May 12, 2008
Two lesbians, quivering with fear on a sofa, follow a man standing inside a projected world atlas highlighting countries where homosexuality is a prison sentence. There appears to be a clear global divide on attitudes to sexual freedom and the hard-hitting To Be Straight With You finds, after a rigorous examination of Christian and Muslim beliefs, a united response to the issue. Verbatim speeches include a recorded interview with Peter Tatchell who testifies to the many people he knows to be too afraid to speak out about the abuse they suffer for fear it will get worse. The text of the show is taken from 100’s of hours of conversations held by DV8, and the company extends gratitude to these individuals for letting their story be told.
The images from the show are fresh in my mind weeks after seeing the performance, not least the Muslim lesbian who finds herself alone in her shared house after coming out. She falls to the floor and feels despair that ‘people just kept leaving’. The stories are told through speech and dance such as the prolonged spinning sequence of the septuagenarian Rabbi who says she feels so tired now that she can only tell young people to ‘please pay attention’.
It is comforting to know that DV8 do not deviate from being fearless, expressive and honest regardless of whether the truth offends or pleases, like the story of the in-the-closet homosexual who chases a young openly gay man down the street to dislocate his jaw. It is disconcerting to be convinced after this 80 minute show that holding the hand of your same sex partner whilst walking down a street in Brixton is probably more of a hazard now than it was in the eighties.
Whilst attitudes may not have shifted in the direction one would have hoped, the choreography is streets ahead. No matter how gripping, brave and enlightening the story being told by the characters, the fluidity of the dance is stand-alone perfecto. The married Indian man who secretly takes a Caucasian male lover and dances to ‘Hips Don’t Lie’ changed the song forever for me and I am happy to have a take away sound that will trigger the bold movements of this exciting ephemeral evening.
The images from the show are fresh in my mind weeks after seeing the performance, not least the Muslim lesbian who finds herself alone in her shared house after coming out. She falls to the floor and feels despair that ‘people just kept leaving’. The stories are told through speech and dance such as the prolonged spinning sequence of the septuagenarian Rabbi who says she feels so tired now that she can only tell young people to ‘please pay attention’.
It is comforting to know that DV8 do not deviate from being fearless, expressive and honest regardless of whether the truth offends or pleases, like the story of the in-the-closet homosexual who chases a young openly gay man down the street to dislocate his jaw. It is disconcerting to be convinced after this 80 minute show that holding the hand of your same sex partner whilst walking down a street in Brixton is probably more of a hazard now than it was in the eighties.
Whilst attitudes may not have shifted in the direction one would have hoped, the choreography is streets ahead. No matter how gripping, brave and enlightening the story being told by the characters, the fluidity of the dance is stand-alone perfecto. The married Indian man who secretly takes a Caucasian male lover and dances to ‘Hips Don’t Lie’ changed the song forever for me and I am happy to have a take away sound that will trigger the bold movements of this exciting ephemeral evening.