Dublin Dance Festival presents DDF DIGITAL 2023

From 22 November to 3 December, a quartet of dance films will be available to watch online: two remarkable films by DDF artist-in-residence Luke Murphy showcasing the four episodes of his award-winning Volcano dance-theatre series; a new perspective on Maguy Marin's iconic show Umwelt; and an innovative fusion of music, dance and photography featuring the works of Canadian choreographer Frédérick Gravel.

If you missed Volcano, the award-winning series by Luke Murphy in the theatre, now is your chance to experience it on screen. This 4-part series by the acclaimed director and choreographer blurs the boundaries of television, theatre, dance, and psychological sci-fi thriller to create a hybrid performance for a Netflix era. Two exasperated characters, grappling with power, time, and trust, recreate the greatest hits of their lives: a night at a rave, a favourite game show, an 80s music-video. For DDF Digital, Volcano will be presented in two parts, Episodes 1 & 2 together, and then 3 & 4 together. In Episodes 1 & 2, as the world around them starts to shift, the two characters must face what they believe, what they want, and what it might cost. In Episodes 3 & 4, as their environment continues to disintegrate, the spiral winds tighter until all that's left is a crumbling montage of thought, history, what we discard, and what we hold onto. 

Winner of four Irish Times Theatre Awards in 2022, including Best Production, Volcano has been described as “Ballyturk meets Black Mirror ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ “ by The Irish Examiner, while The Irish Times wrote, “Edge of your seat entertainment… a new kind of storytelling in theatre to rival any other modern medium… It is not an overstatement to say that you will not have seen anything like this before ★ ★ ★ ★ ★.”

David Mambouch's mesmerising film Umwelt, Through the Looking Glass (de l'autre côté des miroirs) offers a unique perspective on the renowned 2004 dance masterpiece, Umwelt by French icon Maguy Marin, whose work has featured in several DDF programmes, most recently with the presentation of May B in 2021. Umwelt is composed of 420 brief scenes depicting fragments of everyday human activities, each just 10 seconds long. Within a surreal landscape of doors and mirrors, nine performers move through these seemingly banal vignettes to create a captivating portrayal of our eternal struggle to coexist with our surroundings. Behind the scenes, a meticulously choreographed dance unfolds with exacting precision. Each dancer carries out their tasks flawlessly to ensure a seamless presentation to the audience. This film is a fascinating exploration of life's intricacies from the viewpoints of both the audience and the performers.

The final work in the DDF Digital 2023 quartet is Gravel (re)Works, a video album that defies conventions, fusing music, dance, and photography to capture the electric energy of a live show. From Canadian choreographer Frédérick Gravel and French photographer Jean-Christophe Yacono (Yako) this innovative compilation of five short music and dance films was born during the pandemic, reimagining live performance through visual storytelling - marrying dance, camera, and soundscape to transport us to the very heart of live performance. Through the camera, the viewer is immersed in the choreography, connecting with the performer’s voice, breath, the rhythm of footsteps, and the sensation of feet gliding across the floor.

DDF Digital 2023
Available to watch from 11am Wednesday 22^nd November – 11pm Sunday 3^rd December.
€6 per film / all four films for €15

View the full line up and book tickets HERE.

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