National Theatre, St Kilda
September 8 2012

By Rebecca Martin.

Immersed is one of those wonderful nights when Melbourne’s dance community comes together to share their work and float in the glory of what is a very deep pool of talent.  While Immersed is a celebration of dance, tonight it was all about spaghetti.

Created by the brilliant Paul Malek and his company Collaboration The Project, Immersed has been running yearly since 2009, giving upcoming as well as established performers the chance to shine and also to see what else is going on in the local dance scene.  This year we saw 23 pieces from some of our best full time dance schools, solo artists, youth companies, and seasoned groups.

A rich partnership between Malek, Adrian Ricks, Yvette Lee, and Nadia Tornese opened proceedings and set the bar incredibly high for the rest of the performances.  The Space Dance and Arts Centre presented a strong piece created by Los Angeles’ Meredith Kerr which was closely followed by the award winning piece One choreographed by Rain Francis and danced by Rain and Lucky Dance Theatre.  Rain is certainly a choreographer to watch and her company is full of technically sound and fearless dancers.  Dance World Studios brought a taste of Asia to the National Theatre stage in an epic piece that saw the dancers clad in kimonos and wielding parasols.  Fortunately, this wasn’t an eisteddfod piece, but rather a high energy and engaging dance that used the Asian theme cleverly and was a definite stand out.

Jason Coleman’s Ministry of Dance and Patrick Studios Australia presented loud and exciting pieces that saw the stage full of dancers. They were incredibly effective in getting the audience to cheer and the dancers to perform at their best.

I was very happy to see tap and Irish dance get a guernsey, and to also to see the talented Benjamin Hancock on stage.  He performed a solo piece on a circular piece of carpet which he didn’t stray from.  Hancock was mesmerising.

The undoubted highlight of the night was the unexpected finale to the first half of the evening.  Spaghetti Slobs performed by Miss Friby and choreographed by Elizabeth Dawson-Smith, saw the two dancers in a genius display of comic timing and flying spaghetti.  It was unexpected and brilliant.

Malek and all of Melbourne should be bursting with pride at the amount of talent Melbourne is producing.  We have dancers, choreographers, companies, schools, and producers of the highest calibre and I certainly left the theatre inspired.

By Rain Francis.

Collaboration The Project strives to provide Australian dancers, choreographers and artists with performance and creative opportunities on Australian shores. The Melbourne based company produces and stages several original works each year, both for its main company and its youth company, Project Y.

Earlier this year, Collaboration launched a regular event called Underground – a platform for emerging and independent choreographers and companies to present their work. Held at Revolt, a unique arts venue in Melbourne’s north, Underground brings together the vibrant and dedicated dance community. From hip hop to contemporary and tap to ballroom, artists across all genres unite to support each other and share their passions. I spoke to Collaboration’s Artistic Director, Paul Malek about this new dance event.

Why did you start Underground?
Underground has been in my thought processes now for the past three years and we at Collaboration are so pleased that we can finally have the support to hold such an event. There is so much creative talent here in Melbourne, without a tremendous number of platforms to showcase and celebrate it. Underground gives just that. It’s a chance for dancers and choreographers to regularly showcase their work, which keeps the industry motivated, moving forward, intertwining genres and making new creative partnerships.

What’s your ultimate vision for Underground?
I’d like it to be so successful and the need for the platform heightened to a level where we can hold it on a more regular basis, rotating acts and showcasing a plethora of different choreographers throughout a yearly period.

How has it been received so far?
The reception has been mind-blowing. I personally have made so many new friends and future colleagues through this avenue of performance. The audiences have been brilliant and the camaraderie is exactly what the dance industry should be. No pressure, just pure and unrelenting dance celebration.

Are you going to continue to run it every season?
I do love that we are currently holding it seasonally. We have delved into Underground Autumn and recently had a wonderful night at Underground Winter. Personally, I cannot wait for Spring. Being seasonal, there’s a different vibe each time. It’s not themed as yet, but that is what we will be looking to work on in the future.

What’s been the biggest challenge in organising it?
At the moment the only challenge has been how to better the event each time. We’re looking forward to how we can improve and make it the number one dance night in Melbourne. All the acts and choreographers have been so understanding, organised and passionate in helping, so it really has just been such an enjoyable experience so far.

What is the best thing about Underground?
The camaraderie, hands down. All egos are left at the door. No-one is judging – it is not a competition. Pure dance takes over for one day and everyone is there for one reason and one reason only – to celebrate this wonderful world that we live in.

How important is the venue?
The venue is the key. Revolt Productions in Kensington is absolutely PERFECT for this event. The support we get from the team there is amazing and everyone who has been so far cannot stop raving about what a great venue it is. I definitely recommend that everyone hits up their website, www.revoltproductions.com and checks it out.

