ICARUS (Arrowwood Theatre Company/Fringe). At the Al Green Theatre. July 9 at 1 pm, July 11 at 3:30 pm, July 12 at 9:45 pm, July 13 at 5:45 pm. See listing. Rating: NNN
This work of dance theatre from Windsor-based company Arrowwood Theatre juxtaposes two distinct storylines to makes points about ambition, dreams and failure.
Using contact improvisation and physical theatre techniques such as Viewpoints, the ensemble tells the story of Icarus, who flew too close to the sun. In between chapters of mythical hubris and glory, we hear about contemporary lives of quiet desperation, where dating and friendship are fraught with toxic complications.
Unfortunately, there’s a tremendous imbalance between the exquisitely staged movement scenes involving Daedalus, King Minos and other characters from the Icarus myth, and more banal glimpses of young urbans socializing.
The honed physicality of the performers results in imaginative tableaux that use lifts and group dynamics to make stunning images of flight. But delivery of the spoken text is all over the map in the contemporary section, much of it lost in the shuffle. It makes for a lopsided and sometimes frustrating theatrical experience.
