Lisa Wilson has never been to Tasmania before, but that will change soon when, accompanied by her husband and children, Lisa brings her production ‘Lake’ our way. Lisa is excited about a few days off after the first performance to explore Tasmania, hopefully including MONA , Port Arthur, Cradle Mountain and of course seeing some penguins with the children; Lisa would also like to take the opportunity to catch up with her friend, Anna Greig, artistic director of Tasdance and take Anna up on her offer for a visit to the Tasdance studio.
A lake is defined as ‘a body of relatively still liquid of considerable size surrounded by land’.
At once this definition helps define Lisa’s production of Lake, which, just like the evolving form of a relationship, may in the first stages of love have the ‘still surface nature of a lake’, but as the relationship grows it enters what can be layered murkier depths.
The idea of making such an analogy in a dance production was conceived by Lisa when she was on a camping holiday and was entranced by the intensely beautiful still water and its reflective surface at the same time imagining what bubbled beneath just as in a relationship the first impressions are superficial until the depths are explored, and its ‘stark setting and primal undercurrents’
The production is innovative as real water will make a splash on stage, a first for the Theatre Royal. Lisa says the inclusion of the water in the production is a magical effect that gives ‘the illusion of infinite depth’ even though the actual water is contained within a wooden frame and shallow at 4cm. It owes its magical mirage to good lighting. Adding to the effect is the powerful music and score.
Lisa has been in production and performance for over 20 years as a choreographer, director and performer and across media including ballet, installation art opera and theatre and has always been at the forefront of innovation with this use of multimedia in her productions.
Lisa is a trained gymnast and ballerina, as well as qualified in contemporary dance, and although she doesn’t dance in this production Lisa is actually excited at the possibility of observing the production instead of being observed!
Lisa has always been keen on collaboration and it was one such collaboration that saw other members of the cast conclude that water could work on stage. To see to what great effect this does work …
You can see Lake at the Theatre Royal on Friday 14 March at 8pm and Saturday 15 March at 8pm.
Paula Xiberras
