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Többet magunkról… / More about Ourselves by the Grecsó Brothers, ballet at Horizont Festival (2021.08.26) - Artistic performance review by KadmonTöbbet magunkról… / More about Ourselves by the Grecsó Brothers, ballet at Horizont Festival (2021.08.26)
image © Várkert Bazár

The More about Ourselves by the Grecsó Brothers is a contemporary drama ballet. The performance of 2021.08.25 at the Horizont Festival in Miskolc was reviewed by Kadmon.

Product: Többet magunkról… / More about Ourselves by the Grecsó Brothers, ballet at Horizont Festival (2021.08.26) - Artistic performance review by Kadmon

Original title: Többet magunkról… (English: More about Ourselves)

Series: -

Setting: historical / contemporary Earth, Hungary

Product type: Ballet, Genre: historical / contemporary drama, Style: drama, romance

Premiere: 2020?

Reviewer: Kadmon, Type: Male, 40s, Preferences: Immersive, logical story, consistent setting, prefers surprises to spoilers, prefers establishing elements before referencing them

Watched: months ago (2021.08.25), first time

Rating: Average (2 out of 3 points), Enjoyment: Weak (2- out of 3 points)

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This is my review of More about Ourselves by the Grecsó Brothers, performed at the Horizont Festival 2021 (2021.08.25) in Miskolc (Hungary). It's a unique kind of performance - Grecsó Krisztián read parts from his stories, then the musicians improvised music for a scene based on the prose, that the dancers danced to. The More about Ourselves show has some interesting parts, but I only recommend it to people who know what they are about to get.

Watching this preview is recommended if you are interested in the show, as it gives a glimpse into the performance, helping you to decide if you are ready for the experience.

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Review (spoiler-free) - More about Ourselves by the Grecsó Brothers, ballet (2021.08.25)

I have to admit that I didn't know much about the Grecsó Brothers before watching this performance. I didn't watch the preview video, nor did I read any preview information about the show.

The More about Ourselves was a unique kind of performance. Grecsó Krisztián read parts from his stories, then the musicians improvised music for a scene based on the prose, that the dancers danced to.

The stories (written and ready by Grecsó Krisztián) were interesting. Most of the performance was depressive, but the final segment included some comical moments, and they involved a cute dog to enlighten the mood.

The choreography (by Grecsó Zoltán) was strange. Some segments looked like the dancers (Grecsó Zoltán and Temesvári Zsófia) mimed panels from a comic book, some others looked like a stop-motion movie with Barbie-dolls, while others felt like I'm looking at malfunctioning androids. It was certainly unique, but I didn't like it.

The costumes and sets (by Ottlik Julianna) were okay.

The music was good, and it was fitting the narrative. It was improvised live music, György Andrea was singing, while Kertész Endre played cello.

As I talked to the viewers after the show, some of them preferred the introspective nature of the performance, so while it's certainly not for everyone, More about Ourselves can be enjoyable experience for the right audience.

The More about Ourselves is a strange performance, that I think only a select audience will enjoy.

Information

Audience placement: Frontal seating

Time: ? it was about an hour long

Technique: medium (2)

Dynamics: medium (2)

Sensuality: low (1)

Story: medium (2) - There's a separate story in every segment.

Interactivity: none (0)

Music: medium (2) - It was improvised live music with a singer.

Costumes: medium (2) - The dancers wore traditional Hungarian clothes.

Sets: low (1) - There was a minimalistic set. The dancers didn't use the sets.

Use of visual effects: low (1)

Use of special effects: none (0)

Language dependency: high (3) - Although you don't need to understand the narrative to enjoy watching the dance, you'd need to wait long stretches of time between them, as the stories are told by the narrator, that can be boring.

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"The core of the performance consists of new, characteristic Grecsó prose, fresh poems, family stories and anecdotes, transformed into a magical theatrical experience by improvisatory jazz, „spur of the moment” contemporary ballet and the unmistakable movements of Zoltán Grecsó. The dialogue of literature and dance is unrepeatably different each and every night, but the special rhythm of responses, the ethereal game of lights and space and the proportions of art disciplines still provide a stiff framework to the performance. Just as the ironic rivalry of the brothers, dance and literary flicks also help the audience to experience recognition, since those generate such reflections of family stories in which the spectator’s own identity comes into spotlight.
More about ourselves is an honest, confessional and characteristically personal piece, employing the artistry and open-mindedness of the Grecsó brothers."

My experience

I wasn't entirely satisfied with More about Ourselves by the Grecsó Brothers at 2021.08.25. Even though the narrative had some interesting parts, and I liked the music, the dance choreography was not my style.

Rating: Average (2 out of 3 points). More about Ourselves has interesting concepts.

Enjoyment: Weak (2- out of 3 points). More about Ourselves lacked the kind of harmonic movements I prefer.

Rewatchability: Average. If you liked it for the first time, you'll probably enjoy watching it more than once, especially as the music and the dance performances are improvised, making each show a unique experience.

Chance of watching it again: That's a good question. I think I wouldn't refuse watching the show again if I had the chance. It could be interesting to see another take on the same basis.

Chance of watching a sequel: Probably, although I'd need to be in the right mood for that.

Többet magunkról… / More about Ourselves by the Grecsó Brothers, ballet at Horizont Festival (2021.08.26) - Artistic performance review by KadmonTöbbet magunkról… / More about Ourselves by the Grecsó Brothers, ballet at Horizont Festival (2021.08.26)
image © Várkert Bazár

Will you enjoy this?

If you prefer classical ballet, you probably won't like More about Ourselves.

If you like modern ballet, you might like More about Ourselves, as it shows many non-conventional dance styles.

