The curtain rises, and any doubt in the room dissipates with an exploding big bang as Dwight Rhoden’s Moon Over Jupiter takes shape over Rachmaniov’s score.  A meteor shower of momentum and dynamics, the ballet showcases the extreme unique talent and technique of all the Complexion dancers.  Like an orbiting solar system, the dancers move in organized chaos into an eclipse of synchronization.  Metallic, spider webbed leotards and shorts expose the dancer’s thoroughbred, horse-like muscularity, direct proof that these dancers are pushing their physical means.  Clifford Williams, the shooting star of the ballet, demands attention with phenomenal extension and effortless fluidity of movement that only the trained eye would understand the extreme complexity and challenge of the choreography.

On Holiday opens part duex of the evening and relies on the show business aspect of dance.  Slightly reminiscent of Twyla Tharp’s Nine Sinatra Songs, On Holiday is danced by four couples expressing four stages of love.  Each couple embodies the lyrics of Billie Holiday, but Christina Dooling and Edgar Anido really transport the audience to a Love-Hate relationship. Intensity and heartache emanate through the audience as Doling and Amide manipulate each other to provide a heart wrenching performance.

Originally, to follow On Holliday, is Richardson to dance A Goldberg Variation, but instead, Christie Partelow and Mark Caserta dance Rhoden ‘s Spill.  Entering with abandonment in a grand jete lift, Partelow and Caserta leave you with no regret from missing Richardson’s performance.  In complete unison, they dance in a continuous stream of intricate and exhilarating partnering.  Like riding a rollercoaster of constant excitement and unexpected turns, Rhoden’s Choreography escapes all predictability confirming his much revered status in the realm of today’s contemporary choreographers.

A fun and lively Moody Booty Blues is like the after hours employee dance scene in “Dirty Dancing” where Baby meet Patrick Swayze for the first time.  The dancers dance fearlessly with grounded movement and soulful rhythm.  Moody Booty Blues showcases the young talent of Complexions;  Gary W. Jeter II sets a very high bar with his opening solo of insane syncopations and intricate isolations and Peter Chursin and Stefano DeMartino match Jeter’s energy.  Chursin is especially captivating with his flawless technique and exquisite lines.  After grabbing my attention, I couldn’t stop watching Chursin in the finale piece Rise.

Rise, which Rhoden choreographed to various songs by U2, opens with the song “The Streets Have No Name” and one man running in the spotlight.  High impact choreography plus Bono and the Edge guarantee an awesome performance.  I have seen U2 live in concert several times, and the Complexions Dancers even give Bono some competition.

Complexion dancers are a dynamic breed of physicality that is unparallel to most contemporary and ballet companies.  The dancers elevate the choreography and provide a powerful performance of non-stop impressive feats.

Complexions Fall/Winter season continues to run through November 28^th at the Joyce Theater.

iDANZ Critix Corner
Official Dance Review by Katherine Gibson
Performance: Complexions
Choreographer: Dwight Rhoden
Venue: Joyce Theater, New York, NY
Show Date: Tuesday 16th, 2010
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Her first full-length show, In Transit, demonstrates how technical prowess can meet child-like playfulness.  Throughout, dancers play their bodies like musical instruments as they weave intricate formations and portray comedic/disturbing narratives.  They seem to make games of spatial patterns as they move like scattering marbles or jumping checkers.  All is accomplished with outstanding precision and ease.  These ladies are not only capable of great feats of agility, but also of an honest connectedness to each other on stage.

All hailing from SUNY Brockport, company members Erin Johnson, Caroline Nelson, Jessica Reidy, Jenny Showalter, and Lyndsey Vader are a fox-force-five to be reckoned with. Lyndsey Vader’s sense of control, for example, in her solo “Pulse/Apology”, is breathtaking to watch.  What astounding technical abilities she has with her brilliant execution of delicate balances and sharp, quick movements, all while speaking about the sound of her pulse.  My heart stops, like her narrative describes, as she rocks in-and-out of warrior III, flips around to relevé and halts deftly on a dime.  The disturbing last image, a fist under open palm, looks like a heart with splayed aortic valves.  Oh, Treeline, you’ve kindled my inner-child’s imagination!

Immediately following is another energetic solo performance by Jessica Reidy, in “The (un)Natural Art of Dating.”  This rousing jaunt into 1950’s dating has me enchanted from the get-go.  Reidy instructs her audience members on the do’s and don’ts of catching a mate by winking, batting her lashes, and, my favorite, wetting her eyebrows!  She explains the importance of holding a longing gaze as she performs an Exorcist-like head rotation.   Absolutely brilliant!  Her ensemble, Erin Johnson and Caroline Nelson, are perfect.  The threesome dance-on together with the subtle pin-up sex-appeal of the Andrews sisters.  The characterization is complete as nostalgic music plays and house-wife aprons sway, leaving me all giggles and smiles!

