Survivor – review

Hofesh Shechter and Antony Gormley, Survivor, 2012. Photograph: Tom Medwell

A collaboration between such heavyweights as the British sculptor Antony Gormley and Israeli-born choreographer/composer Hofesh Shechter was always going to be an eagerly anticipated event. Anticipation, however, can be a double-edged sword, and it is probably due to the unrealistically high expectations of this performance, that it seemed ultimately rather lacklustre.

Survivor, which premiered at the Barbican Theatre yesterday (Thursday) night, is built around Shechter’s 75-minute composition, which features a dozen string musicians, and over a hundred crimson-clad drummers. Added to this mix are a troupe of six dancers, who act as living versions of Gormley’s famous sculptures, albeit often in a more animated state.

Gormley’s aesthetic contributions far outweigh Schechter’s musical and choreographic accomplishments. The ‘sculptural’ element is evident from the very start, when we are presented with a line of performers, each lit by a lantern swaying above their heads, becoming objects of focus in and of themselves. The human form seems vulnerable and exposed within the cavernous space of the Barbican theatre, only ever looking secure when amongst a throng of other bodies.

There was a consistent sense of discovery throughout the performance. Discovery of different spaces, such as underneath the stage, in the rig and among the audience, and discovery of different perspectives. A piece which involved the dancers writhing on the floor with cannonballs was transformed by a live video being simultaneously projected onto a vertical screen, creating an effect which has strong resonances with torture and physical torment.

There were humorous elements within this bleak landscape, particularly when Schechter employed his handheld camera to project images of the audience or the performers on to the gargantuan white screen. A distorted version of God Save the Queen by the drummers was also a somewhat light-hearted moment, although this too was put into perspective by the austere string version with which it was followed.

Overall, it was a lack of cohesion which prevented this collaboration from being truly engaging. Despite providing individual moments of powerful visual and sensory art, as a unit, the performance never seemed to form a coherent tone. Perhaps this was the intention, but it is a surprising choice, especially for Gormley, who is usually unparalleled as an articulator of his art.

Survivor is at the Barbican until 14th January.