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Life & Arts

Troupe makes the common unique

by JONATHAN WING
The Daily Cougar

Natural rhythms are woven into the fabric of our everyday lives in everyday items. While such things are often lost in the hum of daily tasks, one group of artists uses "found objects" to recapture the dull and usual and render them musical.

This is Stomp, a theatrical music and dance troupe who performed last week at Jones Hall. The members of Stomp use found objects -- ordinary items not originally intended for artistic use -- to bring a fresh light to music and thereby challenge our idea of traditional instruments.

Among Stomp's rotating palette of sound-makers were matchboxes, trashcans, bags, cups, pipes, newspapers, lighters and even the human body. The members also wore workman's clothing: worn out jeans, oily shop rags, faded bandanas and ragged T-shirts.

In the opening song, one of the "Stompers" walked out with a broom to sweep the floor of the stage. Playful interaction with the audience began as early as this moment when he impishly swept dust from the stage toward the crowd. Within a minute the entire stage was filled with eight of the 12 rotating cast members, each greeting one another in a nonsensical language as they'd add their own rhythm to the composition of cleaning.

The concert carried allusions to other "found object" musical groups such as Einstürzende Neubauten and Savage Aural Hotbed, both of whom Stomp credits its inspiration to. But unlike these bands, Stomp added a touch of playful theatrics and humor to the music.

Stomp employed complex choreography in tempo with the music. In one act the musicians used basketballs to compose a rhythm and then added a stunning visual where they spun about in synchronized circles and exchanged balls with one another -- all perfectly to the beat.

The show also offered unexpected comic relief. Each member brought personality to the stage and interacted with the other members by allowing their personalities to create something unique that emphasized the individuality of the show. 

In a song using plungers on the ground, one performer attached them to his stomach and ran amok. In another song, members with oil barrels attached to their feet chased a shorter member across the stage, much like the image of monsters in a children's story. Moments such as these were a hit with young and old audience members alike.

The audience was diverse, as were the performers. This diversity -- coupled with Stomp's rejection of conventional tools and orthodox mehtods of communication -- offered concertgoers openness rarely found elsewhere in performance art.

It is this openness that gives Stomp a universality; everyone can understand it, regardless of taste or background. By making the commonplace uncommon, Stomp speaks to the heart and reminds us of the creative functionality that exists in the most unexpected of places.

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