Meraki - Capsule Review

  Meraki is a collection of pieces by dance student choreographers in SFU’s School for Contemporary Arts, running from Thursday, January 31 to Sunday February 2, 2019. The showcase is presented in an intimate and open black box space, with exposed lighting instruments functioning as wings. The ten unique pieces showcase the students’ talents as dancers and choreographers in a wide range of genres, from contemporary ballet choreographed to a Bach cello suite to popping and locking backed by lo-fi hip hop and a story about Wendy’s.

  Overall, the show has a professional production quality, and although there is some roughness around the edges in the music editing, the quality of the performance more than makes up for this. The show is quite accessible to general audiences, though there is plenty of material for the critical audience member as well.

  Two pieces stand out from the rest. The first is Kronos, choreographed and performed by Charlotte Telfer-Wan. The piece, backed by a beautiful track by Múm, features a brilliant mix of subtle and grand movements that draws the viewer into an inescapable trance. The second piece is Quotidian, a fourth-wall-breaking piece that provides the show’s comic relief while at the same time making us ponder the deep questions that us up at night. Kevin Locsin, who choreographs and performs this piece, becomes a hybrid between dancer and actor with his boisterous storytelling methods.

  Overall, Meraki is a strong show featuring a brilliant group of student dancers and choreographers. Meraki means to do something with soul, creativity, or love; to put something of yourself into your work, and these students are clearly putting their hearts and souls into this show.