Review of preview performance, September 13
Content warning: Adult Themes, Themes of Death and Suicide, Themes of Violence and Genocide, Haze / smoke effects, Strobe Lighting Effects. Recommended for ages 15+.
Karul Projects’ new dance theatre work, Kuramanunya, made its world premiere at Metro Arts as part of Brisbane Festival, following a development season at Adelaide Fringe. Billed as “a ceremony for those who didn’t get their ceremony”, this was a powerful and affecting solo performance by Thomas E. S. Kelly; Kuramanunya honoured the survival and storytelling of First Nations people on this continent, mourned what was lost and taken – people, families, land, languages, culture – by colonisation, and acknowledged the ongoing legacy of genocide. Kuramanunya was performed by Kelly, who also co-wrote the work with Emily Wells and co-directed it with Vicki Van Hout.
Kuramanunya was threaded with the narrative of a young man preparing for a ceremony in the present day. Although Kelly was alone on stage, he was often in conversation with an unseen older man, sometimes represented by a key set piece that resembled a huge tree. The tree also served to represent the branches of a family and the body as an extension of country.
Acknowledging country, Kelly reminded the audience that there are places where you cannot be welcomed, because colonisation has displaced or destroyed Aboriginal culture and connection.
Kelly performed all aspects of Kuramanunya with an intensity and focus that made him compelling to watch, and broke the fourth wall to speak directly to the audience. His physical performance included long, controlled extensions and sharp isolations. Certain sequences of movement were repeated as the performance progressed, gathering deeper meaning each time. In additional to cultural dance and speaking in language, Kelly performed contemporary dance choreography with a balance of sharpness and fluidity, occasionally tipping towards violence.
Sound design by Samuel Pankhurst and Jhindu-Pedro Lawrie incorporated natural sounds like the rumbling and shifting of rock, and Kelly’s staccato breath became a deliberate part of the soundscape in certain moments. Lighting design by Christine Felmingham highlighted the varied emotions of the work, from the red flashes of violence to raising the house lights on the audience, reducing the perceived distance between them and Kelly and confronting them as participants in the narrative rather than observers. Costuming designed by Selene Cochrane and set design by Tiffany Beckworth-Skinner worked in tandem with the lighting and sound to reinforce the emotion and meaning of Kelly’s onstage storytelling.
Every aspect of Kuramanunya was delivered with the utmost respect, and there was a gentleness and generosity underlying the whole performance. Kuramanunya is a powerful and affecting new piece of dance theatre and adds to the growing body of truth-telling works being performed on mainstages across the country.
Kuramanunya was performed at the New Benner Theatre, West End, from 13 – 16 September 2023
For further information, visit the Karul Projects website
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