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Note: No longer in repertoire!
Choreography: Anton Lachky
Assistant to the choreographer: Eleonore Valere-Lachky
Music: Simon Thiérrée
Lighting design: Mikki Kunttu
Sound design: Jyrki Sandell
Costume design: Elina Kolehmainen
Dancers: Valtteri Raekallio, Inka Tiitinen, Kai Lähdesmäki, Jenni-Elina Lehto, Nikoleta Rafaelísová (guest), Soile Voima (guest)
Clever play Like Play and Nature Itself is Helsinki Dance Company’s latest dance piece. The young choreographer Anton Lachky has rightly been noticed around the world. His movement vocabulary arouses the viewer’s interest and keeps them alert throughout the performance.Puppies in their first snowfall or foals racing wild against the wind… The production Softandhard lives with just as explosive joy. Just as dance and related leisure habits, from folk dances to more differentiated forms or even parlor play traditions, have their rules and a systematic approach, so this entity, despite its apparent freedom, obeys the rules of the game. Of course, the funny exceptions will strengthen the rules. Everyone probably remembers the game “follow the leader”, but there is also a saying that “don’t follow the herd, it’s the easiest way to get lost”. The dance piece seems to vary both pieces of advice according to the type of character that is selected under the magnifying glass. And the “character” in this case is compared to the physical and expressive characteristics of the dancers. If all people have body language, then for dancers its revealability is much greater, in Softandhard the physical movements of the group are close to the limit and technical mastery is a significant part of the artistic impression. Acrobatics, surprises, the challenge and richness of detail in the movement language combined with a breathtaking tempo, provide irrefutable material for a dance story. But modern dance also knows the spoken language, with repetitions, rhythms and mere sounds, making it more instrumental. Anton Lachky uses this method, and it gives the game a personal kick. And the languages don’t stop there. The stylized and exaggerated facial language is reminiscent of oriental theatre art, and the imitation episodes sped up with comically powerful facial expressions were very much to the audience’s liking. The Japanese tradition is known to have influenced the development of dance. For example, buto, an avant-garde form of contemporary dance, has also been introduced in Helsinki. It is always extra if you have composed your own music for the work. This time it has been Simon Thiérrée, who is known for his many works specifically in the field of performing arts. The composer knows how this particular choreography sounds, repetitive and emphatically pulse-rhythmic, even with provocative tonal experiments. The performance lasts only an hour. But that hour is completely full.
Read moreROUGH MOVEMENT PLAYIn the latest performance of the Helsinki City Theatre’s dance group, even the audience will be out of breath. Softandhard by the Slovak-born young choreographer Anton Lachky, who lives in Belgium, stars an explosively fast movement that fills the Elsa stage to the brim, even though there are only six dancers. The heart rate and energy continue even when the dancer is still.The starting point for the very physical, but not heavy and aggressive, but rather light and playful movement is both the dancers’ own personality and the movement of animals, especially horses and birds. Both are both herd animals and imitators of each other, and Lachky uses these qualities as building blocks for her choreography. Dancers’ group energyThe performance alternates between short solos that others follow and join, running in a group, and various follow-the-leader games and games. The whole is like a grip on the fast-paced and carefree togetherness of a herd of children or animals, where exercise is the most important thing.The dancers work well and balanced together, but the veterans of the group, Inka Tiitinen and Kai Lähdesmäki , stand out a little more, especially in their own solos, of which Tiitinen focuses on phenomenal mimicry and gestures and Lähdesmäki’s absolutely incredible rhythmic release of the upper body muscles. Jenni-Elina Lehto’s skilful and well-researched “horse-like” movement is also enchanting to watch.
Read moreThe energy bomb of the dance group In Helsinki City Theatre’s latest dance production, Softandhard , the artists have collaborated excellently. The playful and energetic choreography of the 26-year-old Slovak choreographer Anton Lachky has been paired with the musical minimalism of the French composer Simon Thiérrée . The combination is unusually intriguing. The string sawing of the music and the upbeat themes of the piano, combined with the boisterous runs and chases of the choreography, make it difficult for the viewer to stay still. The business ideas go back surprisingly much to the end of the 1980s, the boom of physical dance. Of course, there are also influences from Lachky’s champion Akram Khan. The works of the turn of the 80s and 90s were tested by a problem-oriented approach, while Lachky’s physical dance in the 2000s is lightened by dizzying speed and hilarity. Who said that the funniest works are created when the economy sinks to the bottom and survival is jeopardized? The work as a whole is fresh and lively. In the middle of the dizzying running sessions, there is a surprisingly theatrical scene, like Japanese kabuki theater with its exaggerated characters. Inka Tiitinen is the excellent comedian of the episode, and the dancers in the group are happy to reproduce her gestures and facial expressions. If you want to read a story from an hour-long book, it undoubtedly brings us to a time of innocence, when running was the only way to move, chasing and teasing was the only way to socialize with a crush.