You also run another industry night called Immersed, with the third one coming up in September. How will that differ from Underground?
Immersed Melbourne Dance Industry Night is a theatrical event; one for the whole family, and lovers of dance. It is where we can all unite in a packed theatre, with high quality performances from around Melbourne. Underground is an 18+ event with an earthier feel, while Immersed has the gala, dress-to-your-best, champagne kind of vibe.

What’s the plan for Immersed?
Immersed is stepping up a gear. 20 acts will grace the National Theatre stage in what I feel will be the biggest Immersed yet. We have six full time performing arts schools confirmed so far and some of the best independent dance companies in Melbourne, including youth companies. We also have a competition running where one lucky dance school will get to perform. People can head to www.cornerstoneevents.net/youtube-competition to find out all the details. It is going to go off!

How can people get involved in Underground?
People can like our Facebook page, www.facebook.com/melbourneundergrounddance for all updates, including Underground Spring applications, which will be opening in September.

Theatreworks, Melbourne
April 12 2012

By Paul Ransom.

There are many ways to review a show but most involve name dropping, encapsulation and a measure of what we might call analysis. Ultimately however, reviews are simply one person’s considered and (hopefully) informed opinion. This is no different. But for me at least Collide was.

Not that the two short works contained under that umbrella were ground-breaking in any way. Indeed, a dance cynic may well dismiss the programme as nothing more than standard issue, over wrought contemporary writhing. However, to do so would miss the point entirely.

Choreographer/director Paul Malek once told me that he was “a very intense person” and that shines through with Collide. Both these works (Freya List’s stunning debut Half Full and Malek’s passionate and conceptual Evolve) burn with introspective drama. Both are like a brooding Bronte sister novel; melancholy, dark, existential. Even a touch erotic.

Stepping away from the details though, Collide reminds us why anyone bothers to dance at all, for right there in front of us the dancers give us their blood by diving headlong into the moment and immersing themselves. Perhaps it is a kind of self-absorption – but it’s also utterly absorbing. And in the pews, everyone imagines themselves dancing.

Sometimes, the astonishing alchemy of music and movement transcends technique, and makes critique redundant. For this reviewer – on that night, in that theatre – the collision was pure elevating, emotional magic. By daring to feel, the dancers allowed us to do the same. By having the gall to dream up such intense (and gloriously minimal) vignettes, Paul Malek and the driven young people he works with remind us that everyone is a dancer.

Well, that’s enough of my middle age gushing. Go see the show … or at the very least keep an eye out for their next one.

Published by Dance Informa dance magazine – everything dance in Australia – dance auditions, dance news, dance events, dance reviews and resources for dance teachers.

Theatreworks, St Kilda VIC
Jan 2012

By Paul Ransom.

It remains a mystery to me why Paul Malek is not a dance megastar. His energy, generosity and prolific output continue to astound; and Unanswered simply serves to confirm him as one of this country’s best dance visionaries.

Malek’s Unanswered is a simple, understated call for compassion and understanding. However, it achieves this without ever straying into pulpit thumping declaration. Instead, it employs a stark, loosely metaphoric approach, with eight dancers inhabiting a bare, minimally lit stage and a choreographic palette full of classical grace and restrained athleticism.

Inspired by the callous stoning of a black swan by a group of teenagers, Unanswered takes as its touchstones ideas about equality and acceptance and weaves them around a series of elegant, interlocked vignettes. With string driven Baroque music predominating, it draws upon the traditions of Comedia, mime and even acrobatics to create a whole that is at once high concept contemporary and loosely narrative movement theatre.

Paul Malek’s choreography here is definitely helped by his choice of ensemble. Ashleigh Perrie is magnetic – almost translucent – while around her Haydn Shadforth, Jack May and the rest of the eight are tight and suitably dramatic.

There is an undeniable virtuosity here, a bristling but sensitive energy that seems to allow Malek to simply pluck magic from thin air. Unanswered isn’t a revolution – much less a diatribe – but its stripped back styling, technical rigour and emotional engine make it resonate long after the dancers have taken their well-deserved bows.

Collaboration The Project is proud to present Immersed Melbourne Dance Industry Night 2011, this month. Immersed will be held at The National Theatre on Monday September 12 at 7:30pm.

Melbourne’s dance scene will amalgamate on one night, to immerse the entertainment industry with their peers and show what it is that makes their city hum!

Immersed will be the Melbourne dance industries premier night of entertainment with a host of established and up and coming choreographers showcasing their work. 

Immersed Performances include; choreography by Paul Malek and Collaboration The Project,  Team Rocket (Australia’s Got Talent), contemporary jazz company Vertical Shadows directed by Stephen Agisilaou (SYTYCD), International Choreographer Leroy Curwood, RickStix Productions headed by Adrian Ricks (Mr. Mistoffolees CATS), Australian hip hop champions Dance Virus Productions, hip hop crews Sole Symphony, The Collektive & all girl crew, Hollabak Dance Crew.

