Jurrungu Ngan-ga [Straight Talk] opened at the Illawarra Performing Arts Centre last night with a powerful and soul-gazing performance.
The amalgamation of dance, music and drama created a haunting and devastatingly beautiful expression of culture and identity. The show was quite confronting, and despite the blurb of the performance, I had no idea what to expect. It was utterly confronting in the best way possible, and the raw talent that pushed the audience out of their comfort zone and check their privilege was deliciously intimidating.
The technical aspects of the performance were absolutely incredible. The persistent soundscape that shifted between beautiful natural sounds of animals and the outdoors, to harsh clanks of metal doors and voices that depicted life in a cell, heightened the senses and the emotions in each scene it transcended. The use of the chandeliers in scenes with more ballet-like movements was incredibly symbolic, especially when paired with others being stuck watching in cells.
There were a few mishaps in terms of quick costume changes not being entirely smooth, but the performers handled those so professionally that it could have almost been on purpose. Each individual performer was so captivating that even blinking for too long felt like I would miss something crucial.
In group scenes, there was so much to take in. Each of the dancers were incredible to watch and I am in complete awe of the strength and technique that they displayed throughout the show. Czack (Ses) Bero, Wimiya Woodley, Taj Pilgram, Luke Currie-Richardson, Mosatafa ‘Moz’ Azimitabar, Gusta Mara, Bhenji Ra, Feras Shaheen and Ashleigh Musk poured their hearts and souls into the performance, and it was such an honour to be invited into their space to have all of these important and heart-breaking stories told in such an engaging manner.
I really commend the seamless insertion of current events and the use of modern allusions like ‘This is Australia’ which I believe is a parody of the Childish Gambino song ‘This is America’, to show that this irrational fear of difference and ignorantly ‘unknown’ is still occurring in many parts of the world, and for some reason, hate and fear are still so prominent.
To the performers, and the entire creative team that have worked on Jurrungu Ngan-ga since its inception in 2016, thankyou for sharing your stories and the stories of those who came before that are not able to speak. It was an honour and a privilege to share a room with your heart, soul and unbreakable joy.