“Traveling to Recall A Becoming Of,” choreographed by Jenny Showalter, is another heavy weight champ in this choreographic line up.  Here, the playfulness comes forth in the port de bras, as the girls use various arm gestures to draw lines in space.  They make pulsing gestures with the hands, long reaches of the fingers and very specific movement like poking, jabbing, threading-the-needle, etc.  Here, Showalter carves out space on stage by having the dancers spin in circles and run in diagonals.  She also creates the image of hallways as the dancers run upstage to downstage.  If Jeffy, from Family Circus, were dancing, he’d leave one helluva dotted-line map on stage!

Beautiful spatiality also appears in the opening piece, “Caged Until”, which is, in my opinion, the most outstanding piece of the evening.  This piece represents Treeline’s sense of play perfectly.  Audience members are greeted by the upstage right violin trio, whose diagonal bowing movements seem to inspire the entering dancers whose outstretched arms oppose outstretched legs in an off-balance tilt.  Lovely!  They move in and out of unison, using musical phrasing and quick level changes to create a gorgeous symphony.

Again, Showalter is a master at choreographing spatial arrangements.  I find myself so entranced by her patterns that I fail to notice how suddenly, the dancers are lined up at the stage’s edge with their backs to the audience.  A musical change happens, as the fourth wall is broken, and my experience shifts from spectator to insider.  I become engaged in their game.

Yes, the rest of the piece is like a game.  A series of place-switching follows as they stir up space like in a game of tag.  This leads to another line-up, but this time, a wall line-up for picking teams on a playground. There is a persistent theme of odd-man out, which is perhaps representative of playground politics.  Signature to Showalter’s style, specific hand gestures are repeated in motifs, i.e. a head cradled in a partner’s hands, and, most memorably, the fist meeting the open palm as when rock meets paper in “rock, paper, scissors”.

Favorite moment in the entire show: a dramatic lift where one dancer grabs hold of another’s waist and hoists her own lower body into the spot where bodies should collide, but the third dancer ducks in the nick of time!  Shocking and yet not shocking at the same time because this is so characteristic of how fabulously these femmes dance together.  They dive into near-miss lifts and athletic floor phrases, as fearlessly as a five-year-old does a flying dismount off the swing set!

The playful nature continues well into the second act.  In Jenny Showalter’s solo, “Kilter”, weight-play rules. With the music reminiscent of a French bistro or circus, I imagine Showalter as a mime on a tightrope at times.  There’s an off-balance circular section that conjures the image of a spinning top as it begins to lose steam.  Unfortunately, the rest of the second act begins to lose steam as well.  I notice an overwhelming music trend throughout the evening: strings.  And while nice to start, I find the use of violins and/or cellos (in over half the pieces) to be a bit tiresome by the end, and soon crave something different.

While the music DOES support the playful style—switching drastically from slow and meditative, to speedy and virtuosic—it can be on the verge of melodramatic as is the case with “A Shell of Herself.”  In this text duet, Lyndsey Vader and Caroline Nelson pounce around like ferrets, squeaking out lines barely audible above the intense music, which is building unnecessarily.  I feel as though I am watching a soap opera, one where the actors are clearly reading cue cards.  The text seems superimposed and not at all connected with what the dancers are saying with their bodies.  If we put the whole piece on mute, as Lindsey does to herself in the beginning of the piece (a moment I actually love), then the message would read something like this:  “Look at this.  Look at me.  Look at all this dancing.  See these tricks?  My leaps and kicks?  I’m flexing, pointing, leg-extending, rolling and panting…  all in my undergarment dressings.”  Perhaps this is all intentional, referring back to the title, “Shell of Herself”. The one time Nelson says, “I don’t know what that means,” face-to-face with Vader, I finally believe her.  But then, the movements quickly return to that familiar dance/yoga/Pilates vocabulary, and I’m even more anxious to see something different.

Similar are my feelings on the last piece, “Unearthed Moments.”  Playful still, it begins with counting, like a young girls’ hand-clapping song.  I adore the choice of all heads looking up at the first number, “four.”  This reminds me of the attention-catching word “fore” used in golf.  But the movement is still all so akin to what came before, and at this point, I’m desperately waiting for them to produce something outside the choreographic sandbox:  to get away from codified dance for a moment and explore moving more pedestrian or with more subtlety.  The moment of saving grace happens when Caroline Nelson sits perched atop supporting bodies and does a slow pan across the audience.  Yes!  Slowness.  Stillness.  A moment to reflect and digest.  In fact, I love the subsequent slow motion movement wishing I could see more of it!

Overall, Treeline does a beautiful job of painting the canvas with lots of detail and activity, but one doesn’t necessarily have to show all one’s cards at once.  I think they can afford to do less, in some respects.  Going back to “Pulse/Apology”, the silent score supports Vader’s moments of suspension beautifully, and I find myself wishing it would last longer when jarringly, a background score of medieval chants is introduced.  Although the sounds are haunting, they are also distracting from the text.  Perhaps if the music were more sparse, I’d be able to decipher the text better.

