Voirelia Dance Hub's De/Formed Revival makes Renaissance sculptures move at The Dance Centre lunch series, February 29

Art history, psychology, dance, and philosophy all interweave in a piece about transformation

The Dance Centre presents Voirelia Dance Hub’s De/Formed Revival on February 29 at noon

WATCHING SCULPTURES COME to life is an intriguing way to spend your lunch hour Thursday.

That’s when Voirelia Dance Hub presents De/Formed Revival at the Scotiabank Dance Centre for as part of the noonhour Discover Dance! series.

Inspired by Renaissance sculptures, it features a standout trio of dancers—Hana Rutka, Ben DeFaria, and Will Jessup—taking a journey of transformation. In the process, they explore larger metaphors about breaking free from life’s “moulds” and embracing change. Vancouver-based choreographer Idan Cohen has acted as artistic advisor on the project, and check out the artfully pleated details in designer Alaia Hamer’s costumes. The music ranges from Vivaldi to the ambient cello of Janice Wong.

It’s fitting that the unique company, launched in 2017, has the word “hub” in its title: run by founding artistic director Alina Sotskova, the choreographer behind De/Formed Revival who’s both a professional dance artist and a practising psychologist, its works interweave psychology, dance, and philosophy—especially the feminist, humanistic, and existential.

In this case, Sotskova also draws on Renaissance art history as well—a chiaroscuro-lit escape full of sculptural beauty before you return to work after lunch.

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Janet Smith

Janet Smith is an award-winning arts journalist who has spent more than two decades immersed in Vancouver’s dance, screen, design, theatre, music, opera, and gallery scenes. She sits on the Vancouver Film Critics’ Circle.

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