Rhodnie Désir’s BOW’T TRAIL RÉTROSPEK conjures a hopeful vision of the future despite the horrific history of the Americas. Presented by the Vancouver International Dance Festival and the Cultch, this work looks back on Désir’s previous works BOW’T and BOW’T TRAIL, for which Désir travelled conquered lands meeting displaced people, hearing their stories, then channelling them into movement in collaboration with local musicians. No version of BOW’T TRAIL is ever repeated, belonging to the land it was created on.
BOW’T TRAIL RÉTROSPEK has the same superb musicians for its entire tour, drummer Jahsun and ngombi player Manuel Chantre, but is still different every night. Désir is constantly changing her movements, saying “there are no counts, only milestones”, and the musicians must adapt. Occasionally the transition from one milestone to the next can seem long, but overall the performance felt smooth and whole.
Walking into the charming Historic Theatre’s black box stage the audience sees a large screen projecting an image of the night sky, with one musician playing softly on either side. In the dim light we can see a stool with a crinoline cage on it stage left, and a mass of fabric stage right. The mass starts to move incrementally, so slowly you can hardly see it – Désir has been on stage the whole time, so still she looked like a set piece. The fabric is her voluminous grey skirt, covering a black open-back bodysuit with mesh cutouts.
The work covers over 500 years of history, beginning before millions of Africans were torn away from their land and taken across the ocean. While there’s no explicit narrative, there are touchpoints in time, grounding the piece with some context. At one point we can hear muffled voices echoing while blurred faces and bodies are projected onto the screen, as Désir stands on a soapbox front and centre, evoking an image of the civil rights movement.
Désir flows deftly from slow and delicate movement, singing to herself, to bouncing and playing with her skirts, to struggling and screaming. We get the impression of a body broken, carrying a heavy burden. These transformations continue through the work until finally she seems to find a new freedom. Standing firmly rooted as a tree, then running and dancing, she begins to sing again. In this way BOW’T TRAIL RÉTROSPEK comes full circle and ends on a positive note, hinting at a happier future.
Desir is touring the show across Canada. You can read more about her work on her on her website here, about Vancouver International Dance Festival here, and the Cultch here.
– Kristen Lawson