RIMANI
The Place Theatre (London, 2020)
Existing in a dystopian future, against an abstract projection of amorphous shapes reminiscent of anatomy and mycelium, RIMANI offers unsettling vignettes exploring impressions of love. Caterina Danzico and Moses Ward begin by fragmentally echoing one another, scoping each other out, but their confident partner work soon suggests these characters have met before. Slipping in and out of linear time, abrasion and fluidity; the pair are observant, testing the limits of each other’s trust with tentative counterbalances. At times walking on all fours with long extended limbs, hanging upside down hoping their inverted viewpoint offers more clarity. When working with futuristic concepts it’s easy to envisage complete disintegration of humanity, but RIMANI reminds us of the eternal power of touch.
Review by Lily Norton
Caterina Danzico and Moses Ward of SpotFlowCollective kick off their duet RIMANI with some tense eye contact, reminding me of George Balanchine’s famous quote: “Put a man and a girl on stage and there is already a story.” The story here is fractured, non-linear, glimpsing a future where human relationships no longer exist. Animated graphics hint at bones and organs; a robotic voiceover muses on the idea of soulmates. Wiggling into each other’s negative space, the dancers tackle this dystopia with lithe, sometimes acrobatic configurations. One of the best scenes sees Danzico arc backwards and balance on her head, her arms adrift like deep-sea tentacles.
Review by Sara Veale
