SeattleDances

Pina Displays The Humanity of Dance

2012-01-26T12:02:00.000-08:00

Written by MarikoNagashima

Damiano Ottavio Bigi and Clémentine Deluy in Wim Wenders’PINA.
©Neue Road Movies GmbH, Photo byDonata Wenders.
A Sundance Selectsrelease.

The capacity to experience and express emotion is what makesus uniquely human. Because dance utilizes our own physicality as a means ofexpression, it is often the purest representation of our ever-shifting emotionallandscape. Wim Wenders’ new film Pina, atribute to the late dance icon Pina Bausch, provides a miraculously clearrendering of this expression, and in doing so reminds us of our own shared humanity.Already nominated for an Oscar in Best Documentary Feature and Best Foreign LanguageFilm, Wenders’ creation is much more than a film about dance. Pina’s appeal lies in its genuineportrayal of passion, of people, and most of all, of life.

Fabian Prioville and AzusaSeyama in Wim Wenders’ PINA.
©Neue RoadMovies GmbH, Photo by Donata Wenders.
ASundance Selects release.

Bausch, the life and soul of her company Tanztheater Wuppertal, was aninnovator of dance theater, a form not precisely one or the other but an alwaysdramatic amalgamation. Famous for her unflinching portrayal of the humancondition, she pioneered a now-commonplace choreographic process based onasking pointed questions of her dancers and creating movements from their recountings.She was also known for heightening the significance of everyday occurrences throughrepetition, and creating works with highly unconventional sets, like floors coveredentirely in soil or carnations, or even a pool of water in one instance. Wenders’film takes all of these elements and displays them tenderly and brilliantly,capturing the essence of both Bausch’s work and spirit.

The film focuses on four of Bausch’s most iconic pieces, interspersingscenes of them with interviews and solos by the Wuppertal dancers and archived footage ofBausch herself. Each work immerses the viewer in its unique world; the 3Dtechnology used to shoot the film makes it all-the-more absorbing. For thedancers’ individual segments, the locales are as diverse as the emotions ondisplay. From lush gardens, bustling intersections, and trains winding throughWuppertal, the dancing is at turns absurd (a goofy tap dance in the midst of ahide-and seek game), ecstatic (a series of leaps over chairs arranged on averdant hill), sensuous (a luscious, caressing duet), and desperate (a woman’sbleak struggle while tethered to the corner of a stark room). Wendersintensifies the effect of these wonderfully articulated solos by taking the movementout of the studio/theater and placing it in both mundane and picturesque locations.The captivating power of each dance lies in how deeply human they are. Theprecise movements almost become superfluous; these are simply people, beingpeople the only way they know how. It becomes pure emotion, and essentiallylife, exquisitely rendered.

Azusa Seyama, Andrey Berezin, dancers of the ensemble of
“Sacre du Printemps” in Wim Wenders’ PINA.
©Neue Road Movies GmbH, Photo by Donata Wenders.
A Sundance Selects release.

One of Bausch’s earlier works, Rite of Spring (1975), is featured near the beginning of the film. Inthis violent and tension-riddled ritual, the dancers’ shuffling is muted by thesoil-covered floor, but their panting and terrified gasps are accentuated withclose-ups. Perspective is everything; when each girl sacrificially offersherself to the male leader, we see it from his perspective; his hand reachingout from behind us to grab the doomed maiden feels like it could be our own. Byplacing the viewer in the midst of the dance, Wenders has given us anever-before-possible view of Bausch’s work.

Rite couldn’t befarther from the aloof, somnambular feeling of Café Müller (1978), set in a white-walled restaurant littered withempty tables and chairs. Characters stumble in and out; some of the women keeptheir eyes closed for the entirety giving their movement a fumbling, butcuriously liberated quality. Though the tone is more sedate, there’s stillhuman drama in abundance. An imposing man deconstructs a couples’ embrace,placing the woman in the man’s arms where he continues to drop her; she standsand throws her arms around him again with increasing urgency until the speed becomesrelentless. It makes you wonder if they’re actually trying to stay together or ifthey’re just helplessly stuck in this strange cycle.

Kontakthof (1978)features men and women clad in suits and evening dresses, meeting in a barrenmusic hall. In the last decade, Bausch restaged this work twice, once withteenage dancers, all over the age of 14, and once with older dancers, ages 65and up. Wenders has melded all three casts together, putting the varying agesin sharp relief. Their twitchy preening and posturing distorts the normalsocial rituals of a formal dance and seeing the same movements on a variety ofages lends more gravity to each gesture.

Ditta Miranda Jasjfi in “Vollmond” in Wim Wenders’PINA.
©Neue Road Movies GmbH, Photo byDonata Wenders.
A Sundance Selectsrelease.

The most recent of Bausch’s works in the film, Vollmond (2006), features a strikingset: a hulking boulder and a sheet of water raining onto a shallow pool. Thereare moments of pure joy and exhilaration. A youthful water fight emerges, a manleaps fearlessly from the boulder, and dancers splash through the pool asdroplets extend each movement’s trajectory. Of the four pieces, this involvesthe most technical dancing, and the Wuppertaltroupe delivers it with both eloquence and abandon.

For these four works, we know a bit more of the context andcan grasp their concept. The short solos by each dancer, however, are moreambiguous: are they bits of the dancer’s own choreography created in memory oftheir beloved director, or are they favorite excerpts of Bausch’s works? Thepoint is largely irrelevant, because they are enchanting either way. Bausch’sinfluence on all of her dancers is evidenced in their movement; they bare theirsoul, as it seems she taught them how to do, in tribute to her memory.

Threaded throughout the film, a parade of dancers repeatsgestures for each of the four seasons. Spring, summer, autumn, and a joyous littleshiver for winter, over and over again. In various scenes, they wind across astage, down a staircase, and, finally, the closing image, along a ridgelinedotted with sculptures. All smiles, this gallant processional seems barely ableto contain their excitement at sharing their movement and Bausch’s legacy. AsBausch’s famous words “dance dance…otherwise we are lost,” play across thescreen, nothing could seem closer to the truth.

Dancers of the Pina Bausch Company in Wim Wenders’PINA.
©Neue Road Movies GmbH, Photo byDonata Wenders.
A Sundance Selectsrelease.

Pina can be seen inSeattle startingFebruary 10, 2012, at the Cinerama and February 24, 2012, at SIFF Cinema at theUptown. For more information and to purchase tickets see: http://www.siff.net/cinema/detail.aspx?FID=242&id=44990.

For your chance to win two tickets to an advance screening onFebruary 7^th, courtesy of SIFF and SeattleDances, “like” us onFacebook by February 1, 2012. Names will be entered into a raffle and 10 peoplewill receive a pair of tickets to this premiere screening. https://www.facebook.com/pages/SeattleDances/197668713587792

Project 5—Subdued and Pleasant Works at the ACT

2012-01-24T00:29:00.000-08:00

Written by Steve Ha

(Alexandra Dickson, Timothy Lynch, and
David Alewine in Departure from 5th
Photo by Zebravisual)

Seattle DanceProject always manages to find a good balance of restaging works from seasonspast to world premieres, and Project 5 is no different. Playing for twoweekends at the ACT Theatre, artistic director Timothy Lynch, along with thedancers of Seattle Dance Project, perform not just a myriad of the familiar andnew, but also a rich blend of the classical and contemporary.

Project 5 openswith Molissa Fenley’s feather light interlude Planes in Air, which made a marvelous debut last season, andEdwaard Liang’s To Converse Too.While the former is just as hypnotic as it was last year, the choreography inthe latter lacked a lustrous finish.Beginning with calculated steps and specificity in line, fascinating playbounced back and forth between the dancers as movement originated from atypicalparts of the body, epitomized in a duet between Michele Curtis and Ezra Dickinson,whose interactions took the appearance of symbiotic marionettes. That sumptuousduet was followed by a lively trio clearly led by Betsy Cooper, who seemed toissue a challenge to the two male dancers standing sentry by alighting firstand practically willing them to assist her. It’s in the finale where To Converse Too became problematic, asthe style and motifs established earlier completely melted away and, although asense of liberation was gained, much was lost in a veritable tempest ofmovement. While the need to increase dynamism is natural, the increase inquantity of choreography muddled the intention of the work.

(Michele Curtis and Timothy in B6
Photo by Zebravisual)

Kent Stowell’s B6 provided some coquettish fun, asCurtis and Lynch engaged in a seductive power struggle. Curiously, with Lynch dressedin formal wear sans jacket and Curtis in black tights and a blazer, the duettook on the character of one man’s struggle with himself—or rather, “the tiesthat bind”—as he resisted the jacket as if to succumb to it meant resigninghimself to matrimony. Curtis and Lynch attacked the sharp choreography withaplomb, with Curtis’s litheness and stunning lines accentuated by performing en pointe. With William Bolcom’s scoreproviding an appropriately saucy atmosphere, B6 is a pleasant mix of risqué and tasteful dance.

The bread andbutter of the evening came in the premiere works, first in Jason Ohlberg’s Departure from 5^th, which notonly featured fantastic choreography, but also narration of personal anecdotesby Seattle Dance Project’s performers themselves. Ohlberg’s creation dared toexpose each dancer’s individual histories in learning dance, in particularrelating to difficulties in acceptance of one’s own body. In weighty, vitalmovements that cleverly left the audience anticipating what would come next, Departure dissected itself by presentingeach dancer in solo segments, and reprising those phrases in ensemblechoreography, retaining the integrity of what makes each performer unique. Withthree silvery fates to orchestrate the overall picture, the dancers’ wordscirculated around an overlying theme of accepting the things they cannotcontrol; made poignantly clear as the fates drew a silken black cloth over themas if to signal the end of their careers as dancers. Curtis, who mentioned thedifficulty in leaving the stage, was the last to be engulfed, though it was nota tragic end, as dancer David Alewine emerged from the other side bare-skinned,symbolic of the birth of a new life as a dancer. Though great risk is taken tomake the dancers vulnerable, Ohlberg has constructed a coherent, personablepiece the stage can barely contain.

(Ezra Dickinson in Brahms Afoot
Photo by Zebravisual)

Concluding theprogram is Brahms Afoot,choreographed by Penny Hutchinson and set to Johannes Brahms’s “LiebesliederWaltzer op. 52.” A collaboration with musicians of The Inverse Opera, Hutchinson’s glitteringmodern ballet had the added benefit of live music to enrich the performance.The scene opened with the dancers in tuxedos and ivory satin gowns, abstractingdifferent ideas about love and romance into fluent dance. In soaring lifts,whirling waltzes, and balletic choreography (where former ballerina GavinLarsen was at home in her element), the vibrancy of Brahms was undeniable, strengthened by a costume change for theladies into sheer red dresses. A burst of color brought new energy, with aminor change of scenery that introduced red branches helping to re-form ideasabout love as a living, growing entity. Just as all seeds eventually breakthrough the ground to surface, love too has an ability to experience freedom.

With one moreweekend of performances remaining, Project 5is a visual feast of elegance that finds its strength in subtlety andaffability. Tickets for the remaining performances can be purchased through theACT Theatre’s website: http://www.acttheatre.org/Tickets/OnStage/Project5?date=1%2F20%2F2012.

Velocity's Bridge Project Delivers Some Hits, Some Misses

2012-01-23T18:16:00.000-08:00

Written by Anne Lawrence

(Photo: Rachel Grant's Hail Mary for the Millennials
Photo by Tim Summers)

The Bridge Project is one of Velocity Dance Center's longest running andmost valuable programs. Each October, emerging choreographers—and establishedchoreographers new to Seattle—canapply for a Bridge Project residency in January. Each choreographer selected fora residency creates a new work in only three weeks, using a cast chosen throughan open audition process. Velocity provides free rehearsal space, technicalsupport, and artistic guidance. The completed works are then presented in ashow produced by Velocity. In this way, the Bridge Project creates bridgesbetween emerging choreographers, dancers, and audience members. Not every work presentedin the final showings is a huge success, but usually at least one work eachyear is rewarding. This year two works were especially fine.

MaryAnn McGovern's SPRAWLPart 2 made it clear that McGovern is a choreographer to watch. She's a Chicago native who recently moved to Seattle. As its title suggests, SPRAWL Part 2 represents the furtherdevelopment of ideas McGovern began exploring in the Midwest.The nominal subject of the work is urban sprawl. That might sound like anunpromising idea for a dance, but for McGovern, it's just a springboard intosomething more abstract and ultimately quite moving. The work began with aquartet of female principal dancers performing a coordinated sequence of turns,spirals, and handstands with an inwardly directed focus. They were then joinedby a community cast of nine dancers—think Greek chorus—who loudly announced thenames, founding dates, and early population figures for several Puget Soundcities ("Kent"; "Issaquah"; "Seattle") and laterthe 2010 population figures for those same cities. The community cast also gavedirections to the quartet ("Grow"; "Extend";"Disregard"; "Isolate"; "Displace"); some of thesedirections seemingly were enacted, at least in part, as the quartet continued toperform its movements. Eventually the focus of the quartet dancers became moreexternal, their movements became bigger, and various community cast members beganmoving in unison with them. All this was accompanied by well chosen musical selections,culminating in a piece by Zoe Keating. By the end of the work, everyone wasmoving in unison, and it became evident that McGovern had crafted nothing lessthan a metaphor for the creation of community through art in the face ofmindless urban expansion. Feats of choreographic magic like this are rare and veryspecial.

Alicia Garcia, a senior at Cornish Collegeof the Arts, presented Spit Lift ShakeRemember, an understated, dark-hued piece for five female dancers. Cellist DanielMullikin, who created the musical score, performed it each night, and reportedlyplayed for each and every rehearsal, deserves some of the credit for the work'ssuccess. The piece opened with Mullikin seated upstage, laying down tracks forhis solo. The focus then shifted to the dancers, who began lying supine with kneesraised. They turned and stretched as if awakening and gradually rose to theirfeet, standing side-by-side in a single line. They seemed to have awakened tosome gruesome reality or memory, however, because they proceeded to grimace,contract, shake, and ripple in not-quite unison, with exacting slowness andbound energy. This movement was punctuated by interludes in which each dancer brokefrom unison and was lifted or otherwise partnered by one or more of her peers. Themovement was juicy and emotionally engaging, and Garcia made good use of theexpressive capabilities of her dancers, especially the remarkable Lorraine Lau.Garcia stated that she loves to choreograph partnering; perhaps she should pushher desires in this area further still. Garcia will present another new work inthe Cornish BFA show next month; it should be very much worth checking out.

Rachel Grant's HailMary for the Millennials was less successful. Much of Grant's movementvocabulary was, literally and figuratively, pedestrian: Her cast mostly walkedin unison in 12-step, clockwise circles, facing forward, over and over and overagain. One of Grant's dancers described this movement as hypnotic to perform;unfortunately, it quickly became uninteresting to watch. Occasionally a dancer wouldbreak out of the pack to shake an upraised hand, make a wry face, or inspectthe torso of a fellow dancer. Most of the sound score consisted of a contrivedand irritating faux voice-message recording, ostensibly addressed to Grantherself and dealing with debt collection. Toward the end, this was mercifullyreplaced by excerpts from recordings of Tennessee Ernie Ford's Sixteen Tons (1955) and Woody Guthrie's This Land is Your Land (1944)—accordingto Grant, music from the Great Depression that alluded to current economic conditions.Overall, Grant's work felt perplexing and not very satisfying.

(Alice Gosti's Intermezzo
Photo by Tim Summers)

Alice Gosti's SpaghettiCO. – Intermezzo seemed to be a continuation of the approach she utilizedin Are You Still Hungry? at NW NewWorks in June 2011. That approach involved assembling a group of talenteddancers and creating a messy, chaotic spectacle centered on them; actualdancing was deemphasized, if not absent altogether. The messiness in Are You Still Hungry? was created withspaghetti, tomato sauce, and red wine, which the dancers threw and spat at eachother. The messiness in Intermezzo wascreated by sprinkling the dancers liberally with flour as they sat on or aroundan overstuffed chair in the lobby at Velocity, whereupon they decamped to theauditorium, trailing flour in their wake. In Intermezzo, unlike Are YouStill Hungry?, some of the dancers briefly engaged in some actual dancing. Theyalso performed an a cappella rendition of TLC's Creep, to no discernable purpose. Sadly, Intermezzo seemed like a terrible waste of a fine cast—and of anopportunity to create a dance work of real substance. Gosti is capable ofmaking much better work than this. She should stop cooking up tastelessspaghetti and devise a new recipe.

Whim W’Him Not All Whimsy with Cast the First Rock in Twenty Twelve

2012-01-21T17:58:00.000-08:00

Written by MarikoNagashima

Whim W'Him in thrOwn.
Photo by Bamberg Fine Arts.

Hot off the heels of his retirement as a principal with PNBlast season, Olivier Wevers has been anything but idle. With a Princess GraceAward under his belt (see our interview here)as well as winning the Dance Under the Stars choreography competition this fallfor Monster, Wevers and his company,Whim W’Him, have generated a lot of buzz both locally and nationally. Cast the First Rock in Twenty Twelve isthe Seattle premier of Wevers’ three newest works. It runs the gamut of moodsfrom the fanciful to the darkly sober.

The show began with LaLangue de L’Amour, a saucy solo for the beautiful Chalnessa Eames, alsorecently retired from PNB. With her hair shorn into a pixie-like do, and cladin a wispy nude dress with striking black piping, Eames makes an insufferableflirt. Her dancing is impeccable; every quirky flick of the wrist, wiggle ofthe hips, and daring dive to the floor is perfectly controlled, even whilefeigning a stumbling drunkenness. She coyly eyes the audience as she bites herfinger, then, suddenly not-so-coy, bends over and peeks at us through heroutspread legs. She could either be viewed as a care-free woman who enjoysbeing the consummate tease, or as an attention-seeker in a game of desperate coquetry.It edges more toward the latter with the insistent harpsichord music, theasymmetrical shafts of white light through which she continually darts, and theexcessively flaunted sexuality. Though the program notes call it “a dollop ofcream…laced with a drop of XO cognac,” it feels like this cream has gone a bitsour.

(Andrew Bartee and Lucien Postelwaite in
Flower Festival. Photo by Bamberg Fine Art)

Flower Festival,however, strikes just the right chord. Using music from August Bournonville’s 1858classic ballet of the same name, Wevers has upended the decorum and proprietynormally associated with Bournonville and created a duet for two men in histrademark whimsical style. Danced with just the right mixture of wit and aplombby Andrew Bartee and Lucien Postelwaite, the two men compete with increasingsilliness. Undressing becomes a means to one up each other that eventuallyreveals colorful socks and boxing shorts under their mutely-toned businesssuits. This is Wevers at his best and the quirky movement has a delightfulfreshness to it. The dancers seem to think so too and they almost seemsurprised by each idiosyncratic explosion of wiggling limbs or the virtuosicpirouettes that they often find themselves floating through. And though the choreographyis inherently silly, like the goofy motion where Bartee continually tripshimself, or when Postelwaite spins Bartee by the neck of his suit jacket, theirstraight-faced delivery makes it all the more humorous.

Though Wevers’ has become known for this quirky frivolity,he does not shy away from heavier issues. With thrOwn he delves into the subject of universal judgment, exploring itshistorical manifestation in the practice of death by stoning. Eames plays theoffender, an adulterous woman made to suffer the consequences: an initialshunning, a lashing while her son watches, and an eventual stoning to death,all artistically articulated, of course. The rest of the dancers fluidly shiftbetween roles as her “mother, husband, lover, son, comforter, accuser, jailer,and executioner.” This narrative is enacted in the first and third section, butin the middle Wevers explores modern society’s capacity for judgment. The barsof light that created a jail cell become stripes on the American flag, and Eamessubmits to various forms of capital punishment. Rife with symbolism, the manygestural phrases and cleverly devised ensemble partnering in this section indicateboth the capacity for judgment, and for good, in each of us. The tidy moralimplores us to be accountable for our own choices whatever they might be.

Chalness Easmes in La Langue de l'amore.
Photo by Bamberg Fine Art.

There are moments of exquisite beauty nestled throughout thework, though most revolve around Eames: a tender duet with Postelwaite as herlover, a contorted and a heart-wrenching solo where she both pleads for helpand resigns herself to her fate. The lower points are when the work seems tolose focus, either because Wevers tries to explore too many ideas at once (whenall five dancers writhe separately after throwing the first rock), or dwells onone for too long (the needlessly lengthy lashing). The whole thing is framed bySteve Jensen’s stunning sets; a huge swirl sweeps across the floor and theburnt orange hues evoke a dusty desert land, totally immersing the audience inthis microcosm of drama.

The dancers are, of course, spectacularly talented. Byassembling a cast where technical perfection is the base line, Wevers has givenhimself almost infinite choreographic possibilities. He uses this talentgenerously, creating a diverse and innovative kinetic vocabulary. Not a show tobe missed, Cast the First Rock in Twenty Twelve runs this evening at 8pm and Sunday at 5 pm at the Intiman Theater. Tickets are available at http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/214802 or at the door.

hold on anyway: A Reminder to Play and Trust

2012-01-18T09:37:00.000-08:00

Written by Carla MaríaNegrete Martínez

If you missed the MadHomes exhibition on Capitol Hill this summer, Freya Wormus’ hold on anyway is like a reprisal of itsentangled straps and structures but with the added bonus of moving bodiesthrough a highly architected space. Performed at Yoga on Beacon, typical yogastudio apparatuses become both obstacles and aids in the paths of fiverisk-taking women. As the house lights go out the yoga studio is transformed intoa jungle of straps. The tension produced by these visual lines shatters whenWormus runs to the yoga wall, threads her body into a looped strap, and divesinto the air.

Estocar, a northwest underground indie rock band, is set atthe back of this entwined image. Sean Kearneyon drums and Lance Hofstad on guitar and vocals create an atmosphere suggestingdiscovery and enlightenment. Clad in a short brown dress, Wormus swings upsidedown on the wall like a pendulum. By twisting her body she somehow ends upwalking perpendicular to the wall, evoking the image of the iconic Walking on the Wall (1971) by TrishaBrown. Alex Martin and Victoria Jacobs, both in similar flowing dresses, joinWormus as the drums rise to a crescendo. They thread themselves into loopedstraps attached to the wall and launch upward from the floor only to swing backto the wall and shoot out again. Sarah Shira enters this jungle-likeplayground next. Jacobs and Martin, leaning away from the wall and supportedby straps, cradle Shira as they swing. When Shira finally wriggles free ofthis cocoon, all four begin a game of resistance, pulling and playing with thestraps. As Wormus starts to unravel the maze by continually tugging at one end,the visual tension of the web finally crumbles.

While Shira elegantly launches high into the air like abird, Laura Aschoff untangles from a strap and throws herself to the ground. Theresistance in her upper body against the strap contrasts her struggling legs asshe pushes hard on the floor. Kearneyaccentuates this struggle with strikes on the ride cymbal. Later on, Jacobs dangles bat-like from the wall, inverted and folded in half with her feet andwrists together. She slowly slides down and lies defeated on the floor untilMartin and Aschoff lift her up. It seems the straps double as aids for play andobstacles in this adventurous journey.

Wormus and Martin skitter their feet in sync, binding theirbodies together with intertwining arms. As they move away from the wall and thestraps, each loop their arms around the other’s waists, and use their momentumto soar through space. Their playful duet and partnering seems to be a reminderto trust people and how relationships can flourish from doing so.

Unfortunately, at times, the music overdramatizes hold on anyway, which tends to detractfrom several instances of genuine discovery. When the music finally fades,there is a moment of beautiful serenity as Jacobs breathes heavily, seeming tosteady herself for a great endeavor ahead. She attaches three straps to thewall and traverses from one strap to the next, hanging, threading, and swingingher way across the wall, without touching the floor. Flashlights shine on heras she struggles, fiercely determined, toward her goal.

The mood of child-like discovery and play serve as areminder that risk and trust are instinctive qualities in children. Wormus’schoreography as a whole is an invitation to return to this more innocent state,and seems to illustrate how risk, perseverance, and trust in one’s decisionsleads to positive outcomes. hold onanyway will continue January 20–22 and the following weekend January 27–29.Seating is limited in this intimate venue and tickets are selling quickly.Reserve yours at BrownPaper Tickets.

