Reverb
Civic Theatre, Tallaght
★★★★☆
The conceptual springboard for Reverb is legacy and memory, two ideas that suggest quiet retrospection. But, along the journey from the artists’ notebook to the stage, Luail’s latest piece has become a feelgood celebration of togetherness through dance and music. For its creators, the choreographer Sarah Golding and the musician Lisa Canny, legacy means people gathering to share stories in a celebratory way, and Reverb delivers with energy, self-confidence and chutzpah.
Canny, on harp, banjo and vocals, is joined by Josh Sampson, on drums, and Laura Doherty, on fiddle and guitar, each on one of three rostrums, leaving limited room for dancing. Katie Davenport’s design immediately suggests that the choreography is not going to grab all of the limelight but, rather, share equal importance with the music.
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Dodging around the platforms, the seven company dancers from Luail feed off the energy of the music with lilting sweeps of their torsos and staccato steps and stops. In the constrained space everything is upright, but when the musician’s platforms are pushed to the back wall the dancers can unleash more long strided sequences that add density to the choreographic texture.
Now the separate elements can breathe. Locked into the music’s rhythm, one unison section of dance begins with a simple step, stop and sudden turn of the head. Incrementally the movement becomes more complex, splitting off into duos and trios, following its own logic while maintaining adherence to the rhythm.
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Made for young people but suitable for anyone – a tricky balance to strike – Reverb is pitched at just the right level. Even when Canny halts proceedings to set up a call and response with the audience, the momentum doesn’t flag. The gleeful audience willingly participate, carried along with the energy onstage, and pay back at the end with whoops and cheers.
Reverb is touring until Friday, October 10th, with performances in Armagh, Dundalk, Longford, Newbridge, Sligo, Castlebar and Limerick