In Transit marks a choreographic rite-of-passage; the event where artistic directors Jenny Showalter and Lyndsey Vader show form a synthesis of what they’ve gathered over the past few years—from schoolings at SUNY Brockport, residencies in New York and Chicago, and mentors such as Pamela Vail, and Don Halquist (guest choreographers in the program).  What an appropriate title indeed!  Congratulations to them as they make this daring  transition from the classroom/studio into the professional dance world.  And while there are always points to work on, there are outnumbering points of interest that give this company much success!

iDANZ Critix Corner
Official Dance Review by Teresa Lynn
Performance:  Dance by Treeline Danceworks
Venue:  Center for Performance Research, CPR
Show Date:  November 6, 2010
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The evening opens with Drowntown.  Amazingly athletic and energetic, this is a powerhouse.  The dancers weave and dodge one another without missing a beat, yet join each other to prove a point at different times.   It is inspiring…  Imagine walking through Time Square at rush hour.  Watch out or you will get left in the dust!

Next on the program is Wraith. Danced by Michelle Pellizzon and Danielle Schulz, this piece is hauntingly beautiful.  With costumes by Tonatiuh Otero, they look like beautiful red Nymphs.  Showing their clean and pure technique, they dance in tune with each other ever so effortlessly.  Nymphs in a time of loss, they are still, however, hopeful for what is to come…  Beautiful!

Moving on to The Polarity, danced by Gierre Godley and Dillon Honiker, all I can say is WOW!!!!  Showstopper.  They both dance with power and masculinity; it is refreshing.  Throwing themselves on each other without a care in the world, they are out to kill!  I am immediately put in to the frame of thought of watching “The Matrix”, a wonderful fight scene with all the special effects coming to life right before me.  This (The Polarity) is wild abandon at it’s best!

The Missing, danced by Michelle Pellizon, is next and what a shocking surprise…  She is a revelation in this piece shaking, twisting, and contorting her body into oddly beautiful positions.  It’s really amazing. Merging her beautiful technique with the oddest of moves it is like watching a drug addict fight through withdrawal.  Happiness, sadness, longing, and cravings she is going through all the emotions right before your eyes.  I am happy to report she wins in the end!  Congrats!

And finally, Terminus, wraps up this wonderful evening.  Danced by the company, they save the best for last taking complete command of the stage and not being afraid of it.  The power of the dancers fill the floor bringing the audience to the edge of their seats.  Their movements are faster, sharper, and clean, as if to put the final stamp on the evening.  Wearing costumes by Keiko, they leave the audience wanting more and ready to stand up and join in!   Eryc Taylor Dance is one company not to be missed.

iDANZ Critix Corner
Official Dance Review by Devin Pullins
Performance  Eryc Taylor Dance
Venue:  Joyce SoHo
Show Date:  November 13, 2010
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Take for example the opening section, which brings to light the status-quo obsession with looks, and body image.  We see dancer, Johnni Durango, enter and stand center stage amongst the inanimate columns and vases.  Suddenly, she is no longer a dancer, but an object: a thing to be looked at, studied, and critiqued… like a piece of art —like a vase!— and perhaps like a candid celebrity beach body shot in US Weekly.  Thanks to a humorous recorded narrative by Ruth Draper, “A Class in Greek Poise,” the words guide us further into this judgmental state of mind. As we look at Durango —tall and slender— we hear Ruth say “214 pounds?…oh its 241 pounds? Bloomers please.”

“Ladies, line-up” Ruth continues.  And Durango assumes a pose on relevé, hands behind back and elbows bent…  like the wings of an exotic bird. (well with plumage like that of her loud, patterned tights, she’d have to be exotic!) Perhaps some abstract ode to Barbie? Or…as Ruth gabs on and on about poise, Durango starts strutting around with delicate, toe-pointed steps; she circles the column-confined area, and I feel as though I’m watching a peacock parading round its pen at the zoo.

Neil Greenberg, who by this point has furtively entered and placed one vase at each column’s base, begins clapping.  It’s not, by any means, directed at Durango, but because of her spatial arrangement, the model strut she just gave, and what transpired in the narrative, I connect the dots, and interpret that he is, indeed, applauding her.

Here’s the unique thing about Neil Greenberg’s choreography:  many of the goings on—the score, the dancers, the set, the musicians—have the strength to operate independently from one another.  But when they do sync-up coincidentally, they suddenly seem intentional… and then there’s meaning in them thar hills!  So although Neil’s clapping at that exact moment may seem intentional in relation to Durango, as the piece goes on, clapping returns in other moments as part of the phrasing, and by contrast we see there may be no meaning at all:  it’s just a neutral gesture.  How about a dancer taking a sip of coffee, followed by a sip of water off-stage?  It appears to be a pedestrian gesture of no meaning.  But take the same movement, and have two dancers do it in unison, and suddenly, I notice myself trying to “figure it out”.

