cie. toula limnaios

»in orbit around dance /// the choreographer toula limnaios recounts finely etched »short stories« at the mousonturm.the woman lets herself fall and stands back up again, lets herself fall and stand back up, over and over again, the man watching her. then she stops and their faces draw nearer. if this were a film, they’d now kiss, but it is a dance piece by toula limnaios and in these, things don’t happen, as they would be expected. the two of them move their heads past each other, there are always a few centimeters of distance between them, as if trying to sniff at each other. then they do finally dance together, but it is no simple relationship.
short stories is what the berlin-based greek choreographer toula limnaios (who produces her pieces in her own venue the »halle«) has named the ca. one-hour piece for five dancers. a piece that examines loneliness and togetherness. and which she has now brought to the mousonturm, which is determined to reposition itself as a place in frankfurt for multiple forms of dance.
in this case, as a place for dance, which uses moods, which doesn’t insist on stories and only offers them discreetly. and which is supported in an astounding way by the music of ralf r. ollertz. music that the composer, seated on stage, plays on the bandoneon and various percussion instruments. or simply snorting, breathing into the microphone. limnaios and ollertz founded the »cie toula limnaios« together in 1996, they seem to be kindred spirits: rarely has music referred to dance as cleverly and emphatically as this, producing a highly charged space in which it is nonetheless given ample room to breathe feely.
the short stories therefore actually develop out of quite abstract, though nevertheless emotionally saturated movement. short stories that reflect the variations of male-female-togetherness. the balance of power continually shifts between these figures, the highly complex dancing refuses simple answers. toula limnaios uses a very fine choreographic pen, she goes into detail, she looks for movement that is not yet worn out. together incidentally with her dancers, who she considers to be co-authors: carlos osatinsky, ute pliestermann, katja scholz, nefeli skarmea, hironori sugata.
the choreographer toula limnaios is pleasantly far from current fashion. and when she uses, as in short stories, not quite fresh ideas such as low hanging, swinging lamps as lighting (lighting: klaus dust), she does so with precision and clarity. at one point, one of the lamps circles a couple, the woman has sent it on its – for the dancers not always hazard-free – orbit. and as light and shadow flits across the two bodies, their movements transform from one to the other equally swift.« (sylvia staude frankfurter rundschau, 2006)

»toula limnaios was described as a poet of dance and a philosopher of movement. yesterday evening in the halle… her new choreography was premiered: it is called ›short stories‹ and according to the announcement, it should be about interpersonal relationships. …
an evening that provokes, that is meant to provoke, various emotions and thoughts in the viewer. toula limnaios’ approach to movement has always been formal, only that formality is never only an end in itself, abstraction instead being always precisely where intimacy and intensity of dance are sought. these are once again very, very strong reflections of tempers– very poetic, very touching, sometimes also upsetting. it’s safe to say that these are snapshots of the kind of relationships possible between two people or of a one person with himself. it’s about attraction/revulsion, proximity and distance, holding and being held. this is not quite easy to access, but what is to be gained by the viewer is very great indeed.one can get an idea now. is it recommend to go there…? yes, definitely, although one shouldn’t expect a simple dance evening because toula limnaios is becoming more and more radical in her movement choices as well as in the visual language she seeks. the viewer is called upon to perceive, even to receive. it’s evident that toula limnaios treads her own path in berlin, that there is no company or choreographer comparable and that she stands all alone in her search for a distinct physical and expressive language. her work never ceases to evolve and that is truly admirable.« (rbb-kulturradio, live interview with frank schmid, 2005)