Review: The Forest at Union Theatre

Review by Greg Gorton

The Forest is a piece that brings us into the vast and complex natural world, rubs our face into what we are doing to it, and reminds us that for however exploitative we are, it is infinitely more powerful.

For most visitors to The Forest, the major drawcard will be Lucy Guerin. Her choreography never fails to entertain even less-educated dance lovers such as myself, and there is a way of creating scenes that are distinctly different from each other while still very containing the same harmony of movement. In the case of The Forest, each scene approached this sense of unknowing, and this tension between the ancient natural world and the almost-inmate exploitative nature of man. While I cannot pretend to know what each movement represented, or always knew what specific representations were being made, this was a production where this did not matter so much.

To strip back the overall aesthetics and the overarching creation, there is much to be said about the details.

The Forest is one of the most visually and aurally stunning pieces of production design I have witnessed. Ever. On a highly polished stage, dancers move about over their reflections, which also face back at them from a large mirror-wall angled so that we two see triple. Behind them is a large, sheer backdrop on which is projected a digital forest, one that changes through the scenes in haunting ways. It too is angled, though, and the upstage right, behind this drop, the dancers can still be seen in the correct lighting (and the lighting, thanks to Paul Lim, is always correct). To watch these carefully controlled bodies moved between the shadows and light is spectacular.

The composition and sound design is equally impressive. Referencing so much of the noise of nature, calls and rustles and rain, Matthias Schack-Arnott’s feast for the ears works hand in hand with Lucy Guerin’s choreography.

The choreography requires a quite high level of skill, but it rarely insists on us paying attention to that fact. There is a beautiful flow to the pace and rhythm of this show, and the seven performers move seamlessly through the scenes in a form of natural (unknown to me) narrative. Sometimes the dance is high pace, rigid snaps and mechanical precision, while other times there are the smooth movements better connected to waltzes. People will have their favourite moments, with mine being an early solo piece performed by Amber McCartney, whose considered movements also stand out through the rest of the show. Guerin was also unafraid to reference what might be called simplistic ideas, with an imaginative use of ribbons being a wonderful scene to enjoy.

At times I must admit to having been bothered by elements of asymmetry where they are not expected, though perhaps this was quite intentional. The design, as beautiful as it is, sometimes becomes too distracting, or offers up too many moving pieces for the movements of the dancers themselves to be enjoyed. These are rare occurrences for both criticisms, however, and should not be given too much weight.

The Forest is a beautiful production that has clearly come from a holistic creative process, and sits all the better for it.

Image Supplied