IMPRESSIONS OF: Overground Physical Theatre Company

 

Imagined during and after the emotional and physical deprivation generated by Hurricane Sandy, Overground Physical Theatre Company's new 90-minute piece, X-Stream, explores the loss and eventual restoration of the senses. Water, as a tool for both destruction and rejuvenation, acts as a persistent theme. A lush video crafted by Ana Atanassova-Ivanova, Kalin Ivanov, and Mihail Vaklinov plays continually, depicting aquatic imagery such as a beach, a rainstorm, and a reservoir.

X-stream opens with a lingering shot of a tranquil seashore before choreographer and gifted performer Antonia Katrandjieva darts onto the video-screen. Breaking the fourth wall, she addresses us directly, begging for a corkscrew to open a bottle containing a mysterious message that has washed up. She eventually frees the letter, which introduces us to eight other performers, who hail from far flung corners of the globe.
 

Overground Physical Theatre Company; Photos Kalin Ivanov.

Clad in billowing scarlet costumes, they course onstage one at a time, executing an undulating vocabulary rife with deep knee bends, body rolls that melt across the floor, and rippling arm movements. Katrandjieva, a deft movement maker, manipulates a variety of level changes and striking spatial patterns to keep interest heightened.

X-Stream employs a convoluted narrative though, and repeated referrals to the program notes are necessary to untangle the action.The performers take us through five connected scenes — each congested with loquacious dialogue, extended movement sequences, and voiceovers. They swallow tainted rain, enact a frenzy of holiday shopping, play games of chance with God and eventually reconnect in a deluge of “heart-storming” (their words from the program).Playing Siri, Apple’s electronic assistant, Katrandjieva attempts to ground the hubbub by responding to performers’ questions and commenting on the unfolding action. The score by Emilio Garzon, Xana Villan Rueda, and Marios Aristopoulos slants to the literal and coats the piece with exaggerated emotion.
 

Overground Physical Theatre Company; Photos Kalin Ivanov.

 

The barrage of stimulation eventually becomes too much, and the message of restoring natural balance is lost in a blur of visual and auditory noise. Even the finale, as the performers reject consumerism and digital media in favor of reuniting with their authentic selves, offers no abatement. Ultimately, this experiential divide alienates us from X-Stream.