aROUND

What is a circle: repetition, an uninterrupted flow? What is a beginning or an end? The circle is the most magical symbol of them all: having neither beginning nor end, it is simultaneously finite and infinite, which makes it into a shape/symbol that unites spirit and matter.

“aROUND” carries on where “PARKing”, Lia Tsolaki’s first solo choreographic production, left off. In the earlier work, the choreographer of choice for the German master Peter Stein and a number of Greek directors, studied changing human behaviours through the cycle of the seasons. Now, in “aROUND”, Tsolaki gives us a new perspective on the discourse around the cyclical, moving both action and thought into a new thematic context: that of the game.

The protagonists start out in explorative, improvisatory mode, coming up with games of their own devising. Whether searching for structure or subverting it, they keep on playing in the playground they have created. Throughout, new rules continue to redefine the bounds and conditions of the players’ coexistence and rivalry. Their participation is subject to a cyclical movement: each player in turn is called upon to decide whether they will respond to the challenge to cast caution to the wind and upset the ludic equilibrium.

Choreographic proposals reminiscent of the group games of childhood, recurring phrases like musical refrains, induce a rhythm in the dancers which seems to capture snapshots from the circle of life.