“She shatters all manner of expectations, and it’s exhilarating. She is uninhibited, at her ease, vivacious, drawing you in with her naturalness and making you feel you’re involved in life itself.”
Sarah L Kaufman, Washington Post, 5 February 2022
Screened at New York’s Lincoln Center on 12 February 2022 during Dance on Camera’s 50th anniversary program, the short film ‘Eileen’ is a collaboration between Australian choreographer/filmmaker Sue Healey and European musicians David Orlowsky and David Bergmüller. The work is part of Orlowsky and Bergmüller’s album Alter Ego, released on 6 May 2022 (Warner Classics).
In a review in the Washington Post, Sarah Kaufman described the film as a “four-minute stunner” and Eileen as “one of the most beguiling dancers you could ever hope to see. … She is uninhibited, at her ease, vivacious, drawing you in with her naturalness and making you feel you’re involved in life itself.”
Read the full review: 107-year-old woman seizes the spotlight at the Dance on Camera Festival.
‘Alter ego’. “Two bodies, one breath. What a gift, what a surprise this release is.” Gramophone
Listen and buy the album.
Sue Healey recalls: “The two Davids had been inspired by Eileen and expressed interest last year in working together on a piece for their upcoming album. We rehearsed via Zoom with David Orlowsky (clarinet) in Berlin, David Bergmüller (lute) in Vienna, and Eileen and me in Sydney … Crazy but wonderful!”
A conversation with David Orlowsky: Although the whole project took place remotely, as soon as the Australian borders opened David Orlowsky was able to travel to Sydney to meet Eileen. “I had planned to interview her with a 25-part questionnaire,” he said, “but it quickly turned out Eileen had some questions for me as well…”
More about David Orlowsky
More about David Bergmüller
Eileen Kramer 