There will also be student performances by full time institutions Jason Coleman’s Ministry of Dance, Dance World Studios, Patrick Studios Australia, Youth dance Company Project Y and a myriad of other exciting acts.

For more information visit www.collaboration-project.com

Video: Courtesy of youTube. Dance Informa takes no
responsibility for the content of any videos viewed through youTube.

Photo by Belinda Strodder

Theatre Works, Melbourne
June 1 2010

By Rebecca Martin 

Upcoming choreographer Rain Francis took the helm of Collaboration The Project’s Project Y, a youth company developed to provide performance experience for young dancers, and created tonight’s work titled The Dream Machine. 

The piece tells the story of Ariel, “a heartbroken young girl who carries the weight of the world on her shoulders.  One night she experiences a lucid dream, where she discovers she is able to manipulate anything she desires, and has the courage to face her mysterious fears.  After her night of adventure, Ariel wakes to see the world through fresh eyes, with the knowledge that when you combine your waking, rational abilities with the infinite possibilities of your dreams, the world is your oyster.  They say that dreams are only real as long as they last; couldn’t we say the same thing about life?”

A synopsis such as this made me nervous, as it was doing the one thing that contemporary work fails to do on most occasions, and that is to tell a detailed story.  The tale of Ariel was particularly tricky given that a young girl was apparently capable of experiencing heartbreak and the burden of the world’s weight.  Lauren Thomson was cast as Ariel, and had the difficult job of bringing Rain’s character to life and telling the story without appearing trite. 

The Dream Machine opened with an amusing take on the daily bus commute with a cast of colourful characters, my favourite being the sleazy drunk guy that we’re all familiar with.  It became apparent early on that Thomson was perfectly suited to the role of the tortured lead protagonist.  She had a wonderful presence on stage and brought genuine maturity to the character, and from a technical point showed grace and some beautiful lines.   The dream sequence was mesmerizing – a pas de deux took place downstage while the corps moved in the background like the subconscious, seen but unnoticed, felt but untouched. 

The piece was quite busy, with much taking place on stage at any given moment, but it slowed significantly when the corps took to their knees in a line basked in a shaft of golden light.  As each dancer raised their hands above their heads, their hands were illuminated by the light, creating an ethereal effect.  It felt like the moment when a plane reaches cruising altitude and everything becomes quiet and calm, almost like floating.  At this point, Ariel began to interact with her subconscious for the first time, eventually commanding it.  At last, she had become the manipulator and was in control.

The Dream Machine gave the young cast the opportunity to develop characters and explore new ways of moving while performing on stage in front of a supportive audience.  Francis’ task was no easy one, but she created a piece that was complex yet very enjoyable to watch.  Her strengths as a choreographer lie in creating movement that tells the audience something while remaining beautiful and pure.  She combines bodies and movement into something greater than the sum of their parts.  Congratulations must go out to Francis, and the young dancers who executed the piece well and showed great enthusiasm and energy on stage.  Paul Malek’s Project Y deserves the industry’s support in order to continue to foster young dance talent.

By Rebecca Martin

Theatre Works, St Kilda, Melbourne
February 2011

Collaboration the Project’s latest work started with a bang.  Or almost didn’t start!  At the last rehearsal before opening night, one of the performers, Monique Dawes injured herself and was deemed unable to perform.  A frantic email was sent out from the company’s publicist to inform us that due to the complex nature of the choreography, the season would have to be postponed.  Fortunately for all involved, at the 11^th hour, a replacement was found, and Stratagem opened only one day later than scheduled. 

It was not hard to see how one could get injured performing in this piece, as it was violent, intense, relentless, fearless and chock full of complex choreography.  Full credit must go to Amy Vaughan who pulled off the seemingly impossible task of not only learning the work in one day, but performing it as though each movement was as natural and familiar to her body as walking.  Credit is also due to Kim Adam and Ashleigh Perrie who worked all day in order to get the production onto stage.

The premise of Stratagem centred on a virtual reality game show that had swept the globe.  Each week, the program saw four contestants “battle the virtual prowess of the mind in heated combat challenges for the chance to win six million dollars.”  In a theme reminiscent of The Matrix, the contestants were plugged in, yet no matter how real the simulation appeared, no harm could come to the players.  A virtual death created a re-setting of the program and the next challenge would begin.

This was a bold subject for a contemporary dance company, particularly one that is renowned for Paul Malek’s incredible lyricism and fluid choreography.  Stratagem was a stark departure from Malek’s previous works with Collaboration that addressed more traditional themes of love and sex.

