Dance ‘wild child’ back to inspire audiences

Press, 9 March 1988, Page 23

Dance ‘wild child’ back to inspire audiences

CHRISTOPHER MOORE

in Auckland

Douglas Wright was once described as the wild child of New Zealand contemporary dance.

Today, the wild child has matured into an internationally recognised dancer and ’ choreographer, feted by the public and lauded by the [critics. But the puckish humour and boyish glee in providing audiences and dancers with the totally unexpected remains alongside the tightly-disciplined core of a professional dancer. Wright, aged 30, has now returned home to weave new magic in the imaginations of his fellow New Zealanders. The rococo plaster splendour of Auckland's St James Theatre last Thursday became the arena for his latest spell with the Limbs Dance Company. On Friday evening it will be the James Hay Theatre’s turn for a twonight season. “Now is the Hour" also represented Wright's hour of truth. After four years in New York with the Paul Taylor Dance Company, he launched a new work on the New Zealand stage. His choreography was fused with a score by the New Zealand composer, Don McGlashan, and a glowing, luminous setting by the Auckland artist, Gretchen Albrecht. The audience's opinions may have differed, but no one disagreed with the view that “Now is the Hour” is a totally absorbing, challenging and visually exciting piece of contemporary dance theatre. While the debate continued over its images of poetry, irony pain and humour, Wright confessed to feelings of elation and exhaustion after the years of planning and the months of sweaty, physically " gruelling rehearsal with the members of his old company. Crouched in a chair in an empty rehearsal room, he sipped a fruit juice and

pondered the role of a choreographer. He believes that he is simply a catalyst, the spark which ignites the imagination. "I can't provide the answers — it’s over to the individual to decide. If people are intrigued and drawn into- this piece but don’t know why, r believe that I have achieved something,” he said. "I’ve never undertaken anything of this magnitude before. After the first night there will have to be adjustments but I think that it worked well.” There is nothing arrogant or aloof about this former wild child. His sense of fun and imagination bubbles over into gusts [of laughter as he remembers the rehearsals and the challenges. The former award-winning gymnast who always wanted to dance, admitted to being constantly driven by the image of Nijinsky. His years with the Paul Taylor Company in New York provided new stimuli and expanded his horizons. But he now talks about: returning to New Zealand to form his own company. Whatever audiences may believe. “Now is the Hour” is not an expatriate’s collective memories of a New Zealand past. It is as much a reflection of the experience of a young New Zealander travelling into a new culture and environment. [ “I | didn’t make this work with New Zealand in mind! It may [contain some; reflections [of this country and its people but its setting is [ totally imaginary. I give'anyone permission to interpret what they want from it. I'm placing no demands on anyone.” j : [ [' What can be gleaned from! this flow of images, fantasy and mythology?

Wright sees the work as a blending of! years of ex- : periences and encounters. Wright was annoyed by claims that: “Now' is the Hour" was designed to shock. It was never shocking, he said: "Stimulating" and “challenging” were descriptions, he would accept. “I’d like to present the entire work in New York but the’ cost would be prohibitive. I showed 15 minutes of it before a New York audience and the reaction was good. The audience involved themselves lin what they saw. I’d like to represent this during the Limbs’ European tour,” he said. “Before I joined the Paul Taylor Company, I [ had reached the stage where I needed something else, new challenges. I Working [with Taylor meant that iyou had to

give everything to the company. It was exhausing, totally demanding but wonderfully rewarding experience. "Paul Taylor became a mentor and a friend. But I will come back to New Zealand. The time in New York was the result of a feeling that I had to go see and do elsewhere. But then the time is reached when you see that it is entirely possible to achieve similar things in New Zealand.” Before he returns Wright plans to have a holiday; a time to relax and reflect on his career and the future. "Perhaps I'll just sit on a mountain in India and think.” Will the mountain conjure up new Wright magic to weave its spell over audiences? "Maybe,” Wright said with grin.