Fall : review

IT’S A LONG WAY DOWN
by JASMINE BAKER
SPECIAL TO THE NATION June 28, 2012

Crescent Moon Theatre newcomers take on gravity with amusing and alarming results in ‘Fall’

The veterans of Crescent Moon Theatre, one of Thailand’s most respected and longest-running theatre companies, last week made way for the new generation to present their first full-length work.

Sukanya “Suki” Pheansri and Sirithorn “Ing-Ing” Siriwan, who met at a Crescent Moon workshop last year, teamed up for a directorial debut called “Fall”, described as “a performance of body expression and movement”. Some influences were evident from the company’s artistic director, Sineenadh Keitprapai, who’s well known for her physical-theatre productions and has described some of her works in a similar way.

At the same time, “Fall” had a much lighter air compared to most of Crescent Moon’s productions, with some quirky dance moves and electro-pop tunes from its young creators. Hardcore fans of physical theatre and dance might turn up their noses at steps and music like these, but anyone could see himself dancing along and having a good time.

This is not to say that the show was all fun and no substance. Suki and Ing-Ing led us on a journey under gravity, where anything that goes up cannot escape free-fall. They threw themselves against the wall and slowly slid down, took turns rolling on top of each other, and alternately won and lost the desired spot atop a wooden stool.

This competition for the top position was made even more concrete in the middle of the show when the pair stopped dancing and brought a set of jenga blocks out for a truly impressive battle amid audience oohs and aahs.

In today’s “vertical” world of material and skyscrapers, a lot of people strive to be as high up as they can in their career and status, even if that means they have to bite off more than they can chew. They usually forget that if they were to fall, the higher they are the greater the impact.

The audience was reminded of this simple truth. As projected footage of grassy fields and trees turned into a time-lapse video of a big city of high-rises, Ing-Ing started shaking and dropping stones she had earlier gathered in her arms one by one. Suki then joined in and urged her partner to cast the fallen stones away from them.

All seemed calm for a brief moment, but then both of them started jumping up and down in a frenzy before collapsing amid countless multicoloured plastic balls that simultaneously fell hard from a hidden compartment in the ceiling.

If this performance were to experience a fall itself, however, it would have been a very safe one. Apart from the jenga scene that kept viewers on the edge of their seats, everything seemed a little too nice and easy.

The movements were generally pleasant, Mozart’s classical take on “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” was cute, but nothing was particularly interesting or exciting. Also, the fact that it was more thrilling to watch the performers play jenga than carry out their movements in a movement-based piece was a significant hint that there is still room for improvement in terms of physical skills.

Contrary to its title, “Fall” was risk-free, and even its more serious scenes could still be a lot bolder, both in the execution of steps and in its spirit.

It definitely was a good first try, but the creators could perhaps prepare for a more risky fall next time.

TUMBLE TIME
See “Fall” at Crescent Moon Space in the Pridi Banomyong Institute between Thonglor Sois 1 and 3 tomorrow through Monday at 7.30pm.

Tickets cost Bt350 from (081) 929 4246 or (084) 174 2729.

Learn more at www.CrescentMoonTheatre.org and the “CrescentMoonTheatre” Facebook page.