Voyeur / Samba & Love ☆☆☆☆
São José dos Campos Dance Company brings us a striking double bill which captivates and inspires
São José dos Campos Dance Company brings us Voyeur / Samba and Love, a striking double bill which captivates and inspires. Voyeur examines how we watch and are watched, and how the self comes undone and redone. Likewise vulnerable, Samba and Love takes on burnout in the modern age through samba rhythms which express both defeat and desire.
Much of the show’s artistry lies with the deft movements of the dancers. Their bodies curve and fold and twist around, holding and carrying one another. In Lili de Grammont’s choreography, our vulnerability to one another is affirmed. Tenderness rests in the stage details, too: handheld torches cast a striking light on inward moments; a desk carries conflict; and a neck tie brings levity.
Despite their coordinated costumes – cropped blazers, earthy tones – and synced movements, uniformity is not the show’s raison d’être. A slightly lower leg or a slow turn of the head; subtle individual instances such as these lend the show a generous intimacy.
Throughout, São José dos Campos Dance Company refuses to lose their audience. Accompanying music grounds each dance and the choreography resists over-conceptual indulgences. In reminding us of the impossibility of escaping ourselves, Voyeur / Samba and Love brings us ever closer to ourselves – and to others.
