San Francisco Performances presents 5 SOLDIERS–The Body is the Frontline featuring Rosie Kay Dance
Dianne and Tad Taube Atrium Theater
Diane B. Wilsey Center for Opera, Veterans' Building, 4th Floor, San Francisco War Memorial Performing Arts Center, 401 Van Ness Avenue, San Francisco, CA 94102 USA
7:30 PM, Friday, April 12, 2019

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I took myself “off the job” tonight, and refrained from making any sort of notes like I usually do – too tired from a busy busy week. Instead of specifics, here are a few generalities about the timespan of the show:

• The house opened about 7:15 PM or so; by that time, perhaps 30 or 40 folks had gathered in the exterior lobby to wait, chit-chatting and enjoying snacks and drinks from the catering table.
• All five performers were on stage, in character, as we walked in. They interacted with one another, but there was no attempt by them (or the audience) to break the “fourth wall” between us.
• Maybe the existence of the fourth wall was emphasized by the tags that closed off front row/ground level seating. Hopefully the side seats would be acceptable to any mobility-impaired patrons.
• The active part of the performance didn't get going until at least 7:40 PM – I suppose the delay was because of the management decision that the performance would be closed to audience in/out once the show started.
• The several phases of the show flowed into one another relatively well. I didn't think that any of them ran unduly short or long. It was like Goldilocks: “just right!”
• The show was more dance-oriented than I expected from the program materials. That is to say, while the theatrical component was present, it was more of a decorative element or minor means of pushing along a non-verbal narrative rather than any sort of story-telling by conventional dramaturgy.
• Although it was clear when we arrived at the final section of the show, the actual conclusion wasn't so obvious: I'd say the show ended with a fade-out rather than a bang-up finale or any sort of dramatic denouement.
• I appreciated the post-show Q&A session – which began around 9:15 or so – it was really interesting to hear Rosie Kay and her dancers talk about the work. It was also nice that we were invited to mingle with them in the lobby afterwards – that's a sort of familiarity that's seldom offered after traditional performances. I wish we'd stuck around in order to mingle with all of the performers … just to hear more of their stories, but as it was drawing close to 10 PM, that end-of-the-week weariness was just too hard to fight off, so we skipped out to try and make it to BART before the late night schedule started.

• Rosie Kay: director, choreographer;
• Luke Bradshaw: dancer;
• Harriet Ellis: dancer;
• Alan Hunte: dancer;
• Josh Hutchby: dancer;
• Trooper Alexander Smith: dancer.

Arriving at the War Memorial Building, I realized that I'd forgotten to bring earplugs, and immediately began to freak out: I'm about to attend a show that includes themes about war, so I'm thinking great: lots of bombs and helicopters and other sonic assaults! Gonna set off that ear-ringing that made it hard to fall asleep just the other night. So I stop at the Herbst box office and happily, the house manager has a stash to share. Whew! Panic averted!

Tonight is my first event in the Atrium Theater, and I'm surprised how small it is. At least half the space is given over to a retractable riser set with chairs for the audience, leaving a stage in front that can't be more than 10 meters front to back. Aluminum beams form a square, outlining the performance space, with stage lights and other gear set up immediately outside the beams; the five performers are already waiting for us – playing the part of soldiers in camp, whiling away off-duty hours by playing cards, joshing around, exercising, napping, and so on. A small transistor radio plays cool jazz from KCSM, and when the tunes stop for back announcements, the audience grows quiet, as if assuming that the show has begun. Not yet! But shortly thereafter, the radio is switched off and stashed away into a pack, and THEN things get going.

The reviews by Fancher and Katz tell enough about the show that I don't feel like I need to write more about what happened. I'll simply note that I enjoyed the piece both for it's curious blend of dance and wordless-theater, and for it's novelty – it was certainly unlike anything I've yet attended.

Was it super-good? Well, compared to Hamilton (another dance-ish theater piece) or a Lines ballet show, it wasn't as compelling, but I wouldn't criticise it for being what it's not. It's a dance show about soldiers, and it fulfilled my expectation for such a concept.

Do I recommend it? If the notion appeals to you, then heck yeah! Go see it!

Program Notes or program notes

5 Soldiers hosts a brief interview with Harriet Ellis on their official site.

Luke Bradshaw posted an interesting rehearsal diary from prep for Fall 2017 shows in London.

Lou Fancher posted a thorough review of the show.

Leslie Katz posted a review of the SF production with the Examiner.

Lucy Wallis posted a brief biographical story about Trooper Alex Smith with BBC.

Back to the previous event! ☸ Up to the 2019 yearbox! ☸ Up to the 2019 event list! ☸ On to the next event!