in TranzDanz's latest Piece, about change. |
