[Review] Jack Sears’ GISELLE: REMIX – both cutting-edge and rigorous
Matthew Paluch sees GISELLE: REMIX – Jack Sears’s brainchild is supported by Royal Ballet dancer Hannah Grennell’s co-creation and choreography.
| Title | GISELLE: REMIX |
| Company | The Pleasance, Patrick Bone and The Project People |
| Venue | Pleasance Theatre, London |
| Date | 27 June 2024 |
| Reviewer | Matthew Paluch |
The Giselle we know is circa 1841, but the time has come to say hello to 2024’s Giselle in GISELLE: REMIX. The brainchild of Jack Sears, supported by Hannah Grennell’s co-creation and choreography, an extremely talented cast of four dancers and a plethora of icons – musically, politically and in the flesh with Lavinia Co-op (on the final evening performance of the 27 April). Though Sears doesn’t take the existing Giselle narrative too literally, but rather dips into the emotional underpinning and journey of anyone who finds themselves in the same predicament.
What’s that I hear you ask? Looking for love, finding it, getting shafted and having to pick up the pieces.
Sears’ structure to do this is a cabaret-style show that has a bit of everything with autobiographical prose, jukebox music, lip-synching, dance – of which there are interludes of classical, contemporary, jazz, commercial, burlesque, striptease – and all the aspects are often taken to the extreme. Sears is a visceral performer, seemingly holding nothing back in order to share his personal experience of life as a queer person in the 21st century.
No matter how humankind “develops”, many facets stay the same. The need to belong, be desired, feel… Sears explores these notions through a present-day lens, à la Grindr. And if you’re looking for a really good (X-rated) laugh, have a listen to Double Penetration by Only Fire. Basically, we’re invited to engage, laugh, empathise, be stimulated and shocked, and all within a show that feels both cutting-edge and rigorous.
In the end, Sears acknowledges the importance of those who came before him in the community, the trailblazers, defining the path that we could then all walk in. And he also takes pride and great importance in being this to his own, younger contemporaries. Of course, in reality, the LGBTQ+ community isn’t as harmonious as it’s being depicted to be, so it feels important to acknowledge the good stuff within all the current discord.
In relation to the dance, I was super impressed. Hannah Grennell, a Soloist with The Royal Ballet company, is credited as the choreographer in collaboration with the cast, so it can be difficult to know who’s responsible for what. Regardless, I have a feeling it was a democratic, creative environment and all involved should be celebrated.
The work is properly good, whatever the genre, and it’s clear the cast is applying its high-end training and professional expertise to execute work that feels impassioned and sharp.
There’s so much to consider within the show, but a few highlights included expressive use of the head, coquettish flirting with the audience, Sears as a Leigh Bowery-esque PVC gimp and dance passages that featured lighter-than-light pas de chat (bedecked in pastel tulle), expansive floorwork and sensual sass for dayz.
The whole experience really felt “where it’s at”, and it will be interesting to see where Sears goes next. I’ve always been impressed by Hannah Grennell’s dancing when I visit the ROH, but now I’ve seen where her interest lays beyond the Covent Garden landscape, I’ll be watching her even more closely.
Matthew Paluch was awarded a place at The Royal Ballet School in 1990 where he graduated in 1997. His first four years as a professional dancer were spent working with London City Ballet, Scottish Ballet, K-Ballet and English National Ballet, becoming a full-time member of ENB until leaving in 2006.
Matthew graduated from the Royal Academy of Dance, Professional Dancers’ Teaching Diploma in 2007, and was formerly on faculty at The Royal Ballet School. He completed his Masters in Ballet Studies at Roehampton University in 2011, has been a freelance writer since 2010 and currently works in the Law Sector.
He is a member of the Dance Section of The Critics’ Circle.