The piece started promisingly with the sound of thunderous drums and the arrival of the dancers in costumes reminiscent of WWF fighters mixed in with 80’s glam punk.  The choreography was massive and the stage was not, so I would like to see this type of production in a more appropriate setting in order to give it the space to breathe that it deserves.  At times the flurry of movement and the sheer intensity of the choreography, coupled with the furious pas de deux, made the dancers seem larger than life.

The strength and stamina of the dancers was astounding.  Their energy never faltered despite the majority of them being on stage for the full duration of the 45 minute show.  Gone was the dream-like beauty that Malek has made the audience accustomed to, and in its place was a far more daring piece that succeeded in pushing the boundaries of contemporary dance, albeit with a few obtuse and clunky moments of choreography due to excessively angular shapes. 

The piece worked when the intensity was at its peak, such as the scene with strobe lighting and the entire company performing in unison. The effect was mesmerizing.  However, Stratagem began to lose a little steam towards the end as the ferocious battles that were so compelling gave way to melodramatic faux death scenes and the use of screaming from the dancers.  The beauty of contemporary dance is that movement can be the storyteller, and I feel that the use of pantomime is unnecessary.  In a piece like this when so much can be interpreted from a single movement, it can be best to show, not tell the audience what you wish to convey.

Nonetheless, Stratagem was atmospheric, exciting, daring and provocative. It proved that Collaboration the Project is absolutely vital to the Australian dance landscape.  We need more artists willing to be this daring and more choreographers as talented as Malek to pull it off.

Collaboration The Project presents world premiere of Stratagem

Australia’s fast-rising choreographic talent Paul Malek combines a powerful cast with athletic and combat inspired movement to present Collaboration the Project’s latest work, Stratagem. The show opens February 17th at Theatreworks, St Kilda, Melbourne.

Stratagem: the story of 4 regular people who delve into a virtual reality game show where they battle for national glory. As the game progresses however the computer programs framework begins to crack, allowing the rules to bend and be broken. In the chaos that surrounds them only one thing is on their minds… “How do I get out of this alive?”

Thursday 17- Saturday 26 February
Tickets now on sale
Theatreworks (03) 9534 3388 www.theatreworks.org.au

Theatre Works, St Kilda, Vic
October 2010

By Rain Francis.

Three out of four works I’ve seen by Paul Malek this year feature death as an element or central theme. If I didn’t know him personally as a charming young man, I think I’d be wondering about what kind of person was behind these hyper-emotive, frankly dark productions.

What Malek does best is jazz contemporary with a rich narrative, and Climax sees him further his exploration of this genre. It has less of the philosophical depth of June’s Collection of Forgotten Treasures (which justly cleaned up this year’s Short + Sweet in Melbourne) and is more akin to the series finale in a top notch American television drama. Let’s liken it, to say, an X-rated Desperate Housewives doing a ‘seven deadly sins’ special. This is the kind of show you would bring a culture-phobic acquaintance to in an attempt to initiate him or her. It appeals to the mainstream appetite for show-stopping entertainment without compromising itself artistically. These themes are nothing new, but they work; murder, adultery, revenge, drugs, rape, suicide and hate crimes. How else do we explain the dizzying number of crime shows on TV?

The music, lighting, and choreography in Climax are bold and confronting from the get-go, with inter-connected storylines to match. Call me nearly 30, but I would have enjoyed more respite from the thumping electro-pop break beat, though it definitely serves the purpose of creating tension, suspense and that ‘in-your-face’ vibe.

Performances are first-rate all around, delivered by a cast of some of Melbourne’s finest, and quite possibly sexiest, contemporary and commercial dancers. The question arises as to whether or not there is an end to Ashleigh Perrie’s skill. I suspect probably not. The woman is fearless. In Climax she performs lightning quick, acrobatic moves, in heels and  a pencil skirt, atop a small desk without so much as a shiver of instability. I got the feeling that we could have decorated the desk with olive oil and marbles and she’d still have pulled it off with rock solid perfection. Did I mention she was in heels?

Someone (possibly Calvin Coolidge, but even Google doesn’t know everything) once said something along the lines of ‘there’s nothing more uncommon than an unsuccessful person with talent’. What I admire most about Collaboration The Project is the fact that it exists. It is prolific, and continues to strengthen with each output. There’ll never be enough work for the amount of talented artists in Australia (and indeed, the world), so when it comes down to it you sometimes just have to go out and make your own. These guys are proof that it can be done. Bravo to them!

Melbourne based companies Project Y and Collaboration the Project teamed up to perform two shows: It Sounds Silly and Parkland Avenue in April. Dance Informa was there to enjoy both!
To read the review click here

Photo: Belinda Strodder

Photo: Belinda Strodder

Photo: Belinda Strodder

Photo: Belinda Strodder

Photo: Belinda Strodder

Photo: Belinda Strodder

Photos: Copyright ‘Photography by Belinda’ www.dancephotography.net.au