On May 5 through 8, Vancouver based OURO Collective will be presenting PACE + Kaleido, two pieces that artfully combine contemporary dance with street dance styles to explore the aftermaths of living in the busy, overwhelming city.
PACE is OURO’s second ever collaboratively choreographed work created by the five collective members. Kaeido is a commissioned work choreographed by Montreal’s Tentacle Tribe. The street dance community is alive and thriving in Vancouver but exists separately from the Vancovuer contemporary dance community. OURO, with roots in both worlds, integrates the two to create an inimitable hybrid of movement.
OURO Collective Credit: Jeff Hamada
This is an exciting show for OURO as they show the fruits of their second season as a collective. Over the past year they have worked through the difficulties of choreographing with five co-directors; all members come from a different dance background and bring different styles of working.
From breaking to whacking to hip hop to contemporary, Ouro strives to incorporate each member’s strengths. “It’s a slow process, working with such a diverse and strong group of people” Christina Bucci, one of the collective members says, “but the choices we make are always so much more rich when we work together and draw from our unique backgrounds.”
PACE sews together the sensations and architecture of urban living, the repercussions of living in the potentially constraining, competitive, and isolating metropolis. Kaleido, Tentacle Tribe’s piece, originates in a more physical place of bodies moving through space with awareness and rhythm. But it parallels and compliments the themes seen in PACE to highlight the individual and their relationship to the other bodies in the space.
OURO Collective Credit: Jeff Hamada
For those who know OURO’s work, there is no doubt that the collective is pushing boundaries in the Vancouver dance community by amalgamating the complexities of street dance and contemporary dance. They have worked hard for the past year to continue honing their ability to keep audiences on their toes by using the most visceral and sensational aspects of both styles.
Bucci is excited for audiences to relate to the themes of each piece while they sit in the intimate theatre and share the experience of listening to unique music while watching the dancers’ physical ability. OURO’s street dance foundation pushes them towards community building and inviting an engaging social aspect to all their shows – they will hold a talkback after their first show on May 5.
Even though PACE + Kaeido will show how OURO has evolved as a collective over the past two years, they still maintain the value of gathering and sharing aspects of dance. The show promises to keep audiences feeling and watching the playful personalities of OURO’s collective members.
Shows run May 5 to 8, 2016 at Studio 1398 (1398 Cartwright Street, Granville Island, Vancouver); tickets are $22 in advance and $25 at the door.
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