Review: ASSEMBLY HALL, Crystal Pite & Jonathon Young/Kidd Pivot - Sadler’s Wells

Photo credit: Michael Slobodian

It’s the Annual General Meeting of a group of medieval re-enactors in their local community hall. Present and accounted for are the the Board of Directors who oversee “Quest Fest”, an event that they feel much passion for yet one that is threatened by the prospect of disillusion due to lower numbers of members for the event and debt. Without an idea to save them, this could be the end for the group.

Assembly Hall is the latest collaboration between choreographer Crystal Pite and writer Jonathon Young – whose previous works include the critically acclaimed Betorffenhiet (2015) and Revisor (2019). There are always great expectations attached to offerings from the pair and, without fail, they bring droves of dance and theatre enthusiasts alike into their unique movement and creative realm.

The setting of Assembly Hall is, literally, in an old hall where the Board of Directors meet. It is itself falling apart, symbolically representing the disintegration of the committee. There is something nostalgic and equally melancholic about an old hall. With its basketball ring above a raised stage, honour boards dating back decades, the wooden architecture and peeling paint, it becomes something universally recognisable. This is an indication that everything about this work is designed to provoke a response and to put the audience in a place of familiarity as they are then drawn into an unfolding surreal world. As the meeting progresses, the line between real and re-enactment begins to blur, and it becomes clear that there is something much more at stake here than a mock-medieval tournament. Is it about change, holding on, moving forward? This is, unfortunately, never completely made clear but does not take away from a spectacular visceral performance.

Recorded spoken text is present throughout a large portion of the work. Beginning somewhat naturalistic in its delivery the text is, again, recognisable as dialogue you would generally hear at a meeting of this type, however, to warp its mundane potential, the performers lip-sync and interpret the text through their bodies with an expressive, gestural physical language. Although a heightened interpretation of the dialogue, it is done with such honesty that distinctive characters are created by the individual movement dynamic each performer acquire. For example, there is the over spritely marketing person with a lightness who leaps and bounds, the pedantic and - at times - passive aggressive Vice Chair works with a tempo and rhythm so immaculate you will listen to her and then there is the pessimistic Secretary who counters the optimism of others with a weight to his moves. There are lovely moments of humour woven into this convention which comes close to being over done but knows when to shift into something new.

As the meeting morphs into a parallel world to resemble a medieval quest, moments of the humour remains but takes on a darker tone. The word multitudes comes to mind as the familiar elements of the work reinsert themselves in more bizarre scenes and the alternate realities take over.

The movement and dance throughout is impeccable. Each movement is, predominantly, performed on-the-beat of the enthralling sound design from Owen Belton, Alessandro Juliani and Meg Roe and feels like a musical score itself. Every moment is intentional.

The set designed by Jay Gower Taylor feels extremely deliberate too with all parts of the space used at some point in interesting and inventive ways, further contributing to the blur between the re-enactment world and what can be assumed as reality. Likewise, the costumes designed by Nancy Bryant are beautifully able to move between fantasy and the everyday.

Where the work falls short is in its dramaturgy. Although captivating, it is largely never made clear what the objective or the message of the piece is. Although the surreal and absurd stylistic offering can excuse the presence of this ambiguity to an extent, it does feel frustrating not understanding the narrative structure a little bit more.

Despite the dramaturgical issues, this is an example of a company working with their artistry at the highest level.

**** Four stars

Reviewed by: Stephanie Oszstreicher