This is Neil’s other obsession, which now has become mine too:  “tensions created by the seemingly inescapable human desire to create meaning.”   The eccentric movements may coincide with the score, and by default, I can’t help but draw a connection for them.  Ruth says “swing your weight forward” and the dancers do swinging movements with their arms.  As musicians, Zeena Parkins and Shayna Dunkelman, tune up the harp and other instruments, the text speaks of using one’s breath like a “musical instrument.”  Another cue, via the text:  Ruth is “prancing through the forest” with the hypothetical fat girls she is coaching.  Greenberg and Luke Miller are prancing about the space too…  in the most laugh-out-loud-funny way!  And later, Paige Martin’s vibrating palms begin as a move all-their-own; but once paired with the echoing sound of the harp, it looks as though she is struggling to cage the sound between her two hands.

I am tickled by my ability to connect the dots and create meaning.  We all are…  everyone giggles with delight at the sight of two dancers sipping coffee in unison.  We all love to feel like we “get it.”  But we also love to be challenged.  Several times throughout the show, a dancer brings a microphone stand on-stage, taps and blows into the mike, but says nothing.  Hmmm…what does that mean?  I question.

Similarly, a move may be repeated several times throughout the show, but in different contexts; the audience is prompted to question why they felt a certain way about it the first time, and differently the second. I watch Mina Nishimura introduce a head tapping solo far upstage left, behind the musicians, and partially obstructed by the light booms.  She is clearly lit, so I am clearly drawn to watch her, and yet this is the first time I give my full attention to a dancer who is not dancing on the white marley, “pedestal” stage.  Shortly after, Collin Stillwell does this same movement on stage, and I wonder:  is it the status-quo to label movement on the marley as “dance,” and movement off the marley as “not dance?”  Does placement determine what something is and isn’t?

The exquisiteness of Greenberg’s work is his ability to provoke such philosophical battles.  Also noteworthy is his ability to give dimension:  the simplicity of his movements, the repetition, the sparseness on stage alternated craftily with crowdedness…also the sparseness in the score alternated with lushness.  There is time for movement, and time to digest.  Repetition occurs, and we reflect once more; contemplate and re-contemplate.  The openness of his dance score allows audience members time and space to think… feel…  and ponder…..  all while experiencing something truly beautiful!  What a wonderful gift!

A cornucopia of beauty, in fact,  besides the dancing, there’s a beautiful set to behold!  Four black vases are lined up in a row:  their stark silhouettes in contrast to the white marley floor.  Also prominent are four white columns, arranged in a square, and a giant turquoise harp upstage.  This scene harkens to Greco/Roman classical art…a Michelangelo painting perhaps.

The harp is obviously functional:  also creating beauty for the ears to hear, thanks to the ingenious musings of harpist and composer Zeena Williams.  In this city where time and space are hot commodities, I rejoice in the moments of inserted breathing time to bring notice to all elements…. even the musicians themselves.  For example, there is a long instance where no dancers are on stage—just the musicians playing their instruments—and I am perfectly content watching them do their thang!

The openness of Greenberg’s dance score lends itself to be pondered, questioned…  and personalized to tastes of the individuals watching it.  My neighbor may see one way, and I another.  Neil’s work doesn’t limit itself to one definition, and that’s part of the gift as well. Greenberg’s passion for artistic statement is strong…  but even stronger is his passion for the audience.  He makes his work accessible, choosing to include the public on his exploration of social norms, as opposed to alienating them with high-brow airs.   How considerate and generous! (like a Vase) is really like a gift: an hour of pure, thought-provoking stage play, handed to the New York public like a delicately wrapped piece of ceramic art.

So little pilgrims, the thanks-giving season is upon us; and now is as good a time as any to remind ourselves the importance of thank you notes.  You may not have liked those pajamas Aunt Millie gave you last year, but you will definitely like Neil Greenberg’s multicolored, psychedelic saggy-crotch tights!…  and even more so, his work (like a vase).   It is a masterfully crafted gem, certainly worthy of the pedestal he puts it on for all to enjoy.  Please thank him by seeing this show!

iDANZ Critix Corner
Official Dance Review by Teresa Lynn
Performance:  Dance by Neil Greenberg
Venue:  Dance Theater Workshop, DTW
Show Date:  November 9, 2010
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Well, what’s there not to say about Cedar Lake Contemporary Ballet?  A diverse repertory company of exquisite technical beasts would be dream and playground for any guest choreographer; or, so it seems, based on the three works on the bill (Sunday Again, Unit in Reaction, and Hubbub) for one of their evenings at the Joyce Theater.

The evening opens with Jo Stromgen’s Sunday Again, a lighthearted, whimsical portrayal of a collection of lovers all dealing with the usual feuds and qualms of being in a relationship paralleled to back and forth quality experienced in a tennis match.  Literally.  Props used include a tennis net, raquet, and plastic shuttlecocks that randomly appear from underneath clothing.  All this in place is a quaint and neat set-up for a perfectly boring piece.  However, Stromgen infuses stark humor via unexpected male/female moments of roughness, lesbian eroticism, and other social behaviors such as spitting and gossiping amongst themselves.  Overall, these nuances work well together in Strongen’s choreography to keep the audience in tune and alert to fleeting moments of wit.

