Gandini Juggling's "Smashed" comes to the West End
Gandini Juggling’s homage to dance theatre superstar Pina Bausch
Other-worldly juggling, a heavenly soundtrack and the heady scent of apples in "Smashed". Juggling supremos Gandini Juggling bring the spirit of Pina Bausch and the heady scent of apples to the Peacock Theatre on 31 May and 1 June with their signature work Smashed – the first time the show will have been seen in London for seven years.
Funny, inventive and characterful, the 60-minute piece features nine jugglers, 100 red apples and a soundtrack of songs including Tammy Wynette, music hall and Bach. Nostalgic filmic scenes explore lost love, tense relationships - and afternoon tea. Performed with meticulous unison and split-second timing, Smashed challenges perceptions of contemporary juggling.
Conceived in 2010, Smashed embodies Gandini Juggling’s ongoing love affair with contemporary dance. Directors Sean Gandini and Kati Ylä-Hokkala took elements of Pina Bausch’s gestural theatrical choreography and combined them with the intricate patterns and cascades of solo and ensemble juggling to create a new hybrid of juggling and dance theatre.
It was whilst working as a street entertainer, two things happened firstly his performing magic was overshadowed by a desire not to be outshone at juggling. Then a 20 year-old former gymnast impressed him with her club work, as he told me "I could always juggle three or four balls, it came quite naturally. Then I went to Covent Garden to do magic shows and saw someone do five balls - and I had an urgent sense of having to learn this! It was the beginning of my juggling addiction."
"Kati had just retired from competitive Rhythmic Gymnastics (at age 20!) and came to Covent Garden to watch some of the outdoor shows. She had never seen juggling but the clubs were similar to the ones she used. She asked if she could play with my clubs... I was so impressed that we started playing together every Sunday! ".
I wondered how the idea of choreographing the juggling came about, and discovered that as juggling had given Sean his partner, Kati he had decided to repay the favour. "We are surrounded by a very creative team so it is a team effort. But we work a lot with mathematics and geometry before getting into the studio to work things out. It seemed kind of inevitable to us. Initially it was mainly dance but very quickly we realised that juggling had been in the lonely corner for quite some time. So we have been sending it on Tinder dates with other art forms..."
"We are currently finishing Heka, a piece which combines magic and juggling. Further down the road, we are preparing a piece which deeps deep into mathematics and even further down, we have another very exciting project to come. Watch this space!" Speaking of watching, what can audiences look forward to with "Smashed"? "It is a journey. The piece has elements of cabaret and vaudeville but can take people on more complex journeys. It is also silly and funny. And sometimes provocative..."
Smashed is performed by Tedros Girmaye, Sean Gandini, Kim Huynh, Antoni Klemm, Sakari Männistö, Iñaki Sestre, Malte Steinmetz, Jose Triguro and Kati Ylä-Hokkala. It can be seen at Sadler's Wells Peacock Theatre, London on 31 May & 1 June at 7.30pm for tickets and further information please contact the ticket office on 020 7863 8222 or www.sadlerswells.com
Images (c) Ludovic des Cognets
