How to describe Liminality , this multidisciplinary work presented in the Satosphère, the dome of the Society of Technological Arts, within the framework of the International Festival of Films on Art (FIFA)? Captivating, unique in its kind, Liminality offers a multisensory and almost spiritual experience.

Presented as a world premiere in Montreal, Liminality is the work of a team from around the globe. A hybrid performance, it offers a contemporary dance performance, live music and audio recordings, as well as a 360 ° film on the SAT dome, in addition to clever floor lighting. Some of the artisans inside the dome even burn incense. This is to say that the sensory experience is rather complete.

An evolutionary transition

In French, “liminality” means liminality. This would be the second stage of rituals and rites of passage. This term, from the anthropological point of view, would define the state of ambiguity in the transition between one state and another. On the side of psychology, this term is also used to determine what is just on the threshold of perception. At the end of the show, we have the impression of having witnessed a transition involving an amalgam of different cultures and technologies.

When the doors close under the dome of the SAT, a dancer is first curled up on the floor, in the dark. Only luminous filaments move to the floor at the sound of a noise imitating a heartbeat. Then the dancer starts to move inside the light bands. Muscular, with long blond hair, dynamic and raw energy, it is reminiscent of a Louise Lecavalier in a more exploded decor.

On the walls of the dome, various film presentations first show scenes from nature, then in the heart of the city, from India through Wales. It presents an India in full transfiguration, freeing itself from the colonialist hold of Wales. Various dancers are given to see on the walls of the Satosphere while Noble dances in symbiosis with them, herself performing a kind of ritual with her body.

Influences all horizons

Liminality might have looked like a hodgepodge of diverse and mismatched influences, but it’s not. On the contrary, everything adjusts fluidly: Noble movements, electronic music notes, light effects and images displayed on the dome, as a reflection of what is played in the mind of the performer. Nothing is too much.

4 Pi production, it is the 4 ^th immersive work implemented by a dynamic team of professionals employing all backgrounds: Matt Wright (director / producer), Janire Najera (director / producer), Kim Noble (choreographer / dancer), Gray Filastine and Nova Ruth (music), and several other acolytes, dancers, musicians and artists who participated in this special creation.

Of a very short duration (about 35 minutes), Liminality seems simple in its complexity, but without a doubt, a work of master was accomplished for the creation and the realization of this hybrid work.

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Liminality

Society for Arts and Technology, 1201 Boul St-Laurent, Montreal

Presented from Tuesday to Saturday at 7 pm until March 31, 2018.