EIF: Assembly Hall @ Festival Theatre
Crystal Pite and Jonathon Young's absurdist dance piece is a wonderful exercise in surrender
It is hard to describe the impact of a dance show about LARPing. Where does fantasy begin and reality intrude? Assembly Hall follows the Annual General Meeting of a group of medieval reenactors, diving headfirst into just that question. Every year, the reenactors LARP their way through an annual ‘Quest Fest’ event, and every year they struggle through a committee decision on whether the budget has depleted enough, attendance fallen enough, hope lost enough to call it the final year.
In parallel, the reenactment itself recalls a failing king, with all hopes pinned on a nameless knight who will swoop in to save the day by way of aiding a fair maiden. The story unfolds as a play within a play (within another play?), aided by a stage within a stage, as the 'Quest' committee desperately grasp at ways to keep their medieval society alive against the backdrop of the knight’s quest, fantasy and minutiae doubling up on each other. “Coffee?” one member asks another, with a slightly manic smile. “You know it’s on the agenda that we have refreshments later,” is the quick report.
Each character comes alive through voiceover. Throughout long sequences of ensemble work and manipulation, there is a precision and gentleness to their movement that is genuinely stunning to watch. It reinforces the surreal, dream-like quality of the narrative. Although there are times when the absurdity starts to feel a little overwhelming or the pacing feels less sure-footed, part of the beauty of Pite’s choreography seems to be in knowing how to pull this back with a well-timed voice interjection, a flamboyant flurry of a feather, or a pas-de-deux sequence heavily inspired by a crow.
There is something wonderful about the process of surrender – literally losing the plot – as you watch the piece. There is also something truly special that comes from watching a show that is so un-self-consciously, wonderfully silly. Part of the charm of Assembly Hall lies in the palpable delight Pite and Young take in playing with established signifiers of storytelling and classical dance. When nothing is as it seems, the only thing you can do is give in to the game with everything you’ve got.
Assembly Hall, Festival Theatre, part of Edinburgh International Festival, run ended