Hearing ushers detailing how they volunteered just to nab a ticket, and witnessing multiple wannabe audience members be gently turned away as they are informed the performance is sold out, it’s clear that Flare have built a passionate community that is united by a love of dance. Their mid-year showcase, Divinity, is an exciting re-introduction with a focus on developing emerging choreographers as they build the collective strength of the talent and the longevity of their organisation.

Divinity presents a program of 10 works from Flare choreographers, as well as external guests including RMIT’s Funkadelics, the dance group ASAP Crew and Lola Borroni. The program explores the divine (as the name suggests), with each work themed around a specific deity. Most of the works do well to establish a clear thematic connection, but there are a couple that seem tangentially related to the theme at best. Throughout the show, MCs Carlos Zhan and Ashlie Thorburn introduce us to either a work’s choreographer or a member of the ensemble. However, these conversations are fairly surface level and thus somewhat of a missed opportunity in showcasing the talented team behind the production. A favourite rehearsal memory is fun, but does little to build an audience’s understanding or appreciation of the work to come.

The programs opens with Paul Huynh and Yan Shi’s ‘A Dance with the Devil’. It’s a strong opening, with the work boasting the program’s largest ensemble. It is at times slightly unpolished, with the lighting design overpowering the choreography at certain moments. However, Huynh and Shi have done well, certainly challenging their dancers with complex formations and floorwork. 

Artistic Director Jonathan Yeo’s work ‘The Heart’ is next, soundtracked by ‘Padam Padam’ by Kylie Minogue. Yeo’s work is entertaining, but the movement is simplistic and repetitive, and I feel the dancers were capable of much more. Yeo remarked that they created the work in a week, and this unfortunately is unsurprising, with the work feeling like it exists to fill time.

Funkadelics member Emily Tong and her work ‘Lit’ follow, featuring a pleasing marriage of lighting and music accompanied by impressive and articulate hand and arm choreography. Kiana Fu and Lulu Chen’s ‘Yin Yang’ feature a couple of moments where the choreography involves an open crotch to the audience, which I feel could have used some workshopping from Fu and Chen’s mentor Daniel Lewis. Overall, the choreography has big ambition but should have been simplified and further refined for greater effect. ‘Sly as a Fox’ by Clarice Wijaya has clear KPOP influences, with seamless formation transitions and satisfying canons. It also features the program’s best lighting design, with striking silhouetting. Small timing issues take away from the effectiveness of the choreography, but overall the work is highly entertaining. 

The highlight of the program is undoubtedly Natasha Went and Tia Carrett’s ‘Embers’, exploring the theme and antithesis of chaos, drawing inspiration from the Greek god of Eris. Went and Carrett’s choreography is fluid and ambitious, and their dancers tackle it with ease. All ensemble members demonstrate a strong technical capability, but also a consistent approach to movement quality. The work’s thematic content is clear, and the choreographic choices by Went and Carrett effectively build the chaos throughout the piece.

Following ‘Embers’ is a hard task, but ASAP Crew’s ‘Youth’ does an excellent job. The audience is completely engaged, chanting along like one would at a KPOP concert. ASAP Crew bring so much energy and joy to the Guild. Kunal Aggarwal and Lauren Prentice’s ‘Battle for the Crown’ continues to build this energy, and is a performance that really considers the relationship between light, music and dance. Guest choreographer Lola Borroni’s ‘Shift’ is the penultimate work and is a strong display of contemporary dance, with beautiful contact and partnering moments. However, the music cut prior to the dancer’s re-entry after being soaked in water kills the work’s moment, and the ending section doesn’t go on long enough to build the performance back up to its high point. 

‘Infidelity & Revenge’ by Yiwen Xu and Celia Le closes the program strong, with a medley of Ariana Grande’s top hits. Occasionally hectic, all dancers appear to be having an absolute blast and reinforce the importance of the program in community building for Flare. 

However, overall, Flare Dance Ensemble have curated a strong program of works that demonstrates the diversity of the student dance scene, and successfully crosses genre boundaries between KPOP, contemporary, jazz, and hip hop. Divinity is a success both choreographically, but also intentionally, and I, like Flare president Sakura Everett-Jones, hope the showcase becomes a mainstay of the Flare calender.

Zodie Bolic (she/her) is a Bachelor of Fine Arts (Dance) student interested in dance, theatre, film, and the role of the arts in driving social change, living in Melbourne/Naarm.