The dancers shift into a much darker and somber mode in the next piece, Unit in Reaction, choreographed by Jacopo Godani.  In this adrenaline-driven suspenseful piece, the dancers seem to operate as if they are all apart of a machine, or better yet a group of lab rats under experimentation and our surveillance.  The dancers create luscious lines and move intricately between each other in breathtaking duet and solo work. Godani’s work digs beneath the surface and accentuates all that is juicy in this company and just uses technique as icing on the cake.

The evening closes with my favorite work, Alexander Ekman’s Hubbub.  Now although the concept of the piece has been done before (there is no such thing as a new idea) Ekman took it to a new level!  This is one of those pieces where no amount of words can do it justice.  You just have to see it for yourself.  But here are a few personal highlights:  the suspended typewriter, rhythmic breathing phrase, accumulation, and a perfectly cute duet performed by Nikemil Concepcion and Harumi Terayama in which we hear a recording of the dancers personal thoughts as they execute each step.  Hubbub is one of those pieces that is difficult to walk away not just liking, but also, finding yourself talking about for the next few days!

You’re probably wondering how I can critique Cedar Lake Contemporary Ballet and not highlight any dancers.  Simple.  They are all ridiculously good looking and beautiful artists.  So here we go: Jubal Battisti, Jon Bond, Nickemil Concepcion, Gwynenn Taylor Jones, Jason Kittelberger, Ana Maria Lucaciu, Navarra Novy-Williams, Oscar Ramos, Matthew Rich, Acacia Schachite, Harumi Terayama, Vania Doutel Vaz, Manuel Vignoulle, Ebony Williams, and Golan Yosef…  You Rock Fierce!

iDANZ Critix Corner
Official Dance Review by Simone Sobers
Performance:  Cedar Lake Contemporary Dance Company
Choreography:  Jo Stromgen, Jacopo Godani, Alexander Ekman
Venue:  The Joyce Theater, New York City 
Show Date:  Tuesday, October 26, 2010
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The evening opens, as it always does with this company, with Fagan’s opus Prelude.  The piece begins with Pennewell leaping onto the stage in complete silence and hanging still with one leg extended behind him in an almost balletic attitude.  He balances for an amazingly long period of time, then, with a flurry of arms, a turn and a somersault, he finds himself casually balancing his leg aloft again.  Thus begins our lesson on Garth Fagan’s technique.  The number is intended to introduce Fagan’s unique style, and for anyone who’s ever been in a dance class, it reads like…  well,…  like you’re watching a dance class.  Not the most exciting piece of theatre.  For those who haven’t been in a dance class, apparently it’s fascinating, at least judging from the rambunctious applause at Prelude’s conclusion.  But to me, it is plodding and pedantic.  I appreciate the technique of Pennewell and the others, but then I want them to let go of it.  Dancers go to class to focus on technique, but when we go to see dance performed, we want to see dancers in whom technique is so ingrained that they are able to soar. Unfortunately, in Wednesday’s program, I rarely saw that happen.

Prelude is followed by an sensual duet from the company classic Griot.  This intricate, slowing-moving duet between the leggy, muscular Pennewell and the equally leggy and muscular Nicolette Depass is one of the highlights of the evening.  As disappointed as I had been with the first piece, I couldn’t take my eyes off of the dancers in this slow, inventive duet of shifting shapes set to a luscious soundtrack by Wynton Marsalis. Here, in the capable hands (and arms and legs and even chins) of two of Fagan’s senior dancers, you see an intensity that overrides the pedantic of the first piece.

Pennewell’s choreographic debut, Hylozoic, once again hits you over the head with the Fagan technique. But Pennewell has proved himself to be an excellent at jumps, and this piece gets off its feet– literally– in a more exciting manner than Prelude.  Set against a backdrop of a single curtain, the dancers defy gravity as they twist, leap and twirl through the space. Nicolette Depasse shines once again on a stage full of lithe, athletic dancers.

After those two highlights and a brief intermission, the program once again descends into a very formal, repetitive exploration of the Garth Fagan technique. Thanks, Forty seeks to honor the company’s anniversary, but it isn’t until the fourth movement, entitled Fete-Joys, that you get to see the heart and soul of the company.  When the three original dancers come out and dance without restraint, you begin to see how this might have been an explosive company twenty years ago.

Still, Garth Fagan is a must-see for any enthusiast of modern dance. Their historic ascent of the New York City dance ladder has become legendary and inspiring for dancers of all ages.  The newest members of the company show great promise, while the older ones amaze us with their dedication to and mastery of Fagan technique.  Each year they return to The Joyce Theater to make their indelible mark on the dance scene.

iDANZ Critix Corner
Official Dance Review by Molly Sorohan
Performance:  Garth Fagan Dance
Choreographer: Garth Fagan, Norwood Pennewell
Venue:  The Joyce Theater, New York
Performance Date:  November 10, 2010, 7:30 pm
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Sunday, Again, which premiered in Oslo in 2008, explores the combative nature of relationships using the slightly random metaphor of badminton. (Who among us doesn’t relate to badminton?) However, quite a few of us can relate to dysfunctional relationships and the emotional life of each couple is earnestly expressed with fluent, graceful lines and breathtaking partnering.  The opening duet between Jason Kittelberger and Acacia Schachte is particularly elegant.  Likewise, Harumi Terayama’s playful interlude with partner Jubal Battisti showcases her lightning feet and youthful vitality.  But while themes of loneliness and ostracism weave in and out, the piece never really comes together.  For all the exacting technique and effortless duets, one is left thinking, "But why should I care?"

