Sidesault at the Melba 2019: A Festival of Experimental Circus.

The festival comprises of six performances showcasing both individual and group shows. Mutating Roots, Subjective Spectacle and Common Dissonance are three shows which can be seen from 14-17 November. The shows offer very different perspectives on similar themes. They all have a very meditative and reflective approach which draws heavily on dance, movement and performance art and the slow, introspective pace is often disarming.

In Mutating Roots Mayu Muto explores her Japanese heritage and questions stereotypes generated around nationality. Her show is influenced by her own personal struggle of navigating identity across more than one culture. This show brings a very unusual pace to circus and performance art; every move and every gesture is thoroughly contemplated and is executed with a great sense of inner calm and reflection. The Japanese aesthetic is highly visible in the staging and set design, but the show not limited by its cultural considerations.

In Subjective Spectacle Naomi Francis, Skye Gellmann and Rockie Stone perform alongside visual art works by Kimberley Brewster, Lowana Davies and Mindy Davies. The nature of identity and spectacle are investigated in this show and each piece seems to explore a sense of floating in a limbo space; being suspended in elements, such as air and water, is a recurring theme. However, the individual pieces are less cohesive than expected and the way the viewer can engage with the varying and different aspects of the show can sometimes feel at odds.

Common Dissonance features two performers from Na Djinang Circus. This show is an exquisite contemplative combination of dance, performance art and circus artistry. The way in which the two performers are totally integrated and find new and unusual ways to create a sense of physical and psychological equilibrium is visually astonishing and creates truly arresting imagery. The labour involved in this search for balance is portrayed as a continual and evolving process, and as something that requires significant and frequently demanding effort. This creates a powerful message in terms of what brings people together and what potentially rips them apart. 

Patricia Di Risio

Image: Mutating Roots - Mayu Muto