In an earlier post I discussed the potential difficulties with the language barrier created by my performance for a non-french speaking audience. Celeste gave me several artists who have created work that dealt with this subject. The first was Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui.
Babel (words) - Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui and Damien Jalet
--> How people from different cultures communicate and overcome the language barrier while respecting each other's cultures.
Excerpt: http://www.numeridanse.tv/en/video/361_babel-words
The dancers interact with each as a group at the start, both by physically touching each other and by actively watching each other's movements. They then break into pairs where they continue similar movements but are face to face. Slowly, they start to break off into individual facings and movements but a continuity remains between all their movements. It should be noted that the 13 performers in this piece are from different countries and dance backgrounds. For me these three changes parallel communication between people who speak different languages. In the beginning they are working together deliberately to understand each other. The inquisitive gazes show how comprehension doesn't happen immediately. When they reach the moment where they're acting as individuals but a common thread can be seen in their movements, it suggests that something deeper than language connects them, their humanity.
For me, their work reinforced the idea that the context, the emotion inspired by the music and the tone of the reader, and the movements themselves will convey something to my audience. They won't leave with zero impressions! (choreographer's worst nightmare :O)
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