Aditi Mohan
Spectrum choreographed by Manon Servage pulls a fusion of opposing forces together to show the never-ending spectrum of human experience, performed with a cast of 8 dancers including Servage themselves.
Spectrum had an amazing continuous rhythm brought by music and dance. There was a certain captivity to it which had a trance-like effect on the audience. I loved seeing the way the dancers intertwined with each other creating hybrid bodies to show how we connect. I particularly loved how Servage played with the bodies to create both humans and ideas. The performance had a strong element of storytelling which was so enjoyable to follow.
I loved how striped back the set and costumes were, with most dancers wearing neutral tones. This allowed the audience to connect with the central meaning of Spectrum and had this beautiful blurring of bodies and colours. I particularly enjoyed the way the solo routine blended into the rest of the performance with the dancers working to make a tableau effect. Spectrum brought a wonderful rhythmic yet human movement to the stage.
My one comment about the show was the lack of visible diversity on stage. The show itself was about bringing together opposites, as Servage defines ‘black and white, gay or straight’. While I think that’s a wonderful message the show didn’t seem to reflect this in its casting. I think it would have been more meaningful if the show had cast dancers with more differences, darker skin tones, and different body types. The cast was, on its face, very uniform. This uniformity, of course, plays into the idea of the blending spectrum of humanity but I don’t see how divergent bodies would take away from this meaning.
Recommended Drink: for Spectrum I’d recommend a blended cocktail which brings all the colours together into one beautiful drink, like a tequila sunrise.
Performances of Spectrum are now concluded at Resolution Festival, but you can keep up with Manon Servage on their social media here.
Jake Mace