The world of the second piece, Hofesh Shechter’s The Fools, contrasts sharply with Stromgen’s world of badminton and refined aggression.  Shechter’s darkly lit set creates a menacing atmosphere, and the opening sequence immediately catches your interest, with eight dancers, or Shadows, clothed in what appear to be black straitjackets, dancing wildly to a series of drumbeats.  Then the Fools enter:  seven characters in their underwear, hunched over, stepping deliberately in riveting slow motion.  By part two, the Fools are fully dressed in clone-like office wear, and the choreography becomes more stilted and mechanical to reflect their inner life.  Schechter’s choreography retains a sense of the unexpected, with breakouts by the Shadows interwoven with the Fool’s choreography, which, as the piece progresses, becomes more desperate and absurd.  Soloist Manuel Vignoulle steals the show with his gut-wrenching, athletic solo.

In the third and final piece, Didy Veldman’s frame of view, nine lithe, sinewy dancers glide between a series of three rather flimsy doors, designed by Miriam Buether. The doorways are meant both literally and figuratively as passageways to happiness and tragedy.  Though enjoyable overall, the ballet leans towards the latter half of the term "artsy-fartsy," due mostly to Veldman’s tendency to incorporate spoken word into the soundtrack, which in this case was distracting and annoying.  Still, several vignettes resonated deeply: the lonely, sexy ballerina dancing a duet with a faceless figure through a rubber-paneled door, a slow-motion fight where Terayama’s features and technique are used to maximum comic effect, and two lonely souls sharing a turtleneck in a lovely, pitiful duet.   frame of view had the most personality of the evening and offered the most humor, insight and catharsis.

Does Cedar Lake live up to the hype?  Not with this program, no.  But they certainly proved to be a risk-taking company full of beautiful, powerful dancers.  I am curious to see what their next steps will be.

 iDANZ Critix Corner
Official Dance Review by Molly Sorohan
Performance:  Cedar Lake Contemporary Ballet
Venue:  The Joyce Theater, New York City
Show Date:  November 2, 2010
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For the opening piece, festival host, Kinetic Junglist Movement (KJM), performs a very intriguing work of movement invention enhanced by some creative costume designs as the dancers’ human faces are masked and their bodies are covered from head to toe in shimmery insect-like bodysuits with thin finger extensions that appear like long needle-like appendages.  Choreographed by Amy Secada, this piece details the metamorphosis of a Cicada, an insect known by it’s clicking sounds and ability to molt, shedding it’s shell.   Combining yoga, capoeira, and some acrobatic movements, about 80% of this fifteen minute piece is done on the floor.   No lazy dancers here, dancers roll, balance, and pause in deep squats, and at some points, burst up into the air in eclectic jumps with a sort of creepy yet ethereal undertone.   So much demanding floor work, you would think the dancers have knees of steel!   Although a bit lengthy and somewhat repetitive, the metamorphosis is absolutely captivating. 

Purely a stand-out in the program is the multi-talented performer, Monstah Black, who really knows how to  demand attention from an audience.  He sings one of his songs, "Black Like Jesus," a fan favorite, fusing in his own very dynamic movement style as he covers the entire space solo with his quick turning leaps and soul slithering, black glama flair.  One thing great about Monstah Black is that he truly is a seasoned, professional performer in that he has mastered the art of captivating an audience, knowing when to move fast and when to be still, when to scream and when to whisper.  Bravo!

The pick-me-up of the evening goes to a performance by Princess Lockeroo and Akim Funk Buddha presenting an "Urban Opera" interpretation of the famous habanera from Carmen.  Whacking, vogueing, and some locking and jazz dance fuse together to create a comical scene heightened by a dazzling chorus of "full-out" dancers. 

Spinnin Ronin Martial Arts Dance Theater entertains with a comical story ballet complete with a menacing Samurai, flashy swords, and fight choreography worthy to be seen in the next Jet Li movie.  In an awesome battle scene with the very tall Kei Yokoyama, watch out for their underdog, the petite heroine, Pai Wang, as she is a hot one with her Samurai sword in hand flowing through the very acrobatic fight choreography with fury and ease.  Although lengthy for a one night multi-act filled festival, the performance successfully blends dance, martial arts, and choreographed fight moves with a delightful beginning, suspenseful climax, and an end.  For a dance show, Spinnin Ronin, with its martial arts fused movement and exciting fight expertise, is a welcome addition to a mostly modern/jazz fusion dance festival.

