Dance till you drop

>> XL choreography, movement in the deep end, swinging in the park and more

STAR FORMATIONS:
Lunar Sea at Le Festival des arts de Saint-Sauveur

by MARITES CARINO

Even though we’ve just wrapped up a dance fest in the city, there’s already more dancing just ’round the bend. Keep an eye out for dance at the 17th edition of the Fringe Festival. This year’s sampling involves the return of folks who won awards and made an impression in 2006.

Local artist Dominique Leroux was the winner of the Cirque du Soleil prize for best francophone creation. The puppeteer/dancer returns with her new show Celui-Qui, which brings her leggy marionette to life through the combination of dance, video and shadows.

Contemporary dance collective Co/Motion skipped away with the 2006 Best Choreography award for their crowd-pleaser piece Le sixième s’est envolé. On this year’s menu, La Fonte des corps, their new collection of works by five choreographers from the Concordia dance program.

It was the American company inFluxdance who took the Spirit of the Fringe trophy, and they return with a new dance-theatre piece Found & Lost: Goals for 2002, which was inspired by misplaced and discovered objects. Continuing their exploration of American Sign Language, which we saw in their piece last year, all spoken word will be communicated in ASL.

More talent from our southern neighbours, Boston’s “fat-tastic” company Big Moves are back with their plus-size performers who, last year, asked the audience to guess their collective weight. They reappear with a new kitschy dance-musical, Gargantua: Fear of a Fat Planet. Also during their Montreal stint, the gals are holding a free pancake brunch on June 10. They say latecomers are accepted, but warn the bacon won’t be as crisp. The New York-based hubby and wifey team of Michael Walsh and Annie Mayer get it together in If Tap Shoes Could Talk. The show follows a quartet of New York characters in a dance-theatre spectacle that they describe as “Gene Kelly meets Seinfeld.”

Most of the dance happens at the MAI and Théâtre la Chapelle and goes until June 17, but you can get your hands on the fest schedule at montrealfringe.ca.

Pool and park

Get a splash of contemporary dance before the St-Jean Baptiste celebrations at the Bain St-Michel June 22–23. It’s take three for Piss in the Pool, the site-specific choreographic experiment that takes place in a now defunct public pool. It’s expanded this year and now seven local choreographers will share their moves in the deep end.

From inside to outside, no doubt you’ve heard of the free tango classes in the parks across the city, but if swing is more your thing, why not Lindy hop over to Verdun for the monthly Swing l’été event, now in its fifth year. A handful of swing dance schools offer up freebie afternoon lessons to swing wannabes and veterans alike on June 16, July 14 and August 11. For the exact wheres and whens, visit www.swinginmontreal.com. Meanwhile, on another outdoor stage across town, check out Rythmes Umurisho: les tambourinaires du Burundi, where a dozen dancers and drummers pick up the pace at the TOHU on August 12. More info at www.tohu.ca.

In and out of town

This year, Le Festival des arts de Saint-Sauveur runs Aug. 2–11 with over 60 free shows headquartered at this Laurentian summer arts hot spot. Watch out for companies like Montréal Danse, Rubberbandance, bjm_danse and the Alberta Ballet. Find the complete schedule at www.fass.ca.

Retour à Montréal… Don’t forget about the dance jackpot at the Théâtre de Verdure. In July, Roger Sinha returns with his Apricot Trees Exist, a group choreography that was inspired by a Danish epic poem. The Jeune Ballet du Québec performs Petits Propos, a world premiere by Lyon choreographer Michel Hallet Eghayan, which focuses on duets. Then, to close the month, the Ballet Flamenco Arte de España draws inspiration from playwright Michel Tremblay’s signature work Les Belles-sœurs. Their new flamenco creation, Azafrán Or Rouge, follows a wandering woman’s quest for saffron.

In August, Les Grands ballets Canadiens de Montréal keeps the stage alive with a double bill of Spanish choreographer Nacho Duato’s moving Jardi Tancat, which is set to the haunting voice of Maria del Mar Bonet, and Christopher Wheeldon’s choreography Polyphonia closing the evening. FYI, if it rains, shows are cancelled. So keep an eye on the weather and consult the calendar at www.ville.montreal.qc.ca/culture.