An Interview with dance-theatre artist VIV MOORE

Viv's new solo show "Worcestershire Saucy" open this Wednesday Dec. 2 at 8pm at Factory Theatre in the Studio Theatre space. Tickets are $15 (CADA, Student) and $20 (general). Reservations 416 504 9971 www.vivmoore.com

Anyone who has seen Viv on stage knows she is a rare beast, the kind of artist you want to be on stage with and the kind of lady you want to have a beer with. She has been a role model for me for many years now and though I don't drink beer, I have had the immense pleasure of being on stage with her in several different shows. She is a relentless scene partner who gently dares you to follow her when she makes an audacious move. In my years of knowing Viv I have not seen her in a solo performance. I can't wait.

Here are a few questions I asked Viv about her upcoming production.

How did "Worcestershire Saucy begin? What was the initial idea?

In 1999, I created Bogie Woman for fFIDA (Paula Citron Award). This was the start of my re-claiming my Music Hall, eccentric dance roots. The same year, when I returned to England to live by myself, I was taking a course with Gaulier in London (England). Together with my intense dislike for his way of teaching and his disregard of humans at that point in his life, I developed a frozen shoulder. So much pain meant I couldn't carry on with anything physical, so I started to work at the Royal Opera House Box Office, which was great but left me feeling creatively dull. I began to research my roots in terms of clog dance and customs and traditions that I had disregarded in the past. When I returned to Toronto 8 months later, I joined a clog group (Half Crown Clog) and began playing with the mixture of traditional and contemporary. Over the past 10 yrs I have developed ideas and realised that I needed to really say something.



What has the creative process been like -- when did you start, how have you developed it?

I started in September and it's been rich. Lying on the floor, crying, then standing up and crying, then more lying on the floor, then exhilarated discoveries - you know, the usual creative process. I was in the room by myself for 3 months, then I asked Dave (Wilson) my now-husband to come in. He knows me like no-one else, and I asked him to tell me what he saw. He's been a wonderful support - always is.



What made you decide to do this solo show? (When was the last time you did a solo show?)

I have never done a solo show. I decided it had to be a solo show, because there was all this STUFF and I needed to get it out there. It was a DO IT NOW thought, one that I knew there was no backing down from.



Will the show reveal anything to us about the secret Viv Moore?
Yes

This is the awesomeness of Viv. She is equal parts mystery and complete honesty. No matter who or what she embodies on stage, there always seems to be this essential Viv-ness, the enigma and the openness.

What are the influences for this project outside dance and theatre?

Butoh, stage combat, English Music Hall


How would you define dance-theatre?


I have no new ways of defining this. Integrated movement and speaking, all at the same time, coming from an image-based world of movement.


What is your ideal day?

Sleep in till 10; have breakfast cooked for me by my personal chef; buy several very expensive articles of clothing that have been specially chosen for me by my personal couturier; take a light tea; have a 2 hour massage by my personal masseur; eat a very nutritious dinner made by the very same chef; sleep in a large 4 poster bed in Grindelwald. You don’t believe me?


What is your favourite colour?
Mauve


Favourite city and why?

London, England. It makes me cry every time I am in it, because I miss it. The smell of it, the feel of it, the news of it. It is in my skin and bones and every sinew.

Go see this show. As her promotional materials state: You will be amused. And I bet, moved.