I assume it’s french. If so, it may be the most definitive example I’ve ever seen of both the unique genius and disturbing vacuity of the french.
GB: Wrong thread. This is the comment thread for the dance video, not the Democrat convention.
DB,
What ‘dance’ video’? Putting some repititous, minor theatrical tumbling to music does not a dance video make.
That was great!
Ha! At first I thought, “Boring…” but as the vid went on I thought, “This guy’s no dummy. Takes a simple movement and practically redefines it.” Loved it.
OK,
I admit it, I got bored midway through and didn’t watch the last half where it did get interesting and creative. My bad. But it’s still not a dance video 🙂
Correct. Not dance, nor is it politics. I would call it performance art, an acknowledged category of art/theater. As such I found it not only mesmerizing, but almost immediately saw it as a metaphor for man’s struggles to rise upwards in the life journey, to overcome obstacles or impediments and the ultimate success and ultimate fall.
My thoughts followed a sequence over the course of the segment:
1. curious – oh, that’s an interesting trick
2a. puzzled – why is he repeating?
2b. boredom – why is he repeating?
3. reengagement – ah, he brings some variety by tumbling to the left
4. slight frustration – oh, come on, can we get past the first step today?
5. mild interest – ahh, progress!
6. concern – he’s got to nail that bounce just right every time or he’s going to hurt himself pretty nastily
7. impression – how much time must he have spent practicing this, and at what physical cost in bruises?
8. relief – as he pauses to take in the view
9. comprehension – the down-slippage and renewed bounces
10. initial satisfaction at the Sisyphean analogy
11. more satisfaction as I congratulated myself for surmising how this would end: he’s going to get to the top by the surprising twist of not taking the steps, but rather by somehow vaulting from three steps below via a final giant bounce, like a bank shot
12. surprise – oh, he got there via the steps after all!
13. puzzlement – hmm, now what?
14. worry – uh-oh, he’s losing momentum; is he just going to go splat against the wall or something?
15. impression (i.e. the state of being-impressed-ness) – clever physics to get back up there!
16. comprehension as the story becomes clear and my self-satisfaction at #10 is negated
17. trepidation – if he goes off the far right edge, what a way to end up!
18. catharsis – pile on the grass
Quite an interesting selection, neo. Maybe European culture still has something to offer beyond living off past glories.
However, I would note that one aspect of the overall message is still rather grim: no matter whether you get to the top or not, and that for but a little while, you still end up in a crumple on the grass at the end of the day. Modern (western) Europe still can’t get past that vision of death, I fear. But if this snippet is any indication, at least there are glimmers here and there.
What was the audience like? I heard kids in the background. Maybe an outdoor amphitheater or something.
Somehow, amid the chaos of today, I feel reassured that you chose to share this with us,Neo. I’ve said it before, you are a treasure.
If it isn’t dance, what the hell is it? Gymnastics? Tumbling? Mime? Please, no, not mime! Calling it “performance art” is just an admission that you don’t know what it is. Anyway, whatever it is, I like it.
The Ladder of Divine Ascent
Neo, please remove the previous link to prevent another unsuspecting person from seeing it. It was as ugly (what I saw of it) as yours was beautiful, and certainly nothing I ever expected to encounter on this site.
I’m with Irene. I didn’t watch it when I saw the title. It seems off-topic at the very least, and should at a minimum contain a content warning.
Irene; Dance Bully:
I’ve removed it.
It’s very unlike me to watch a YouTube video that’s more than a minute or two long but I was mesmerized all the way.
Btw the music is Philip Glass, Metamorphosis II (second section of a suite).
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WOW!
I assume it’s french. If so, it may be the most definitive example I’ve ever seen of both the unique genius and disturbing vacuity of the french.
GB: Wrong thread. This is the comment thread for the dance video, not the Democrat convention.
DB,
What ‘dance’ video’? Putting some repititous, minor theatrical tumbling to music does not a dance video make.
That was great!
Ha! At first I thought, “Boring…” but as the vid went on I thought, “This guy’s no dummy. Takes a simple movement and practically redefines it.” Loved it.
OK,
I admit it, I got bored midway through and didn’t watch the last half where it did get interesting and creative. My bad. But it’s still not a dance video 🙂
Correct. Not dance, nor is it politics. I would call it performance art, an acknowledged category of art/theater. As such I found it not only mesmerizing, but almost immediately saw it as a metaphor for man’s struggles to rise upwards in the life journey, to overcome obstacles or impediments and the ultimate success and ultimate fall.
My thoughts followed a sequence over the course of the segment:
1. curious – oh, that’s an interesting trick
2a. puzzled – why is he repeating?
2b. boredom – why is he repeating?
3. reengagement – ah, he brings some variety by tumbling to the left
4. slight frustration – oh, come on, can we get past the first step today?
5. mild interest – ahh, progress!
6. concern – he’s got to nail that bounce just right every time or he’s going to hurt himself pretty nastily
7. impression – how much time must he have spent practicing this, and at what physical cost in bruises?
8. relief – as he pauses to take in the view
9. comprehension – the down-slippage and renewed bounces
10. initial satisfaction at the Sisyphean analogy
11. more satisfaction as I congratulated myself for surmising how this would end: he’s going to get to the top by the surprising twist of not taking the steps, but rather by somehow vaulting from three steps below via a final giant bounce, like a bank shot
12. surprise – oh, he got there via the steps after all!
13. puzzlement – hmm, now what?
14. worry – uh-oh, he’s losing momentum; is he just going to go splat against the wall or something?
15. impression (i.e. the state of being-impressed-ness) – clever physics to get back up there!
16. comprehension as the story becomes clear and my self-satisfaction at #10 is negated
17. trepidation – if he goes off the far right edge, what a way to end up!
18. catharsis – pile on the grass
Quite an interesting selection, neo. Maybe European culture still has something to offer beyond living off past glories.
However, I would note that one aspect of the overall message is still rather grim: no matter whether you get to the top or not, and that for but a little while, you still end up in a crumple on the grass at the end of the day. Modern (western) Europe still can’t get past that vision of death, I fear. But if this snippet is any indication, at least there are glimmers here and there.
What was the audience like? I heard kids in the background. Maybe an outdoor amphitheater or something.
Somehow, amid the chaos of today, I feel reassured that you chose to share this with us,Neo. I’ve said it before, you are a treasure.
If it isn’t dance, what the hell is it? Gymnastics? Tumbling? Mime? Please, no, not mime! Calling it “performance art” is just an admission that you don’t know what it is. Anyway, whatever it is, I like it.
The Ladder of Divine Ascent
Neo, please remove the previous link to prevent another unsuspecting person from seeing it. It was as ugly (what I saw of it) as yours was beautiful, and certainly nothing I ever expected to encounter on this site.
I’m with Irene. I didn’t watch it when I saw the title. It seems off-topic at the very least, and should at a minimum contain a content warning.
Irene; Dance Bully:
I’ve removed it.
It’s very unlike me to watch a YouTube video that’s more than a minute or two long but I was mesmerized all the way.
Btw the music is Philip Glass, Metamorphosis II (second section of a suite).