PREVIEW: D.A.M. MADNESS: Dance floor becomes creative madhouse
By: Alison Mayes
Last summer, three Winnipeg-trained dancers pooled their funds -- and their dreams -- to stage a show in the Toronto Fringe Festival. They told themselves it would be OK if nobody showed up for D.A.M. Madness, their theatrical dance show on the theme of craziness. What mattered were the learning experience and the chance to create their own work. To their amazement, there was a decent opening-night turnout at their small venue. The audience laughed at all the comedic moments. "At the end, we thought they were getting up to leave really fast," recalls Ming Hon. "But they were giving us a standing ovation."
The first-time fringe performers actually came away with a small profit. To top it off, they earned a rave review in Eye Weekly, which called the show "a conceptually stunning commentary on Freudian hysteria."
The three, Darby Gibbs, Amelia Laidlaw and Ming Hon, have christened their fledgling company maDAM dance to reflect the initials of their first names. This weekend, they're presenting D.A.M. Madness at the Rachel Browne Theatre in the Crocus Building. The remaining performances are today at 3 p.m. and 8 p.m.
The 45-minute show is a fast-moving exploration of what it means to be "mad." The three are identically dressed in white costumes that suggest nurses' uniforms. Paranoia, mania, anxiety, ecstasy, eating disorders, phobias, obsessions and compulsions are depicted, and the distinction between caregiver and patient is often blurred or reversed. The soundtrack varies from atmospheric works by Philip Glass and Goldmund to retro tracks by Frank Zappa and John Lennon.
The co-creators are aware that the subject is a sensitive one, but say the show is more about "everyday madness" felt by everyone than it is about clinical illness. "We looked at emotional reactions to things that are maddening," says Laidlaw. "When does an extreme reaction become too much? What is 'normal?' "
The three cemented their friendship while training in the senior professional program of the School of Contemporary Dancers. Laidlaw and Hon grew up in Riverview and St. Vital, respectively, while Gibbs moved here from Victoria. They graduated together in 2007. Gibbs and Laidlaw, both 23, live in Toronto now. Gibbs pays the bills as a floral designer and Laidlaw as a yoga teacher. Hon, 25, is still based in Winnipeg, works at restaurant jobs and is writing a cookbook.
Last spring they had access to an empty house in Toronto, where they locked themselves in for an intense three-day creation period. It may have simulated a madhouse, but they didn't turn on each other. "We never got in any fights," Hon recalls with a chuckle. "Even with all that cabin fever, somehow we got along."
It means a lot to the group to show their first creation in the building that is home to their dance school.
"We're so excited to share our work with our peers and mentors," says Laidlaw.
"Everyone is asking what we'll be doing next," says Gibbs. "After this weekend, we'll start thinking about new creation."
Reviewed by Chris Bilton
*****FIVE STARS
"Sylvia Plath channeled through Three Stooges slapstick in this surreal spectacle of contemporary dance employing Chopin, Zappa and white nurse�s outfits for a conceptually stunning commentary on Freudian hysteria."
Full review
"Winnipeg�s three-woman dance company maDAM gets its Rorschach on to inspire the inventive moments of this visually stunning contemporary-dance commentary on Freudian hysteria. Chewing tinfoil, nails on chalkboards and reciting Sharon, Lois and Bram rhymes represent only some of the overt insanity. Dance-wise, a fluid mix of tick-like repetition, slow-motion madness and quirky tumbling set to an impeccable soundtrack of Chopin, Zappa and Patsy Cline plays out like Sylvia Plath channelled through Three Stooges slapstick. White nurse�s outfits and a touch of surreality only add to the trio�s impressive conceptual choreography."
Reviewed by Roger Cullman
"DAM Madness successfully portrays madness in its varying forms through a trio of professionally trained young dancers. Darby Gibbs, Amelia Laidlaw and Ming Hon, collectively known as a DAM, premiered their brand of fresh, contemporary dance to the Fringe for a cabaret-style show.
It's refreshing to see performers who are primarily dancers enjoy a bit of singing and acting, without doing so in a musical production. While their performance relies too heavily on props, there were some pleasant surprises to their performance, including vocalizations between the characters. At times, it was more about the voice than the dance.
Their facial expressions were beautifully lit in the intimate Helen Gardiner Phelan Theatre setting, adding much to the show's charm, which played on themes from songs as diverse as Philip Glass, Frank Zappa and Connie Francis.
The versatile costumes resembled at times both white nurse's uniforms and straightjackets, portraying characters that suited characters from two sides of a mental institution.
This being maDAM's debut production, I expect to see them grow as a trio, further pushing the boundaries of what we may perceive as contemporary dance. If you need a break from the seriousness of other Fringe fare, give DAM Madness a look. You've got to be mad to miss it."