A race against the clock, or perhaps in tandem with it? Dance artists sarAika movement collective, Katia Tubini, and Lo Poppy crafted an evening of work that challenged time and the way we experience its passage in a myriad of ways. They explored durational pathways, charted new ways of mapping time, and even worked under time restraints to create a new work for this performance in only 5 days. Together these artists created an alluring evening of dance entitled “This is SARAIKATIA,” that challenged choreographic and thematic norms, and left me excited about what is to come from these artists.

The evening opened with a work by Lo Poppy and Fluid Creature Collective called “fracture” which found its inspiration and movement language in the Art of Kintsugi. Kintsugi, Japanese for “join with gold,” is the art of repairing broken pieces of pottery or glassware with gold lacquer. Lo Poppy not only brought this concept to life with movement but also found a way to articulate the intricacies of the Japanese art form through their use of partnering and contact work with unique spatial decisions. They used sharp movement that evoked the edges of the broken wares, but chose formations and partnering that eventually brought those pieces together as one. In Kintsugi, the artisan must piece together the shards of the broken object bit by bit which made me consider the time it takes to repair an object rather than simply discarding and replacing it. Yet in this piece, much like in Kintsugi, Lo Poppy’s collaborators filled the spaces in between their sharp edges with a softness as palpable as the golden lacquer used to fill the cracks of the broken ceramics. This work asked the audience to consider what is considered beautiful and even more what is considered worth one’s time.

“Skin Deep,” a new work by sarAika movement collective came second and time became heavy. By that I mean that I felt suspended in time with the dancers who performed an intimate duet on sapphic love. This duet between two female dancers, Sara Pizzi and Aika Takeshima, was deeply personal, durational, and captivating. As their bodies intertwined taking physical and emotional weight, I was met with a deep sense of longing that was present in their every move. The dancers’ skin glided over their combined collection of scapula, knee caps, ribs, and guts. They melded in and out of the floor and in and out of each other effortlessly, the only constant in their movement being their support for one another. The score was composed of light techno music rather than what may traditionally be considered romantic, and this juxtaposition provided a landscape of resilience both aurally and emotionally. It was as if they were the lone two dancers in a club just before closing sharing a moment in time and space that was tender and without restriction. The nonlinear nature of the piece beautifully articulates the love shared between two women, and encourages the viewer to question what their relationship to queer love can be.

Finally, the evening of work concluded with a world premiere of Katia Tubini’s “Just keep waiting.” Tubini’s use of space was both calculated and curious, making use of every inch of space including the bathroom just behind the stage. The score was an amalgamation of spoken text, music, and the organic sounds in the space such as doors closing and chair legs hitting the floor. These sounds were underscored by an intentional manipulation of time. The start of the piece drops the viewer into the world in what feels like the middle of an ongoing struggle begging the questions Where are we? Who are they? Where are they trying to go? What are we waiting for? Throughout the work Tubini challenges the audience with more questions than answers as the dancers slither along the floor, attempt to climb the back wall, and come together in sweeping bouts of unison. The piece creates a purgatorial space using dance theatre as a mode of expression, reflection, and resistance, all of which Tubini expertly crafted alongside the cast in the span of 5 days. This international collaboration connected Katia Tubini with a cast of New York City-based dancers for an immersive residency spanning one week to create the entire piece. While the time constraint must have put pressure on the artists, the results were remarkable which I believe speaks to Tubini’s craftsmanship and intentionality as well as the dancers’ ability to commit and dive into the landscape.

All of the performers on the bill created such poignant pieces that address various themes rooted in societal change, and encourage us as audience members to remember that the only time is now.