A bare table sometimes tipped to be a wall…
A man…two actually—-a narrating son and his father…
A woman… two actually—-a mother and then a daughter…
A bowl..
A hat…
And a composer musician in the shadows sometimes mouthing the mic in spinning DJ rap style..
There is not much on the stage, but even the few props are crowded out by the oversized rage that animates this dance-spoken word vignette created and performed by dancer/choreographer Kwame Asafo Adjoin and a supporting cast of one woman and one musician.
Roughly, Family Honor digs below a feud between father and daughter that we infer has something to do with sex and sin. Asofo Adjei opens with a moon walk variant that morphs like a transformer in an animated film to show him running from his past. Later, as he crouches into older man pose, he becomes his father.
The program notes describe the choreography as hip-hop dance with Ghanian roots. Fellow Americans might also reach to fit it into a hip-hop mould. Hip-hop is certainly in the mix, as is a break dance moves here or there, and a flavor of African dance moves. This choreography is certainly unique. You won’t feel it is derivative of anything.
The dance though is very much in service of the storytelling. Even if we can’t exactly follow the story blow by blow— which by the way is told in English with French subtitles— we DO know it is a story about RAGE, RAGE and more forms of RAGE. We peek back into the pre-story to see the father and mother lacking in love and trying unsuccessfully to keep sexual tension at bay. Later we see the father and daughter arguing with positions hitting each other like body blows.
You too may walk away thinking you will always channel memories of these arguments, re-told to us by closely knit percussive arm slaps on table. The choreography captures the feel of out-of-control arguments that destroy both sides.
Asofo Adjei’s choreography will likely be of interest to all who are keen to explore dance as storytelling. In this writer’s view, he is more successful than all others we’ve reviewed who approach such a task more cerebrally. This is raw and visceral emotion put to service to tell a story through movement. It works.
For an American in Paris, another attraction of the evening was the theater itself and the hipsters in the crowd there to enjoy this cutting edge work. This Théâtre de la Ville venue in the 18th Arrondissement on Rue des Abbesses brings you into a non-touristy slice of Paris. It lays bare what you suspect— that the appreciation of arts of all kinds permeates the Paris soul.
RECOMMENDED
Théâtre de la Ville hosts ongoing dance performances, among other cultural offerings. Visit the Théâtre de la Ville website for more info.
About the Author: Amy Munice
Amy Munice is Editor-in-Chief and Co-Publisher of Picture This Post. She covers books, dance, film, theater, music, museums and travel. Prior to founding Picture This Post, Amy was a freelance writer and global PR specialist for decades—writing and ghostwriting thousands of articles and promotional communications on a wide range of technical and not-so-technical topics.
