South Korean choreographer Sung Im Her's latest dance piece, 1 Degree Celsius, premiered at the Queen Elizabeth Hall as part of the Southbank Centre's Kunsty performance series. The work confronts the climate crisis through a collective movement that shifts from individual anxiety to collaborative action.
The performance begins with a solo prologue, where Her silently unfolds her body on a barren stage, limbering into a canter around the perimeter under stark, grid-like lighting. She then exits, replaced by six dancers initially buckling under the world's weight. They huddle vulnerably under a spotlight, evoking images of polar bears on shrinking icebergs, dressed in shirts and slacks with scraps of silver in their costumes that suggest survivors amid dystopian wreckage.
As the piece progresses, the dancers gradually assemble to confront the issue that has overwhelmed them. The score by Husk Husk and Lucy Duncan moves from woozy and spectral to a thumping pulse, with glimmers of hope, as the ensemble stride with straight backs, endure body blows, and mobilise to a dancer's occasional cry. The performers are shown learning from each other, not just keeping up.
Through raised and thrown arms, the dancers shed fear and hold on to joy, a switch conveyed by Young Uk Lee's lighting. The piece suggests a need to roll up sleeves but also let down hair. While a gnomic coda and overall coolness can feel restrictive, the urgency for a collective reset is palpable, as the bodies prove more resilient than they first seemed.