Preview: Seattle Dance Project’s Project 5

2012-01-16T22:32:00.000-08:00

Written by MarikoNagashima

(Photo: SDP dancers in Edwaard Liang's To Converse Too
Photo by Zebravisual)

Seattle Dance Project will be rounding out their fifthseason with Project 5 at ACT’s In theFalls Theater starting this Friday, January 20th. What makes this company so unique is their castof seasoned dancers (most have retired from illustrious performing careers),and their constant push for collaboration with a wide variety of artists. Thisshow is no exception: it features several new partnerships and welcomes threenew distinguished dancers to the SDP roster (Gavin Larsen, formerly of OregonBallet Theater; Iyun Harrison, director of the newly formed Ashani Dances andprofessor at Cornish College of the Arts; and Ezra Dickinson, performer andchoreographer of the Offshore Project among many others).

(New SDP dancer Ezra Dickinson in rehearsal for
Brahms Afoot. Photo by Brian Smale)

Of particular note is SDP’s partnership with The InverseOpera, an innovative Seattle music group, and Penny Hutchinson, a foundingmember of Mark Morris Dance Group, in the lush new creation, Brahms Afoot, set to “LiebesliederWaltzes.” The collaboration came about when the Inverse Opera approached ArtisticDirector Timothy Lynch about a year ago. “They said they’d always wanted towork with dancers on this piece of music,” says Lynch, who jumped at theopportunity. Lynch saw the Inverse Opera as a kindred spirit of sorts, “a groupof professionals who wanted to go out on their own, and weren’t doingtraditional things.” Such rich symphonic music necessitated an experiencedchoreographer who could match the level of artistry in the music. Hutchinson was uniquelysuited for the job with her extensive choreographic background and an intimate familiaritywith the music having performed to it in Mark Morris’ New Love Song Waltzes (1982). In rehearsal last week, theexperienced roster of dancers lent the work a level of sophistication andgraciousness unparalleled in the rest of Seattle’sdance scene. The synergistic effort from these three entities has resulted in awork suffused with elegance, and sure to delight audiences.

In a very different vein, SDP has also collaborated withJason Ohlberg (formerly of Hubbard Street Dance Chicago) to create Departure from 5^th. The pieceprobes each dancer’s relationship with dance and uses voice recordings of theirinterviews on the subject as part of the score. “I’ve always wanted to do apiece where you get to know the dancers and who they really are by watchingit,” said Ohlberg. Departure surelyachieves this goal; the dancers’ candid discussions about their mental andphysical struggles with dance provide an intimate peek into each one’s psyche.With this particular group of dancers, Ohlberg also wanted to explore theirmotivations for continuing to dance. To this end, themes of fate and itsinescapability emerge. “There’s also this idea of impermanence, they’ve decidedto leave their careers, but as they still continue to dance you don’t know forhow long.” The dancers’ interviews feel almost cathartic, but “it’s reallyhorrifying to dance to your own voice,” says dancer Alexandra Dickson with abit of a laugh. “It’s difficult to have that kind of honesty out there in frontof people.” As difficult as it is, the raw honesty is exactly what makesOhlberg’s work so compelling.

(Dancers Michele Curtis and Oleg Gorboulev in
To Converse Too. Photo by Zebravisual)

Three works from previous seasons round out theprogram: Molissa Fenley’s Planes in Air,Edwaard Liang’s To Converse Too, andKent Stowell’s B6. To see SDP's two latest works and these past crowd-favorites, head to Project 5 this weekend and next at In the Falls Theater. Tickets areavailable at http://www.acttheatre.org/Tickets/OnStage/Project5?date=1%2F20%2F2012.

Dance Cinema Flourishes in Seattle with Dayna Hanson’s Latest Vision

2012-01-09T20:25:00.000-08:00

Writtenby Kristen Legg

Jessie Smith in Improvement Club

With her work as co-curator for New Dance Cinemafrom 1999 to 2003, her inclusion on Dance for Camera (First Run Features 2003),and over a half-dozen short dance films, Dayna Hanson is no newcomer to thesilver screen.

Hanson became interested in dance cinema in 1989.After making a number of Super 8 films with her interdisciplinary group,Run/Remain, she saw a short dance film within a live piece called Oidan Skroeba by Dutch choreographerAngelika Oei. “It stopped me in my tracks.” From there her passion for dancefilm grew. “In 2000…I met Carlo Scandiuzzi through On the Boards; we cooked upthe idea of making a dance film by 33 Fainting Spells, my company with GaelenHanson. We shot Measure in one day ina dilapidated boarding school on Bainbridge Island in the summer of2000.”

Since then, she has directed, performed in, andproduced innovative work for the camera. She now sits perched, ready to becomeone of Seattle’sbiggest names in dance film with her feature film, Improvement Club, which is currently in post-production.

When Hanson was given the opportunity to produceher full-length stage work, Gloria’sCause, at On the Boards in December 2010, she decided to sequence Improvement Club after the live work,drawing material (conceptual as well as filmed footage) from the stageperformance. Gloria’s Cause was a non-lineardeconstruction of the American Revolution mixing dance, theatre, and live musicwith absurd, yet intensely passionate, characters who grappled with thedissonance felt from conflicting ideas on what it is to be American. In all,this collaborative work took over 400 hours of rehearsals and workshopping toget right. By the time Gloria’s Causepremiered, a whole story had played out, which became the outline for Improvement Club.

After the run of Gloria’s Cause closed at On the Boards, Hanson promptly begandeveloping the script for her new film. She interviewed the actors to gathertheir experiences. “It was fascinating for all of us to come out of an intenseprocess of creating a live work only to dig into that work in a differentmedium.” Hanson took slight liberties in character development, finding thatthe making of Gloria’s Cause was aninteresting case study in human relationships. Aided by her co-writer/performerDave Proscia and long-time collaborator Peggy Piacenza, Hanson created scenesfilled with experiences from rehearsals for Gloria’sCause—some that were exaggerated, some that went exactly as depicted in thefilm, and some that are pure fiction.

Wade Madsen in Improvement Club

As the cast and crew moved into production, thework kept a fluid structure. While the crew set up for a scene, the performerswould rehearse and decide on spacing. Even the dialogue developed alongsideproduction. “I was doing re-writes between locations: Once I got left behind atdinner and just stood by the truck with all the props and costumes and re-wrotethe next scene before we changed location. It was awesome. Even in rehearsal wewould often change the script to make it more natural or naturalistic.” In this‘putting on a show’ parody with a documentary-like texture, Improvement Club allows the viewer totake interest in the artists as individuals, not just as characters. “By theend of the film, the audience will feel they know what it’s like to make Gloria’s Cause.”

Putting speech and dance together is an art form initself. While the script is vital to ImprovementClub, Hanson has made sure to give moving images primacy at times. “Dancegets a range of treatments in ImprovementClub. In one scene a dance rehearsal featuring Jessie Smith and Jim Kent isintercut with a phone call I'm making just outside the studio. The dance couldstand alone, but I want to show the two in relation. Other times people breakinto dance in the style of musical theater, which interests me a lot. Sometimesdance propels the narrative, other times it provides a pause from it.” ButHanson believes the entire film is danced. “To me dance and pedestrian movementare barely separable. So the cast running in a bedraggled way down the highwayis kinetic and narrative at once.”

Thisfilm could not be created without a number of irreplaceable collaborators. SeanDonavan, a local film editor, brings a great deal to the project, includingrhythm. “Sean is a drummer, and I swear it makes a huge difference. I've heardcamera operators observe that shooting dance film feels looser or freer thanshooting narrative work. Not so with editing. Sean learns the choreography; heunderstands the counts. Also, and this applies to his work with narrative aswell, he recognizes beauty, truth, and poetry. If those qualities are lackingin dance film, there isn't much there.” Hanson explains that the cast is alsovital to Improvement Club. “When Iwas casting Gloria's Cause I waslooking for fearless performers who could dance, speak, and play music. Thosesame people are the multiple protagonists of Improvement Club.”

Jim Kent and Jessie Smith in Improvement Club

But what is it about dance for film thatsatisfies where stage cannot? On stage, a presenter only has so much impact orcontrol over what an audience sees. Hanson recalled a performance by 33Fainting Spells at the Moore Theatre. After the show, audience members who knewthe company’s work commented on the lack of subtlety this particularperformance contained. Hanson realized her choreography relies on nuance andexpression. At such a large venue, while new spatial patterns emerged, thesubtlety was lost. “Small and subtle is the currency of the art form,” Hansonsays of film. With film, one can amplify the details and get to the human beingwho is performing. “Taking what’s small—by rendering in a close up—is saying,‘this is what’s important.’” Conversely, film can take a further distance frommovement, like an aerial view, and see what the work holds from afar. It seemsthere are a million ways to tell one story.

Thefilm is scheduled to be completed in Spring 2012. Hanson is currentlyraising funds for finalization of ImprovementClub through USAProjects.She hasissued a challenge to the Seattledance community: she asks that 100 dancers donate $10 each by 11:59 pm onJanuary 12, 2012 to match cast-member Wade Madsen’s $1,000 pledge. “Themore I see of the edit, I'm really thinking this film deserves a wide audience,so making that happen is my primary goal. I want it to actually be as radicallygood and strange as I think it is, and I want many, many people to see it.”

The trailer for Improvement Club is available toview on Vimeo at http://vimeo.com/31577516.

Top 11 in '11: Remarkable Companies, Individuals, and Events

2011-12-29T13:16:00.000-08:00

Written by Anne Lawrence

2011 was a very good year forcontemporary dance in Seattle.I attended 106 different performances—or 120, if you count multiple viewings ofthe same work. Almost every performance I saw was enjoyable, and some weretruly outstanding. Here are my 11 favorite companies, individuals, and eventsof 2011—the ones I consider most remarkable, noteworthy, or exemplary. Inalphabetical order:

Alia Swersky/Cornish Dance Theater, Beneath Our Own Immensity (I-5 Colonnade Park). Take 12 talented Cornish dancers,put them in the mountain bike course underneath I-5, and ask them to writhe aroundconcrete pillars, careen down hills through clouds of dust, execute elegantadagios amid the walls and arches, and much more. The result: One of the mostentertaining and moving site-specific works of 2011.

(Photo: Zettei Domenech Dance.
Photo by Tim Summers)

· Anna-Lizette Conner/Zettei Domenech Dance, Beautiful Recluse (Erickson Theater).What if they gave a gorgeous, unsettling, evening-length dance performanceabout sexual oppression of women and (almost) nobody came? That's what happenedwhen Conner's company presented BeautifulRecluse: A few dozen lucky attendees got to watch a dream cast of Cornishstudents and recent graduates give two technically demanding, emotionallyriveting performances. Conner is trying to remount the piece with her originalcast; if she succeeds, go!

· Corella Ballet (World Dance, Meany Theater).Corella Ballet performs with all the panache and virtuosity of its renownedartistic director, Angel Corella. The Meany program—a flamenco-influenced pasde deux for Corella and his sister Carmen, a neoclassical piece by Clark Tippet,and two marvelous works by Christopher Wheeldon—effectively displayed thecompany's strengths. The result was a thrilling evening of classical ballet.

· Crystal Pite/Kidd Pivot, Dark Matters (On the Boards). DarkMatters is what dance theater ought to be but seldom is: well-craftedmovement that skillfully explores dramatic ideas. The theatrical elements of Dark Matters were engaging enough, butthe movement was sensational: devilishly difficult and at times seemingly contraryto the laws of physics, but always executed with grace and the illusion ofeffortlessness.

(Spectrum Dance Theater in Mother of Us All
Photo by Gabriel Bienczycki)

· Donald Byrd/Spectrum Dance Theater (multipleperformances). Byrd, Spectrum's artistic director, is the dean of Seattle choreographers. Heis uncompromising, passionate but unsentimental, and master of a vast,versatile movement vocabulary. The Motherof Us All, Byrd's meditation on Africa,was a misunderstood masterpiece. The remounting of his 1996 work, The Beast, demonstrated thatcontemporary ballet can address the "monstrous" nature ofdysfunctional relationships with intelligence, nuanced emotion, and overwhelmingpower.

· Kate Wallich/Company Wallich (multipleperformances). Wallich is the most exciting emerging choreographer to appear inSeattle inyears. The three works she presented in 2011—A Wood Frame, –frequency,and Room with Themes—were mysterious,dazzling, and compellingly watchable. Wallich's choreography often manages to appearboth mechanistic and fluid, and she and her dancers sometimes move like a familyof unpredictable, exquisitely beautiful machines. Wallich has said that she aspiresto "dehumanize movement—but humanize it, too." She succeedsbrilliantly.

(Dancers Michele O’Neill, Gabby Bruya, and
Christin Lusk in Marlo Martin's ask different questions
Photo by Tim Summers)

· Marlo Martin (BOOST dance festival, badmarmar). Martinis a hugely influential but underappreciated force in Seattle dance. Her eXit SPACE studio providesrehearsal space to several companies and affordable classes to students of all ages.She founded and produces the acclaimed BOOST dance festival. Her new company, badmarmar—abigger, stronger reincarnation of her previous one, oaklanDrive—gave a spectacularperformance at NextFest Northwest. Martin choreographed for Redd Legg Dance andFull Tilt in 2011, and a work she made on her students—My Turn, in the takePauseshowcase—was one of the coolest jazz pieces of the year. Martin is producing ashow for Kate Wallich and herself in April 2012; it should be phenomenal.

· Merce Cunningham Legacy Tour (Paramount Theater).Cunningham is one of the three great choreographers of the last century (withBalanchine and Graham), but his works are rarely seen in Seattle. The six pieces presented during the LegacyTour—especially Quartet—reminded uswhy Cunningham has been so influential and remains so essential. We ought tosee a Cunningham work at least once a year—for pure pleasure, certainly, butalso to sharpen our perceptions. How about it, Peter Boal?

· Sarah Michelson, Devotion (On the Boards). Michelson's 100-minute homage toCunningham, Twyla Tharp's In the UpperRoom, and châiné turns (14-year-old NonGriffith performed hundreds of them) demandeddancers with almost unbelievable endurance and technical prowess. The closingwords from Richard Maxwell's spoken text described the movement perfectly: "Invincible.Literal. Kind. Taut. Undivided. Voluminous. Yours." Yes.

(Betsy Cooper in Molissa Fenley's Planes of Air
Photo by Tim Summers)

· Seattle Dance Project (multiple performances).For sheer enjoyment, it's hard to beat Seattle Dance Project. The company commissionsand acquires terrific new works by local and internationally recognizedchoreographers, but it is the dancers themselves, unmatched in their intelligenceand élan, who are the real attraction. I'll mention just two. Artistic directorTimothy Lynch resembles a more intense version of Fred Astaire: quick, precise,flashy when he wants to be, and incredibly smooth. Betsy Cooper combinesstriking presence with remarkable transparency on stage. When she performed MolissaFenley's Planes in Air, she seemed toembody the work completely, dancing with elegant lyricism and sharing herdelight with an equally delighted audience.

· zoe|juniper, ACrack in Everything (On the Boards). The big ideas underlying this work—somethingabout the Oresteia and temporal discontinuities—neverbecame clear to me, but I loved Zoe Scofield's idiosyncratic modern ballet idiomand Juniper Shuey's complex, almost hallucinatory video effects. There was moreadagio and repetition here than in past zoe|juniper works, making it easier to appreciatethe intricacies of Scofield's choreography and the amazing flexibility and controlshe and her dancers possess.

With so much great dance in Seattle, it seems only fair to mention 11alternate selections; I could make a case for any of them deserving a top spot.

Catherine Cabeen and Company, Into the Void (On the Boards)
Coriolis Dance Collective (multiple performances)
Cornish Dance Theater, Merce Cunningham minEvents (multiple performances)
Crispin Spaeth, Dark Room Trio (Western Bridge)
Cyrus Khambatta, Seattle International Dance Festival (RaisbeckHall)
Katy Hagelin Dance Project (multipleperformances)
Maya Soto/Soto Style, Collage Pink (Annex Theater)
Pacific NorthwestBallet, Concerto DSCH (McCaw Hall)
tEEth, HomeMade (On the Boards)
Tesee George/Dance Contemporary (EricksonTheater)
UW Dance Program, MFA Concert 2011 (Meany Studio Theater)

Are there any unifying themes here? I'll suggest three:The wide-ranging influence of Merce Cunningham; the essential role that Cornish College of the Arts plays in attracting,training, and promoting emerging artists; and the preeminence of On the Boardsas a presenter of exceptional contemporary dance.

Land of the Sweets Offers Titillating Treats

2011-12-22T23:36:00.000-08:00

Written by MarikoNagashima

(Photo: Snowflakes in Land of the SweetsPhoto by Chris Blakeley)

Anything but your typical Nutcracker, in Land of the Sweets: The Burlesque Nutcracker,you won’t find a saccharinely smiling Clara or quaintly marching toy soldiers. Instead,producers Lily Verlaine and Jasper McCann have replaced cloying sweetness withcampy giddiness and sensual surprises. A self proclaimed “spectacle ofecdysiastic pageantry,” the program boasts scantily clad snowflakes toballoon-popping spices, making it a delightfully adult alternative to theclassic ballet. Already a wildly popular attraction, the production ran at theTriple Door to a full house this Tuesday evening and has sold out most of itsshows. Audiences are encouraged to hoot and holler, imbibe and be merry, duringthis troupe’s romp, making the experience even more festive.

Though burlesque, with all its gimmicks and teases, is ofcourse the premise of the show, the amount of technical dancing was impressiveas well. Famed Seattledanseur Paris Original had no problem keeping up with Miss Laurel Bordeaux insome fleet-footed pointe work as Chinese Tea Mistresses and Flower Foliage. Thepair’s obvious technical training made them well-matched performers, though Paris’ charismatic stagepresence belied his more extensive burlesque experience. Hazel Cupari and WaxieMoon also made a great tap dancing pair as Russian Volga boys. The men hammedit up through complex rhythms and their requisite disrobing from zoot suits tosparkling blue briefs. The Aerial Suites also performed an angelic duet. Thetwo women suspended and contorted themselves in all manner of positions(including jaw-dropping toe hangs and a cascading human Jacob’s ladder) from asingle hoop in the middle of the stage. Dually notable were the Snowflakes withtheir Rockette-style kicks and prances, all in glittery high heels.

(Miss Indigo Blue as the Countess of Candies
Photo by Chris Blakeley)

What truly makes the show, however, are the characters. Eachperformer brought a different zest to the production, though some withdecidedly more flavor than others. McCann’s Herr Drosselmingus kept the showmoving with his schmaltzy persona, quick-witted lines and devious innuendos.Inga Ingenue’s blond pertness and wide-eyed coy-ness struck just the rightchord, making her the stand-out of the Snowflakes. Waxie Moon’s turn as thenot-so-nefarious rat king showcased his brash penchant for the dramatic. ButMiss Verlaine’s Coffee Casbah routine, was the steamiest (literally andfiguratively) of the evening. She pouted sultrily through some intricatepartnering sequences, all while being cleverly undressed by her two Arabianbodyguards.

Though it’s a matter of preference whether the tease or thereveal is the most exciting, the groups’ antics and unabashed passion for this artform are sure to dazzle and impress. At the close, McCann toasted the audience“to peace, love, and glamour,” a fitting benediction for this glitteryextravaganza. Land of the Sweetscontinues through Christmas Eve and has added two additional shows on Dec 27^th.For more information and to purchase tickets see: http://www.landofthesweets.com/

AEON Contemporary Dance: Potential on the Horizon

2011-12-20T20:31:00.000-08:00

Written by Jacqueline-Louise Brock

(Photo: AEON Contemporary Dance in SKELETONS.
Photo by Joseph Lambert)

AEONContemporary Dance performed SKELETONS, their first annual winter performance,this past weekend, December 16-17^th, at Velocity Dance Center. AEON'schoreographer and director, Joseph Schanbeck, introduced his dancers as"wonderful and fierce." His dancers surpassed this introduction byutilizing their knowledge of technique to execute Schanbeck's movement withprecision and intelligence.

Thecompany embraced the use of dramatics through their music selection andmovement vocabulary without getting lost in the melodramatic potential inherentin certain gestures. The hint of the tortured face was absent when a dancergrabbed at her head, making the gesture more interesting, mysterious, andconvincing of its emotional connotation. The dancers executed the jazzy contemporary material with trueunderstanding of their bodies. It is evident that these dancers want and love touse their bodies to the purpose they have set them to.

The eleven works in the concert were all fairly short in duration. Though each created a small glimpse into a different world, towards the end, the movement similarities within each piece started to blend those worlds. Costuming also became predictable with booty shorts as the garb of choice. Thestriking use of lighting served to deepen Schanbeck's choreography. AEON'slighting/tech director, Erin Simpson made masterful, intelligent lightingchoices one after another. The lighting had an evolution within each piece thatwas particular to the needs of the movement. Though clearly thought out, Simpson’slighting choices displayed an intuitive nature evident in each piece.

Schanbeck possesses a naturalskill at inventing movement that is incredibly engaging of both dancer andaudience. His body cries out to move in a way particular to him alone, but whichstill amazingly translates to his “fierce” ladies. The movement invention couldbe endless. It is for this reason that his use of prescribed movement choicesseemed like fillers. With Schanbeck's passion and invention, his dancers'strength and ability, and deeper investigation into longer pieces that go furtherthan scratching the surface of an experience or emotion, AEON would be anexperience no one could resist.

Towards Discussion: Body Book Club Meets for the First Time

2011-12-20T13:15:00.000-08:00

Written by ChristinCall

Is it valuable and nutritive for practitioners of an artform to discuss their work, the work of their peers, and work from other timeperiods? Not everyone would say yes,perhaps most especially when that art form is dance. As an ephemeral, non-verbal art form, it isboth silent and resistant to documentation. And as long as there is critical theory there will be artists who talkthe talk, but can’t walk the walk. In thedance community, we may feel it’s better to safeguard against such garishinauthenticity by not engaging in “the talk” at all.

Visual and literary arts, however, have strong traditions ofscholarly inquiry and commercial evaluation that contextualize the work of theartist in terms of the historical forbears and contemporaries, the social,political, and geographical time period, and various interpretive lenses ofscientific, psychological, anthropological, religious, philosophical, andcritical theories. The level ofscholarship and analysis of any given artist, whether we like it or not, addsvalue to that artist’s work. We canthink about that value in terms of commercial viability (Would Finnegan’s Wakestill be in publication if Ulysses had never caught the attention of otherwriters, critics, and scholars?) Anothervalue with more direct influence on the artistic community is howcontextualizing that work prolongs and increases the presence of specific artistic concerns in fellow and future artists. Contextualizing, as much it can get carriedaloft on the fumes of hubris, helps an art form perceive its own concerns andintentions more clearly, which helps the art form continue to develop, change,and revitalize itself.

The Seattledance scene has, in the past few years, suffered a shortage of documentation ofits performance events. Just likecountless languages have become extinct when the culture of its speakers hasbeen wiped out, this may be considered the bare minimum of what any culturalgroup needs to keep its practices lively and vibrant. Most of this documentation used to be theduty of critics from the city’s local newspapers. With the Seattle PI as it once was now gone,and many other critics gone the way of freelance after lay-offs and downsizing,coverage has been thin at best.

But, with the help of local dance-makers and performers Vanessade Wolf and Mary Margaret Moore, a new kind of discourse may be able to makeits way forward. The newly formed BodyBook Club aims to build up and diversify the way dance is contextualized in Seattle. The BBC is a reading club that intends to engage in the discussionof historical texts about dance and critical theory with the goal that by doingso, its participants will become better informed about work being made aroundthe globe and throughout history. Thehopeful result is that participants will find increasingly deeper ways ofengaging in the processes of their own dance-making and performing.

The Club’s first meeting on December 16, 2011, discussedSusan Sontag’s 1964 article “Against Interpretation.” As is generally expected in a book club,participants read the chosen text on their own time. Unlike other book clubs, the meeting includeda time for moving and reflective writing in addition to open discussion. These different modes seemed to help connectits participants to the physical, lingual, and verbal modes of experience.

The seven participants (including the two moderators)touched on a promising array of topics. The context of Susan Sontag’s writing, whether interpretation is anagenda of the critic and how that might be different from response, theoppression of a work’s content as a current artistic paradigm, Roland Barthes’theories about the impossibility of art to be separate from the viewer’s ownassociations and experience, problems with originality and claims ofauthorship, what Sontag may have meant in advocating the “erotics” ofexperiencing art, and much more.

