'Red City': The right dressings, little content
'RED CITY', a story of drugs, money and intrigue danced its way across the stage of the Little Theatre, Tom Redcam Drive, St. Andrew recently. Performed as The Company Dance Theatre's 2003 season of dance, 'Red City' is choreographed by Tony Wilson.
Sade Bully, as 'The Girl', Trixi MacMillan, as The Girl's Best Friend, Colin Blackwood as 'The Don', and Shani Fletcher as 'The Donette' were the lead dancers. It details a girl's escape from a life of crime (though she steals money to do so) and the don and donnette's attempt to get their money back.
The best aspects of Red City were its look and sound. 'Red City' featured music from Santana, India Arie, Sean Paul, Enya, Beenie Man, Miles Davis and Billie Holiday.
DISTRACTING
However, though the rhythms consistently worked to complement the mood of the scene, it did not always complement the message. So as a result, India Arie's Video about accepting and loving yourself is used when The Girl feels good about having escaped. While the mood is appropriate, the 'woman power' lyrics are somewhat distracting.
Tony Wilson also holds responsibility for the costume and set design. The set was well-crafted enough to help set time and place, even effecting a city street, while giving the dancers sufficient room to move.
TRAFFIC WARDEN OUTFIT
With the exception of a traffic warden outfit at the end, the costuming for the production was beautiful. The colours were well selected, so that the stage was constantly vibrant. Additionally, though the costumes mimicked ordinary clothing, they allowed for sufficient movement. Indeed, in one of the final scenes, where the cast is decked out in black and white, the costumes far outstripped the dancing.
Additionally, while crafting the costuming, Wilson took into consideration that as there is no speech, the clothing is an effective tool for keeping track of the characters. As such, he used this to very good effect, especially during the first three quarters of the production.
Where 'Red City' fell down was in the choreography. The dancers are proficient enough but the choreography is never enough to excite you. In part because of this, one cannot get wrapped up in the drama behind the dance. Additionally, the dancers were also unable to bring forward the dramatic impact outside of the movements themselves.
However, there are a few moments for which Wilson must be lauded for their conception. One of these occurs early in the production when The Girl tells of her abuse at the hands of The Don. Wilson creates a setting where, as The Girl tells her story, the abuse is acted out in the background, almost creating a shadow.
Running at close to two hours, 'Red City' is longer than it needs to be. There are a few scenes which could have easily been edited out, without causing any injury to the script. There removal would simply have made for a tighter work.
As a result, the story of 'Red City' pales in comparison to its set and costumes. It has on the right dressings, but not enough content on the inside.
