ÉTER

Choreography & Performance: Robyn Holder, Patricia Zafra, Sophie Thorpe, Lucia Chocarro

Music composition & live performance: Panos Chountoulidis

Lighting Design: Barnaby Booth

Costume: Sammy Rainbow Furnival

ÉTER is an insight into the way we relate to those around us, and our experiences of behavioural instincts. Through different atmospheres we explore what is shared beyond words. 

Featuring an original score performed live by Panos Chountoulidis and captivating lighting states from Barnaby Booth, this enthralling piece of dance intensifies and builds to a dramatic climax.

Premiered with live music at Robin Howard Dance Theatre, January 2016 as part of Resolution Festival 2016 – The UK’s biggest dance festival for emerging artists.

REVIEW: Feet Off The Ground Dance – Éter 

Fri 22 Jan 2016

Feet Off The Ground Dance Éter

Feet Off The Ground Dance opened the night’s triple bill with an intense and exciting performance of Éter. Four women journey through a bleak landscape of gently pulsating lights and electrical whirring. Their organic contact improvisation sets them apart from the other acts of the night (which include Maria Lothe/Rachel Blomberg and Unity Dance Company UK). Being an all-female company, dancers Lucia ChocarroRobyn HolderSophie Thorpe and Patricia Zafra prove that femininity and strength are synonymously connected.

Visually, Feet Off The Ground Dance are incredibly exciting to watch. They slip seamlessly from moments of unison to intricate pairings, intertwining limbs and locking foreheads. The tone changes as live musician Panos Chountoulidis’ score intensifies. The women are like beasts. We can see the exhaustion in their pained expressions, as they hunt and chase each other through the space.

Interestingly, it is a non-contact martial arts passage, which interrupts the flow of intimacy that closes the work. The sudden physical distance between the dancers rounds off Éter quite nicely- despite us wanting a little more from the work. Using repetition and Chountoulidis’ drilling score, Feet Off The Ground Dance create a truly powerful work that highlights and draws upon the dancers’ technical skill and obvious sense of drive.

Maya Pindar