LOVETRAIN2020 – Abbey Theatre – Dublin Dance Festival – Review

LOVETRAIN2020 Emanuel Gat Dance Company
Presented by Dublin Dance Festival and the Abbey Theatre  – Irish Premiere – France
Dates: 27 – 28 May

The choreographer of this piece Emanuel Gat was born in Israel in 1969 and now lives in Montpellier. He created this work during the Covid lockdown, a time when the majority of the theatres around the world were closed or experienced heavy restrictions. It is a piece for 12 dancers and uses the music of one of the most underrated 80s bands, Tears for Fears. It now gets its Irish premiere on the Abbey stage at a time when thankfully the worst of the Pandemic is long behind us.

The piece is quite dramatic, with the dancers performing in a diverse collection of clothing, mostly long flowing gowns, with swirls of fabric and ruffles. As long as it is outlandish and flamboyant, the costumes have a place on this stage. From a distance, it looks like a Roman setting, but in reality, it could be any location.

The lighting is another interesting feature. The dancers start at the back of the stage and move to the front through theatre flats (or walls) that are slowly raised. Dry ice is pumped through these gaps and naturalistic light comes from high in the heavens, giving the appearance of the sun finding its way into a temple or place of worship. The contrast with the 80s pop music couldn’t be more obvious.

The piece starts slowly but really comes to life with the first major hit from Tears for Fears, Mad World. There are gaps between the songs, where all you can hear is the slaps of the dancer’s bare feet against the floor of the stage or the flaps of their garments. There is no explanation for the events, and those looking for a story behind the performance will struggle to impose one on it. It is just a collection of dancers, cavorting in various groupings on stage. Sometimes, it’s one or two dancers and at other times it’s the whole stage filled with dancers, moving in unison or as many individuals. The final sequences are quite joyous and the track where the title comes from, Sowing the Seeds of Love, is an undoubted highlight. There are quiet moments or lulls in the performance, but when it hits its peak, it can be quite dazzling.

Credits:
Choreography and Lighting Emanuel Gat
Created with and performed by Eglantine Bart, Thomas Bradley, Robert Bridger, Gilad Jerusalmy, Michael Loehr, Emma Mouton, Eddie Oroyan, Rindra Rasoaveloson, Ichiro Sugae, Karolina Szymura, Sara Wilhelmsson, Jin Young Won.
Costume Design Thomas Bradley
Costume Construction Thomas Bradley, Wim Muyllaert
Technical Direction & Lighting Supervision Guillaume Février
Sound Frédéric Duru
Wardrobe Marie-Pierre Callies
Production: Emanuel Gat Dance: Marjorie Carré, Mélanie Bichot
Coproduction Festival Montpellier Danse 2020, Chaillot – Théâtre national de la Danse, Arsenal Cité Musicale – Metz, Theater Freiburg, with the support of Romaeuropa Festival.
Emanuel Gat Dance acknowledges the support of the French Ministry of Culture and Communication, and DRAC Provence Alpes-Côte d’Azur, Région Sud – Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur and Conseil Départemental des Bouches-du- Rhône. LOVETRAIN2020 receives the support of Institut Français for its international tours. Created at Agora – cité internationale de la danse in Montpellier.