Film review: The Dance steps up for documentary gala at Cork Film Festival
The Dance: left, the cast of Mám; right, Cormac Begley.
A collaboration between two of Ireland's great artists made for a hugely enjoyable documentary gala at Cork International Film Festival at the Everyman on Thursday. The Dance has Cork filmmaker Pat Collins turning his cameras on choreographer Michael Keegan-Dolan as he works with dancers and musicians on his Mám show in Corca Dhuibhne, Co Kerry.
Anyone who is familiar with the work of these men – both were in attendance at the Everyman – will know we're in fairly safe hands. Collins has previously nudged us gently along with such lovely films as Song of Granite and Silence, while Keegan-Dolan's last outing in Cork was with Loch na hEala (Swan Lake), arguably the best show seen on any Irish stage in recent years.
Mindful of the current Covid surge, the Everyman had a strict check on vaccine passes, and attendees were asked to keep their masks on through the show.
Escaping into the film itself, one of the most striking aspects of watching the choreographer in action is how loose those early creative steps seem to be. We might expect structure and instruction; instead Keegan-Dolan is more 'Let's dance and talk and see what happens'.
For many outside the artistic tent, eyes can glaze over as a creative person talks about his/her 'process', but seeing it in action here through the lens of Collins' cameras makes for fascinating fare. We observe the building of real intimacy between the cast and the gentle coaxing towards personal expression, both factors that are so important to Dolan-Keegan's magnificent finished product.
The international team of dancers are mesmerising, but local lad Cormac Begley also has a starring role. O'Neill's March (a tune also used in Horslips' Dearg Doom) runs through the film, and we see the dancers rapt as the concertina player explains the military origins of the piece, and his own family's connections to the Battle of Kinsale which in turn led to them settling on the Dingle peninsula.
With this film, Collins has again underlined his credentials as a master of his art, while the appetite is further whetted to see Mám in a live setting.
