Following their Canadian premiere at Vancouver International Dance Festival (VIDF) in 2015, Japan-based ensemble, Dairakudakan, returns with their newest work – Paradise – on March 10 & 11, 2017 at 8pm at the Vancouver Playhouse. Proudly presented as part of VIDF 2017, the visual tour-de-force drives audiences on an absurd, haunting hunt for the elusive concept of paradise.
“With his last visit, Dairakudakan choreographer and director Akaji Maro brought us a hellscape vision of insects taking over the earth. For his return, he has set his sights on utopia,” says Barbara Bourget, Co-Producer of VIDF. “The work’s origins came when Maro realized that hell is abundantly described in literature and culture, and yet there seems to be little consensus around what constitutes paradise. This ignited a process of creation and exploration that culminated in this surreal, spectacular, and bizarrely beautiful work.”
Paradise begins on a white, geometric, and deceptively bare set. From this empty space, the 21 members of the company depart on a surreal and haunting journey – filled with provocative, dreamlike imagery. Amidst visions of jungle locales, ghoulishly cheerful roller-skating gangs, and chained-and-bound masses, the work ultimately asks whether paradise is something that can only exist in the mind – and must therefore be found by tunneling within.
This unique work is a fresh creation from the internationally renowned ensemble, having only premiered in June of 2016 at Tokyo’s Setagaya Public Theatre. Describing the choreographic style and movement vocabulary of the piece, Maro explained this dance is “not about the muscles – but the nerves.”
VIDF 2017 Presents Dairakudakan: Paradise
Dates: March 10 & 11, 2017 at 8pm
Tickets: Adults: $60, Seniors/Students: $50
Address: Vancouver Playhouse 600 Hamilton Street Vancouver, BC, V6B 2P1
Box Office: vidf.ca/tickets
604.662.4966
Website: vidf.ca