Of course, we can’t ignore the grand finale:   the energetically uplifting and thoroughly entertaining Babacar M’Baye & Co. presenting a Sabar, (Senegalese dance and drumming style).  Because of its innate spiritual nature, Babacar M’Baye’s Sabar is a reminder to the audience of the folklore focus of the evening.  A grand demonstration of skill and tradition, Babacar M’Baye proves to be a fantastic way to end an evening and of course, a great instigator to incite audience members to jump to their feet to dance the night away.

Overall the evening is very eclectic and full of various genres including an intergalactic geisha named Yozmit, who gradually strips on stage while singing to reveal levels of fake body parts…  the private ones!  There is no disclaimer or announcement to the audience so many are scrambling to cover the eyes of children.  Also on the program is an inspiring poem and vocal performance from Micah Blacklight, a musical performance from Le Soul Afrique, and an Afro Brazilian dance performance from Ginga Da Bahia.  However, in my search for the connection between the performance material and the festival’s mission, to "breathe new life into ancient traditions" by showcasing artists who utilize the folkloric arts and fuse these forms with contemporary styles, the presentations come up short. There is folklore and there is fusion, but only some pieces accomplish the festival’s mission.  All in all, while I leave St. Mark’s Church a bit unclear, the performances by these young performers possess promising skill and engaging entertainment.  I am proud.

iDANZ Critix Corner
Official Dance Review by JoiLynn
Contributing Editor:  Candice Rox
Performance:  KJM Presents…  Urban Roots Project
Venue:  St. Mark’s Church, New York City
Show Date:  October 3, 2010
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Coupe de Foudre, a theatrical reinterpretation of surrealist film maker Jean Cocteau’s 1930 film "Blood of a Poet," gives a sudden intense feeling of love as the French title suggests as well as many other emotions as the audience remained in awe of this artistic collaboration of three generations of African American artists at the Guggenheim Museum.  Corey Baker, Co-Artistic director of Ballet Noir and performer in Fela! on Broadway, performed as a dancer/actor physically interpreting the onscreen performance of characters in the film blending the present and past of art interpretation.  Paul Miller, a.k.a DJ Spooky That Subliminal Kid, accompanied by Telos Ensemble, rescores the music creating an eerie, haunting, mystical mood to the stage, and Melvin Van Peebles filmmaker/director of “Sweetback” in the 1960’s gives a dynamic performance adding dialogue as he interprets the French poetry of the film.  It completely appeals to all the senses and takes the audience literally into a whirlwind of a theatrical experience. 

The most exhilarating moments occur when Corey appears in the audience on the stairs one moment, as a shadow on screen the next, or a character crawling in space.  Melvin’s voice gives explanation to the black and white silent film as DJ Spooky takes the audience on a musical journey through time from the days of Josephine Baker to the new sounds of the twenty first century.

"I walk through my blindness the way I saunter down streets in Paris: unfiltered and alive: enchanted and enjoyed by the raw material of the senses.  I am a blind flaneur.  Come along with me.  Just don’t try to take my arm, unless I ask," Melvin recites as the film plays and Corey appears at the beginning of the show.  The theater is a white sphere with intense lighting design by Scott Bolman focusing on the statuesque, brown muscular body of dancer Corey Baker in contrast to the white statue on film.  There is a two-sided mirror, a wooden chair placed in front, a door with the number 17 stage left, and a black wall stage right.  A story line begins with a young man, a poet, attempting to draw a series of faces.  Suddenly, the mouth of one of these faces rubs off in his hand and starts smiling.  Terrified, the poet accidently smears off the mouth of the statue he was working on previously.  The statue comes to life and, in return, forcefully sends the young man through the mirror to another imaginary location at a mysterious hotel.

Corey Baker, as the poet, does a series of hand gestures looking into his hand, drawing on the mirror, running to the wall in sync with the actor on screen.  A spinning head on the screen symbolizes unconsciousness and the entering of a dream world.  Corey floats across the screen in a black silhouette as he falls out of reality.   With gorgeous technique, he performs slow controlled spiraling turns, hinges, attitude turns and extensions with beautifully sculpted balletic arms, as if swimming, and climbing up a wall.  He becomes each of the characters the poet encounters in a strange hotel:  a little boy, a man in a painting, children in a scene throwing snowballs. 

Melvin recites lessons of love, speaks of inner silence, deliverance, infinite precaution, and of nothing being premeditated in life.  There are references to Homer and other Greek myths as each scene becomes more intense. The audience is stunned as a young boy is beat until he bleeds and the poet shoots himself in the head.  Corey slips in an out of each character with ease with moments of still statuesque movement, then spinning, falling, running to a door, jumping off the stage into the audience in a state of despair and disillusion.  At the climax of the film the poet commits suicide twice!  The final time, after sitting in front of the woman he loves apprehensively with his heart beating out his chest, the gun appears, and, almost like a moment in animation, blood leaks from his temple; and there, stamped at his temple, is the Star of David.