The next two meetings will be held Monday Jan 16,12:30-2pm and Friday Feb 6, 12:30-2pm. The texts are yet to be announced. For more info, email speakeasy@velocitydancecenter.org. Also check out Velocity’s new SpeakeasySeries at velocitydancecenter.org.

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: Holiday Gift Ideas for That Special Dance Lover

2011-12-18T19:56:00.000-08:00

The holidays are here and that means presents! SeattleDanceswishes to offer a few suggestions on what to buy and what to steer clear ofthis holiday season.

The Good:

2012 Breaking Bounds Calendar

Lois Greenfield has been producing wall calendars since the 1990s. Her photographs capture dancers mid-air, defying gravity all month long.

A Bag Full o’ Tennis Balls

If a professional massage is out of the SecretSanta price range, consider tennis balls. A good roll on one of these firm orbscan keep a dancer pain-free for hours.

Paloma Herrera’s New DVD

PalomaHerrera: Here and Now is an insightful andentertaining program that shows different aspects of the personal life andcareer of the ABT Prima Ballerina. The film includes interviews with her in NewYork and Buenos Aires, the testimony of her teachers, and clips of her dancingin rehearsal and in performance.

Warm-up Boots

Cold feet need love too.

The Bad:

Inaccurate Dance Fashion Items

While pointe shoe socks are super cool, makesure you get ones that lace-up correctly.

Portable Changing Room

Actually, this is pretty awesome. What dancerdoesn’t need a spontaneous costume change?

Cheesy 80s Work-out Video

Nothing says you’re out of shape and out of style like an 80s work-outvideo.

The Ugly:

Medieval Torture Devices

Many of these apparatuses are in fact said towork wonders for flexibility. But, yikes!

Christmas Ornament Ballerinas with Their Standing Leg inParallel

Enough said.

Identity in Flux—December’s 12 Minutes Max

2011-12-14T20:03:00.000-08:00

Written by VictoriaJacobs

(Photo: Josephine’s Echopraxia © Tim Summers)

12 Minutes Max, as always, presented a delightfulsmorgasbord of performers one would normally never find on the same stage, toan audience who might never have the chance to see them all. The curators,puppeteer Kyle Loven and $12 for 12 Minutes Max guest curator Alyson McCrink,chose works that were snippets or nascent ideas of larger works, and they had arunning theme of identity in transition.

Marissa Rae Niederhauser (Josephine's Echopraxia) opened the show with Cut Your Losses, a solo dance about being in the midst oftransformation. She appeared in flowing pants and a loose green sweater thattransformed with her flailing and spinning into an old skin, a cocoon, or apair of new wings. Niederhauser's recorded voice droned about having left onestate without knowing what one is about to become, as she repeated movements,some of them recognizable dance steps, some of them self-mortifying, and thenleft the stage. When she returned, the monotonous spoken word transitioned intoemotionally held electronic music by OfMontreal, and she began spinning, pulling her head in and out of hersweater in various states of revelation. Her openness and simplicity supportedthe theme of mid-transformation, like a held breath.

In their debut performance, 3^rd Shift Dance's Xaviera Vandermay presented six dancers in HospitalGown Get Down, a highly physical piece that moved from tortured lamentationin a hospital through a heavy, grieving solo about battling death, and into asweaty finale about coming back to life as a jungle cat. It was a joy to seewomen of different ethnicities and body types dancing their hearts out together.The dancers threw themselves passionately into the movement, though they couldhave been softer going in and out of the floor. The juxtaposition of subjectmatter was confusing—was this a dance about death and grief, or about prowlingand being sexy? One can only guess that as a new company, these dancers wantedto show everything all at once. With more focus, more stillness, and greaterattention to weight, it will be interesting to see what they develop in thefuture. 3^rd Shift Danceperforms at the Wham! Bam! Holiday Slam! at Velocity on December 18, 2011.

Most surprising was WarriorMuzik and Kagaka Lua—conscious hip-hop fused with a Pacific Islandertraditional dance. Brian San Nicolas came up from Olympia with a crew of five performersto back him up as he rapped about elevating consciousness through and despitethe difficulties of urban life and race relations. The ensemble began in urbanclothing and shoes, with incongruous flowered wraps around their waists. As SanNicolas spat striking lyrics with incredible diction and passion, the otherperformers stepped side to side, sang the chorus, rapped a verse of their own,or wandered around the stage. Later in the piece, they returned in only the wraps,hair down to their shoulders and beads around their neck, and performed apowerful dance of stomping, slapping their bodies and chanting in unison. Withsimilarities to the Haka, a New Zealand warrior dance, it was stunning, and itgained even more power juxtaposed with the electronic beats and San Nicolas'sadept lyrics about trying to live in the light within urban hardship.

Jack Bentz’s solo theater performance Full Measure, about the acceptance of homosexuality in the CatholicChurch or the tragedy that results of its ignorance, was the standout of theevening. The staging was masterful, his presence and diction impeccable. Hismessage was simple and beautifully illustrated through great writing, a fewprops, and excellent acting.

Musician and performer Erin Jorgensen presented a short excerpt entitled Prayerfor Losers from her evening length work Redemptionto be presented at OtB January 26–28, 2012. She detailed a Craig's List ad thatshe posted seeking all the traits you would least like to find in someonecruising Craig's List and sang a winsome prayer (Please Lord, help me get myshit together.) before walking out the exit and leaving the audience tostare at the lonely microphone.

For more information on some of these artists, visit:

Josephine's Echopraxia

3^rd Shift Dance

Erin Jorgensen

Inspiring New Works at NEXT Dance Cinema

2011-12-14T10:16:00.000-08:00

Written by KristenLegg

(Photo: KT Niehoff's film Parts Don't Work)

Eight dance films were presented December 12, 2011 at theNorthwest Film Forum as part of NEXT Fest NW. While each were unique, therewere multiple underlying themes: brokenness, nature, and all-knowingness, toname a few. Each film had at least one moment where a dancer stared off pastthe camera and into the unknown. Many of the works featured reverse motionediting, where the dancers seemed to writhe about, pulled by an invisibletether. All of the works were enhanced by the uniqueness of “movie theatre”sound—a soundtrack to accompany the dancers. But for all that these works hadin common, each offered a glimpse into its own private universe.

Jody Kuehner’s riftvalley, was a humorous film. Even so, Kuehner’s confused looks into thecamera, her staggering toward and away from the screen, and the unstablemovement she performed due to high heels and an unkempt outdoor terrain, leftthe audience unsure if laughter had been the right choice earlier. Kuehner’stheatricality and poise came through exquisitely, as always, in this“gender-bending bonanza.”

The next work of the evening, Parts Don’t Work by KT Niehoff, showed an exciting side of the Seattle dance scene’sobsession with things that are off-kilter and quirky. Go-go boot-wearing girlsdanced stilted and over-exaggerated movements in the FunForest at Seattle Center,while Bianca Cabrera danced a contorted solo, flinging herself beautifully tothe Bumper Car ride floor. In one wonderful moment, Niehoff’s trio of bad girlsis offered cigarettes. Wearing large cardboard mouths over their real mouths,the girls try to inhale, to no avail.

Pacific Northwest Ballet videographer, Lindsey Thomas,presented Cylindrical Shadows, inwhich PNB members performed an excerpt of Annabelle Lopez Ochoa’s work of thesame name (to be premiered in March 2012). In this film, performers AndrewBartee, Laura Gilbreath, Kylee Kitchens, Kaori Nakamura, Lucien Postlewaite,Price Suddarth, Ezra Thomson, and Jerome Tisserand executed gestural phrases inperfect unison, each stepping out for a released solo or duet. A quiet film inenergy and tone, it was disappointing how quickly it was over.

(Shannon Stewart in The Third Floor
© Tim Summers.)

Shannon Stewart and Adam Sekuler presented theircollaboration, Third Floor/ThisPhosphorescent. Utilizing reverse motion editing, Steward tweaked andjerked her way through an abandoned hotel. Although labeled as a premiere, thisvideo was seen at Velocity’s seasonopener this past fall, accompanied by live performance by Stewart. Having the filmstand alone allowed for new surprises and stunning moments to shine through.

Perhaps the strongest short of the night came from CorrieBefort. Cut Chalk featured sixyouthful Seattledancers and a handful of musicians who created a beautiful soundscape toaccompany the work. Befort used live recording and over-laid rhythmic clappingto create a dynamic score, which complemented the undulating clump ofperformers. The contained movement in this work lent itself stunningly to thetight camera shots.

In a very different vein was Shawn Telford’s Kubota Flower, a video featuring SeattleBurlesque dancer Lily Verlaine. Set in the Kubota Gardens,this film seemed a bit less “dance” and more visual art. The scenes Telford imagined for camera were breathtaking.

Amy O/tinyrage presented Offthe Grid, based on a live performance from director Amy O’Neal’s prior repertory.Filmed at midnight in a field, this piece had an eerie quality, sometimesskirting on campy. While moments of this farm-style hip-hop seemed too BlairWitch Project, other images had lasting intensity and beauty. The core ofdancers performed much of the work on a dirt-covered floor, the particlesperfectly lit around this group of powerful performers—bodies and dust floatingin slow motion.

The last piece of the evening was created by Marissa RaeNiederhauser of Josephine’s Echopraxia. Tracingswas a solo work starring Niederhauser, in which she explored a run-downfarmhouse. The post-production on this work created dynamics not seen in theother films of the evening. Ghostly images of the dancer, color correction, andinstant scene changes allowed the viewer to feel pulled from place to place,just as the dancer was. Niederhauser’s timeless beauty added such elegance andmaturity to Tracings.

Many of these works can be seen online.
rift valley: http://vimeo.com/31059329
Parts Don’t Work: http://lingodance.com/stage/parts-dont-work/(slide show)
Cylindrical Shadows: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kdb5GvVsxPw
Third Floor/This Phosphorescent: http://vimeo.com/32956256
Kubota Flower: http://vimeo.com/29709226
Tracings: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qqE06VkslBo(trailer)

A Marvelous Kitchen Sink of Music and Movement

2011-12-14T09:39:00.000-08:00

Written by ChristinCall

The set up for the HERE/NOW performance at Open FlightStudio on Saturday, December 10, 2011 had a vague resemblance to a boxingmatch. The audience was so packed it spilled from the chairs to the side aislesand onto the floor in front of the performance area. There on one side, a rowof eight musicians stoically faced off the opposite side of the room whereeight dancers were gearing themselves up like true competitors. But what seemeda potentially combative energy unfolded into a disarmingly unabashed and openevening of true eclecticism, both in form and in content.

The HERE/NOW series exists to create a venue forcross-disciplinary improvisational performance and embraces that sameserendipitous quality in the randomization of the show's presentation. Twocurators—Paige Barnes and Christopher Hydinger—select individuals from danceand music genres, respectively, to participate. The participants generallydon't know each other and do not discuss their work or artistic practicesbefore the show. The participants from each genre are then selected by audiencemembers from a hat to create the pairings. They are given 8 minutes of stagetime to improvise a duet with their partner.

Installment 11 contained a virtual kitchen sink of movementstyles and musical approaches—from b-boy, butoh, contemporary dance, and theunnamable space between mime, acting, and dance to violin, cello, saxophone,guitars, and electronic loops and processors.

Many exciting pairings came from unexpected dance forms andunconventional music practices. Brysen Angeles from the Massive Monkees tunedin to his b-boy groove with elegance and martial arts-like intensity. DaveProcia on the electric bass took his time with a heavy, spare chord progressionthat groaned like old saloon doors from the old west.

Vanessa Skantze revealed a powerful and intense alignment withbutoh. Eyes fluttering and body shaking at times, her limbs curled inward withconstant, muscular tension. She displayed extreme vulnerability and physicalcontrol throughout, balancing on one leg for extended periods. Her pairing withSalo shared a similar timbre. His use of keyboard synthesizers, pedals, andloops allowed him to build an unrelenting wash of melancholic sound as if tococoon Skantze's performance.

Other pairings created a platform for the performers todirectly contrast their creative agility and aesthetic sensibility against.This allowed artists like Neil Welch and Robert Tyree to exhibit a delightfulexpansiveness and variety. Somehow able to draw out a knocking and tappingpercussiveness on the sax, Welch easily burst into spastic, explosive arpeggioslike run-on sentences. Tyree seemed to grab at these passing fits as ifsnatching snippets of stories that he only partially revealed to the audience.Mouthing words to himself, his gestural movement ranged from old to young,sensual to banal, male to female, and playful to reflective. The effect wasuniversal. And human.

Karen Nelson displayed a similar kind of contrast withNatalie Mai Hall on the cello. Playfully reinterpreting both Hall's handling ofher cello with her own body shape, Nelson also vocally imitated theunconventional sounds being made with the instrument. Her self-deprecatingapproach to her movement led to other vocal outbursts, such as "I'm sorry I'm doing other peoples' images... I can't help it," and a quip about discerning thedifference between a tour jetéand "what I just did." A favorite part of the evening came in themiddle when Nelson was exploring around the negative space of the cello bow'smovement. Jumping up with delight suddenly, she exclaimed, "You touched me!"Hall also exhibited a brilliant diversity in exploring sonorous high notes likealien bird calls to what sounded like a symphony made for trash compactors.Very expressive herself, she frowned in the depths of her sound but at onepoint paused mid-bow to laugh at Nelson's antics.

Another highlight of the evening was Lorraine Siu Lin Lau'semotionally pliable performance. With her equally supple physicality sheexplored the unfiltered needs, delights, and absorption of a small,rambunctious child.

What was so fulfilling about HERE/NOW was the organic andtransparent way the artistic process could be seen, watching the artistsnegotiate with each other while remaining distinct individuals. For more information on HERE/NOW please see
http://www.herenowonline.blogspot.com/

An Uplifting Return to the Stage with DanceJenkinsDance!!!

2011-12-13T19:48:00.000-08:00

Written by MarikoNagashima

(Photo: DanceJenkinsDance!!!)

Shirley Jenkins has been through a lot. In the past 14 yearsshe has survived two bouts with cancer and two major surgeries, one for adance-related back injury and the other for a total hip replacement. After anintensive healing process, Jenkins has made a full recovery to her dancingself, and formed a new company to prove it. In its premiere this past weekendat Broadway Performance Hall, DanceJenkinsDance!!! displayed the resiliency ofthe human spirit and Shirley Jenkins’ unwavering passion for dance.

Dear Williamopened the show with both charm and poignancy in references to Jenkins’struggles. With canes, a rocking horse, and a walker as props, Jenkins painteda picture of both her own physical struggles and the general difficulty ofaging. The dancers’ campy, vaudeville-esque dance with the canes garnered morethan a few chuckles, and Holly Batt’s sweet solo on a rocking horse evoked thechild still inside everyone. Most touching, however, was Belle Wolf’s solo withthe walker. Initially tethered to its metal frame, she moved with an alluringlybeautiful anguish, slowing plodding across the stage on delicately arched feetand draping her limbs over it. When the music shifted to more uplifting pianochords, Wolf found new strength, pulled the walker behind her, and eventuallywalked stoically off stage, leaving it behind.

Annalisa Peterson’s solo Ina Sacred Manner We Dance, was a soothing, meditative work set to the NativeAmerican flute music of Mary Youngblood. In a flowing, white tunic, Petersonwhirled feather-light, parting the air around her with swooping curvatures and liltingarabesques. Her deep connection to Youngblood’s ethereal chanting made the pieceall the more powerful, bringing greater depth to Jenkins’ choreography.

Jenkins Soul-SistersOn Tap, was easily the most impressive number of the evening. ShirleyJenkins and Maya Jenkins (no relation), broke out their tap shoes and wowed theaudience with remarkably complex rhythms and cool finesse. Though it seemsimpossible that so little movement could produce such auditory clamor, theseskilled women easily shrugged off ever-more intricate patterns. Shirley Jenkinslooked most comfortable with the movement here, teasing the audience severaltimes throughout her jazzily rhythmic solo, each step proclaiming “I’ve stillgot it,” which she does. Maya Jenkins, too, seemed cool and aloof in her solowhile her feet rapidly fired off an urgent Morse code. When the two donned suitjackets and were joined by Wolf and Carrie Dossick, the four hammed it up in a fun,splashy number to the big band music “Flat Foot Floogie (with the Floy Floy).”

In the final piece, Soliloquoyof a Soul, Jenkins drew inspiration from the Portuguese Fado music ofMariza. Divided into five sections, the piece featured bold, lush movementsaugmented by whirling black and red skirts. There is a tender yearningthroughout the piece, especially as Jenkins dances with the rest of her, mostlyyounger, company members. In one scene she echoed a dancer’s movements as ifrelearning old patterns or reliving past experiences. She knew when tosurrender the stage, however, and gracefully exited at various points, leavingquick impassioned footwork and luscious battements to be carried out by therest of the cast. Wolf and Amie Baca had the most genuine flair, but an excessof sultry stares and skirt-flipping felt hollow from the rest of the dancers.The final image, however, of the ensemble continuing to dance as the red lightfaded, seemed a fitting ending. Love of dance and continuing to dance in theface of adversity was the message here, and Jenkins’ display of resiliency bythe very existence of her company, offered this with ample enthusiasm.

Thieves and Devotees at Velocity’s NextFestNW

2011-12-10T16:36:00.001-08:00

Written by MarikoNagashima

(Photo: Ora et Labora installation at Velocity's NextFest NW)

Giant crab legs. Washingmachines. Armchairs. Shakespeare. Not four things generally found together, butat Velocity Dance Center’sNextFest NW, the program stretched far beyond the typical. With the theme ofTheft + Devotion, each work drew on clear inspiration from outside influences,but also underscored each artist’s true devotion to their craft.

A puppet-like tribal mask withbug eyes and protruding fangs hanging from the rafters, and gigantic crab legs restingin one corner of the stage immediately immersed the audience in the quirkyexplorations of Laara Garcia’s Nobody’sIntersubjective Spectacles: Voyage Log 0001. Though the title soundsintimidating, Garcia’s work stayed accessible as it toured the frontiers of thedeep ocean and the Wild West. Dancers Devin McDermott and Laurie Robertsperfectly evoked both creeping crustaceans (awkward scuttling and inhuman ticsof flexed wrists and elbows) and intrepid cowboys (goofy bowlegged walks andraucous bucking on invisible horses) as they alternated between scenarios. Witheach new scene, dancer Yma Muñoz rose from the floor to stand in the puppet mask,its eyes gently glowing, the “spectacles” of this peculiar voyage.

Mike Pham’s solo work, DØD, was a multidisciplinary study ofShakespeare’s Hamlet. An extremelyopen stage space, (the wings were removed after the first piece) combined witha projection insistently flashing fragments of the text and pulsating electronicbeats, all contributed to the epic effect of the piece. Pham’s tensed andtwitchy movements felt a bit too constricted to match the grand proportions ofthe setup, but his flair for the dramatic carried it through. “Act II” turnedominous with echoing chord as the video flashed “swear/never to speak of this.”Pham seemed to channel and dissect Hamlet’s frustrations and madness. Runningchaotically about the stage with a sheet of shimmering fabric, he thencarefully laid it down, stepped laboriously across it, and staggered with itaround his ankle, mired by this obstacle of his own contrivance.

Ora et Labora, an installation by Rosa Vissers and Hatlo, was ondisplay both before the show and during intermission. The studio behind thestage area was adorned with flickering candles and an assortment of laundryparaphernalia: clotheslines, washboards, and two actual washing machines inwhich the women danced. An interesting pre- and mid-show diversion, the twowomen enacted feminine stereotypes like putting on makeup, doing laundry, andan over-the-top bump and grind, all while standing in their respective washingmachine.

In an epilogue to Room with Themes, her full-length workseen earlier this fall, Kate Wallich presented a duet exploring “all that couldhave been” in the original piece. Stuck in a panel of light, Wallich moved backand forth across the stage, while dancer Erica Badgeley slowly leaned away andtoward the studio wall, as if tethered to Wallich’s retreats and advances. Alternatingbetween solo work, where their bodies rippled jelly-like in individualpatterns, and moments where they suddenly snapped, in perfect synchronicity, intoa crouch or an abrupt roll to the floor, the phrasing stayed surprising throughout.Though the motifs from the full-length work were evident (a wary fascinationwith the light and cascading energy from one dancer to the next) the intent ofthis epilogue lacked the clarity of the full-length version. When the twodanced separately, despite their stunning movement quality, it felt ratherself-indulgent; each one exploring their own movement possibilities andsurrendering to wherever those possibilities carried them. Without the contextof the rest of the piece, it became slightly less accessible, though no lessaesthetically interesting.

Marlo Martin’s tenSIDES: an excerpt without throwing plates,closed the program. A diagonal of sleek black armchairs bisected the stage, andMartin utilized Velocity’s versatility as a performance space by opening up thedoorways to the back studio. Two dancers stood framed in these doorways ashands reached over the tops of the chairs, revealing the dancers crouchedbehind them. The plaintive strings of Olafur Arnalds, the meshy black costumes,and gestural motions like trembling hands, a caving in of the chest, and asilent scream, all lent the piece a slightly sinister feeling. Delving into theuniversal motivators like love, hate, lust, and apathy, the eight femaledancers all radiated an emotional intensity that added another dimension toMartin’s full-bodied, visceral movements. This excerpt only whetted theappetite for the full-length work, which will premiere later this spring.

NextFestNW continues today andtomorrow evening (December 10^th and 11^th). Tickets areavailable at https://velocitydance.secure.force.com/ticket.

Dialects in Teknique+1: the Unique Language of Redd Legg Dance

2011-12-07T22:42:00.001-08:00

Written by Tori McConnell

(Photo: Redd Legg Dance in Cantica Renati at Teknique+1)

Ethereal voices filled Broadway Performance Hall withlimpid emotion and reverence. Lights faded in and, like statues in a cathedral,dancers carved through space in CanticaRenati, the opener of Redd LeggDance’s “Teknique+1.” Full of contrast, the performance illustrated the visionof Kristen Legg, the artistic director/choreographer, as well as the company’smulti-layered mission and the complexity and intensity for which it is known.

Under the swell of chanting voices, a controlledduet began Cantica Renati while thegroup lay deathly still on the floor. Fingersslowly came to life, a reaching hand that returned through the piece. Gesturesof worship and piety were interlaced with articulating legs and spines, yetthere was little clear emotion in the dancers. Though starting with poise, the ensemblework of Cantica Renati alternatedbetween crystalline and fuzzy. As pointing hands again reached heavenward, dancersinstilled the space with a suspended-breath quality reminiscent of the layersof meaning and feeling found in ancient churches.

Excerpted from a larger work, Mother May I… introduced a chunk ofabstract, intriguing movement with Legg’s signature idiosyncratic rhythms andunique blend of balletic vocabulary and contemporary movements. Set to whatstarted as classical music, the choreography engaged the eye only with itsconstant drive of diagonals and angles. Technical and clear-cut, Mother May I… would be appreciated bythose familiar with ballet. Beyond the athleticism, for those without a dance background,knowing the context of the whole piece would make the experience moreaccessible.

(Dancers Mary Kirkpatrick, Mari LaRocca, and
Stacy Brenner in Babyhead Fear Manicure )

BabyheadFear Manicure, featured striking lighting: dark colors with two slashesof light illuminating the backdrop. Strains of Mozart prolonged the serious mood,until a dancer leapt on stage and broke into a crazed grin. Smiles turned tobiting as hospital-gowned dancers performed clever abstractions of obsessive itching,and conducted invisible orchestras with frenzied smiles. Wildly over the top,Legg’s phrases and group work skillfully used the space, and the dancers developedindividual characters. None more so than Caitlin McCarthy who shone as asometimes happy, invisible-piano-playing type of insane. Alternating between silly and violent, arabesquesand flittering hands, the piece left a chuckling question: are they all crazyor just figments of McCarthy’s mind?

With feeling and execution, FourForlorn Women Brandish Their Scarsshowcased the strength of the dancers and Legg’s choreography. A tight diagonalwith a square spotlights introduced the passionate movement. With each story ofgrief, angst and pain played through the dancers features and shaped thephrase-work. Grand pliés and a waltz with a slap on the face echoed through thepiece. Relentlessly emotional, each solo built to the final ensemble; the womenunited in a final surprising shout.

Squares of light dappled a corner of thestage and swirled across Karena Birk’s red dress in the introspective, yetdynamic solo, C. and other fears.With delicate movements and balance, Birk filled her confined corner oflight with quiet and quick movement. Legg’s choice to set the choreography fardownstage and impound the dancer spatially, heightened the relief when Birkgently burst along the upstage diagonal. Despite the beginnings of freedom, thewell lit limits of the corner called her back.

