Lions and Tigers and Bears (oh my!) is only absurd when placed out of context.
Pappa Tarahumara’s “Ship in a View” surpassed the expected circumstances of a dance performance, and in that way it constituted a “crazy experience.” It was composed of unprecedented movements and bizarre themes. And raised questions that were not answered. Why was there a fish on a bicycle?
Repetitive absurd movements which were not related in any way composed the structure of the dance. Each individual created movements of his or her own, which constituted a story, and the stories of each individual were not compatible in anyway. Such elevated the human aspect of the dance to such a climax that it was no longer human. Individual nonsense came together to make a collective nonsense.
The dance troupe also used common, everyday actions and put them in such a context that they did become unusual. Things like eating an apple, riding a bicycle, or playing with a doll aren’t particularly bizarre until they’re enacted on stage, during a performance that is not classically associated with them, with such ferocity that the usual circumstances of these actions are surpassed. When one comes across a child playing with a doll, it typically it evokes a warm reaction, but when a man does it on stage during a dance performance, the reaction is much different. It evokes curiosity, and sometimes, disgust, if not whimsy.
The modernization of the dance had escalated to such a level that a lot of logical meaning was lost, and instead the dance’s effect relied solely on the emotions it evoked. These emotions were enthusiastic and crazed in the passion they contained. All in all, the term “crazy” is an appropriate in all of its meanings; the dance was insane, fervent, senseless at times, bizarre at others. And ultimately reconciled this confusion with a search for meaning.
- Mariola Szenk