If you like reading Grecsó Krisztián, you might be interested in listening to him, and watch the stories unfold by dance improvisations.

If you get through the first 20 minutes of the More about Ourselves ballet still interested, it will be something similar throughout the performance.

If you prefer visuals over story, More about Ourselves is slow and not visually impressive, so it might not be enough to entertain you.

If you don't understand Hungarian, you are in bad luck, as most of the performance is about the writer reading his stories to the audience.

Things you are required to know to enjoy this

As every segment has a narrative read before the dance begins, I don't think you'd need to have previous knowledge.

Watching for plot points

I don't think it applies to this performance.

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Többet magunkról… / More about Ourselves by the Grecsó Brothers, ballet at Horizont Festival (2021.08.26) - Artistic performance review by KadmonTöbbet magunkról… / More about Ourselves by the Grecsó Brothers, ballet at Horizont Festival (2021.08.26)
image © Várkert Bazár

Review with spoilers - More about Ourselves by the Grecsó Brothers, ballet (2021.08.25)

Although there were some enjoyable parts, I mostly didn't like the More about Ourselves performance.

Poster

The poster for the performance is a little dull, I don't think it really expresses what you'll get during the show.

The trailer

The trailer is good, it let's you get the basic idea about the show.

Promise of the first scene

 

Execution:

Plot summary / Synopsis

 

The setting

The stories are set in a historical Hungary, in the life of the relatives of the writer.

Többet magunkról… / More about Ourselves by the Grecsó Brothers, ballet at Horizont Festival (2021.08.26) - Artistic performance review by KadmonTöbbet magunkról… / More about Ourselves by the Grecsó Brothers, ballet at Horizont Festival (2021.08.26)
image © Várkert Bazár

The message of the story

I'm not sure there's one. "Life is hard, but everything is better if you have a cute dog"?

The structure of the story

The segments of the More about Ourselves performance follow the life of the family of the writer.

The narrative is from an outside point of view-

It doesn't have a single story, so it doesn't have the usual arc of the dramatic structure.

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Things I liked

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How does it compare to the other works of the creators?

I don't think I have seen any other works of the creator (Grecsó Zoltán).

How does it compare to the other performances of the Horizont Festival?

It was a unique experience, totally unlike the other performances of the festival. The movements might be similar to KA-F-KA by Oriantheatre - Mehdi Farajpour.

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Többet magunkról… / More about Ourselves by the Grecsó Brothers, ballet at Horizont Festival (2021.08.26) - Artistic performance review by KadmonTöbbet magunkról… / More about Ourselves by the Grecsó Brothers, ballet at Horizont Festival (2021.08.26)
image © Várkert Bazár

Analysis of the performance - More about Ourselves by the Grecsó Brothers, ballet (2021.08.25)

My only problem was that the dance style was not to my liking, and this prevented me from enjoying More about Ourselves.

Unanswered questions

 

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Possibilities of improvement

 

How it could have been better?

It's hard for me to tell, as it seems that I'm not part of the target audience.

For a closer fit to my tastes, there should have been more harmonic dance choreographies. However, this wouldn't have made the performance better per se, but a totally different experience, that probably wouldn't fit the taste of the creators.

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Többet magunkról… / More about Ourselves by the Grecsó Brothers, ballet at Horizont Festival (2021.08.26) - Artistic performance review by KadmonTöbbet magunkról… / More about Ourselves by the Grecsó Brothers, ballet at Horizont Festival (2021.08.26)
image © Várkert Bazár

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Uses for the performance - More about Ourselves by the Grecsó Brothers, ballet (2021.08.25)

Plot

 

Scenes

 

Scenario ideas - Role-playing game scenario ideas

 

Scenario ideas - Wargame scenario ideas

 

Miniatures - 1/50-1/60 (28-32mm scale)

Civilians: Human-sized (S3) historical civilians in period clothing.

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Similar stories - More about Ourselves by the Grecsó Brothers, ballet (2021.08.25)

Novels

 

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Frequently asked questions - More about Ourselves by the Grecsó Brothers, ballet (2021.08.25)

Is the More about Ourselves performance based on a movie, book or comics?

Yes, the More about Ourselves is based on the writings of Grecsó Krisztián.

Where can I watch More about Ourselves online?

As of 2022.04.10, More about Ourselves can only be seen at live performances.

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I have received complimentary tickets from the Miskolc Ballet, I'd like thank them for the opportunity to visit this festival!

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Resources - More about Ourselves by the Grecsó Brothers, ballet (2021.08.25)

Official

Horizont Festival: the Grecsó Brothers - More about Ourselves: Official article. (It's in Hungarian by default, but you can switch the website to English in a new window, and refresh the article.)

Várkert Bazár: More about Ourselves (in Hungarian): Official article. Although the article is supposed to be in English, it's actually in Hungarian. Until they change this, I provide a translation:

English version by Google Translate

Information

Port.hu: More about Ourselves by the Grecsó Brothers (in Hungarian): Database article.

English version by Google Translate

Creation

 

Gallery

 

Previews

 

Reviews with no spoilers - More about Ourselves by the Grecsó Brothers

Bankó-E. Viktória: More about Ourselves – Zsámbék - 2021 August 14 (in Hungarian): Review article, about the same performance at another event.

Reviews with spoilers - More about Ourselves by the Grecsó Brothers

 

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Buying the product - More about Ourselves by the Grecsó Brothers, ballet (2021.08.25)

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Have you seen the More about Ourselves ballet by the the Grecsó Brothers? How do you like the performance? Would you recommend it to others? Do you know reviews or resources you'd like to add? What further thoughts do you have about it? Tell your opinion in the comments!

 

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