Redd Legg Dance company members in The Finish Line.

Blaringly colored velvet runningsuits dashed across the stage in The Finish Line as dancers cheered and jeeredeach other. Legg took the last few meters of the race to epic dimensions with wildexaggeration, creating a bickering climax for the entire evening. In slowmotion, the dancers made the final push across the stage, as the remainingcompany members joined the race in all variety of costumes. Intortoise-and-hare fashion each runner was distracted, fell, or started a brawluntil none but an old lady was left, her slow plodding bringing victory atlast.

The striking juxtaposition of the seriousand abstract with the zany and melodramatic demonstrated Redd Legg Dance’smultifaceted vision. Legg focuses on artisticmerit, speaking to social issues, technique, and making “dances that speak to awide audience,” yet her choreography met these goals with mixed success. Similarly, the variety of technical levels and body typescelebrated at “Teknique +1” was refreshing, but also tended to reveal imprecisemoments. Though intentionality and artistic choices were evident, someworks were far more thorough, engaging and relatable than others.

Katy Hagelin Dance Project Exercises the Imagination

2011-12-07T22:32:00.001-08:00

Written by Jacqueline Louise Brock

(Photo: Dancers Rachel Gonsalves, Katy Hagelin,
Courtney Dressner, and Tori McConnell in Controller
Photo by Wesley Anderson)

KatyHagelin Dance Project premiered three new pieces this past weekend at Velocity Dance Center.In addition to the new works, the bill also included two pieces from earlier performances.Hours, the first piece of theevening, was inspired by the New York City Fire Department after the events of9/11. Her dancers performed the work with an earnest giving that resulted in abeautiful remembrance to the bravery of the men who fought for their fellowman. Shifting shapes resembled moments in time of the firefighters lunging,falling, and reaching. Hagelin’s true understanding of the body and its possibilitieswas demonstrated through tiny, manipulative isolations, inventive floor work,and surprise endings of combinations. The landings from a turn were asunexpected as the pathway to standing from the floor. However, her movementinvention was downplayed by the rhythmic timing of her phrases. The dance was tooclearly paired with the driving beat of the music, revealing the steady countsof her movements.

Secondwas Kiss it Good-bye, a duet thatpremiered earlier this year. Though the program notes billed it as a “danceabout dancers,” it did not necessarily earn the rights to this broad definitionsince its narrative story depicted only one stereotypical type of dancer. Thepiece was meant to be lighthearted, with two friends competing against eachother in an audition, laughing when the other falls down, and over indulging inice cream when upset. The music choice seemed irrelevant and the acting portionof the performance seemed as superficial as the observations of dancers. Thereis a lot more to say about dance and dancers' relationship to it, evenjokingly.

Hagelin'screation of a dream world was a true voyage with Purple Triangle/Purple Dagger: The Dream Piece. Her use ofcharacter development, spatial arrangement, and movement textures created aworld of intensity clearly felt by the audience. The dance told a story of awoman in prison dreaming of a murder, leaving it open as to if it was themurder she had committed, or the fear she might have of being killed. Though a darknarrative, it felt true and free of over dramatic tendencies. Beautiful liftsand interactions drove this piece.


(Dancers Christina Stockdale and Danny Boulet in Fly Through the Air Photo by Wesley Anderson)

Fly Through the Air, a piece about professional runners, was anotherpremiere. Dancer Christina Stockdale, clad in bike shorts, a sports bra, andtennis shoes, began by moving in slow motion. Stockdale had a gorgeous sense ofcontrol of her body and the sight of her muscles contracting and lengthening addedto the movement phrases. Midway through the piece, the solo became a duet. Thissection surprisingly contained traditional balletic lifts which took theaudience out of the world of running. However, the dancers' focus on the finishline brought the audience back to the fictional world of the race.

Controller, the last premiere of the evening, was anotherpiece in which Hagelin took her audience to a fantasy world, proving hermastery of fictional landscapes and narratives. In this world, Hagelin usedexaggerated, cartoon-like characters to explore roles in the gaming world: ThePlayer, The Developer, and The Game's Characters. The appearance of each newgame character was a real treat for the audience as the costumes were playfullybright and the movement delightfully near in quality and texture to that of avideo game character. The hilarity of their costumes provided a comedic tonethat rounded out the piece nicely. The dance resulted in an epic battle betweenthe evil, goth-like players, the real world characters, the game characters,and the developers, with good winning out as it should.

Hagelin'sdancers executed her movement with precision and passion, adding strength andbeauty to her ever-creative phrase work. If you missed this past weekend’sshow, look out for more performances by Katy Hagelin Dance Project as they arenot to be missed.

Imprinting in Space and Time: zoe|juniper’s A Crack in Everything

2011-12-03T15:11:00.001-08:00

Written by CarlaMaría Negrete Martínez

Inthe piece A Crack in Everything, a two-sectionedwall made of plastic-covered glass with red tape at the bottom and black fabricon top divides On the Boards’ Merrill Wright Mainstage Theater at a quarters’depth.

Dancers in A Crack in Everything.
Photo by Christoper Duggan

Lightscome up with two dancers bursting into view behind the wall, wearing nude coloredunitards pasted with flaking gold leaf and with ethereal golden masks framingtheir faces. They lunge and slide their legs through wide stances. Simultaneously,a video projects their bodies retrograding the entire phrase. Blackout.

Afemale dancer appears in front of the glass wall, pounding a flat object on the floor in time with Greg Haines’music beats. She is now wearing a Greco-Roman armor style gown over theunitard. Her virtual representation appears mirrored beside her as if in dialogwith a memory of her past. A flash of light blinds the eye and reveals adifferent moment in time. Another female dancer enters walking backward with ared cord seemingly attached to her lower lip. As she crosses the length of thestage a gray hooded figure with red glitter is revealed holding the other endof the cord, making it appear as if her tongue is being stretched across thewhole stage. The hooded figure seems to represent the controlling power thatties tongues and directs the world’s pathways. Scene.

Theblack curtain, which helps divide the space, rolls up as Raja Kelly movesfrantically, switching his weight from one foot to the other and joins a duet.They suddenly pause their frenzy in time with Haines’ clock-like ticking whilea soloist is pulled, as if through a magnet, toward the hooded figure. Meanwhile,Scofield is drawing on the glass wall with a red paint pen. As she exits,another video retrograde of dancing bodies appears, imprinting in space andtime.

Raja Kelly in A Crack in Everything.
Photo by Christopher Duggan

Theglass wall flies up, the layers fall off, the crack in the audience’s controlledmemories? A double image of women being pulled by their tongues re-appears andclears. Two white chairs are left on stage with dancers walking toward them in small,robotic steps. Kelly and Scofield are left facing each other behind the chairs.They sit down, slowly taking off their unitards, while Christiana Axelsondances beside them. Naked, Kelly and Scofield bark at each other furiously,juxtaposing the previous controlled ritual leading up to it. Scofield seems tobe commenting on humans’ sexual animalistic nature. Silence.

Animage of white, morphing smoke is projected onto the backdrop. Kelly stares atit and leaves, re-entering downstage as the image changes into what looks likesand. Scofield, Axelsen, Diana Deaver, and Anna Schon, enter wearing theunitards again. Their silhouettes are projected onto the backdrop, creating theillusion of shadows dancing on a beach. They moved as if electric impulse locomotedtheir bodies across the stage from stage right to left. Kelly stops eachdancer’s momentum by picking them up and placing them back where they came from.The passing of time is inevitable and retaining them in space is useless. Thelast dancer he carries back struggles the most: the light at the end of thetunnel—exiting the space—seemed so close. Yet her yearning for independence againstcontrol proves exquisite. Her climbing over Kelly’s body is less aboutfrustration than her eased liquid metamorphosis in between his arms.

Thelast section of the piece reveals the dual tongue-tied image again. WhenHaine’s music reaches emotional climax, the red tongue of the dancer in theback is stretched out fully, until her inability to speak cuts her tongue of.She falls to the floor.

A Crack in Everything will continue this weekend, December 3–4 at 8 pm. Tickets may still beavailable through On the Boards.

Musicality and Technique Shine in Mark Morris Dance Group

2011-12-02T15:29:00.001-08:00

Written by Jacqueline LouiseBrock

(Photo: Mark Morris Dance Group in Violet Cavern.
© Susana Millman)

MarkMorris Dance Group performs two pieces, FestivalDance and Violet Cavern, fromtheir repertoire at the Moore Theater December1-3. Morris, a Seattle native, is moststrongly known for his clear devotion to and physical representation of themusic, evinced by having received the prestigious Leonard Bernstein LifetimeAchievement Award for the Elevation of Music in Society. These two pieces,although different in musical tone and genre, were no exception to Morris'smusical devotion.

(Mark Morris Dance Group dancers Aaron Loux and Rita Donahue
in Festival Dance.
© Stephanie Berger)

Festival Dance, choreographed to themusic of Johann Nepomuk Hummel's PianoTrio No. 5 in E Major, Op. 83, began with the image of a man holdingdesperately to a woman. This stark image immediately conjured narratives thatcould justify such a gesture of pleading. However, when the music started, thedancers transitioned to a world of traditional ballet vocabulary with slighttwists and accents leaving the more gestural image behind. The women weredressed in full knee-length skirts fitted at the waist and the men in khakisand navy blue polos. The men lifted, presented, and twirled the women, who jumped,smiled and floated gracefully in and out of their arms. The costumes, inconjuction with the conventional pairing and interactions of the couples,harkened to a more conservative 1950's era. The dance shifted from one duet tomany, then back to a few, until it concluded with the beginning couple endingin the image that had greeted the audience- the man holding steadfast anddesperately to the woman. Though it bookended the work, this image never fullymade a connection to the content of the piece. During intermission, oneaudience member, in discussion of the piece, remarked, "Mark Morris iswhat I would go to a museum to see."

(Mark Morris Dance Group in Violet Cavern.
© Stephanie Berger)

Violet Cavern, choreographed to the jazzinfluenced music of The Bad Plus, took a more modern turn from the traditionalballet vocabulary utilized in FestivalDance. The piece started in darkness, haunting the audience with dramaticpiano chords in steady succession. As the curtain lifted, the violetsilhouettes of one dancer standing among figures lying on the floor, with patternsof intersecting lines hovering overhead immediately captivated the audience.The standing dancer slowly slipped into a beautiful grande plié establishing a sequence thatwould be manipulated, repeated, and evolved as the piece continued. Morris' useof the music was more than merely the physical depiction. He commented on themusic through the tone of the vocabulary and timing of the movement more so herethan with Festival Dance. At onepoint, the volume grew to an intense level while the dancers continued theirslow and controlled pace, unaltered by the shift in music. Morris' use ofmodern vocabulary spoke to a more traditional Graham approach with intensecontractions and drama espousing every phrase. While captivating images andmore dynamic coupling interactions existed, the actual sequences repeatedthroughout the piece lacked the same level of appeal, and could have been seena lot less.

Thetechnical prowess of the dancers and musicians carried both pieces. Thedancers' strength and clarity of execution coupled with their attention to thesmallest of details kept the audience engaged and fully appreciative of theirperformance. A standing ovation to their talent and generosity of spirit wasmuch deserved and earned. Don't miss these lovely bodies and musicians December2^nd and 3^rd at the Moore Theater. Tickets are availableat http://stgpresents.org/artists/?artist=1692.

Preview: An Insider’s Peek at Redd Legg Dance’s “Teknique + 1”

2011-12-01T13:32:00.001-08:00

Written by Carla María Negrete Martínez

(Photo: Redd Legg Dance company members rehearsing
Four Forlorn Women Brandish Their Scars)

“Changeof plans. Add a sauté in fourth to startrunning, then go into the fake beginning. The Christina/Carla duet will belater in the piece. Also, we’ll switch the duet order around; do thecanon bit first, then the fourth position stuff that used to start the dance.”Kristen Legg is off and running with her quirky work. Her eyes gleam withenergy and hunger for speedy balletic vocabulary from her dancers, her “reddleggs.” Mother may I... is her newestcreation of which only an excerpt will be shown at her upcoming show, “Teknique+ 1,” at Broadway Performance Hall onDecember 3–4. The piece seems to be the essence of Legg’s “Teknique” with something more, herdefinition of “+1.”

ReddLegg Dance will perform two evening shows plus a shortened matinee, which willbe principally intended for children. The company, currently in its fifthperforming season, has brought dance to a broader audience in Seattle, making it specifically accessible totoday’s youth through humorous, touching, discordant, and, at times, poignantchoreography.

(Carla María Negrete Martínez rehearsing Cantica Renati)

Thedancers, now rehearsing for 15 weeks, have adapted to Legg’s swift teachingpace that follows her fast-tempoed, fragmented choreography that, unlikeclassical ballet, breaks fluidity. One of the pieces on the program, BabyheadFear Manicure, requirescomical attitude from her dancers. They begin the piece with what Legg refersto as monster phrase, followedby muscle man phrase, ballerina runs, and cricket. Every movement is animpulsive idea that dissolves immediately after execution. Steps unrelated toone another and requiring dramatic weight changes demand that the “reddleggs’” be prepared for anything.

“Ha ha ha, suckers,” saysdancer, Laura Peterson, during The Finish Line, a definite “+1.” Thepiece is a competitive two-section race comprised of text and choreography.Fueled with imagination and humor, the dancers can’t help but laugh during the firstfull run.

Seriousness returns to therehearsal space with Four Forlorn Women Brandish Their Scars and CanticaRenati. The former is anaggressive quartet to Astor Piazzola’s extravagant tango. Four independent andcourageous women portray their marriage stories through repetitive athleticphrases. Cantica Renati,on the other hand, abstracts life and mortality. “This is by far the mostdifficult music to count,” says dancer, Karena Birk, who is in her fifth seasonwith the company. Legg must count the complicated phrasing “3, 8, 4, 4, 15” forthe dancers, who are used to counting even phrases. This unconventional musicalpatterning lends itself to her fragmented movement phrases. Does Legg’s choiceof music inform her movement or does her movement inform the music choice? Thatwill be for the audience to decide.

“Teknique +1” can be seen December 3^rd and4^th at 8 pm and December 4^th at 1 pm at BroadwayPerformance Hall. Tickets can be purchased at Brown Paper Tickets.

Interview: Katy Hagelin Dance Project’s Artistic Director

2011-11-30T15:14:00.001-08:00

Written by Carla María Negrete Martínez

(Photo: KHDP Company dancers Kenaniah Christian Bystrom and Elizabeth Gordon.
Photo by Whittaker Dunn)

“I didn’t think of myselfhaving a company, but realized it was happening as I was just making my ownprojects,” says choreographer Katy Hagelin. Katy Hagelin Dance Projectofficially became a company in October 2008. Hagelin, also a dancer andchoreographer with Ballet Bellevue, will be presenting “Purple Triangle //Purple Dagger” at Velocity Dance Centeron December 2^nd and 3^rd at 7:30pm (tickets at Brown Paper Tickets). Thisis KHDP’s fourth full show, and SeattleDances was able to get the inside scoop,in a discussion with Hagelin herself.

SD: This show has a mix ofold and new pieces. Tell us about “PurpleTriangle // Purple Dagger” and what audience members will see.

KH: One new piece titled, PurpleTriangle // Purple Dagger is about the dream of a girl who murderedsomeone. I don’t know if it’s intense, I’m not sure I can make intense pieces,but maybe the audience will be disturbed by it. Controller (another new piece)is the longest. It explores video games and controllers. It’s a little bitmelodramatic, but it works in the show. Hourswas first performed in October 2010; it’s about the FDNY and September 11,2001. We performed it at a benefit dinner for the New Yorkfirefighters in Bothell, Washington. Kiss It Good-bye was performed in February of this year. It’s a comedyduet piece about dancers, a cliché. There’s always a story going on in mypieces and almost always a hopeful message because I want it to be uplifting.So Controller and Kiss it Good-bye will balance the other,more serious, pieces.

SD: What process are youusing with the new pieces and how has it been different from creating Hours and Kiss It Good-bye?

KHDP Company dancers Tori McConnell, Danny Boulet,
Katy Hagelin, and Courtney Dressner.
Photo by Whittaker Dunn

KH: Hours and Kiss It Good-byeare more like my typical work, they incorporate ballet and my style; they’re tocounts and it feel more like what I usually do. The difference with Purple Triangle // Purple Dagger isthat I made it up a year and a half ago. I knew exactly what I wanted and hadto get it out. Controller was waymore of a process. I had to study a lot of videogame avatars and the evil guys.I also studied a lot of kung fu moves. It’s been a process of mixing dance andfighting, and has been challenging because not only is it 17 minutes, but I alsohave three different characters. They can never dance together at the sametime, so teaching the humans, the avatars, and the bad guys, has been liketeaching 17 minutes of material for each character. It’s not typical of mywork, so I wonder what people will think; I hope they enjoy it. Fly through the air (another new piece)came to my mind when I listened to the music. That’s how I usually come up withmy choreography.

SD: Tell us about your musicchoices. You have used Go Periscope and other ambient electronic music; willyou be using something similar this time?

KH: Yes, I used Go Periscope in KissIt Good-bye; it’s more like techno-pop. For Purple Triangle // Purple Dagger I used Nils Petter Molvaer, he is ajazz trumpeter, but his music also sounds a bit middle-eastern. It fits thedreamy-like motif of the piece. Controllerhas music by Kodomo. He is aJapanese composer and his music definitely sounds like a video game. Idefinitely use ambient beats and did intend for the show to be contemporary,all a certain style of contemporary. I have done work with classical music inthe past though.

SD: From watching Hours, it seems like your dancers have astrong classical ballet background. Is this your background as well? How doesthe classical ballet aesthetic and technique weave its way into your work, andhow does it challenge contemporary thought?

Choreographer and dancer Katy Hagelin.
Photo by Whittaker Dunn

KH: Yes, I’m very classical.In college I really got into modern, but my body doesn’t fit modern, so I hadto learn how to mesh both styles in my body. I’ve come up with a weird stylethat mixes that. I’m in between both techniques and that’s how it comes out inchoreography. If the movement fits the theme and it happens to be a balletline, then I’ll put it in. I think that it all depends on the movement phrase; Hours is very leggy but it has floorwork as well. Not necessarily modern floor work, but floor work with lines. Iuse the legs but not necessarily basic technique like fifth or first position.

SD: What challenges did youface when founding the company and what challenges do you still come upagainst?

KH: Challenging things wereanswering questions concerning the business plan, like “what is the company about,what is its purpose?” For our first show, in April 2009, I hired a lot ofdancers from out of state that had danced with me. They eventually moved hereafter that to dance in Seattleand dance for me. Doing the PR work and fundraising is challenging. I teach andwork full time to make enough money for this. Sometimes I don’t have enoughtime to advertise my work, so at times I end up giving my own money for it.Rehearsal space is also difficult; I don’t have a residence space and it’schallenging to schedule my dancers as well. Because the dancers and I arelooking for opportunities in our career, not knowing whether my dancers willcontinue in the company is a challenge as well.

SD: What plans do you havefor the company? In which ways do you see it growing?

KH: I do see it growing, butI can see [my dancers] getting other opportunities and the momentum of thecompany changing. I’m excited aboutwhat I’m doing, and I would like to hire dancers out for a season. That way wecould meet weekly, in the sense of taking class together and have time to workon things with them without a deadline so they can learn how to dance together.

SD: If SeattleDances readerswould like to learn more about your choreography, where can they see videos ofyour work online?

KH: On Vimeo.com under KatyHagelin. Also my website: www.katyhagelin.com has a link to videos.

Occupy Black Friday: Dance Over Dollars at Westlake Center

2011-11-29T18:24:00.001-08:00

Written by Victoria Jacobs

Dancers perform in the Occupy Black Friday Flash Mob.

The day after Thanksgiving, countless families of shopperspoured into the stores in downtown Seattle in the pre-Christmas orgiasticspending event that has come to be called "Black Friday". What theydidn't expect to find was a tightly rehearsed group of forty dancers poundingthe streets and shopping mall floors with their feet, dancing in pure joy.Shoppers stopped in their tracks, their faces lighting up with delight, andwatched as the dancers performed a dance-team style unison routine to JessieJ's "Pricetag," Janet Jackson's "Rhythm Nation," and PatBenatar's "Invincible"—songs that spoke to the message the dancerswanted to share. (Sample lyric: We don't need your money; we just want to makethe world dance.) Brynne Flidais, the Flash Mob choreographer explainedthat the goal of the event was to “wake people up” and “provide an alternativeto shopping.”

The Occupy Black Friday Flash Mob happened in conjunctionwith Occupy Seattle's other alternatives to Black Friday: choral performancesby The Raging Grannies, a meditation spiral, and a Free Stuff tent. The first 7-minutemob took place in Westlake Park, where an event permit was help. Two differentnews channels caught the Mobs on tape.

During the second performance at Pacific Place, a securityguard approached the dancers in the first ten seconds. One flash mobber, AmyWeaver, played the soundtrack on a boombox held over her head while the firstteam of dancers, "Team Awesome," jumped into their routine. Thesecurity guard stood right next to Flidais and said, "Please movealong." "We're dancing here, sir," she said, and they dancedtheir piece through to the end.

Occupy Black Friday performers and friends.

In the third performance, a thrill of excitement ran throughWestlake Mall, and all three levels of shops were filled with onlookers peeringover the balconies to enjoy the performance on the ground floor. Rumor has itthat the security guards were conveniently "called to the thirdfloor" for the duration of the performance, returning only at the end ofdance to tell the flash mobbers they'd have to stop. As the performers packedup to go, the guard told Flidais that if they ever came back, they'd bearrested. "I'm banned for life from Westlake Mall," she laughs.

Flash Mobs make free dance available for the public, and therehearsals and step-by-step instructional videos make it possible for all thoseinterested to perform publically, and have a fun time doing it. There is astanding Flash Mob group in Seattle that does a 1,000-person annual ”Glee"Flash Mob, as well as smaller monthly mobs that any aspiring dancer can getinvolved with and enjoy dancing year round.

The Occupy Black Friday Flash Mob is unique because it was aprotest; they didn't have permits for two of their locations, and their dancingcame with a message: "Maybe we should re-evaluate the ways that we get joyin our society—going shopping with your kids? Or seeing a chorus of raginggrannies?" says Flidais. "Am I buying art or spending more money toget more stuff?" For 7 minutes, the dancers stopped the Black Fridayshopping crowds in their tracks and got them to enjoy something other than justspending money, which is a sweet gift.

More information about local Flash Mobs is available at www.mobtheworld.com.

Videos of the Occupy Black Friday Flash Mob here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dDshuVVgtAQ

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bsNgP-yBuA4

A Fresh Perspective on an Old Classic: PNB’s Nutcracker

2011-11-29T15:27:00.001-08:00

Written by MarikoNagashima

(Photo: Pacific Northwest Ballet corps de ballet dancer Andrew Bartee
as the Nutcracker in the fight scene from PNB's Stowell/Sendak Nutcracker.
Photo © Angela Sterling.)

With the effects of tryptophan from the Thanksgiving meal wearingoff and Black Friday shopping frenzy finally subsiding, in the dance world itcan only mean one thing: Nutcracker season. For ballet dancers and viewerseverywhere, this time of year brings a mixture of anxiety and tender nostalgiaat the perennial restaging of this now-institution of American ballet. In orderto gain a fresh perspective on this quintessential production, SeattleDancestook a completely new ballet-goer (let's call him NBG) to opening night of Pacific NorthwestBallet’s rendition of The Nutcracker, and asked for hisimpressions.

First and foremost, he felt overwhelmed. The colorful,cartoonish sets and costumes by Maurice Sendak, coupled with Randall G.Chiarelli’s splendid lighting and the hustle and bustle of Kent Stowell’schoreography in the party scene make for an impressive start indeed. “I wasshocked at how full the production was,” said NBG. “I was expecting it tolargely be two dancers on a bare stage wearing simple leotards, and was notexpecting all the auxiliary stage effects. I had to force myself to zoom outfrom time to time because there was so much going on.” This did, however, createa great appreciation for the calmer moments of solos and duets, the first ofwhich was danced delightfully by Maria Chapman and Seth Orza as Clara and thePrince. NBG found that the juxtaposition between the two extremes enhanced eachother, but particularly liked just being able to focus on individual dancers.

