JARDIN BLANC / GHOST GARDEN 2004 - 2006
Set in a futuristic garden of white, translucent and luminous forms, Jardin Blanc intertwines a surreal language of dance, human behavior, text, music and song. The dramatic staging of a single majestic, luminous column and evocative shapes of interlocking fibers and light suggest both plant-like forms and architectural structures, allowing the definitions of interior and exterior to be intriguingly ambiguous. This theatrical landscape shifts magically between a stark, skeletal, haunting space, like a snow-covered garden at night, to a vibrant field of color and fluttering movement. The dancing evokes at times a strange and melancholy mood, only to evolve into passionate sweeps of dancing, where sculptured costumes are animated fluently through the landscape, exuding a metamorphic quality. The performers move hypnotically though the suggestions of changing seasons and weathers, articulating intricate patterns and pathways through their bizarre habitation.
“What is a garden? A place /a space / a vision / a dream / a wish / an idea / a longing / a secret / a sanctuary / a journey / an exploration / an excavation / a memory/ a dedication / a fear / a fantasy /a love / a loss / a home / a resting place? Are there perhaps as many gardens as there are living beings?”
Jardin Blanc was commissioned by Dance Umbrella, London, UK, and the Gardner Arts Centre, Brighton, UK and funded by the Arts Council Of England. This piece was featured in the 2004 Dance Umbrella Festival as well as undertaking an extensive UK tour. Ghost Garden was a re-working of Jardin Blanc, created in 2006 and presented in San Diego, USA.
visit our image gallery >>
PRESS:
“An exceptionally stunning work. Every single element contributes with equal effectiveness towards achieving a memorable event.”
Graham Watts. www. Ballet.co.uk
“Yolande Snaith’s specialty is a hybrid theatre of images, sound and movement….Snaith’s choreography, devised with the dancers, is a stream of ensemble swirls and swoops, offset by tender couplings and entwinements…”
Donald Hutera, Time Out, London
“An articulated work, that confirms Snaith’s virtuoso capacity for visual works where all aspects of the performance intermingle with each other….And of course, Snaith’s choreography, beautifully mingled with the moving props, at times characterized by sustained group phrases and pas de deux, rich in delicacy and tenderness”
Rosella Simonari, Dance Magazine
“Cinematic choreography. All theatrical elements contributing to a fully realized creation. A stage continually filled with stimulating activity…….Ghost Garden in dance theater of the highest order”
David Lemberg Artscapemedia.com
