Fuerzabruta, Stunning and Shattering
No Dialogue Needed in This Fusion of Art, Dance and Music
Jul 20, 2008
For the record, one doesn’t sit down at a Fuerzabruta performance; one immerses themselves in this peculiar art experience. All that needs to be said in terms of plot is that it just happens.
Smack in the center of a black box theater, the audience is instructed, or rather herded, to accommodate the moving stage. Shocking lights and techno music alert the senses, transforming from a perfect marriage to the sight of man racing on a moving walkway. As he runs to keep up the increasing speed, water is splashed across his face. Its allegorical connections continue as additional men and women try to get in his way, as if saying everyday obstacles are tiring and bombarding.
Pow! A shot rings out. The man gasps and braces his chest. Blood pours from his shirt, still he drives forward on the treadmill. Constant motion and strife continue as the man explodes through cardboard walls, confetti and sprayed water. The story-line is repeated again, and again—each time he removes a white shirt, only to have it bloodied.
Faster and faster the music and visuals transform into an unbelievable site of Nine Inch Nails meets Mardi Gras. More characters emerge, wearing military-like and corporate America outfits. Above is a DJ donning a late 1700s powdered wig. What does it all mean?
Fast Moving and Energy-Driven
Through it all, the audience is shifted from one side to the next. Some are even pulled up onto a ledge, fused into the dance number. Just as soon as these scenes start, they change to an even grander, more spectacular site. A contraption resembling a foil flap-jack moves to the center of the theater, its stage hands in plain site. As they move quickly, pulling this monstrous object, a man and woman on each site flip and turn in acrobatic unbelievables. Music pounding, the crowd incites quicker movements and louder outbursts from these two characters.
The actors feel playful, and fun, but an underlying sense of violence and hurt corrupts the room. They turn and flip with such sexual bravado and utter freedom. It becomes contagious. As the energy level tops out, little time is left for recovery before the next scene or experience introduces itself.
An Aquatic, Erotic Journey
As bodies of the audience and actors continue to brush against each other, the room’s temperature rises; the DJ sprays the crowd over and over with a hose of water. Refreshing and delightful, the focus is soon sent upwards to the falling clear, Mylar ceiling. At this point in the show, it’s beyond sensory overload and the audience is in full collaboration mode.
As the water dances above, the fairy-like females dive and connect as if the audience were looking through a kaleidoscope of light, aquatic creatures and flesh. It’s not overly sexual, but the crowd gapes at the awe of the beauty and agility of the effervescent characters.
Forceful art and raw emotion make Fuerzabruta a truly-unique theater-going experience. Unlike most plays or shows, this spectacular display of athleticism and moving light invokes pure energy into its audience.