(Snow on stage! Pacific Northwest Ballet dancers
in the Kent Stowell/Maurice Sendak Nutcracker.
Photo © Angela Sterling.)

All the glitz and glamour, however, did prove effective atmaking the rather nonsensical nature of TheNutcracker story irrelevant for NBG. (Which is probably for the bestbecause really, how did we go from dancing in the snow, to a golden boat, to aMoorish land with a dictatorial Pasha to entertain us again?) “I wasn’t asinterested in where the story was actually going as much as what the next scenewould be,” said NBG. “Each scene was such a surprise. I was really moreinterested in the new characters.” He even cited the effectiveness ofDrosselmeier’s character, (played by Uko Gorter) in deciphering the confusingplot. “I could always defer to his character. His stage presence and body languageseemed to set the mood for each scene and where it was going.”

NBG was duly impressed by the sheer physicality andprecision of ballet. “Physically speaking, I was in awe. I could reallyappreciate what [the dancers] were doing with their bodies; all the high kicksand standing on toes just blew my mind.” Particularly interesting was his takeon the men’s dancing. Though struck by their extreme control and ability tokeep “perfect form while doing strenuous lifts and throws,” he also noted theexpressiveness of their movements. “I was impressed by the men’s ability toconvey aggression and strife while staying in such a rigid framework [ofmovement]. Even when they were fighting they were still graceful.” Theversatility of the art form was heretofore unknown to NBG, and he was impressedby the range of emotions that could be conveyed with such a codified language.

(Pacific Northwest Ballet School students in the
Kent Stowell/Maurice Sendak Nutcracker.
Photo © Angela Sterling.)

While the technical prowess of a professional dancer may bestriking for anyone new to ballet, even a seasoned ballet go-er would be impressedby the children in PNB’s production. Their ability to perform “without teacherstelling them which way to go and to have thousands watching them on openingnight was very impressive,” said NBG. “The children were so coordinated andexecuted everything so effortlessly.”

What we Sugarplum-jaded ballet go-ers often overlook is thefact that for many, The Nutcracker istheir first taste of ballet, for better or for worse. With its familiar musicand accessible holiday charm, it may feel the least intimidating of ballets toattend. And, as one of the only productions that ballet companies actually makea profit from, one hopes it is alluring enough to tempt audiences to take achance on seeing other ballets that lie outside the holiday appeal. What ultimatelyseemed to shine through to NBG was the unmistakable commitment, which thedancers conveyed, to their art. “Ballet is a very refined art, but within thatframework there’s definitely passion there,” he said. Though perhaps not hookedcompletely, NBG said he would definitely see another ballet, proving that forthis holiday season at least, there’s one less nut to crack.

Pacific Northwest Ballet's The Nutcracker runs through December 27th. Tickets are available at http://www.pnb.org/Season/11-12/Nutcracker/

Preview: zoe|juniper’s A Crack in Everything

2011-11-28T15:18:00.001-08:00

Written by Victoria Jacobs

(Photo: Zoe Scofield, Raja Kelly and Christiana Axelsen of zoe|juniper.
©2010 Christopher Duggan)

Local duo zoe|juniper, Zoe Scofield and Juniper Shuey, haveinvestigated their latest work during two years of residencies all over theworld—the MacDowell Colony in New Hampshire,Stella Adler's in New York, Jacob's Pillow in Massachusetts, Budapest, New Zealand—thelist goes on. To top it off, Scofield received the prestigous Princess Graceaward for choreographers, along with another hometown hero Olivier Wevers of WhimW'him (see SeattleDance’s conversation with these awardees. It's a proud momentfor Seattledance enthusiasts. "Seattleoffers opportunities that no other city does—it's an incubator, anurturer," Scofield says.

The harvest of these two years of hard work is A Crack in Everything, a stark,splintered, hour-long exploration of time combining Scofield's uniquechoreography with Shuey's videography and art direction. ACIE is inspired by the Oresteia, a Greek trilogy, and themes oftime, revenge, and "how we get caught in the cycles of things."

The preview in Velocity's Founders Studio-Theater offeredglimpses into the strikingly wrought work. Films from an installation versionof the piece (to be fully expanded in a 14,000 square foot space in Houston in 2012) showedthe corps of dancers pasted with flaking gold leaf and dressed in gowns thatresembled medieval chainmail and armor. They turned and marched in tightformation, gazing straight ahead and gesturing in unison. Another film subtlyprojected on the white studio curtain depicted a ghostly outline of a slowlymoving dancer.

Later, Shuey drew back the curtain to reveal clear plastic withred tape coveringthe mirror on the wall. Scofield stretched and contorted in front of themirror, tracing her own changing outline with a red paint pen; as she finishedone outline and moved, the figure gained multiple arms and heads, then began tooverlap as she moved across the space. Scofield and Shuey developed thissection in one of their intensive residencies. It captures the ephemeralityof movement by pinning it to drawn form;painted side by side on the wall, the different moments now occursimultaneously; Scofield's moving figure dances across the wall in the outlinedimages."Within a linear, time-based work, we wanted to blow aparttime," she explained. The same section featured Raja Kelly dancing animpressive solo of spine arches and surprising contractions, his jointsconspiring in unusual combinations and his eyes glaring like a nocturnal animalsnared in a flashlight. Scofield's movement vocabulary is highly stylized andKelly transforms his body into using her corners and undulating gangly-nesswith easy.

The second vignette showcased New York-based CristianaAxelson, who has worked with Scofield since 2005, dancing with focus andclarity in front of a video projection of rolling gray clouds à la Seattle winter. Axelson stayed ina small area of the stage, switching in and out of rotation and lying on thefloor, and she finished in a grand pliébefore sinking one flexed knee to the ground. The dance was controlledand understated compared to the drama of the accompanying classical music.

zoe|juniper have a unique and complementary collaborativerelationship. Shuey shoots the films but Scofield edits them together. Scofieldmakes the movement, while Shuey creates the space with video, sound, and set.Although the preview was tech-light, the directors and dancers promise thefinal show is 50-50 dance and design. Shuey’s fingerprints will be everywherein how the work occupies the space. "I don't want to define the edges, butrather let them blend out into the world," he says after the preview."That way, you're occupying it more. You involve the audience. Youmake the space be filled up by your imagination as much as what's reallythere."

Much more is in store at the Seattle premiere of A Crack in Everything December 1–4 at On the Boards. Buy tickets atontheboards.org.

Seattle Royalty: Interviews with Three Princess Grace Award Winners

2011-11-26T20:26:00.001-08:00

Written by Steve Ha and Mariko Nagashima

(Photo: Seattle choreographer Olivier Wevers
at the Princess Grace Awards Gala)

For almostthirty years the Princess Grace Foundation-USA has recognized emerging talentsin theatre, dance, and film, helping these artists fulfill their goals withscholarship and fellowship awards. This year, Seattle is home to three Princess Grace Awardrecipients: Olivier Wevers (artistic director of Whim W’Him and formerprincipal with PNB) and Zoe Scofield (artistic director of zoe│juniper), whoboth received choreography fellowships, and Margaret Mullin (corps dancer withPNB), who received a dance fellowship. These three Seattleites were honored,along with 18 other recipients, at a black tie gala Tuesday, November 1^stin New York City.SeattleDances recently had the opportunity to sit down with the threerecipients to offer our belated congratulations on their latest honors and tohear about their reactions to the award, what they’re planning next, and theirthoughts on dance in Seattle.

The PrincessGrace Foundation-USA was founded by Prince Rainier III of Monaco as atribute to his wife’s legacy after her death in 1982. Since its inception, theFoundation has awarded over $8.5 million to roughly 600 theater, dance, andfilm artists across the U.S. Mullin, Scofield, and Wevers will join the ranksof dancers Carlos Acosta, Gillian Murphy, and choreographers Victor Quijada andAlex Ketley, with this honor.

Though Seattle has boastedseveral Princess Grace Award recipients for dance in the past, this is thefirst time a local choreographer has received this honor. To have two in thesame year, only speaks to the thriving nature of Seattle’s dance scene. It seems that Seattle’s reputation as adance destination is continuing to grow; these awards act as testaments to theamount of innovation present in the city. To the outside world it is becomingmore and more apparent that in this rainy corner of the country, great danceand choreography are a priority.

MargaretMullin

(Pacific Northwest Ballet corps de ballet dancer Margaret Mullin in
A Midsummer Night’s Dream, choreography by George Balanchine
© The George Balanchine Trust.
Photo © Angela Sterling)

Margaret Mullinis the type of dancer who rises above a love for the art and distinguishesherself as one who is passionate for it. Though she received the Princess GraceAward specific to dancers, it’s clear that the selection committee also saw herambitious nature and her holistic view of ballet that necessitates more than anillustrious career as a performer. Initially nominated by Peter Boal, Mullinwas already amidst rehearsals for PNB’s new production of Giselle, performances of Balanchine’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and choreographing a piece for NEXTSTEP, PNB’s student showcase, when she also began work on her application forthe Princess Grace Award.

Introduced toher by one of her mentors, Amanda McKerrow, Mullin had long dreamed of winningthe award and even found the application process itself an illuminatingexperience. When asked for an essay on one of two prompts, she selected both,and when it came time to submit videos of her dancing, Mullin chose tohighlight her versatility and not virtuosity in selections that ranged fromBalanchine’s Emeralds to the modernand peculiar work by Marco Goecke. “I am proud to say that I won without doinga single pirouette,” she said, laughing. “I actually would have been pleased ifI hadn’t have won because I put a lot of effort into the essay, and the videowas a great reflection of who I am as a dancer—it felt really good to put thatout into the universe to just say that this is actually who I am, and I didn’thave to change anything to win it.” Mullin also credits McKerrow for more thanjust introducing the award to her, having also received philosophical guidanceon the life of an artist: “I was always inspired by her because she’s soemotionally powerful and I never wanted to be just a body on stage or atechnician.”

Invigorated bythe sense of security the award provides, Mullin feels more ready than ever topursue other interests in the field of dance, including choreography andmentorship. During PNB’s student showcase, Mullin was the only femalechoreographer to have work presented, and, as she continues to develop hervoice as a choreographic artist, she also recognizes the need to empower womenin ballet. Mullin aims to create outreach programs that work with young girlson breaking past the idea of disposability. Having received the foundation ofher training from Mary Beth Cabana at the Ballet Arts School in Tucson,Arizona, Mullin had the great fortune of learning her craft in a matriarchalenvironment where women held all leadership positions, directing Ballet Tucson,teaching all the classes, and doing all the choreography. Mullin recognizes theenduring influence of Cabana (who continues to direct Ballet Tucson): “Foreverything I want to accomplish, it’s great that I grew up in an atmosphere ofwatching this incredible woman build and run a school and a company on her own,in a community that doesn’t even really support [the arts and ballet]. Seeinghow hard [the women of Ballet Tucson] work all the time to keep the companyafloat gives me so much more motivation to be [in Seattle] where it’s such awell-oiled machine.”

Joining theranks of world class dancers Seattle is committed to bringing in, dancing forPNB is the realization of a dream and Mullin relishes it: “Seattle has a lot of loyalty and I thinkthat’s why I love performing here so much, because I’m not just a body onstage. People get to know you and your career and it shows how much the supportof the community means to us.” Recognizing how important support has beenthroughout her life is exactly what fuels Mullin’s desire to be “a good rolemodel and encourage young girls to be strong and forceful [as ballerinas].”Though Mullin exudes grace and charm onstage, she has fierce commitment to hergoals with copious amounts of perspective. With the Princess Grace Awardproviding the platform to branch out, Mullin is poised for success in all ofher endeavors, despite having only a few years as a professional dancer so far.It is with great excitement that Seattleaudiences can look forward to watching these developments unfold in the yearsto come.

OlivierWevers

(Dancers Andrew Bartee and Vincent Lopez in "Monster"
by Olivier Wevers
Photography by BambergFineArt.com)

For OlivierWevers, the path to Princess Grace Award recipient first began with anomination by Peter Boal, but due to Wevers’s participation in workshops thatwere considered performances by the Princess Grace Foundation, his applicationwas disqualified for having exceeded the number of professional works allowedto be made for the company that nominated him. Wevers’s second nomination camefrom Donald Byrd (Artistic Director of Spectrum Dance Theater). Wevers wassurprised when a foundation representative informed him that he had beenselected as a winner. As Artistic Director of his own company, the vibrant WhimW’Him, Wevers is resolute in his choreographic process, noting that theprestige of the award hasn’t changed his identity or how he works, but it hascertainly increased awareness of his work and accelerated relationships he hadwith people who can aid him in meeting his artistic goals.

Although WhimW’Him has been performing to sold-out houses, Wevers remains in the process ofbuilding the company, aspiring to hire his own full-time dancers and have hisown studio where he can create. Though his wishes are simple, it’s a journeyweighed down by administrative tasks and fund-raising, an arduous amount ofwork to be doing while simultaneously creating new works. Still, the desire forsuccess and the insatiable need to create meaningful dances is always apparentin Whim W’Him’s impassioned director, resulting in rave reviews for allperformances. The draw to see fresh and colorful contemporary ballet is notonly apparent in the audiences, but in the dancers themselves—coincidentally,Whim W’Him’s company members include two other Princess Grace Award winners inLucien Postlewaite and Andrew Bartee, and Wevers isn’t afraid of recognizingtheir perspectives in collaborating with them or any of his dancers. In workingwith such high caliber artists, Wevers says, “It has been very intuitive, and Ithink what’s important is that everybody respects each other so I don’t feelvulnerable when I say ‘hey—what did you just do?’” adding that “it inspires meto give something and see where someone goes [with it].” Although eager in hismission to find more time and opportunities for his dancers, Wevers is alsomindful of the quality of his work. “It’s important for me that nothing that Iproduce and put on stage is disposable—that at some point, [my pieces] shouldbe performed again.”

Wevers is alsohappy to call Seattle(and more specifically the Intiman Theater, thanks to a new residency contract)home. By receiving national and international recognition, Wevers is enjoyinghis role in helping to establish Seattleas a prime locale for dance, grateful for the support of a community thatvalues the arts. “What’s wonderful about Seattleis that [Whim W’Him feels] very comfortable here and the support that we haveis enabling us to go further.” What makes a true community is a web of supportthat goes in many directions, and while he is wary of expectations, Wevers ishonored by the prospect of younger artists finding inspiration in hisachievements as a choreographer and winner of a Princess Grace Award.Furthermore, in order to engage audiences more closely he is developing acommunity outreach program and scheduling opportunities to view his creativeprocess, which is “personal and volatile” but necessary, he feels. Wevers wantsto show people the distinction between art and business in that things likeideas, feelings, and emotions aren’t secure and being trained to do somethingisn’t the same as knowing how to do it. Though it scares him more and more toshow that type of vulnerability, Seattleis better for it, and with the Princess Grace Award comes a sense of freedom topursue everything he envisions.

Zoe Scofield


(Zoe Scofield with dancers Anna Schon and Raja Kelly in A Crack In Everything.©2010 Christopher Duggan)

Zoe Scofieldmade her debut on the Seattledance scene in 2005 with a piece in the Northwest New Works Festival at On theBoards. Her distinctive work is a cohesive blend of visual art installations(created by partner Juniper Shuey) and her own unique movement style which hasbecome well-known in the region and across the country for being at theforefront of avant-garde dance. Scofield has since been commissioned to createworks for Spectrum Dance Theater, the Frye Art Museum,and Ten Tiny Dances, and has performed pieces at Jacob’s Pillow and the BatesDance Festival. She credits much of this recognition and exposure to On theBoards who have been “unwavering champions and supporters of us, on a regional,national, and international level. The relationship we’ve formed has been a newway of looking at things between presenters and artists.” It is thisaffiliation with On the Boards that made their latest work, A Crack in Everything possible, bygranting the company a week to tech the sound and visual elements crucial tothe piece, before taking it on tour. Excerpts of ACIE have been performed throughout its development, it was firstseen in its entirety this summer at Jacobs Pillow and will make its Seattle debut at On theBoards the first weekend of December. And though Scofield splits her timebetween New York and Seattle(as most of her dancers live on the East Coast) she maintains that “[Seattle] is a reallyexciting place to be because of that relationship.”

Scofield wasnominated for the Princess Grace Award by Diverse Works Arts Space in Houston, Texas,who is commissioning her next project. This new work, which Scofield says is“under the same umbrella” as ACIE,will premiere in Houstonin January 2012. She describes it as an exploration of memory and how eachpiece eventually becomes three pieces: one as its happening in time in space,one in the audience’s and performer’s minds as they watch or experience ithappening, and one in their memories that they automatically recreate in theirminds to contextualize the work. The money received from the award will gotowards further research and development of this intriguing concept as well ascreating the accompanying installation. And though this plan was already inplace when she applied for the award, Scofield says that because the award wasso freely given, she feels a great degree of creative freedom to explore thisconcept as she wishes.

Noting how Seattle can be a ratherisolating place for a choreographer, she feels the award lends a sense ofcredibility to her work, “a sense of value [and that] I am on the right path.”Right path, indeed, as apparently Scofield is a distant relative of PrincessGrace herself. “My aunt showed me the family tree after [I received] the award,and it’s a tenuous connection…she was a cousin of my grandfather’s.” While thefamily history may be tenuous, Scofield’s work and her much deservedrecognition is anything but.

Humbled by theprestigious recognition, Scofield acknowledges that “of all the arts, dance isthe most community-based. No choreographer is the sole entity of their ownwork.” From this stems her strong desire to acknowledge the people who’vesupported and continued to support her. As for what this portends for the Seattle dance community, perhapsScofield says it best: “I can make work; anyone can make work. But if I don’thave money I can’t. I hope that financially [Seattle] rises to the occasion as well.” Itseems that institutions across the country are beginning to recognize Seattle’s artisticingenuity, and now is the time for the community itself to support its owncreative minds.

LINES Ballet: Passion Beyond Technique at Meany Hall

2011-11-20T09:29:00.001-08:00

Written by VictoriaJacobs

(Alonzo King LINES "Dust and Light"
Photo by Marty Sohl)

It is not simply the technical prowess, extensions, andspins, nor the releases, curves, body rolls, and the wildly inventive partneringthat make the dancers of Alonzo King’s LINES Ballet appear to move in ways nohuman has moved before. It is their incredible presence, the plainness and heatand joy they're bringing to the moment. The lines they carve with their armsand legs sliced the expanse of Meany Hall’s auditorium this Thursday evening (November17); their presence, whether they're walking, spinning, or leaping into theair, is personal and human. These are artists in their prime, not only asdancers but as whole people, bringing their whole selves into a performancepractice.

This weekend's performance of Dust and Light and Scheherazade,both created in 2009, is a must-see. Dust and Light opens the showwith a series of 13 overlapping duets and trios set to Baroque music byCorelli. The dancers, in a range of green briefs and leotards, curve, fall, andextend through surprising juxtapositions for a ballet program—full extensionsand a flexed foot, falling partnering, women bearing men's weight, and a beardeddanseur with a short purple skirt and a limitless range (David Harvey)who is one of the most surprising and finest movers seen this year.Meredith Webster, who has Seattleroots, is also remarkable for the unpretentious and elegant figure she cuts on stage;the plainness and honesty of her presence infuse her dancing with calm.

(Alonzo King LINES "Scheherazade"
Photo by RJ Muna)

The highly formal music is a good frame to hold and contrastthe LINES dance style, which flows between supreme formality, the emotionalityof contraction and undulation, and the scrappiness of raw movement—a full rangeof human expression, complete with stumbles and falls, that is moreilluminating of who the dancers are than their razor sharp technical perfection.Alonzo King says, "When you're choreographing, you're excavating. You'renot thinking about right and wrong, but about 'what can I do?' There's light inthe body already."

The second half of the program, Scheherazade, is fullof sensuality, fantastic story-telling, violence, and an air of magic, whichare complemented by the company's range of vocabulary. The soundtrack iscomposed by Indian tabla master Zakir Hussain, who reinterpretedRimsky-Korsakov's score on percussion and ancient Persian instruments. Scheherazade is pushed into anotherworldly realm with Robert Rosenwasser's moving fabric sets and fascinatingdripping lights that are so mystical they actually steal the attention awayfrom the dancers for a moment. Rosenwasser restrains the drape and cut of thecostumes to reveal and accentuate the dancers' bodies ("I like to see thebody, its breath, its internal nuances," King says), but occasionally thecostumer cuts loose: a peacock-feather tutu, teardrop-shaped striped pants.

Dancer Keelan Whitmore is stunning as a wind-whipping,undulating dervish. The company swirls like a dizzying sandstorm, helping oneanother to fly, entwining like graces, and sweeping the stage in lines andclumps of bodies. Some company members seem to be more adept at releasing theweight of their heads, which lends ecstasy to their movement, whereas a fewdancers are tied to uprightness—a holdover from classical ballet training.

(Alonzo King LINES "Scheherazade"
Photo by RJ Muna)

In the after-show Q&A, King is highly articulate andclearly a master of his medium; he's exploring all the possibilities of thebody, the whole self, to present a company of dancers who are each unique intheir dance personalities. He says, "Life trains us...to be the same humanbeing at the barre, onstage, offstage, after the show...to be someone who isplain, just singing their song." There has long been an idea that dancersshould be an "empty vessel" for choreographers to fill with theirvision, but King isn't interested in that. "You want the artist to comewith their genius," he says. "You want to work with a genius."That embrace of the quirkiness of human possibility and the expanse of personalinvention is what makes LINES Ballet unlike any other.

Hankins and Wallich Split Bill A Powerful Debut

2011-11-19T12:03:00.001-08:00

Written by MarikoNagashima

(Dancer Erica Badgeley. Photo by Tim Summers)

While both Allie Hankins and Kate Wallich have been giventhe nebulous title of “emerging choreographers,” with their split bill thisFriday and Saturday evening (November 18 and 19, 2011) at Velocity Dance Center, it’s fair to saythat both artists have fully “emerged.” The works presented were raw yet cohesive,sophisticated yet edgy, firmly establishing each as artists in their own right.

Hankins opened the show with her solo work, Like a Sun That Pours Forth Light but NeverWarmth, based on her exploration of the legendary dancer Vaslav Nijinsky.Hankins captured Nijinsky’s magnetic stage presence, acknowledged his extremevirtuosity, and addressed his mental instability all with her blend of quirky,stylized movement. In a departure from the normal proscenium seating, the spacewas arranged with the audience lining both the front and left side of the studiotheater. By boxing in the stage, the set-up created a focal point (at what isnormally the upstage right corner), from which a swath of red fabric spilled dramaticallyto the floor. When the lights rose, Hankins sat resolutely upright on thisfabric runway, topless, with her back to the audience. She moved almost imperceptiblyto arch her back, chest rising to the ceiling, a picture of tension-riddledgrace.

After gently patting gold glitter across her bare upperchest, her arms appeared controlled by an outside power as they sliced the air.The rest of her torso trailed after as if distantly observing her ownappendages. Alluding to Nijinsky’s schizophrenia with a shifting mask ofexpressions, her face finally melted in relief as her hands touched behind herneck in a moment of calm. Later, Hankins compulsively repeated a phrase,escalating in time with Ravel’s “Bolero.” These pointed repetitions echo theyearning toward perfection inherent in dance, with which Nijinsky doubtlesslystruggled. Each iteration brought a slightly different accent, an elongatedarch here, a crisper turn there, but all ended equally abruptly with Hankinspacing back to her starting point. Reflexively ticking her arms at odd angles,she began to hop repeatedly. In a nod to the famous danseur’s ability to hoverin the air, Hankins jumped indefatigably higher and higher, until, just when itseemed impossible for her to maintain such elevation, the lights brusquely wentout.