This scene in the 1930’s would have been overdramatic or bizarre but with this theatrical version performed with Corey, Melvin, and DJ Spooky, Jean Cocteau’s film has much more depth.  The poet dies and his lover becomes stone like the statue.  A black angel comes to the scene reminiscent of the biblical angel Gabriel.  In the audience, coming from a staircase is Corey descending from Heaven as the angel.  The perfect lighting and ethereal sounds of DJ Spooky and the violinist set the mood for this theatrical ending.

In Jean Cocteau’s film, there are people walking through mirrors where they encounter the deepest psychological aspects of themselves. There are people walking upside down reciting poetry while they are painted into a canvas. The paintings come to life and the sculptures speak.  Poetry becomes a film scene and a character’s dialogue.  In Blood of a Poet, one of the central themes is that inanimate objects possess mortal properties, and subsequently perform a play within a play, a film within a film. 

In the post-performance conversation with the creators, we learn that Cocteau’s compelling work also inspired the great Russian ballet-master, Sergei Diaghilev, to produce “Parade” with Pablo Picasso as designer.   According to Paul D. Miller, a.k.a. DJ Spooky, Jean Cocteau has a fascination with the relationship between technology and theatricality which is what DJ Spooky explains as his inspiration for rescoring Blood of a Poet.  Corey explains his approach to creating the choreography for this work as done more from an actor’s perspective and less about choreographing beautiful dance.  According to Corey, he reworks certain elements of the piece following the musical changes while paying close attention on being true to the character.  He masterfully incorporates all elements of his dance background (modern, ballet, African, and hip hop) which gives the work a beautiful, honest feeling.  Melvin describes the language of the 1930’s and the poetry in Jean Cocteau’s film. Translating French to English words wasn’t enough to get the audience to understand, it requires him also translating the slang or flapper language of that time as he calls it. 

All in all, this is a stellar performance, and there are even talks of “Coup de Foudre” touring the nation.  As we progress in technology and continue to mix art with the theatrical world, we will see other collaborations such as this one which will greatly be appreciated by those seeking entertainment that provokes strong emotions and sparks the intellect.

iDANZ Critix Corner
Official Dance Review by Carmen Carriker
Performance:  "Coupe de Foudre" with D.J. Spooky and Ballet Noir
Venue:  Guggenheim Museum
Show Date:  October 10, 2010
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“Why?” This is the continuous thought running through my head while watching Ballet Preljocaj perform Angelin Preljocaj’s Empty Moves (parts I & II) at BAM.  The piece, choreographed to John Cage’s 1977 speech Empty Words, which was recorded in Milan before a vocal and rambunctious crowd, sets a standard for contemporary choreographers.  Like abstract artwork, the 63-minute piece of arbitrary movement and Cage’s syllabic, unrecognizable pronunciation of words presents an enigma for the audience to decode.

The costumes, reminiscent of a disco roller rink party, expose the dancers’ liquid lines and dynamic quality of movement.  However, I ask, “Why this choice of retro neon color shirts and shorts that would have been worn by Punky Brewster?”

The dancers effortlessly transfer from position to position, but reveal no emotion; their faces remain frozen.  At one moment, the two girls toboggan over a man towards the audience and smile.  Again, I ask, “Why?  Why is that the only moment of expression?”

Randomly, the two men repeatedly stand on their heads, the women push their elbows in the men’s eyes and mouths, and in one moment the couples reach into their partners mouths.  I wonder, “Why, what is Preljocaj’s intention?”

As I continue to watch Empty Moves, the answer to my question is that Preljocaj just feels like it, and, in the moment, the arbitrary step appears to be the perfect piece to fit the puzzle.  Half way through the piece a dancer leaves the stage to get a drink of water and brings the Poland Spring bottle to other dancers on stage.  At that moment, the dancers are thirsty and drinking water is a necessary part of the choreography.  Like the simple black dress hanging in the closest, sometimes the least complicated and least contrived things are the most beautiful.

For a dancer, the process of learning and performing a piece with such arbitration presents a huge challenge. As a dancer you rely on the music to rescue you from the “oh crap” moments that occur when the choreography slips away from the body; however, the four dancers Favrizio Clemente, Gaelle Chappaz, Julien Thibault, and Yurie Tsugawa, impress with their flawless performance.  They dance with a connective energy that mesmerizes the eyes for the entire 63 minutes. Even though subdued and unremarkable, the choreography perplexes the conception of entertainment and disproves the idea that the flashy choreography seen on So You Think You Can Dance is the future of performance art. 

In a poignant moment, the four dancers interlock themselves lying in a straight line across the stage.  Who knew that something as simple as this would be as impressive as the Texas Rangers beating the Yankees to play in the World Series?

Anglein Preljocaj and his company are the epitome of innovation and hopefully will inspire more artists to trust their instincts and escape conformity like Preljocaj has done in Empty Moves (parts I & II).

iDANZ Critix Corner
Official Dance Review by Katherine Gibson
Performance:  Ballet Preljocaj
Venue:  BAM, Brooklyn, NY
Show Date:  Friday, October 29, 2010
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