June 10th: Giulio D’Anna’s “Parkin’son”

Upon entering the Theatre des Abbesses, my attention quickly went to the set of the production of “Parkin’son”. Lined upon the stage were concentric circles that slightly overlapped each other. Every circle was white except one red circle placed off center of the stage. The image struck me. It bothered me because it violated the clean reverie of the white circles. It was simply an eyesore, which I found myself wondering about throughout the performance until I finally got my answer: it was a diseased cell floating amongst healthy ones. It was this small detail that transcended my experience of the production. Suddenly, all the time that I had spent looking and watching that red circle changed into a different image about human health. It revealed the careful craft that is involved within every dance piece to me. Most importantly, after the performance ended and time had past, that red circle stays with me as a reminder of the power of art.

            Giulio D’Anna’s “Parkin’ son” is the story of a son’s love for his father. It employs a revolutionized form of pantomime to illustrate the freedom and destruction of movement. Throughout the piece, D’Anna and his father mirror each other’s movement. They hit, hold, and suspend each other. As a viewer, the movement between the men is odd and indistinctive. Yet, as the piece carries on, the duo subjects themselves to movement that relies on the trust and weight of one another and the reasoning becomes clearer. D’Anna is narrating the relationship between him and his father, who suffers from Parkinson. Interwoven within their movement is deeper personal and medical significance, which is shown through video narrative. Simply, D’Anna is trying to save his father through storytelling and dance therapy.

            The most poignant scene from the performance is D’Anna’s solo for his father. In this scene, D’Anna’s father watches him while sitting on the white round carpets. D’Anna’s solo is comprised of repeated leaps and falls. Each move is calculated, yet employed to appear helpless. D’Anna captivatingly moves until he can no longer move--his feet bend as in the act of jumping and then go back down due to the powerlessness of his body. In the end, Giulio curls up, trembling, next to his father as if trying to cure him of his disease by taking it on himself.  D’Anna’s movement and emotionality evokes memories from each viewer’s reverie, allowing a complete catharsis among the dancers    

and its audience.

            D’Anna’s production was unlike any piece of dance that I’ve encountered. It managed to touch insecurities within my conscious, which is a profound accomplishment for any piece of artwork. Yet, the aspect that stays with me the most is the single red circle. This circle was a simple symbol for a much greater concept. However, it accurately illustrates the pain of the piece. This one red circle is the reason for every movement and gesture. It is the disease on a single brain. Ultimately, there is only one red circle and numerous white circles surrounding it. These white circles represent hope and reason to move, dance, and live. They give D’Anna and his father a chance to dance together and share each other, which is the most beautiful part of the piece. Through dance, D’Anna and his father have triumphed over Parkinson’s disease by never allowing it to strip them of their movement, however limited or broken it may come to be.