(Dancers Kate Wallich, Matt Drews and Erica Badgeley
in rehearsal for "Room with Themes."
Photo by Lena Simon)

Similar in intensity but entirely different in subjectmatter, Wallich’s work, Room with Themes featureda cast of five talented dancers. Entering the stage during intermission, thedancers sprawled across the floor in various positions, moving gently as ifstill warming up; Lena Simon’s composition of insistent chimes and fuzzy staticplayed in the background. This unnecessarily protracted intro left the audienceunsure of whether or not to be attentive, until the lights finally dimmed to aglow in the center of the stage. While the work had no narrative, it examinedthe necessity of shifting relationships when possibilities are restricted. Throughspecific patterning and movement choices, Wallich constructed invisible boundariesthat the dancers grasped and shattered. Beginning with a solo, energy rippledthrough Wallich’s limbs, small and large movement flowing forth like a streamof consciousness; the effect heightened by a contrasting rigidity through herneck. Dancer Lavinia Vago created a vortex of barely restrained tension and farreaching extensions in her ensuing solo. All five dancers coalesced as thestatic intensified; with a burst they ducked lower, as if hit by a force-fieldradiating from the center of their group. This concept was repeated at differentpoints across the stage, the performers forging spatial connections only tohave them broken. A similar cycle continued through several dynamic duets andsolos, only to have the quintet regroup with a series of heavy hops,perfunctory arms, fleeting arabesque lines, and militaristic walks.

The dancers assaulted the space with the force of their movement,yet maintained the control to precisely stop their trajectory, retracting andinstantaneously redirecting their elastic energy. Their remarkablesynchronicity, even through tics of motion at break-neck speed, stemmed from acollective energy almost visibly pulsing between them. Room remained tight without feeling forced, with an intentionalitybehind each movement that lent extra depth to the steps.

A potent example of dance at its most raw and powerful,Wallich and Hankins both, are extraordinary talents who will doubtlessly continueto make their mark on the Seattledance scene. This performance can be seen again tonight, November 19, at Velocity DanceCenter at 8 PM. Tickets are $15 at the door.

Inside the Warehouse: Sixth Day Dance Examines Internal Landscapes

2011-11-18T12:11:00.001-08:00

Written by VictoriaMcConnell

(Photo courtesy of Sixth Day Dance)

Audience members were immediately immersed in Sixth DayDance’s “Warehouse Project,” uponentering the raw industrial-like space of Westlake Dance Centerthis November 12 and 13. Candle light and dancers lined the hall to thein-studio performance area where Artistic Director Angela Schaefer and companymembers created an atmosphere of stripped-down simplicity. Clearly a dancecompany with a mission, Sixth Day Dance’s desire to impact and uplift peopleplayed out in their choreography and community outreach at Sunday evening’sperformance, with a discount offered to attendees who brought donations for theLake City Food Bank.

Floating, falling hand gestures and candles initiatedmovement in Dawn in the Midst of Shadowchoreographed by Assistant Artistic Director Holly Logan. Self-comforting thenshoving and swinging arms and hands grew into full body movements that swirled through the space. These hand andshoulder motions threaded throughout the piece, as dancers wrestled withinternal fears and external choices. Still tossed about by her own gestures,the final dancer stepped out of the “cycle that allows ourselves to avoid whatis difficult or frightening” (from program notes) to relight her candle andexit.

Natural Disaster,created by Katie Borthwick (assisted by Schaefer), was unexpected andrefreshing in its intensity. The bare stage with only a black wood box, asingle dancer, and two flashlights effectively generated an atmosphere oftension, ferocity, and release. Confined to the top of the box, Borthwickintertwined modern dance vocabulary with the angles and vigor of break-dance-styledmovement. Illuminated only by rotating flashlights and accompanied by musicremixed by Glitch Mob, Natural Disasterarrested the viewers’ attention with alternating imagery of a caged animal anda desperate human outcry.

Mixing athletic movements and emotional rhythms, Schaefercollaborated with the dancers on Box.Driven by text, dancers’ words impelled the piece forward. With “boxes we makefor ourselves or others” the focal point from beginning to end, dancers spoketheir “boxes” and danced their insecurities in groups, pairs, and solos. Wordsand movement reached the crescendo as adancer trapped behind the wall of boxes prayed for release from self-loathinglabels and was then catapulted through the wall to be partnered in the centerof the box-littered stage. This dramatic moment was the impetus needed to allowall the dancers to destroy their boxes. Boxculminated in a relieved sigh as the whole company stood atop flattened boxes,literally breaking down their limitations.

Tesee George of Dance Contemporary choreographed Remember Me, employing the whole companyand guest artist Kristina Chamberlain. Unclear at first, the subtle movements of dancers gradually revealedthey were part of the soloist’s internal dialogue. As Chamberlain’s movements wokethe company dancers who frenetically hit her like anxious thoughts, sheltercame only from partnering with the young man, Julian Young. Confident andcentered from the duet with Young, Chamberlain freely explored the space in afluid adagio of ballet-inspired lines and smooth développés. Inthe end, the corps attempted, but was unable, to hurl themselves into the nowconfident soloist, leaving viewers with metaphors of empowerment and safetythrough relationships.

Though short in length, the performance did not lack inconscientious focus on the up-close stage of “Warehouse Project.” Whether usingchoreographic concepts, program notes, or props, Sixth Day Dance strives toimpart meaning to each piece they present in order to impact the audience andcommunity positively. To find out more about Sixth Day Dance’s communityinvolvement and upcoming performances, visit www.sixthdaydance.org.

Faye Driscoll: The Intimacy of Creative Play

2011-11-17T22:37:00.001-08:00

Written by VictoriaJacobs

(Photo: Faye Driscoll and Jesse Zaritt in
Faye Driscoll's not...not, part I, Gotham Dance Festival
The Joyce Theater, June 4, 2011
Photo by Christopher Duggan)

On the cold Sunday night of November 13th, Faye Driscoll and Jesse Zarrettpresented their work-in-progress piece Not...notto a full house in Velocity's cozy, warm Founders Studio Theater. The finishedwork will premiere in April 2012 at the Kitchen in New York City.

The set was a ‘V’ of white tape ending downstage center,where costume pieces were piled under pink tulle. Vases of flowers sat ateither side of the stage. The duo began upstage left in stillness, andgradually made their way toward center stage, spasming, bobbling likemarionettes, smiling gleefully, and moving just as easily through tendusand Greek sculptural poses. Though the pairing of a man and woman onstageimmediately suggests "romantic couple" to most viewers, they movedthrough and past that supposition; their male and female identities wereflip-flopped, juggled, stretched thin enough to be transparent, and cast aside.Their unique and rigorous vocabulary used acts of strength and submission,tender touch, subtle weight sharing, and gendered gestures. They moved swiftlythrough different moods and identities, now briefly sharing a quiet, intimatediscussion, now throwing a childish tantrum punctuated by thrusting andpunching the air; as one moved into a new disco dance or flamboyant pose towardthe audience, the other seamlessly joined in.

The first half culminated with Driscoll straddling Zarrett'sback at the pile of props and costumes, where he passed them up to her and sherapidly inhabited one identity after another—male, female, wigged, bearded,funny, veiled, anxious, sweaty, brave. She threw aside each costume piece asquickly as Zarrett handed them to her, strewing the stage with a mess ofdiscarded characters. She stood aside to see Zarrett gaping at her final pose,and he quietly clapped for her.

The second half of the performance was composed ofunfinished vignettes. They rearranged the props around the stage asnon-preciously as one takes care of all the minutia of household chores; theprops revealed themselves in a straight line down center stage and in a littlepicnic setup stage left, where Zarrett and Driscoll shared a meal whilesoundlessly having a discussion—or perhaps an argument. After eating, theycrossed the center line to the open space stage right where they each took onprop identities; he in a beard, she in a bra and glasses. Vibrant, layeredmusic filled the room as they faced off and took turns dancing toward and awayfrom each other. In another sketch, they both took wigs in their mouths, herswith red yarn and his with blond hair, and they circled each other, barking,clawing, and chewing, and when he seemed to attack her, she fell to the groundand began wailing in surprisingly deep sorrow.

The hallmarks of the work were raw honesty and reference tothe audience paired with the playful, animal revelations of a completely open,trusting relationship. It felt as if the audience had been invited into a placeas intimate as the bedroom. The work was obviously the result of a "rich,investigative process," as Zarrett mentioned after the show. Driscoll saidshe began with the question of "what is beauty to me?" and researcheddifferent creation myths. She said she was "interested in the slippage ofself, the co-emergence of identity, and the daily performance, the dance I doaround certain people." Her research is rigorous, specific, and totallyunique to the quirky human beings revealing themselves onstage.

Not...not didn't get as dark as it could have, butDriscoll and Zarrett did create the kind of intimacy, common language, andtrust with the audience that they could have gone there—and perhaps still will.An audience member commended their commitment to each transformation, whereineven a cliche character didn't have cliche energy. As Driscoll said, "Itcould be very dark or very trite; I'mdealing with it in as honest a way as I can. People might get uncomfortable ordisgusted, but I'm not trying to be like ‘F- you!’ I'm trying to transformthrough performance."

“Wing of Egress” Offers Two Distinct Works

2011-11-14T21:33:00.001-08:00

Written by KristenLegg

(Photo: Natascha Greenwalt Murphy and Danny Boulet.
Photo by Ernie Sapiro)

There were ups and downs in Coriolis Dance Collective’s“Wing of Egress,” presented at the Erickson Theater Off-Broadway November11–12, 2011. The company presented two works in their season opener: Tethered Apparitions and try to hover (or Private Practice #7). Whileone left the viewer with more questions than answers and the other needed a bitmore development, both works highlighted different strengths of this talentedgroup of dancers.

In Natascha Greenwalt Murphy’s Tethered Apparitions, the strength, suppleness, and beauty of thesix performers was quite evident. Each muscle and created angle of the body wasdisplayed beautifully in this 25 minute work. With legs that went for miles,gorgeously extended arches, and perfectly placed lines, there was never an uglymoment. The dancers’ beauty was elevated even more by Dave Proscia’s lighting. Ina perfect mix of shadow and light, performers Andrea Larreta and DannyBoulet hovered eerily in a duet, whileMarissa Quimby’s solo in a long lace gown appeared antiqued.

(Dancers Marissa Quimby, Andrea Larreta, and
Alana O'Farrell Rogers. Photo by Ernie Sapiro)

The missing element from this dance work was a tangiblestory or centralized idea. The dancers entered holding beautifully constructed,lantern-like light boxes, which they moved throughout the space during thework. After many angst-filled duets, Quimby’s tortured solo, and contemplativegroup work, a sudden playful duet between Murphy and Boulet seemed out ofplace. Another group section featured Larreta and Joel Meyers in an almostaggressive duet, but the piece ended too sharply with Larreta dancing alone atcenter stage, the others lighting her with their lanterns.

What TetheredApparitions lacked in direction, it made up for in unique partnering.Murphy’s ability to create winding, surprising, and wonderfully linear lifts isquite inspiring. In one, Boulet gracefully lifted the tall, leggy Murphy fromthe floor to a perch on his shoulders in less than a second—the audience sure they just witnessedmagic. Another partnering sequence has Larreta in a forced-arch attitude, Myersviolently spinning her by the wrist.

The second work of the evening, Christin Call’s try tohover (or Private Practice #7), depicted the pitfalls in maintaining mentalstability and health. In this multi-disciplinary piece Call used spoken word,projected images, well-crafted set design, and pedestrian movement intermixedwith her quirky, balletic choreographic style to present a moving andtheatrical work. While a bit muddled in the middle, the message presented wasclear and well-designed.

The few ruined moments were mostly due to manipulation of apair of large, sturdy benches and bright, red head elevation pillows. Calloften used the choreography to mask changes in the stage layout, but, sadly,this often distracted from the work. For instance, costumed Boulet and Meyershad to carry the benches on before the work began, which took away so much fromthe beauty and surprise of the opening image—the benches being leaned back,taking Quimby and guest performer Victoria McConnell from standing to lying ina make-shift bed. Later, Meyers removed his hospital gown to dance a raw,emotion-filled solo, only to be upstaged by the shifting of benches andscratching of the pillows being Velcro-ed in place.

(Marissa Quimby and former Coriolis dancer Sylvain Boulet
Photo by Ernie Sapiro)

Here, again, for all the things that didn’t work quiteperfectly in try to hover, there wasso much that did. Call evoked true emotion from her performers. Images such as:Larreta lining up pill bottles, throwing her body off benches with abandon, andsilencing her words by stuffing a pill bottle in her mouth; Quimby’s long spinecontorting and bending in ways so powerful and twisted, one can only feel painand confusion in watching her; Boulet’s final walk along the benches into abright unknown, never looking back, yet still visibly unsure of what’s to come.

What is so fantastic about Coriolis Dance Collective istheir ability to constantly change. Each performance is a new experience, eachwork they present a landmark in their development as artists, performers, and asa group.

Book Review: Stephen Manes’ "Where Snowflakes Dance and Swear: Inside the Land of Ballet"

2011-11-09T14:07:00.000-08:00

Written by RosieGaynor

(Photo: Lucien Postlewaite and Noelani Pantastico in
Roméo et Juliette, 2008. Photo by AngelaSterling)

There’s something for everyone in Stephen Manes’ 860-pagebook about Pacific Northwest Ballet. The only problem is searching through thethick layers to find it. One could, of course, use the handy 15-page index tohelp zero in on topics of interest. (Gossip?Dirt? Neither of those words isactually listed in the index, sorry to disappoint.)

But those who rely on the index-method of reading this bookwill miss one of the book’s main points: ballet is about many different thingsdone by many different people over the course of many different days. On thegood side for all readers, Manes’ comfortable writing voice, apt word choice,and sense of phrasing make the pages go by more quickly than might be expected.

To research this book, Manes logged a whopping 1,000+ hours of observation, mostly at PNB.He chose the fabulous 2007/2008 season—the one that gave Seattle PNB debuts ofMaillot’s Roméo et Juliette, Tharp’s In the Upper Room, Dove’s Vespers, and Forsythe’s One Flat Thing, reproduced, and more.That much glory doesn’t get created without some drama backstage, and Manesreports on a fair share of it.

PNB gave Manes seemingly free run of the place, and heresponded with play-by-plays of rehearsals, budget meetings—even castingsessions. He did an excellent job getting to—and listening to—many of the folksinvolved at PNB. Some of those interviewed get their own interludes; Manestucks their stories into various chapters like satisfying coffee breaks. He isnot averse to quotes: readers get to hear a lot of individual voices. It’sexciting to hear the stagers and choreographers react to and reshape thedancers’ movements. It’s fun to hear the sometimes creative, sometimes cattychatter on the backstage headsets. And it’s good to hear the dancers’ voices—tosee how they match or differ from the dancers’ onstage personas.

The quotes are often colorful and energetic, giving a goodfeel for what it’s like to be an observer in the studio. Some quotes would be improved through paraphrasing. Some quotessuffer without adequate contextualization. In the rehearsal scenes, more visualcues and specific descriptions of movement would help the stagers’ and dancers’comments be more powerful and give the reader more insight into the ballet inquestion. Sometimes just the name of a step could help. For example, when PeterBoal explains to a class that “You want to feel your knees pulling toward eachother and your arches pulling away from each other,” it would be good to knowwhich steps this holds true for.

(Remember all the oranges? They’d make a nice palette
cleanser this season. Ordinary Festivals—seen in
PNB’s extraordinary 2008Laugh-out-Loud Festival.

Photo by Angela Sterling)

Manes generally records and reports in this book rather thansynthesizes. He seems a very conscientious journalist, one who could have donea lot more synthesis without jeopardizing anyone’s integrity. It would cut downon the length of the book and make it less repetitive and more informative. Itwould also help situations where one person’s stated opinion stands for thetruth. For example, when one dancer comments that the company is made up of“very anti-social dancers,” the comment just hangs out there without notingother company members’opinions.

Fans of PNB should be prepared for a few wounds to open upagain when reading this book. Noelani Pantastico merits a large number of pagesand it’s achingly clear all over again how much Seattlelost when she moved to Monte Carlo.The much-missed Louise Nadeau makes an appearance, as does the sprightly JodieThomas, whose power was just beginning to be put on view when she left. AndOlivier Wevers…and Chalnessa Eames…and on and on. A review of the 2007/08company list at the back of Manes’ book, shows that 23 out of 46 of the dancersfrom that stellar season are now gone.

There are a few moments that readers familiar with PNB willget a good chuckle out of. For example, at one point Peter Boal emphaticallystates that Jonathan Porretta does not need a rest.

There are some perspective-shifting moments for PNB-savvyreaders. For example, initial casting conversations for Maillot’s Roméo et Juliette included ChalnessaEames, Kari Brunson, and Lesley Rausch in the role of Juliette. It’sinteresting to imagine what those dancers would have looked like in that role,given the chance—and how that role would have affected their careers. (Hownice, though: Rausch is dancing Juliette in an excerpt on November 11, 2011.And Brunson and Eames? Brunson was seen cooking at Staple and Fancy twoweekends ago; Eames was seen rehearsing a new, sexy piece by Wevers the weekbefore.)

There are also references to salaries that may interest somereaders.: PNB paid Patricia Barker $108,096 in 2005/2006—plus they put $14,730into her pension plan. As Manes points out, though, this is still less than hercounterparts at NYCB or ABT make. And it’s less than the folks who run PNB:Boal’s 2007/2008 salary was $259,000; D. David Brown’s came in at $220,000.(Peter Martins at NYCB? $678K + another $85K for being SAB’s faculty chairman!)Lower down on the salary scale: A PNB corps member’s base salary in 2007/2008was $43,400 plus add-ons. (There are lots of add-ons; see page 223.)

This book could be useful and of interest to dancers who areconsidering going pro. Reading the book will entail a long slog through thefinance and marketing passages, but it might be worth it—those passages offer aglimpse into the things outside the studio that can impact a dancer’s life. Naïve types will need to remindthemselves to put up their personal filters. The full context is not known, andpeople do say one thing when frustrated and another when they’ve had time togain perspective. Anyone interestedin arts management will find passages that could be used to shed light or startconversations of interest as well.

Is the book perfect for people who know nothing or little ofballet? No. It’s too long, there are too many names, and there is too muchgoing on. A series of short essays would serve such readers better. Luckily,Manes has both the material and the skills to write them.

The first chapter is written with an eye toward drama anddescription. Check it out at http://wheresnowflakesdanceandswear.com/what-is-ballet/read-the-beginning,the book’s website. Other chapters are posted there as well.

Where SnowflakesDance and Swear: Inside the Land of Ballet

By Stephen Manes

Hardcover $35.00 U.S.

Kindle, Nook, andAdobe Digital Editions: $9.99 U.S.

ISBN:978-0-9835628-0-1

Preview: Coriolis Dance Collective's "Wing of Egress"

2011-11-08T20:34:00.000-08:00

Writtenby Anne Lawrence

Coriolis Dance Collective held anopen rehearsal at Velocity Dance Centeron November 6, 2011, providing a tantalizing preview of the program they willpresent at the Erickson Theater on November 11–12 (tickets at Brown Paper Tickets).The program, "Wing of Egress," will feature two signature works by theco-artistic directors of Coriolis, Christin Call and Natascha Greenwalt Murphy.


(Coriolis dancers Natascha Murphy and Danny Boulet. Photo by Ernie Sapiro)

Call's piece, try to hover (or Private Practice 7), premiered in June at theNorthwest New Works Festival at On the Boards. It is a powerful meditation onillness, caregiving, and mortality and is arguably Call's finest and most fullyrealized work to date. The opening and closing sections presented in the openrehearsal only hinted at the elegant construction of try to hover and the athleticism and tender lyricism of Call'schoreography.

Murphy's piece, Tethered Apparitions, was presented in2010 at the Darkhorse Choreographers Showcase at Westlake Dance Center, at ChopShop: Bodies of Work at the Meydenbauer Theater, and at the Seattle InternationalDance Festival at Raisbeck Performance Hall; it quickly and deservedly becamean audience favorite. Murphy received an Artist Trust GAP Award to expand Tethered Apparitions, and the resultsare satisfying. There is now a longer and more intricate pas de deux for Murphyand Danny Boulet, and Matt Holmes' lush, cinematic musical score has beenlengthened accordingly. Watchingthe work in rehearsal was a sensuous pleasure: Murphy looked positively ecstaticin her partnering with Boulet, and dancer Andrea Larreta seemed to soar intothe rafters when lifted overhead in arabesque by partner Joel Meyers.


(Coriolis dancers Marissa Quimby and Andrea Larreta. Photo by Ernie Sapiro)

Coriolis members Murphy, Boulet, Larreta,and Marissa Quimby will perform in both works. Sadly, Christin Call is on aleave of absence and will not be performing, but Tori McConnell and AlanaO'Farrell Rogers, both well known to Seattledance audiences, will take Call's roles in tryto hover and Tethered Apparitions,respectively; both looked great in rehearsal. Company regular Sylvain Boulet willalso be absent, with Meyers taking his roles. In Quimby and Meyers, Coriolisnow boasts two dancers trained by Donald Byrd, and their exceptional power andfinesse are additional reasons to expect that “Wing of Egress” will bememorable.

Find out more about Coriolis DanceCollective at http://www.coriolisdance.com/.

An Interview with Choreographer Kate Wallich

2011-11-07T13:02:00.000-08:00

Written by AnneLawrence and Kate Wallich

(Kate Wallich and dancers. Photo by Tim Summers)

Kate Wallich is only 22 years old but is arguably Seattle's most acclaimedemerging choreographer. In June, two different curators for the Seattle InternationalDance Festival independently selected her work for inclusion in the festival,an honor accorded no other choreographer. Reviewing Wallich's in-progressshowing of Room with Themes atVelocity Dance Center in September, dance critic Michael Upchurch wrote that"Wallich's work—both her choreography and the performances she's conjuredout of her collaborators—feels like something big coming over the dancehorizon."

Wallich is presenting the completed Room with Themes in anindependently produced dance concert at Velocity Dance Center on November 18–19,in collaboration with fellow choreographer Allie Hankins (tickets at Brown Paper Tickets).SeattleDances contributor Anne Lawrence recently talked with Wallich about herbackground, her choreographic process, and the challenges of making work as anindependent emerging choreographer.

(Kate Wallich and dancers. Photo by Tim Summers)

AL:Tell us about Room With Themes:the impetus to the work, the process you are using, and how the piece isprogressing.

KW: The work is a commentary on relationships that we resideinside of: personal, social, psychoanalytical, governmental, etc. It commentson the dynamics of these relationships through raw emotional play, preciseexecution of movement, and energetic pulls in space. The work also explores thespace between two points: for example, the point where you are about toforfeit, exploring the moment where a decision has to be made; the place wherecontemplation could go on for hours, but action takes place in aninstant.

The process for this piece has been very informative to mygrowth as an artist and has given me deeper insight into my process and thework that I am creating. This work started in an image-based, social relevance sortof place. Throughout the past few months, more and more I have been realizinghow personal the work has become. I am seeing how often the work changes,because I am changing, day-in and day-out.

AL:This summer, two of your works, AWood Frame and –frequency (pronounced"negative frequency"), were independently chosen for the SeattleInternational Dance Festival—a huge honor for a young choreographer. A Wood Frame, selected by curator ErinDoughton, had been shown at the Boost Dance Festival in March, where it hadbeen enthusiastically received. But –frequency,selected by co-curators Tim Lynch and Julie Tobiason, was your BFA graduationpiece at Cornish. How did they know about –frequency?

KW: Honestly, I’m not really sure they did know about –frequency. I do know that they wantedme to be in their program. I received a phone call asking if I had another workthat could be shown or if I would be willing to make another work. Since my BFAperformance, I had wanted to re-set –frequency,and it seemed like this was the perfect opportunity to do so. The piece changedquite a bit, but definitely still stayed true to the original work.

(Dancer and choreographer Kate Wallich.
Photo by Tim Summers)

AL:You have studied classical ballet intensively throughout your life. Do theaesthetic and technical values of classical ballet still inform your work, andif so, how?

KW: Ballet has been a huge part of my life. I attended Interlochen Arts Academywhen I was 15 to study and train in the form. At Cornish, I studied under PatHon, Lodi McClellan, Steve Casteel, and Timothy Lynch, all amazing balletteachers. I love the lines, the articulation of the feet, the challenge, butalso the freedom in the technique. Although my work has been influenced frombeyond ballet, I think there are certain ballet aesthetic values that clearlyshow up in the work. Choreographers in the community with whom I havetrained (Zoe Scofield, KT Niehoff, Tonya Lockyer) have also had majorinfluences on my work. I think that my history is seen in my work, and I amproud of that.

AL:Two of the dancers in Room withThemes, Lavinia Vago and Matt Drews, are former or current Cornish studentswho danced in A Wood Frame.Lavinia also danced in the original version of –frequency. Why do you like working with these dancers, and whatqualities do they bring to your work?

