I went to watch IID Company’s HEAR_ME on Saturday, 7th December 2024 at Theater Rotterdam because I see the company’s co-founder and choreographer, Remy Tilburg, in morning class sometimes and he is such a wonderful character. And because I was told it was the company’s first production.
Remy founded IID Company with his partner Robin Kroes in 2021. Apparently, they had nurtured the concept of HEAR_ME since then. Simultaneously, Remy has been a dancer with Conny Janssen Danst since 2014. He has created a few short choreographies. He is also a photographer.
So I went, wearing my black polo neck jumper and a pair of old jeans. I said hi to a familiar face. The show was in the theater’s Klein Zaal (small auditorium). The stage was close to the audience seats and there were no curtains. It was free seating. I happily dashed to take the best seat, the seat class I usually do not buy. All relaxed. To honest, I did not know what to expect. It was Remy’s first major choreography creation as an independent artist anyway.
However, from the moment the performance commenced, I was gobsmacked. It was beautiful. I saw the beautiful sculpture of classical lines created by six androgynous dancers.
The setting is sometime in the distant future, where humans have mutated to blend the sense of hearing and seeing. These amphibian-looking humans look and move very differently from the 21st century humans. On the other hand, their social behaviour does not look much different from us.
Do you get Remy’s message? It is inclusively. I told you he was such a wonderful character. Inclusivity may not be a new theme for the dance performance. But Remy and IID Company do it in a unique and sophisticated way. The message was delivered in a subtle but clear manner.
What is even more amazing about HEAR _ME is that Remy does not just send out the message but he actually includes people. Easily said than done. I was already impressed by the skill level of all six young dancers. Only after the show, I learned one of them, Diljá Sveinsdóttir, is hearing impaired (I did not stay for the post-show talk).
IID Company also provides SoundShirt, wearable new technology, to audience members who are hearing impaired so they can enjoy the performance. Just tell the company in advance.
Allow me to go back to the aesthetic side of HEAR_ME. The performance is meticulously crafted. The cherography, stage design, costume design, sound design and lighting design are all sophisticated and effective. This contemporary dance piece is, to my surprise, is classically structured if I am not mistaken. It pleased contemporary lovers and classical ballet lovers alike. It was a very inclusive, multi-dimentional, extraordinary and mesmerising one hour.
Also allow me to remind you that HEAR_ME is Remy’s first major choreography project as an independent artist. In this work, I saw a hint of Crystal Pite’s Kidd Pivot but it was less intense and more humorous than Pite. If the first project shows this degree of maturity, what is he going to become, say, in five years from now? I have just identified the future master. I look forward to seeing how his world will expand.
I can see myself bragging about seeing HEAR_ ME in five years time. This will be easily done.
If you want to eyewitness the birth of a choerographic super star, like I did, here is the tour dates. Please see other creative credits here.
