Bryttni Pugh

Professor Tucker

Improvisation 1280-002

15 September 2015

Fall Faculty Concert Critique

The strength and fluidity within the relationship between nature and the self gravitated

me towards Rachel Barkers piece, Silt (excerpt). The dancer, Barker, began by taking her place

to the audiences left-hand side of the stage in-between two of the four thick strands of crumpled

white paper hanging long from the stages sky. The paper stood in the form of columns, and the

bottom of each strand created a mound of wrinkled material, as if mimicking a waterfalls crash

on the rocks below. There were five other pieces of paper that traveled straight down to the

earths floor as the strikes on a piano enabled Barker to move slowly and at ease; first moved a

couple of strands on the audiences right-hand side of the stage, and then the remaining group of

three. The graceful descent added to the element of a waterfall flowing downstream, and the

crinkling sound could be interpreted as ocean waves or the rustling of leaves. The final

appearance indicated that one is surrounded by nature.

The performer wore a pure white dress that flowed no longer than her knees and matched

the scenic design. One would be reminded of the Greeks by her attire and the powerful

connection to nature; perhaps the columns fell from the sky where one or more of their many

gods resided. As the paper stood erect without motion, except for the illusion of movement

created by the numerous creases, the music played a haunting yet peaceful rhythm. Swods

Fugitif 2 presented me with mixed emotions: sadness as the pianos keys were struck at a steady

interval and trailed sound into the silence or light noise that followed, eeriness as sounds of audio
skips or rewinding occurred, and relaxation as water drops or the wind chimed in. The

instrumental piece cooperated with Barkers movements and with the video clips displayed on

the columns of paper. The recorded scenery was close-up and lit up one or two strands at a time.

The footage showed glimpses of the outside environment such as the trees, rocks, water flow,

and the beach. Zooming in and zooming out, the video of the beach caught sight of the sand,

waves, and the jovial dancer expressing herself along the shoreline. As the pre-taped landscapes

and movements gave life to the props on the platform, Barkers presence filled the stage with

curiosity and delight. She possessed spatial awareness; she gently felt the air as she glided

through the spaces between the hanging papers, sat to observe the props and appeared as

entertained as a child watching a movie, laid in and threw the wrinkled mound around her body,

and danced in sync with her recorded self. The performer gave the impression of becoming one

with nature by being overtaken by earths gifts and uplifted with a peaceful aura. Additionally,

she reconstructed her environment from the outside setting to a theatre. Barker made sure to

entice the audience with her experiences out at the beach, for example, by reenacting her past

expressions and utilizing the stage design to relate the quality of life to nature.

Although no detailed storyline was present, the continuous stream of naturalistic elements

captivated my attention and hence I selected this piece to critique. I felt disturbed as the

performance began but reached a meditative state by the end. Silt (excerpt) offered program

notes to give a general overview on what was to be expected. Viewing the piece simply as a

performance, I realized this was only a reimagined section out of the original fourteen-minute

piece, and I ponder on how the original could impact me or allow me to see Barkers ideas in a

different perspective. (In my modern dance class she mentioned that the stage in which it was

originally performed was smaller and allowed each audience member to closely connect with the
piece, such as physically walking on the paper and hearing sounds of nature emerge.) Viewing

the piece as an art form, I understand the correlation between the Edward Casey quote and the

story Barker was expressing. Casey states that ones experiences in a certain place linger because

he or she has shared an intense bond with that place, no matter the duration of time; the impact it

made on him or her will linger in his or her presence and the way in which it lingers is quite

powerful. Barkers visit to the shore remained with her as she passionately danced in the same

way as she did when she was truly at the location. I can better understand her desire to connect

with nature and recreate favorable moments because the thoughts lingered around her in her

presence. She was rather influenced by these moments and wished to share them in a new

environment to an unfamiliar audience the dance department and other UNCC families. As an

audience member I discovered how passionate an event or object can make someone and the

qualities (i.e. fluid and relaxed) it can provide for personal growth or for growth as a dancer.

Knowing that plenty of movements originate from nature, I can utilize its elements to improvise

or to give character to my dance persona.

The ground views of rocks and water, for example, could have driven her to share a bond

with the earths floor, causing her to sit or lie down whilst feeling the environment surrounding

her. Silt, like the title of the work, is a sediment created by carrying a fine material through

water. One could say that the dancer was the grain of sand or block of clay being swept away by

natures beauty, or the video footage of various materials ran through Barker as she was as free-

flowing as running water and as light as air. I believe both of these interpretations to be true, and

I could also relate this to lifes journey: one is the sediment being created and transported by

lifes experiences (like Barker was cautiously traveling across the stage to the different sheets of

paper), and he or she is composed of fine particles or layers that represent the strong impacts
certain locations have made. Although the silt settles at the bottoms of rivers, I believe our

journey as silt doesnt end, unless death is considered the ultimate end, because we will have

impacted those around us just as our surroundings have impacted us. We then settle at a state of

peace, whether it be while dancing a reimagined memory or while reflecting on our

accomplishments in the various disciplines of life.