KW: Lavinia is a huge part of creating work for me. Since Istarted making work, she has been right next to me the entire time; we pusheach other physically and intellectually. As a dancer and concept designer, sheis always shaping and informing the work, asking me questions and makingsuggestions while inspiring me through her brilliant artistry. Matt Drews has arawness to his movement that we both love; he is invested in the process and isa giant receptor to all movement and feedback.

AL: The other two dancers in Room with Themes, Allison Jacks and Erica Badgely, have notperformed in your work previously, as far as I'm aware. How did you come toknow them, and why have you chosen to work with them?

KW: Allison and I met while at Cornish and we have performedtogether in the past, plus she performed in a piece of mine called Ahi Ahi at 12 Minutes Max last year. Shehas a fierceness to her; she is a mover who won't stop until she gets it right.She has been exposed to many different dance scenes and she brings something newand important to rehearsals. Erica and I met at Molly’s Café, where we wereboth working at the time. We found out that we were both dancers and had thesame mentor, Tonya Lockyer. Erica is brilliant, a former Lines Ballet studentand UW graduate with refined technique and the sensibility to be wild. Workingwith them both has been such a pleasure.

AL: One of the challengesof mounting Room with Themes isthat Lavinia Vago now resides in New York Cityand Allison Jacks in Las Vegas.How do you plan to overcome this challenge?


(Lavinia Vago and Kate Wallich after rehearsals in New York)

KW: This has added a whole other layer on top of thework and its dynamics. Choreographing while only X number of dancers are inrehearsal has been tough. In some ways, the piece has been shaped by who is inthe room, but I have tried to stay true to the way I envisioned the piece.I spent 10 days in New Yorkrehearsing with Lavinia and Allison. Being in New Yorkwas great, but it made me so thankful for the space and time that is availablein Seattle tocreate and explore. Lavinia and I have also been having phone rehearsals, ifyou will; we call them our business conference calls. And thank God for Vimeo!

AL: LenaSimon is creating the music for Roomwith Themes; she also created the music for the central, unison sectionof A Wood Frame. Tell us about Lena, how you came to work with her, and what you likeabout her music.

KW: Lena and I startedworking together about a year and a half ago. She is a multi-instrumentalistwho plays in three bands in Seattle (Pollens, Tomten, and Annabel Lee). We becamefriends, she expressed an interest in dance, and we started to go toperformances at On the Boards, PNB, and Velocity together. At the time, I wasbeginning the process of making A WoodFrame, and I asked her to write the score for the piece. We have formed anapproach to creating music together—she is present for much of therehearsal process, shaping the music as the piece progresses. The movement andscore are interconnected, and I believe that this adds to the wholeness ofthe work. They cannot be separated; they were created hand-in-hand.

AL:As an emerging independent choreographer, what are the biggest challenges youexperience in creating work and presenting it to an audience?

KW: I am young and striving to present high caliber workwith dancers who can invest their time both mentally and physically, yet I am stillstruggling with paying my own student loans and rent. This is normal in ourfield, but I am very thankful to have mentors in the community, organizationslike Velocity to call home, and a beautiful studio space at RED in which tocreate. The dance community is small but very encouraging. Funding is always achallenge, and I’m learning how other choreographers find their way to sustainability.As I am building a donor and support base, I am taking the steps to nourish mycareer: teaching, presenting, and hustling jobs on the side. I am realizing howhard this career path is, but also accepting how fulfilled I feel as a dancerand person inside of it all.

AL:If SeattleDances readers would like to learn more about your choreography, wherecan they see videos of your work on-line?

KW: My website is wallich.tumblr.com; and on Vimeo, search under "Kate Wallich."

PNB’s ‘Love Stories’—Too Much and Not Enough

2011-11-05T10:06:00.000-07:00

Written by Steve Ha

Pacific Northwest Ballet unveiled the depth of its talent inthe opening performance of the diverse, but oddly programmed ‘Love Stories.’Consisting of five short ballets revolving around a rather generic and much toobroad theme of love, the mixed bill treated audience members to exceptionaldancing but ultimately robbed them of an artistically fulfilling experience.With three of the five pieces having been gleaned from full-length narrativeballets, ‘Love Stories’ ironically failed to establish an emotional investmentinto the extracted works, depriving the audience of a context to place eachwork in (a detriment to each of the choreographic artists’ intentions). Whilemany were, of course, dazzled by the flair and virtuosity of the company, thepatchwork repertory hindered the dancers by disallowing character developmentthrough the art of storytelling via movement.

(Photo: Pacific Northwest Ballet corps de ballet dancer
Brittany Reid (in yellow, front) and company dancers in
Divertimento from “Le Baiser de la Fée,” choreography by
George Balanchine © the George Balanchine Trust.
Photo © Angela Sterling)

(Pacific Northwest Ballet corps de ballet dancers
Jerome Tisserand and Kylee Kitchens in Jerome Robbins’
Afternoon of a Faun. Photo © Angela Sterling)

George Balanchine’s Divertimentofrom “Le Baiser de la Fée” and Jerome Robbins’s iconic Afternoon of a Faun were the only ballets to be presented in full,with principals Kaori Nakamura and Jonathan Porretta dancing the lead roles in Divertimento, displaying superbtechnique and appropriate aplomb. Divertimentocontained some of Balanchine’s most wicked choreography, arranging theclassical steps in the most extraordinarily difficult sequences imaginable, andyet Nakamura and Porretta wove through them effortlessly in delight. Though Divertimento contained no narrative,there were moments of intimacy in the central pas de deux and of loss in thefinal moments, with Nakamura and Porretta drifting away from each other in deepbackbends as a poignant final image. Robbins’s Faun, however, wassomething of a stretch to fit the theme of “love,” as it is clearly an odysseyinto narcissism rather than any sort of romance. Kylee Kitchens and JeromeTisserand danced the gossamer pas de deux in spectral fashion, eyes locked noton each other but on the imaginary fourth wall serving as a dance studiomirror. The couple was breathtakingly haunting, mesmerized by their visages andenamored with vanity.

Pacific Northwest Ballet principal dancers
Lucien Postlewaite and Carrie Imler in the
Black Swan pas de deux from Kent Stowell’s Swan Lake.
Photo © Angela Sterling

The extracted works included the ‘Balcony Pas de Deux’ fromJean-Christophe Maillot’s Roméo etJuliette, ‘Aurora’s Wedding’ from The Sleeping Beauty, and the ubiquitous‘Black Swan Pas de Deux’ from Swan Lake. The dancing in Roméo et Juliette and SwanLake was sublime but also problematic—the chemistry between LucienPostlewaite and Kaori Nakamura as Shakespeare’s star-crossed lovers verged ontangibility, with Maillot’s choreography as a daring, genuine portrayal ofyoung teenagers, but without the full story and the tragedy at the end, theaudience was reduced to chuckles at the cuter moments in a duet that couldeasily move one to tears with its innocence and beauty. In contrast, the ‘BlackSwan Pas de Deux’ was the complete opposite—bold, lustful, and oddly havinglittle to do with love. Postlewaite pulled double duty in another princelyrole, dancing with regality and elegance, but Carrie Imler’s commandingpresence dominated the stage (as is customary for Odile). Imler was theinitiator in the game of cat-and-mouse, so sinister at times one believed thatshe was the mastermind sorcerer behind the plot to deceive Prince Siegfried,and not Von Rothbart. Powering through the pas de deux with an attackexclusively hers, she showed impeccable balance and control throughout. Theonly tragedy here was that Imler could not dance Odette as well, becauseunderscoring the contrast between the White and Black Swans is what ballerinas’dreams are made of and what makes SwanLake so spectacular. Regardless, Imler and Postlewaite received the onlyand (well deserved) standing ovation of the night.

Sleeping Beautyfeatured Lesley Rausch and Batkhurel Bold as Princess Aurora and PrinceFlorimund, along with a honeyed cast of animal and fairy tale charactersdancing a number of variations and divertissements. Rausch’s Aurora was pleasant to watch, though Bold,while secure as ever as a partner, seemed to lack vigor as her prince. A superbhighlight came from Rachel Foster and Jerome Tisserand in the ‘Bluebird Pas deDeux’, where both showed sharp technique and a glittering élan. Tisserand inparticular, has the most classical line and carriage of the entire company, andhaving trained at the Paris Opera Ballet School has certainly given him thefoundation for precise batterie, onfull display in the Bluebird’s signature diagonal of brisé volé (among many other beaten jumps). Especially for theclassical balletomane, Tisserand’s Bluebird (and Imler’s Odile too) is anabsolute must-see.

Although ‘Love Stories’ struggled to find continuity in takingthe audience on an emotional journey, the silver lining with this gala styleprogram is the number of opportunities to preview corps de ballet members andsoloists in some of the principal roles. Casting details for futureperformances reveal a number of such examples, and will hopefully beinstrumental in the promotion of some of PNB’s dancers. For those cast in thefragments of the longer ballets, one can only hope that those dancers will getthe opportunity to develop the roles fully someday.

‘Love Stories’ continues November 5, and 10-12. Formore information and to purchase tickets please see http://www.pnb.org/

Mash-ups and Tygers and Flashlights, Oh My!

2011-11-01T12:48:00.001-07:00

Written by MarikoNagashima

(Photo: Amy O'Neal in The MostInnovative, Daring, and
Original Piece of Dance Performance You
Will See ThisDecade.
Photo by Tim Summers)

With an equal dose of hard hitting hip-hop and tiger-liketenacity, Seattle’s Amy O’Neal and KathleenHermesdorf (a guest artist from San Francisco)dazzled the standing-room-only crowd at Velocity Dance Center this Friday andSaturday evening. Both artists presented their own solo work (Hermesdorf withher collaborator, musician Albert Mathias), and together performed a duet, thatsconstruction has spanned four years.

O’Neal, Velocity’s Artist in Residence, opened the show withthe pretentiously titled The MostInnovative, Daring, and Original Piece of Dance Performance You Will See ThisDecade. Throughout this “lecture/demonstration/performance experience”O’Neal used physical examples and witty commentary projected on the back screento deconstruct the modalities artists use to create work, as well as her ownartistic influences. In “Exhibit A: The Sample” she blended Big Boi’s heavyrapping with the choral stylings of “Aida.” The overlapping music and hermeshing of pops and locks with sustained fluid movements, served to remind thatwhile the “mash-up” has become its own genre, it still remains just a sample oftwo already existing things. Later, she sang (a far-too-lengthy rendition of TomGray’s “Money Changes Everything,” made famous by Cyndi Lauper’s), she danced (atribute to her many “teachers and art heroes”), and gave new meaning to theterm “booty shake” (in an over-the-top but entertaining parody of Ciara’s“Ride”). With the final exhibit “Homage,” O’Neal whirled across the stagechanneling each influence as it appeared on the screen behind her. Though itcreated a slightly schizophrenic effect, as the list ranged from MerceCunningham to Mary J. Blige to her own students, O’Neal managed to make the transitionslook organic. At one point in the work she pondered, “What if contemporarydancers claimed their alter egos the same way hip-hop stars did?” With thispiece, O’Neal does just that, unabashedly proclaiming herself as both theproduct of her influences and her own fearless persona.

Kathleen Hermesdorf and Albert Mathias’ work Tyger Tyger, an excerpt from thefull-length songs of innocence &experience, was another beast entirely. Inspired by the William Blake poem,Hermesdorf began growling, twitching, and barring her teeth, embodying theferocious feline. Flicking her tongue she donned a tiger mask with relish and, paradoxically,became more human. A somewhat disconcerting sight, as an anthropomorphizedtiger, she casually lounged with her feet up and recited Blake’s poem withaccompanying gestures. Later, she stalked about the stage in a leopard printleotard and tights, her body jerking in calculated spasms to the sound ofclanking mechanics. This stylized prowl highlighted her unique movement quality;it was as if each muscle were separately programmed with infinite yet readilyaccessible capabilities. The movement seemed to stem from an outer source, asif each twitch was prompted by a remote control, but somehow managed to neverlook forced. This captivating quality extended to her facial muscles as well;in one passage she scaled almost the entire emotional spectrum with facialpermutations. The ferocity with which she performed, coupled with Mathias’exquisitely crafted sound-scape, made for a thrilling performance.

The duet, What GoesAround Comes Around, rounded out the split bill. The piece had itsbeginnings in 2007, with late night shenanigans involving hula hoops and videocameras in Lewiston, Maine,and wasn’t finished until last week, here in Seattle. The hula hoop antics were projectedon the screen (for far too long) at the beginning of the piece. Eventually, alive-feed video of O’Neal doing a hiccupping shuffle step in one of Velocity’sback studios appeared on the side wall.

The action gradually shifted from the video into the stagespace, culminating in a unison sequence displaying their well-matched technicalskills. A circular theme pervaded the choreography; wrists twirled then punchedthe air, hips rotated as if still swinging hula hoops, a preposterousoff-kilter balance spiraled suddenly to the floor. The clever use offlashlights made for several striking images. The lights darted along the backwall, making the performers appear to be dancing with huge fireflies. Thoughthe piece seemed on track to end inevitably, by coming full circle to where itbegan, it instead concluded with Hermesdorf stumbling through the audience,watched by O’Neal’s eye looming large in the live-feed camera. While notpredictable, it felt somewhat anticlimactic for a work with so much range. However,both artists are formidable in their own right and it was a treat to see thembringing their distinctive styles together.

Hermesdorf and Mathias will premiere their full length work,songs of innocence & experience,at ODC Theater in San Franciscoon May 4-6, 2012. O’Neal continues her tenure as Velocity’ Artist in Residencethrough 2011, working toward creating a full evening-length work. In addition,she teaches contemporary dance technique and bottom-heavy funk classes weeklyat Velocity Dance Center.See http://velocitydancecenter.org/for more details.

Beneath Our Own Immensity

2011-11-01T12:18:00.000-07:00

Written by VictoriaJacobs

(Photo: Cornish student in Alia Swersky's
"Beneath Our Own Immensity"
Photo by Nityia Przewlocki)

The BMX bike course underneath I-5 on Capitol Hillre-purposes a huge urban space that would otherwise be a wasteland. ThisNovember, a site-specific dance sets off the ridges, columns, and obstacles withthe momentum of flying bodies and arching weight—and no bikes. Beneath OurOwn Immensity, Alia Swersky's new work for 10 Cornish Collegedancers, is a delightful and eye-opening experience for all audiences. Themassiveness of the space creates depth and perspective, and it raises questionsabout how we engage with our environment, especially the physical relationshipof performer and viewer.

Swersky invites the viewers to explore different ways ofseeing: to give oneself permission to observe and hear what one chooses to.Being a non-traditional performance space, there are a few caveats; it getsdusty, the trails are steep, and there are no bathrooms onsite.

Beneath begins with a tangle of bodies around thebase of one of the huge concrete columns; a pile of dancers, in teal andburgundy jeans and a rainbow of sweaters, ooze over each other like a colony oflichen. Cars roar and clatter down the freeway directly over the audiencemembers’ heads, creating a humming, oceanic soundtrack.

(Cornish students in Alia Swersky's
"Beneath Our Own Immensity"
Photo by Nityia Przewlocki)

When the dancers take off into the cavernous park, theaudience gets moving. Views of the receding dancers appear and disappearbetween columns as the perspective shifts. In a distant patch of sunlit grass,a man in a striped sweater (Matt Drews) bends and hinges, then stands still.The audience arrives at the top of a long downhill path, and the dancersstretch out in a long line, waiting mysteriously like crows on a telephonewire. The audience is invited to look away, but on looking back the dancers areon the ground. In pairs, they twist and arch down, then lie in stillness ontheir backs. Down the long, distant line of dancers, the movement repeats invariations; far off, framed by the symmetrical forest of columns, the dancer atthe end of the line flails and sways, tiny and enormous in the immense urbanspace.

From behind, a woman in a full green skirt strides throughthe audience and continues down the path; all of the dancers bound away beforeshe arrives. The audience bustles after them in the narrow plane of sunlightthat falls between I-5 North and I-5 South. The dancers clamber down the rockycliff-sides, their joints angled like soft-edged stones. Their movement seemsdrawn from the ridges and rocks, the reaching of urban moss, the clouds of dust,and the roaring cars overhead. Perched on the ridges of obstacles, the dancersswing and arch and share weight; they hang and ooze and release into thelandscape. They're all filthy and rosy-cheeked, sweating and sliding fearlesslydown dusty hillsides, then spreading out to engage with the myriad obstacles.

(Cornish student in Alia Swersky's
"Beneath Our Own Immensity"
Photo by Nityia Przewlocki)

Beneath uses the enormity of the space to pan theviewer’s glance across it, to zoom out to capture the huge and strangelandscape or to zoom in on tiny, distant dancing figures. I-5 arches overheadlike a cathedral or a close, cramped ceiling when the action shifts. Thedancers play with momentum and dynamism on surfaces of sliding dirt and rock,tearing around with the fearlessness of mountain bikers. The physical journeyof the audience puts one in direct relationship to the work of the dancers,communicating space and struggle and kinesthesia without linear narrative. Thisis site-specific work at its most effective; breaking down walls, usingnon-traditional space to inspire unique movement, and moving the audience—literally.

Beneath can beseen again this Wednesday, November 2, at 4 PM and Saturday, November 5, at 1PM. The event is free and open to the public.

Poetry + Motion: Where Words Come to Life

2011-10-31T09:26:00.000-07:00

Written by MarikoNagashima

(Photo: Dancer Scott Bartell and poet
Alvin Lloyd Alexander Horn)

Sunday, October 23rd, marked the first anniversary of Poetry + Motion, a unique event held inthe “Downstairs at Town Hall” space. Audiences have long been accustomed towitnessing words with music, or dance with music, but in Sunday’s Poetry + Motion event, the audienceexperienced the subtraction of music from the equation, allowing words anddance to interact alone together. To accomplish this half-poetry-slam half-danceconcert, the event coordinators, Lola Peters and Suzanne Simmons, asked six dancersto select poems by local poets that inspired them. The dancers then choreographedor improvised a dance while the writers read the poems aloud. The effect wassymbiotic; one medium informed the other, giving viewers the opportunity toaccess both from a different avenue.

Though in many instances the dancers fell into the trap ofmiming the subject matter with simplistic gestures, the times when theytranscended this basic idea were quite powerful. In “Trees Are Falling—HumanTrees,” written by Alvin Lloyd Alexander Horn, dancer Scott Bartell offered a movinginterpretation while dazzling with impeccable ballet technique and inventivecombinations of steps. Illuminating the injustice in and culpability of asociety in which “trees” such as Martin Luther King and Malcom X are “cut down”by “chainsaws loaded with bullets,” Bartell leapt in place in frustration and trembledin rage as he lay down, another fallen tree. Dani Long also gave an evocativeperformance in “A Coil Called Skin” by poet Kumani Gantt. Violently shaking hisarms, he initially attempted to shed the shackles of his skin. Later, as Ganttspoke about questioning identity, Long’s frenzied African dance-inspired jumpsand undulations echoed this confusion.

(Photo: Dancer Kristen Kissell and poet
Alvin Lloyd Alexander Horn)

In the humorous “I’m So Ready” by Brenda Gale Wright, a workabout searching for love in all the wrong places, dancers Victoria Jacobs andKristen Kissell peered about the stage, exasperated. Their subtle glances andshoulder shrugs enhanced the poem’s tongue-in-cheek tone. Jacobs also stood outin Gantt’s “Stone Tablets,” about gritty urban life. From popping and lockingher shoulders in the beginning to a final backward arch, hands covering hermouth as if screaming out because she “can’t run when she hears gunshots,” herfull immersion in the language was apparent in each movement.

The sultry “Break Open the Blues for Billie Holiday,” byMonique Franklin, featured dancer Erricka Turner Davis slinking across thestage, coolly flicking her fingers and swaying supplely. The combination ofFranklin’s velvety voice and Turner’s sultry style evoked great jazz musicwithout anyone ever playing a note. Davis’s dancing also showed a sweettenderness in the ode to mother’s love, “Do You Know Mommy Loves You” by BrendaGale Wright.

A distinctive collaboration, Poetry + Motion created the opportunity to consider dance in a newlight. Even though the choreography could have used more depth at times, theframework in which it was performed gave it a unique flair. Without the rhythmsof music, the dancers became finely attuned to the poets’ voices, mirroring eachshifting cadence and articulate pronunciation. The images their bodies createdbrought a greater level of understanding to the words, by introducing a moving,visual element. Definitely a program worth seeing, Poetry + Motion will be producing its next event this comingFebruary.

A Look at Merce Cunningham’s Life and Work Through His Legacy Tour

2011-10-28T18:02:00.000-07:00

Written by Kristen Legg.

Instead of reviewing the firstevening of Merce Cunningham Dance Company’s Legacy Tour (How do you reviewCunningham?), SeattleDances presents an essay on his history, his brilliance,and his greatest bequest to the future of dance. First, some background information:

History:

Merce Cunningham was born in Centralia, Washingtonwhere he first studied dance with Maude Barrett, a former vaudeville performer. He attended George Washington Universityfor a year before transferring to Seattle’s own Cornish College. While there, Cunningham wasseen by Martha Graham who asked him to join her company. From 1939 to 1945,Cunningham was a soloist in the Martha Graham Dance Company and worked with herto create many roles for himself, including the Revivalist in AppalachianSpring. In 1944, he began his own work with his partner, musician, John Cage.Cunningham was able to get his work seen and was asked to attend the summerprogram at Black Mountain Collegein 1952. It was here that Cunningham met dancers who would become the foundingmembers of his company. Until his death on July 26, 2009, he choreographed over200 works for his company and other professional companies.

Chance Dance:

Cunningham used chaos as the basisfor many of his choreographic works. Using this form of organization,Cunningham built dances with strong movement and unique surprises. Forinstance, for his 1969 piece, Canfield,he used the card game solitaire, giving each playing card a designated step;red and black were designated speeds of fast or slow. By playing the game,Cunningham was able to find an order to the movements and created a whole dancewith only fourteen steps. Cunningham’s brilliance lies not in what he did, butwhat he did not do. By using chance sequencing, often times phrases just workedout, and though he didn’t plan it, connections were made between the dancersand the audience.

Music and Art:

Almost all Cunningham’s choreographywas done in silence with music added later. He believed dance, music, and artshould all be separate on stage, yet somehow his collaborations became cohesiveunits of expression. He would often work to choreograph a piece and had someonecreate the music separately, only giving a theme or idea to the musician as tohow to structure the piece. Cunningham’s set designs came from artists such asJasper Johns, Charles Atlas, and Andy Warhol. In the case of Andy Warhol,Cunningham saw a piece of his in a gallery and thought it would add to theperformance quality of his newest work, RainForest(which can be seen this Saturday night at the Paramount Theatre).

But what is it that makesCunningham’s work, which was so unusual and experimental when created, stillseem so new, fresh, and unique? Simple, Cunningham realized that everyone drawsfrom their own experiences when viewing a certain work. In a piece calledWinterbranch, Cunningham explored the idea of falling. When viewed in Sweden, people believed it had to do with raceriots; in Germany,concentration camps; in Tokyo,the atom bomb. Everyone who viewed the piece brought something different fromtheir lives into the theatre with them and connected it to the movement.

In Thursday evening’s performance ofThe Legacy Tour at the Paramount Theatre, the company presented three works. Quartet (1982) isthe perfect example of a work that defies time; although the costumes areslightly dated, the piece seems as though it was choreographed yesterday. Fivedancers on stage use stillness in quintessential Cunningham tilts, curves, andlinear arabesques, one, Director of Choreography Robert Swinston, seeminglydirecting the quartet in front of him. In this work, you can derive how Cunninghamwas an inspiration to more recent choreographers: Paul Taylor, for example.

XOVER (2007), oneof Cunningham’s last pieces (although not his last, he made two in the year ofhis death), seems to take Cunningham’s work back in time, with music by JohnCage and décor by Robert Rauschenberg. While a bit bland at times, this worktruly shows Cunningham’s intention to make choreography about bodies in spaceand movement, not about perfection and presentation. What’s amazing about XOVERis how each dancer’s body looks completely different doing the same movement.

A truly break-through work, BIPED (1999), was created using a computer program called“Life Form,” which allows users to enter data regarding choreography and thensee it created on the screen. The perfect melding of live performance and video,this lengthy, yet never boring work highlights the strength of the company. Dancersfouette and land without hops, élevé in coupé and hold for seemingly endlessperiods of time, then leap across the stage like bounding stags (reminiscent ofGraham’s springing leaps in Appalachian Spring).

