Amajuba: Like Doves We Rise - York Theatre, Seymour Centre - 26/10/05

Ethan Switch - Thursday, 27 October 2005 - Print Version

Empty save for the large water bowls, darkness explodes into the light with the six cast members singing into the bleed and with minimal setup. Minimal to non-existent introductions in the first paragraph of the performance run smoothly into setting up the first chronicle of life under a South Africa during the years of apartheid.

Frenetic movement of feet intersperse with joyous breaks into the night. Stories of tragedy only make for sweeter triumphs in the end. Moments of laughter appear every so often and it's in their presence that makes all the singing that more serene in their reverb.

Intense passion from the actors is most evident as their spit and sweat make for small pools across the stage area. Rippling and beading like facing down a moderate meal in a restaurant with no windows in the summer, litres collect easy. Amplification of vigour and energy increases as every rivulet smacks the boards.

Covert actions see knees pop up every now and then. Proximity to the stage breaks only on the account of seeing one row from the dust that flies up in the final moments. Clearly, with their focus of mind, the lens of both eyes meet and at that second, the one with a mechanical aperture shies away to hide behind a blue metal shell.

Simple use of shadows and silhouettes against the backdrop make for an impressive resonance to the foreground act. Vague figures and shapes making scenes deeper in emotional drive than possible by the stage alone. Abstract in a sense, rooms open up with the chance to distance from the various acts unfolding, a chance for safety and beings for the cold that aren't let out as easily as they may chance it.

Bookends carve out the overarching presence of Amajuba, further bringing about a storytelling sense to it outside of fireside reminisces. Closing out the other is a sterling ensemble piece that effortlessly evokes sense of wellness and emptiness in the same instant.

Comfortably entertaining and uncomfortably inspirational, Amajuba is an experience for the soul.

Ethan Switch