Errol White and Davina Givan present Worn. The major new show from Scotland’s leading contemporary dance duo Errol White and Davina Givan will tour Scotland this autumn beginning at The Brunton in Musselburgh on Friday.
New show explores how the body is affected by time, space and experience, taking inspiration from the ancient Japanese art of kintsugi, where broken pottery is mended with gold or silver, making the cracks into a beautiful and valuable part of the object
The company has also branched into research and development for two brand new pieces, Hush and Grace.
Originally due to tour during Spring 2020 but postponed due to Covid, Worn is an emotive new dance production, exploring how the body is affected by time and space, and the experiences, marks and scars that become part of our history and affect our present as well as our possible futures.
Choreographed and performed by Errol White and Davina Givan, Worn draws inspiration from the ancient Japanese art of kintsugi, where broken pottery is mended with gold or silver, making the cracks into a beautiful and valuable part of the object.
White & Givan’s trademark strong physical presence, dynamic and tender choreography engages on both a physical and emotional level and asks very relevant questions about the acceptance of transience and imperfection in our current Instagram culture.
“The personal moments directly informing are many” says Errol. “One that stands out for me is receiving his father’s leather jacket as a young man. It was from the 60’s or 70’s the colour a strange, almost-orange with lining beginning to degrade. It had a smell that brought back memories instantly; the past became the present, releasing a flood of emotion directly into my body as though time had ceased to exist. There was a letter in the top left hand front pocket from my mum to my dad. When I found it I felt as if it was only yesterday that the letter was written and placed into his pocket. The leather had taken on the marks and creases of a lifetime of experiences, like skin these marks were now part of its hidden story.
A phrase that we have been working with in the studio is ‘The Beautiful Broken’ – accepting who we are now, embracing change however this may mark us. We have been inspired by the Japanese art form Kinsugi, where porcelain is reclaimed and reimagined, transformed and unapologetic about its past and how time has affected it. We use our bodies to explore physically how these experiences live within us, a living breathing vessel holding a lifetime of experience and memories.”
“We think there is a conversation somewhere about us being experienced performers and choreographers who don’t what to be put in a box” adds Davina. “We are dance artists and our age is part of our journey and extremely important as that brings a wealth of experiences and knowledge. However, we don’t want it to be the thing that defines us, steering people away from the deeper layers within the heart of Worn that are complex and subtle”.
2022 is an intensely busy year for White & Givan as they research and develop two new pieces alongside the largescale tour of Worn. Hush is a new group work for four dancers on the themes of Isolation, Defiance, Obedience and Silence and will mark the company’s first performance not featuring Errol and Davina on stage. Grace is a duet for Errol and Davina, conceived during lockdown and inspired by the vulnerability and strength of the body as found in paintings from Caravaggio to Paula Rego.
The 2022 tour of Worn is funded by Creative Scotland and the creation of the show was supported by CityMoves, the Work Room, Tramway, O Espaco do Tempo, Platform, Macrobert, Perth Concert Hall and Dance Base.
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