Guerin has long been attracted to unusual spaces and non-theatrical settings. Photograph: Gianna Rizzo<\/p>\n
\u201cPure dance is something I aspire to, but there\u2019s always this level of theatricality that creeps in,\u201d Guerin says. She has long been interested in \u201cthe structure of choreography and the way it interacts with space, rather than characters or narrative\u201d; in Place Dances, she opens with a lecture in which she admits to being bored as a child whenever ballet turned to the story, being fascinated instead by the abstract lines of the corps.<\/p>\n
Lines, and the mathematical geometries of space, have been central to Guerin\u2019s choreography from the beginning. Her works often take place on austere, minimalist stages. In Place Dances at the Buxton Contemporary, she uses her body to set off the motion sensors on the doors and lifts in the gallery, as if opening on to other, purer worlds. She also uses brightly coloured electrical tape to emphasise diagonals, one of her favourite ways to differentiate space.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s partly about my memories of first starting to dance,\u201d she says. Her teacher numbered the four walls and the four corners of the room from one to eight, as a tangible way of locating the dancer in space. \u201cIt made me think about how I was put in relation to the architecture, or the confines of the room. And how that persists.\u201d<\/p>\n
While Guerin orchestrated the building of WXYZ, the company\u2019s dance studio in North Melbourne, she has long been attracted to unusual spaces and non-theatrical settings. \u201cThere\u2019s something about a visual arts context that doesn\u2019t require a theatrical arc,\u201d she says of her choice to stage her final Lucy Guerin Inc work at Buxton. \u201cI feel like the audience opens up a little bit more to something less traditional, a different perspective.\u201d<\/p>\n
While there is inevitable sadness at her departure, there is also overwhelming gratitude: for the things she has managed to achieve, and all the dancers she met and influenced along the way. Highlights include the company\u2019s selection for the 2023 Venice Biennale \u2013 where they performed two works, Pendulum and Split \u2013 and a New York Dance and Performance award, known colloquially as the Bessie.<\/p>\n
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