Piece Descriptions

Flight and Other Such Adventures is a playful dance piece that uses the concept of free fall to inspire movement. Upbeat and joyous, the dancers are adventurous travelers, playfully tossing each other through space as if gravity were no issue.

Something Within That Never Was is a combination of modern, ballet and break dance that plays with opposing themes. The main character is flowing, organic and chooses the tempo and timing while the core is robotic, steady, and moves as one. The soloist dances to lyrical African music, while the group moves on rhythm with robotic movement and miming. minimal techno. The combination is exciting with plenty to observe and contemplate. 

Enter-Twined is a dance between two marionettes. The puppets come alive to tell a story of love and admiration. This piece uses complex robotic movement and miming.

Loud Minority is a political piece about the want and fight for change. It is also a tribute to jazz music and early musical theatre style of dance and movement. It was Miranda’s first modern choreography that was created for the Canadian Children’s Summer Show Case in 1997 and has been remounted and updated for her company.

That Jacket is choreographed by my friend, teacher and dancer know as Libydo in the break dance underground dance scene. Darren Bryan’s unique dance style is both beautiful and marvelous to watch. He is what’s known in the hip-hop world as a ‘popper’ but has mastered and created movement like none other. This piece highlights his talents on stage, and is a solo work. The piece is intensely focused on small intricate movements and an unusual jacket that makes Libydo do some very stange things.

From Ryoan-ji to Osaka. I had the opportunity to travel to Japan and experienced various aspects of the Japanese culture from the solitude and simplicity of the famous rock garden at the Ryoan-ji Temple in Kyoto to the complex and vibrant city of Osaka.

At the Ryoan-ji Temple, I sat for quite awhile in the mist and rain meditating on the smells and sounds of the modest garden, completely removed from the world for a few moments. I studied the precision and placement of each stone observing that this tranquil setting was like a stage that invoked peace and deep thought, incredibly precise and simple.

Osaka, on the other hand, is the complete opposite of the concepts, ideas and style of the Ryoan-ji Temple: the ying-yang of the Japanese culture so to speak. The complexity within their culture, architecture, art, music and people are extraordinary. In this city, bright lights, noise, and traffic surrounded me: apartments, hotels, and homes were constructed on top of one another.  Again, I was completely removed from the world for a few moments but in a different way. The vivid colours, regalia, buildings, and busy streets hypnotized me.

In this piece the dancers’ movements begin subtly and earthly, moving together as one to create forms melting into one another, they impersonate the rocks slowly changing shape over the centuries. They take on the attributes of the five styles of Japanese gardens; Hill and Pond, Dry Landscape, Courtyard, Stroll and Tea Garden and slowly transform into the lively city of Osaka. The dance is a mixture of modern dance and martial arts inspired movements.