Read moreAn evening of hard and soft tones Slovak dancer-choreographer Anton Lachky’s Softandhard is a multifaceted dance performance. The work, which plays with contrasts and physicality, brings out both animals and people. Created together by Lachky, Eléonore Valère-Lachky, and the dancers, the work brings a lot of animalistic energy to the stage. Among other things, the horses’ way of moving and just being plays a major role. The dancers’ movement is based on the minimalist music composed by Simon Thiérrée for the work. The rhythmic nature of the music and its own kind of simplicity give the viewer the opportunity to enjoy a comprehensive performance. The beginning of Softandhard is very frantic, rhythmic, even furiously tearing. After the halfway point, the movement becomes softer and playful. The dancers don’t get away with it, but they do their job well. Especially the physical and expressive way of movement of Inka Tiitinen and Jenni-Elina Lehto delights the viewers. The communal nature of the movements and the mutual strength of the group are well highlighted in scenes where all the dancers are on stage at the same time. A particularly strong reaction in the audience is caused by the intense and fast-paced imitation play of Tiitinen, Lehto, Soile Voima and Nikoleta Rafaelísova . Kai Lähdesmäki and Valtteri Raekallio are a bit overshadowed by the women, even though they also have quite good performances. It’s no wonder that Mikki Kunttu is one of the most sought-after lighting designers in Europe today. His lighting design creates a great atmosphere on stage. The lights that move to the rhythm of the music are both soft and raw. The theme, softness and hardness of the entire work shine nicely as a red thread throughout the performance.
Read moreSOFTANDHARD (Lachky), Helsinki Dance Company 2008
Read moreSoftly hard Helsinki Dance Company’s premiere work begins with great physical intensity. Six dancers, four women and two men, rush onto the stage in different groups to perform their series in which they throw themselves on the ground, wriggle with their hands and run to jump or sprint at full speed. In the minimalist music of the Frenchman Simon Thiérrée , the violins tickle their sounds, which are repeated in layers. In Mikki Kunttu’s lighting, the white dance mat takes on a soft grey hue, and the characteristic strings of lights on the sides and behind are waiting to be lit. The first part of Softandhard by Anton Lachky (b. 1982), who danced in the renowned Akram Khan troupe and now lives in Belgium, is irresistible.The physically demanding movement boils with energy and activity, and makes you feel like you could watch this for a long time. The fascinating movements have been created in collaboration between the choreographer and the dancers. According to Lachky, one of the key elements of the work is its animal-like nature, which is especially evident in the dancers’ movements that begin to resemble a herd of wild horses. The dancers gallop in a circle and stomp their hands like horses’ feet. A herd of horses is created with great dance insights. The conflicting relationship with it is accompanied by a protracted scene in which the women end up imitating monkeys. It looks exactly like aping humans looks: stupid. But it is precisely there that the work insightfully concretely makes concrete the difference that exists between imitating an animal and becoming an animal through dancing. Games and competitions Lachky also wants to explore play and gaming in her work. On several occasions, the dancers played blind as well as various games of competition and incitement. After a wild start, a long play scene creates an anticlimax. The energy and intensity slowly decrease towards the end, but even in a more serene way, the atmosphere is impressive. One of the great aspects of the work is its stage design. The actors go to change their water bottles and sweaty clothes between the light poles, so that the whole space remains shared with the viewers and nothing is done in secret. The changes in Kunttu’s lighting make the space look sometimes hard, sometimes soft, as befits the work. The reproduction elements of Thiérrée’s music are hypnotically transforming. The dancers, both two guests and those familiar from the group, are in great shape. They capture soft and hard movement expression in an admirable way, to the fullest.
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