“I do a little bit of everything; I sing, dance, talk, and perform as an actor. I was clever enough to decide to do solo performances, I love it. If I didn’t do that, then I would simply play secondary roles in any ballet group,” says English dancer and actor Nigel Charnoc who is currently in Armenia.
Charnoc will present his “Franc” dance show in Armenia on January 31st and February 1. The show isn’t merely dance because it’s going to be mixed with not only dance and musical genres, but also different stage genres. It’s a unique show where there are no concrete screenplay and dance movements, rather humor, irony, songs and conversations. Nigel Charnoc says that he is trying to plan his show, however he’s not good at that and “it’s hard to fit in the box”.
“I hate it when actors memorize their words and movements. It’s boring for me and it seems as though everything is dead. Frankly, when I want to plan my show, in the end it turns out that I have forgotten which fragment follows the other. I try to go along with the music.”
The fact of the matter is that each of his shows is for a certain audience, people who have come especially on that day to intercommunicate with song and dance. The spectator sees a reflection via the song and dance and ridicules. A projector screen is used during the show also.
“I always walk in the city where I am putting on a show. I look around me; absorb the environment because the place and the audience must have an influence on my show. The “Franc” of Yerevan is going to be about the Armenians because we are all the same; I have a little Armenian inside of me, just like you have a little English inside of you. We are all from Eve” says Nigel and assures that he still hasn’t decided the structure of the show in Yerevan, but he knows how it’s going to begin and end. The works of Bach, Billy Holliday, Spanish Flamenco, Kit Jarrett and Mozart will be heard during the show.
“Franc”, which is composed of improvisations, tells about man and is based on two perceptions of man-life and the realization of death. However, the “key” of the show will be the live contact between the actor and the audience. While talking about “this or that”, joking and conversing, the actor usually steps down from the stage, talks about politics, sexual relations, the weather or sports, examines females’ purses and motivates them to open up and talk honestly. One can’t predict the topic of discussion because the city and the residents of that city will prompt that. The English dancer overcomes all obstacles in order to “keep” the audience focused and show something new every second.
“I become the mirror of the audience in some way,” says Nigel. The style of his show is artistic, rich and profound and stays true to the principles of cabaret. This style is known as stand-up comedy, which has no limits but must be funny and dramatic at the same time.
“Improvisations scare me to death, but I can’t work without them. I also understand that the real horror is in Gaza or Iraq and nothing terrible can threaten me on stage. The most terrible thing can be death, but I am pretty old and have grown accustomed to the idea of death. We are always disappointed in the reality when we try to talk about real things. I sing and dance about reality and of course, I talk a little,” says Nigel as he becomes a little serious and mixes philosophy with humor.
The European audience likes to call him “small tornado”. Nigel believes that each one of us is God but nobody dares to perceive himself as God. Charnoc had put on “Franc” for the Biennale of Venetia, but he is going to present something new for this year’s Biennale. It’s called “Foolish People”. There really is only one step between God and the foolish.
After studying acting skills and classic ballet (techniques of Martha Graham), Nigel Charnoc has worked as a dance instructor in different countries, he has been the artistic director of the Helsinki ballet for many years, has been in China, Portugal, Brazil, Denmark and many other countries.
“I have been doing this for 25 years now. I can’t do anything else besides singing and dancing. Of course, I can paint the walls or clean the floor with a vacuum cleaner, but I prefer not to spend a lot of energy on a daily basis. I need that energy to be on stage,” says Nigel and adds: “I don’t talk a lot regularly; I get tired of talking. Instead, I keep talking and singing on stage.”
He has decided to perform solo dances because that is more pleasing.
“I am not dependent on anybody. I am responsible for my actions and I can only blame myself for my failures.”
The appearance of a spontaneous and flexible person is a working tool for Nigel; he likes silence and concentration in life. Nigel lives in London with his wife and four cats. He is in Yerevan for the first time and is amazed to see that everyone wears black and drives poorly. Perhaps these two observations will be the topics for his show in Yerevan. Nigel Charnoc, who was invited to Yerevan by the “British Council”, will also conduct master classes for students of the Institute of Cinema and Theatre of Yerevan.