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EVERY MUSCLE IS TIGHTENED 

Excellent dance performance about Leonardo da Vinci at Teater Asterions Hus.

 

*****

5 stars, gregersDH.dk

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They perform a fantastic piece about  Leonardo da Vinci – wild and surprising. As wild and suprising as the location: Teaterøen.

A theatre you reach at snail's pace through intricate roads at Refshaleøen. At night time this is a place for rats and gangsters. But not to worry: A kind theatre bus takes you there from Christianshavns Torv.

Then to 'Leonardo' as the play is named. Named after af genius, endlessly to be lectured about. An artist you can see, touch, read the most incredible things about. He was here, there and everywhere; in visual art, philosophy, medicine, geography, techincal inventions and the list goes on....

A universal genius, who lived in Italy and France – hold on – 200 years before Christian the 4th of Denmark just to place him in history. 

Say 

Say ’Mona Lisa’ or ’The Last Supper’, then you get it.

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ANATOMI

In Asterions Hus there is at regular intervals a couple who act with their own rules in theatre. Peter Kirk, the director of the theatre and a writer and Tilde Knudsen, who is an actress and dancer. He moves around the stage between the airy curtains and operates with his slides and cameras. We are in Leonardos world of images, details in close-ups or totals, de famous and less famous portraits and figures. And then first and foremost the incomprehensibly detailed anatomic descriptions of the human corpus – equally useful in medical science today as back then.

Kirk is like a surgical guide, with an exclusive elegance circling around his scenic partner, Tilde Knudsen, the centre of the performance. She is incredible agile and physically portrays Leonardo's drawings of the the bodily anatomic structures.

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TENSE ENERGY

Tilde Knudsen is accompanied by – or accompanies – a speaker text and with an eminent precision she depicts fragments of Leonardo's own notes. Tilde Knudsens own voice? I'm guessing: Yes, she is a trained actress.

Everything is consequently well laid-out – choreographic and with an outstanding, not only croquis like effect: Tilde Knudsen is an expressional dancer too, with a body beaming with a tense energy. Wearing light or no robes, more sculpturally artistic than sexy. She is extremely muscular with dancing moves reminding me of Vivi Flindt as we remember her in 'Enetime' or 'Dødens Triumf'. But in this case it revolves around fascinating and sober images of Leonardoo's drawings.

We are glued to her astounding and expressive body that harmoniously follow the dramatic music by Klaus Risager, trembling piano and percussion mixed with real sounds. We are not told in the programme, who the musicians are, nevertheless it is has an effect. We could have ended without the final sequence with a participating painting audience in front of Leonardo's The Last Supper and a posing Tilde Knudsen. Nevertheless, to dance performance enthusiasts she is worth the study. And for those wishing to get to know Leonardo da Vincis marvellous thoughts and virtuous precision the performance is of immense importance.

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Find the way.

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