Cunningham’s creative choreographyis filled with surprises and beautiful moments that entice the viewer and add awhole new dimension to his work. His work can be seen again Saturday,October 29, 2011, at the Paramount Theatre. Next, The Legacy Tour continues to California, the Midwest, and Paris,and ends in New Yorkon New Year’s Eve. This is the last time his work will be seen on dancers hepersonally trained; the company will disband after its final performance.

Cunningham once said, “You don’tstop living, so you don’t stop dancing.” Now, two years after his death, his dance is coming toa glorious end.

Dance: Insert Definition Here

2011-10-27T22:28:00.000-07:00

Writtenby Jacqueline Louise Brock

Cherdonna and Lou (Jody Kuehner and Ricki Mason).
Photo by NARK.

Whatqualifies as dance? How do you define dance? How do you experience dance? SoYou Think It's Dance, a performance and panel discussion hosted byVelocity's Executive Director, Tonya Lockyer, and presented by Velocity DanceCenter with the CityArts Festival, made an attempt to search for the answers ofwhy qualifiers and definitions exist to begin with and why they are sodifficult to challenge. The event began with a series of works by JessicaJobaris, The Cherdonna and Lou Show, Douglas Ridings, and Maile Martinez.

Withineach eye eye-catching,entertaining, engaging, full piece, there were sounds, lights, and bodiesmoving, jumping, crouching, crawling, rolling, spinning, and skimming throughspace. Sounds like dance, but in fact, these performances were captivatingexamples of pieces that have had difficulty being accepted, viewed, andreviewed as dance.

Thepanel, which included art critics and performers (Brendan Kiley, Sandi Kurtz,Leah Baltus, and Waxie Moon), discussed many reasonings behind artcategorization. One reason being restrictive definitions used in funding andgrant applications and review boards. The little money that does exist in theform of grants only allots so much money per art discipline so one must beclear which discipline their work falls into in order to benefit.

Anothermajor contributor is a theatres' need to sell tickets to audiences. Marketingbecomes key in this process. It is in this interest that art work becomeslabeled, to ensure that potential ticket buyers are prepared for what they canexpect from their purchase.

So arewe to look to the consumer to blame or to the venue that books the performersfor the narrowing definition of dance? To this question, the panel discussedthe general audience's lack of knowledge in the lineage of dance history as aculprit in not being able to accept a more experimental approach to dance. Andwhile this certainly plays a role, it still doesn't tell us who is to blame forthis lack of awareness. If a venue never books any dance performers exceptthose that execute pretty turns in pretty dresses to pretty music, how is an audienceto know the broader world of dance? On the other hand, if there arecontinuously bad ticket sales for experimental dance performances, how is avenue to be blamed for not booking said performances?

Therewere many more points brought up by the panel, but, like the point above, thediscussion never truly reached the root or cause of the reasons due to too manyvoices and too many new thoughts being thrown out. At times, even, questions brought up by theaudience members were too quickly passed over or dismissed to the detriment ofthe conversation as a whole.

Nevertheless,minds were prodded, motivations questioned, and topics were explored. Walkingaway from this event, one starts to direct questions internally. Do labels and categories prepareour eyes or restrict our experiences? If a piece is labeled as a work oftheatre, does this restrict our ability to see the underlying choreography,the underlying dance? Does this matter?

The Cabiri Thrill and Chill with Winternacht

2011-10-23T19:58:00.000-07:00

Written by MarikoNagashima


Heather Eichorst of The Cabiri Photo by Jessie Hirsch

The Cabiri’s annual Ghost Game performance, this year dubbedWinternacht, dazzles in its depictionof wintry myths through a blend of aerial feats and dance acrobatics. As aperformance troupe, The Cabiri serves to bring to life the mission of theAnunnaki Project: to present the mythology and folklore of ancient culturesthrough aerial dance. This noble mission aligns perfectly with their Halloweenthemed performance, where all the stories portray evil spirits and disturbingsupernatural occurrences. The group pays exquisite attention to detail in theserestorations, from a conch shell that actually sounds a warning to the cleverlydevised devil-horned leather hats worn by the Hittite pantheon, and the entiretroupe’s Kabuki-esque make-up. Though these intricacies often seemover-the-top, they do impart the feeling of watching something as close to theoriginal as we can conceive today. The spectacular presentations of these stories also causes the aerial work to feel secondary at times,though no less impressive for it.

Dangling high above the audience (and at times swingingthrillingly over their heads) the troupe performs on a variety of apparatuses.Artistic Director John Murphy’s solo on three loops of chain is one of the manyhighlights. A continuous vortex of metal and flesh, he rotates in mid-air, propelled only by his formidable strength. Depicting a captive of the evilRussian witch Marzana, the clanking chains add to the drama of the scene.Heather Eichorst’s solo on a loop of white silk delivers a quieter moment inthe Russian tale of “Morozco.” Eichorst moves with serene grace through splitsand arabesques, her fluidity echoing the supple fabric and complementing her sweetportrayal of a young girl lost in the frozen woods.

In the Greek tale “Boreas,” Murphy and the petite LaurenKettner revolve above the crowd on a single metal hoop. Their non-stop centrifugalforce is dizzying to behold. Kettner floats horizontally, supported only byMurphy’s flexed feet in one stunning pose. Later, Charly McCreary and SusanBienczycka evoke orbiting stars in a duet on separate silver hoops, rotatingsimultaneously in lusciously contorted shapes.


Cabiri dancers in "Telepinu" Photo by Jessie Hirsch

Saving the best for last, however, the whole troupeperformed in the finale “Telepinu.” A work of non-stop action, the pieceincludes a gymnastic-filled battle scene, an entrancing duet on a net of bluemesh, and three simultaneous duets on icy blue silks, all to relay the story ofhow a deep-rooted conflict brought frost to the Hittite gods’ eternalsummerland. Most entrancing was the triple duet. As the “frost,” CourtneyDressner, Erica Sherman, and Susan Bienczycka tangle their limbs with thefabric at a lofty height, only to drop dramatically, caught in various splitsand poses by their self-imposed knots. It becomes even more impressive when,Kettner, Marissa Smith, and Kirra Steinbrueck crawl vertically over the now-inverted“frost” and the duets perform more gasp-inducing stunts together.

With Winternacht,the Cabiri proves itself capable of raw athletics and acrobatics aswell as grand story-telling. And while the mythological nature of the stories feels overwhelming at times, it is all part of the unique experience. A novel Halloween treat,the Cabiri’s shows continue October 23 and 28–31^st at YoungstownCultural Arts Center. For more information and to purchase tickets please visithttp://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/188904.

CityArts Fest's 'Genre Bender' Breaks Boundaries

2011-10-23T19:44:00.000-07:00

Written by VictoriaJacobs

In CityArts Fest's second year, they asked a dozenfascinating Seattle artists to pair up and create unique collaborations for theMerrill Wright Theater at On the Boards. The artists ranged from dance andperformance artists to sculptors, a filmmaker, a musician, a poet, and achocolatier.

The opening piece from upright bassist Evan Flory Barnes andilluminated sculptor Jen Law featured Barnes playing first inside ajellyfish-like tent that was illuminated by softly pulsing lightbulbs and laterin a twinkling jacket and feathery lights. His movement while playing causedthe light sculptures to wiggle and swim, and the varied tones and melodies hebrought forth from the bass, paired with the deep-sea light show, created ahypnotic and mysterious experience.

In dance artist Rainbow Fletcher's matchup with visualartist Sean Johnson, Fletcher wore a beige jumpsuit attached by strings to avertical blind of yellow measuring tapes. When she moved, the tapes would riseand fall, but they tended to snag, so two voyeuristic men in green jumpsuitssat at either corner of the cage-like frame, fixing the piece as it tripped up.Unfortunately, being tied to a set of vertical blinds limited Fletcher'smovement, and she was freed when she stepped out of the suit to stand in herunderwear, but then she exited. The piece seemed to be about oppression andbody image, but the sculpture limited development and coherence of the movementidea.

Next was the unusual pairing of local poet Karen Finneyfrockand Theo chocolatier Joanne Lepore. They read a poem about the divine, awful,boring enormity of the suburbs while crafting a neutral suburban scene out ofchocolate onstage. The chocolate sculpture didn't capture or comment on the"fertile madness" of the suburbs as described in the poem, but,delightfully, the audience was invited to descend upon the sculpture atintermission and devour the dark chocolate cars, trees, and houses.

In performance artist Mike Pham and visual artist GretchenBennett’s piece, abstracted club dance gestures were executed under separatespotlights. They layered their movement with films of their bodies overlappingand shots of their faces and hands. The live performers' movement seemed to bepaired to their movement onscreen but not consistently enough to be clear, norwas the relationship between the two of them ever concrete enough to inspireany meaning.

Dance artist Mark Haim and Implied Violence's Casey Currancreated a surreal traveling set that included a talking cow skull, a waterfallof sugar overflowing a flying tea set, and a suited man who obsessively debatedwith the skull about when they might have tea. Haim was subdued in a kimono andgeta sandals, but he flung into a brief, ecstatic, and self-consciousspot-lit dance solo near the end of the set's journey across the stage. Thesurrealism, wonder, and integration of the work demonstrated collaboration atits best; each artist's discipline commented on and elevated the other's.

Wes Hurley's film with Amy O'Neal showed the Seattle danceicon as a broken-hearted geisha visiting Seattle sites like the Can-Can andPike Place. At the end, she stabbed herself with her trademark pink kitana, butwoke up in a hospital slurping on JELL-O. It comically expressed how there isno place for noble sorrow in neon Western culture, but her dancing was missedin this work.

As Amy O'Neal said at the top of the show, the curators'goals were for the artists to create work that took maximum risk in a placewhere they could try something and fail. They all rose to the challenge, mixingdisciplines for surprising and thought-provoking results.

Chamber Dance Company Revisits Relationships

2011-10-16T11:45:00.000-07:00

Written by Mariko Nagashima

While the majority of the dance world continues obsessively pushing itself to create ever-newer, ever-more-innovative work, Chamber Dance Company finds its voice by restaging works from the past. Under the direction of Hannah C. Wiley, CDC stages significant works from the modern dance canon that give audiences much needed perspective on work being created today and showcase the continued relevance of historical pieces.

All choreographed in the 1980s and early-90s, the program’s three pieces explore human relationships through different perspectives. Wade Madsen’s Embrace (1983) opened the program with a suite of four duets, each depicting a different romantic relationship. From the blush of early flirtation, to the tiffs of a seasoned couple and the tentative but meaningful glances of an all-male duet, Madsen’s lush, sweeping movements captured it all. Ilana Goldman danced with particular effervescence; her uninhibited ease and grace stood out in Caress, a flirtatious duet with General McArthur Hambrick. Fritz Kreisler’s sprightly score perfectly complemented the tenderness and exhilaration in each lilting duet.

In To Have and To Hold (1989), choreographers Danial Shapiro and Joanie Smith examined loss and the memories that accompany it. The dancing revolved around the simple but striking set of three wooden benches placed diagonally across the stage that alternately conjured images of church pews, tombs, and beds of memory. The first section pulsed with tumultuous energy as the six dancers relentlessly arced over, dove across, and somersaulted off each bench. This dazzling frenzy stopped abruptly when they all arrived standing on the last bench, gazing questioningly into a white light from above. A sense of grief and loss permeated the second section; the dancers embraced consolingly in partnered lifts, spiraling through space. Finally, three dancers lay supine atop the benches, jolting upright when touched by their partners who lay directly beneath the benches; this representation of a sudden flash of recognition captured the often palpable and unsettling nature of memory. With the synthesizer sounding music by Scott Killian the only vestige of the era in which it was created, this breathtaking and evocative work still resonates today. Though originally made on the heels of the outbreak of the AIDS epidemic, it could just as easily have been a response to something as daunting as 9/11 or one person’s loss of a loved one. Regardless of the specific inspiration, the images remain just as potent and relevant today.

Bebe Miller’s piece, Cantos Gordos (1994), took the audience to the last moments in a club at the end of an evening. Chance encounters led to spontaneous bursts of dancing, hips swaying and knees bouncing. Sometimes pairing off in duos and trios, the dancers carved through space with bold curving shapes, punctuated with occasional flexed feet and sharp direction changes. While the choreography seemed to repeat itself once too often to stay engaging, Don Byron’s wonderful “Music for Six Musicians” played live by Seattle area jazz artists, was a true delight.

Chamber Dance Company’s mission to preserve and archive brings to life past works that would otherwise languish in rarely viewed video archives. The pieces don’t feel dated even though viewed with a current aesthetic, but instead offer a respite from the push toward newness in present day works. And while such innovation is necessary to push the art form forward, an awareness of what has been done in the past remains essential for a complete perspective.

This performance can be viewed again today, Sunday, October 16, 2011, at Meany Hall.

Pilobolus: A Metamorphosis to Behold

2011-10-08T09:51:00.000-07:00

Written by Nalisha Rangel

Meany Hallwas appropriately packed for the 40^th Anniversary celebration ofPilobolus Thursday night, October 6^th. The company first graced theworld stage with its emerging presence in the early 1970s and since has evolvedinto one of the most dynamic, stimulating dance troupes today with ArtisticDirection by Robby Barnett, Michael Tracy, Jonathan Wolken, and Associates.Performing compositions in simple, skin-tight costumes with theatrical lighting,the dancers depict evolving kaleidoscopes of physical ambiguity that continuedto astonish.

Pilobolus dancers in Rushes.

Photo courtesy of UW World Series

MichelleWitt, Meany Hall’s Executive Director and new Artistic Director of UW WorldSeries, introduced the program. Due to an injury, Renee Jaworski was replacedby Eriko Jimbo and three program pieces were substituted. Nevertheless, theseasoned dancers graced the stage with confidence, amidst these late changes,and delivered a beautifully executed program. The choreography brought to lifean imaginative menagerie that transformed the stage and transported theaudience.

Rushes (2007), which replaced Untitled (1975) this evening (choreographedby Inbal Pinto, Avshalom Pollak, and Robby Barnett and performed by Matt DelRosario, Winston Dynamite Brown, Eriko Jimbo, JordanKriston, Jun Kuribayashi, and Nile Russell) opened the show. The stage,sprinkled with wooden chairs in a circle, a briefcase, and one overhead lightbulb, which illuminated six dancers dressed in loose and ragtime-like costumesby Pollak and Pinto. While the music shifted from Eddie Sauter to Miles Davis,John Blow to Big Noise from Winnetka, and then to Dukes of Dixieland, theinsect-like choreography transitioned the landscape of the stage fromcave-like, with water-drip sound effects, to an underwater scene where movementslowed, and then to a winter wonderland where, with a soft push and pull, adancer glided as if across a sheet of ice.

The shadowwork in Transformation (2009) playfully disguised andsurprised. Like shadow puppets on steroids, Kriston morphed into a cute, littledog while a large hand, belonging to Russell, reached over making her bodyappear alternately canine and human for a sweet, comical treat set to the musicof David Poe and accompanied by sharp lighting by Neil Peter Jampolis.

Pilobolus' Jun Kuribayashi in Pseudopodia
Photo courtesy of UW World Series

Pseudopodia (1973), which replaced All Is Not Lost (2011) in the program,left the audience gasping in awe when soloist Jun Kuribayashi explored the manypossibilities of fulcrums in his ownbody, then balanced perfectly still on his sits bones following a series ofquick body rolls around the stage. This composition, choreographed by Wolken,was performed with red lights cast upon Kuribayashi’s red, tight unitard, whichtraced his cut muscles from neck to ankles, accentuating his extension.

Symmetryechoed an M.C Escher’s drawing in Duet(1992); no clear delineation of beginning and end. It was as if Kriston andJimbo were Siamese twins who, attached at the hip, wrestled under water. Their bodiesbecame the petals of a flower, peeling each limb away as the dew of a morning’sfrost thawed. Each figure was solid as a tree when climbed from the floor tothe shoulder by their partner. And as if to defy gravity, their arms and torsosfold and unrolled together to suspend each other’s weight where the speed ofsuch a movement may elsewhere result in a thud to the ground.

Thechoreography in Day Two (1980)required each dancer to wrap his or her body around and through the limbs oftheir partners, forming creatures that seem familiar yet alien. Pilobolusmagically honed the trustful grace and control in each pair. An evolution fromearth to sea to sky outlined a cohesive thread around creatures of therainforest with beautifully executed portrayals of birds, frogs, apes, andinsects; morphing body parts together into multi-legged creatures or hingingjoints to balance in air like a winged flock.

Piloboluscontinues to push the physical boundaries of the human body and remindsaudiences around the globe how yielding the structure of our skeletal mechanicscan be; sculpting familiar, earthly creatures with the flip of a wrist, the rotationof an ankle, or the slither of an upper body. The company brings an abundanceof ecosystems to life on a stage simply set with lights and figures. Each climb,swing, or hydraulic bounce from one dancer to another transports audiences intothe jungle, or splashes to the deep sea and rises to soar above the clouds.This imaginative choreography coupled with the exquisite strength of eachdancer is one reason why Pilobolus will continue to draw crowds to follow itsever-growing repertoire.

The Beast: Spectrum’s Ferocious Debut

2011-10-02T22:45:00.000-07:00

Written by Mariko Nagashima

Spectrum Dance Theater’s season opener, The Beast, teems with charged choreography depicting the unflinching details of a violently tainted love story. Originally created in 1996 for UW’s World Series, Artistic Director Donald Byrd’s reworking of his own choreography paints an uncompromising picture of domestic abuse. With moments sure to alarm some, it nevertheless makes a compelling statement intended to spur discussion about domestic violence, its causes, consequences, and the horrors in between. At once brutal and captivating, The Beast is stunning in its viciousness.

Spectrum Dance Theater's Kate Monthy and Donald Jones Jr.
Photo by Gabriel Bienczycki

The narrative begins with the marriage of “the beast”(Donald Jones Jr.) to an innocent bride, danced by Kate Monthy. Inspired by the theater practices of Bertolt Brecht, Byrd uses terse megaphone announcements, shrill whistles, and smacking claps to divide the work into chapters like “The Beast Learns to Tango,” “The Beast is Sorry,” and the murderous, “She Takes Revenge.” The wedding, accompanied by bright camera flashes, plastered-on smiles and incessant clapping for the “happy” couple, quickly erodes as Jones’ gentle handholding becomes a vice grip. The savagery that colors their relationship is masterfully choreographed, each movement instilled with intention and narrative purpose. The dancers (five of who are new to Spectrum this season) seem to tense every muscle in order to navigate the abrupt direction changes, slicing battements, and visceral partnering with such meticulous precision.

The story continues by delving into the cyclical nature of domestic violence; the beast merely parrots his father’s abuse of his mother and later uses this to justify his own heinous behavior. One jarring scene occurs when Ty Alexander Cheng, using a sinister white puppet head as the beasts’ conscious, barks directions goading Jones into ever more vile actions. Forming a chain behind them, the five female dancers attempt solidarity, each solemnly holds a rose that quivers as they flail their limbs, emanating fear. Four simultaneous duets are a barrage of cleverly depicted brutality; the men lounge smugly, rattling beer cans against their chairs while the women scurry about in heels, forcibly pushed and pulled by their partners. A frenzy of taut physicality, the movement allows no time for release. Every line is stretched to its limits and displays the prodigious skill and control of this fiercely talented troupe.

The music, often discordant, but always fitting, is an original composition by New York’s Andy Teirstein. Judith Cohen, Jamie Maschler, Alicia Reinhart, and Tobi Stone make up the live quartet of eerie strings, percussive woodwinds, and pounding piano chords.

Spectrum Dance Theater's Kate Monthy, Donald Jones Jr.,
and Amber Mayberry. Photo by Gabriel Bienczycki

Equally as stunning as the dancing are the dramatic portrayals of the characters. In a piece requiring significant emotional investment, all of the dancers, but most notably Cheng, Jones, and Monthy, give committed performances. Conveying the gamut of subtly shifting emotions, their honest, not over-done facial expressions, never flinch at the depiction of the grimmest realities. This is where the subject matter becomes most affecting; in Spectrum’s intimate studio theater, every maniacally glinting eye and sorrow-filled countenance is plainly visible, lending added depth to this already multi-faceted work. The proximity also forces the audience to confront the unsettling subject matter head-on, with few moments for escape or relief from its sometimes hardly palatable scenes.

Byrd offers no solutions to the problem, but hopes to create a starting point for productive discourse. And while a brief question and answer section following the hour-long performance provides a forum for this discussion, it begs the question: what good does such a troubling work necessarily do? While it shocks audiences into seeing these problems through a different, perhaps even cathartic lens, it does little to lessen the problem or change the status quo. The post-show conversation feels necessary, if only to allow the audience to process what they just viewed, but fails to show a way to make a difference. And while one sincerely hopes that ensuing discussions do become stepping stones to real-life actions to help to end the cycle of abuse, one wonders if concert dance viewers are necessarily the target audience for this grim message.

Regardless, Byrd’s choreographic genius is electrifying, in all its raw details. By pushing the boundaries, he has created a formidable and thought-provoking work. The Beast continues through October 16. For more information and to purchase tickets please see www.spectrumdance.org.

First 12 Minutes Max: Some Hits, Some Misses

2011-09-29T18:47:00.000-07:00

Written by MarikoNagashima

12 Minutes Max at On the Boards has long been a forum forinnovation, and the first program of the 2011–2012 season, held September 25and 26, was no exception. While some of the theater works seemed stronger thantheir dance counterparts, curators Roger Benington (acclaimed theater writer,director, and designer) and Marissa Rae Niederhauser (artistic director ofdance/performance/film project Josephine's Echopraxia) compiled a balanced mixof dance, theater, and film.

First-time choreographer Eric E. Aguilar presented a briefduet on SERENDIP Dance Company. Titled Abnormalitiesof the Thorax: Duet of the Heart and Lungs, it featured two women (BrynneFlidais and Jenna Mitchell), who moved with a quiet potency, as if ready tospring into more energetic motion, though they never did. Filled with standardmodern dance movements, this work-in-progress was not terribly remarkable, but mayjust need more time to develop fully. Several moments of surprising beauty—whenlegs jutted into a deep lunge from flowing rolls across the floor, or when thewomen were seated facing the back, their hands wrapping behind them withfingers spread and palms facing out—signal Aguilar’s choreographic potential.

Maya Soto’s performance of Ghost Bride/Little Pink Dress, both excerpts of the full-length, Collage Pink, were performed with herusual mix of coquettishness and in-your-face punch. Enshrouded in a massive,glittering pink train of tulle, Soto writhed, searching for a way out of her ultra-femininecape. The music shifted to the pulsing beats of Madhumitha, as Soto, untangledand suddenly empowered, taunted the audience with lingering looks and herunique blend of hip-hop and contemporary dance. Though her style is engagingand quite captivating to watch, the work felt a bit redundant (it was performedseveral times in the past year). One hopes she will continue to expand upon heralready solid concepts with new works this coming season.

The short dance film PartsDon’t Work depicted a girl gang of taunting go-go dancers with oversizedmouths and a lonely wannabe. This was easily the most interesting dance pieceof the evening. Created by KT Niehoff/Lingo Productions this entertaining film exploredacceptance, loneliness, and ultimately finding one’s own place. The simple yetinteresting dance sequences (atop park benches and across the bumper car rink)were framed perfectly by fantastic editing. Set in the defunct Fun ForestAmusement Park at the Seattle Center, the girl gang laughed raucously from the Ferriswheel, and the heroine whined in mournful gibberish to a plastic duck, all givingthe film a bizarre but comedic touch.

Offering an entirely unique perspective was Katy DeRosier’s Pinhole Lullaby Kiosk Project, set up inthe foyer. In this installation, viewers peered through a keyhole in a doorstructure and watched a solo by DeRosier, which played with a push of thedoorknob. Here, the interest lay in experience of viewing, not necessarily whatwas actually being viewed. Since it could only be seen by one person at a time,it made the dance feel intimate, as if one was inadvertently spying onsomething not really meant to be witnessed.

The other pieces, of both physical and spoken theater wereequally engaging. Luster and Stubble presented a work about a hilariously ineptclown attempting to set up a banquet, and Andrea Holmes explored hergrandmother’s most cherished memories resurfacing through a frightening haze ofdementia. ilvs strauss also presented her wordless take on different parts ofone’s identity through the re-enactment of a recurring dream. This diversemixture of live art was a great way to start the 12 Minutes Max Season.