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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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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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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If height were measured in spirit, Ms. Brown would be 50 feet tall.  Instead, this petite woman walks into a room commanding the presence of a giant with her sparkling eyes, her articulate phrasing (words and dance) and a proud, lifted heart chakras.  Every time Camille speaks, fireworks seemingly burst out of the top of her head (for an image, just think of her awesome, colorful firework-like hair) because not only does she put passion into every little thing that she says to the class, but she also does this as a proud, strong dancer with energy bursting in different directions as she speaks.  I already knew of her incredibly inspiring performances, but now I know that she inspires just as much as a teacher, which in turn will create the tradition of passing her teachings on and on and on.

A couple of years ago, Ronald Brown taught a master class series at Steps, and a philosophy that this master drills hard is "do the exercise correctly the first time and do it with soul".  In a nutshell, he explains that you plain and simply don’t need to work as hard if you do it full out, correctly and with feeling immediately.  Having danced under Mr. Brown in his company Evidence, it‘s clear that she has integrated Mr. Brown’s philosophies into her teachings and preaches them in her own style.  I can’t say that Ms. Brown has a short warm up (her warm-up is 1.5 hours of the 2 hour class), but she sure does keep things simple and emphasize that we should milk every movement with resistance and spirit. 

Of course, to be able to rise to the level of adding artistry to the exercises, you have to know the phrase well.  Don’t worry, Ms. Brown will be sure that everyone has the combination by thoroughly answering questions before dancing each exercise and emphasizing vocabulary by repeating not only each exercise many times, but also integrating several of her signature African and Limon style steps into several of the exercises!  I’ll confess that my upper and lower back is very tender after this Camille Brown repetition ritual.  This constant succession of steps helps the dancer get to the point of muscle memory so that the mind isn’t working on remembering the steps, but on adding the icing on the steps that makes them sparkle just like Camille Brown’s movement does.

It is really great to get to a point of effortlessness when studying with a “master” because this is the point when your body truly has begun to absorb the information (the vocabulary) and most importantly, the style.  What we really want is for the teacher to transfer a bit of her spirit to us, and I truly believe this can only really happen if the student really understands the vocabulary so that he/she is open to accepting the gift of the teacher’s true artistry.  This artistry is what made the teacher so great in the first place and, hence, rise to the place that they’ve risen. Isn’t this one of the main reasons us poor dancers dig deep in our pockets to pay the high master class rate? ($19 at Steps on Broadway!)  The answer is, yes, and Camille Brown delivers 100%!

Her warm up begins with a heavy focus on port de bra and upper body contractions and undulations.  Ms. Brown thoroughly warms up a dancers each and every vertebrae with her intense focus on torso.  Once your torso is warm, elements of African and Limon start to creep in. At one point during the warm up, after having learned several dynamic warm up progressions (including  ones that combine a hard hitting charleston and "the wop" with gentle contraction progressions), Camille splits the room in half and has us repeat different exercises back and forth.  Not knowing which of the 8 bar combinations the following group would be asked to do next, everyone in class is forced to be alert to everything that is happening in the room.  Camille is showing us here that being totally aware of the teacher and the other dancers in the room may be something that’s a bit foreign to a lot of dancers.  It’s so easy to get caught in your own head by looking in the mirror at your body or thinking about something that happened before class that day, but Ms. Brown reiterates that you must be wholly present in class.  As one half of the room is finishing up a phrase, Ms. Brown hints at what phrase she wants the other half of the classroom to do next by quickly doing the first step of the phrase 4 counts before we need to begin.  Each time she demonstrates, the class’ energy is rising.  Her energy is so infectious as her eyes fill with fire with every word of advice, and her body shoots fire when she demonstrates. I cannot wait to see this fire onstage at The Joyce this week!

After the 1.5 hour warm up in the center, we move to the side of the room to do a few short progressions across the floor that are heavily rooted in African.  Ms. Brown stops the class twice to pick on a young girl who obviously has potential, but is not giving the class her full focus.  Ms. Brown sternly explains to the class that this student is doing the steps in the way that feel most comfortable on her body and not the way that is being taught.  She reprimands her like a child saying, “You better start opening your ears because you can’t just go around doing the steps however you please.”  This is the second time that this particular student has been singled out in class in a negative light, which highlights the fact that Ms. Brown will not stand someone walking away from her classroom with a misunderstood version of her teachings.  This could have been a real life-changing moment for this singled out student! (I know that’s something I’d carry with me forever.)

Right before we exit class, Ms. Brown emphatically encourages everyone in class to join her Facebook page, get on her email list and most importantly, come to the show at The Joyce this coming week featuring her choreography along with Andrea Miller, Kate Weare, and Monica Bill Barnes.  As everyone beat the ground in praise in time with her two drummers, I realize that Camille Brown’s drive to communicate with the world through dancing, teaching and choreography has built incredible momentum that is delivering her goods to a vast number of people.  Most importantly, I see a genuineness of heart in her teachings and choreography, from which the people in her class and in her audience will reciprocate by readily absorbing her poignant messages with open arms.

iDANZ Critix Corner
Official Dance Review by Adrienne Jean Fisher
Masterclass Teacher: Camille Brown
Venue:  Steps on Broadway
Class Date:  August 6, 2010 
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A Note from the iDANZ staff:   This piece got lost in the iDANZ internet abyss, and FINALLY has been discovered.  Yay!!!  iDANZ Staff truly apologizes for the delay in posting this wonderful piece and hopes it brings timeless inspiration and joy.

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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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The show opens with video footage of hip hop dance dignitary Ken Swift, of course, and each dancer is posed on a wooden panel, which the dancers manipulate throughout the show, creating interesting and clever scenery and scenarios.  What an excellent usage of props, as I almost forget that the only thing on the stage is the dancers and the panels… 

The show progresses into the dancers explaining to the audience how it felt when they first saw Ken Swift dance.  At this time, a very interesting part of the show emerges as the dancers view footage of Swift along with the audience, and then stop the tape to execute signature moves or steps that Swift originated.  There are very informative parts of the show that I appreciated as it isn’t a show that "pimps" the art of break dancing as most mainstream and many other shows do.  It’s way more than that…  It’s an exceptional, comprehensive work that isn’t necessarily about the obvious tricks that anyone can identify, but about the art of break dancing and its many components.  

At one point, it is stated "to be a good b-boy or b-girl, you gotta have footwork."   I want to yell out "THANK YOU!" because there are so many intricacies and nuances to break that so often, unfortunately, these skills get overlooked for power moves.  The dancers swivel, roll, dove, spun, and sort of tease the audience because they obviously are powerhouses.  Their individual personalities and passions are also interwoven into the show as they explain to the audience what inspires them to break. 

Ken Swift Solos represents not only a show honoring a legend but, one that informs about and honors an art form.

Photography by Yi-Chun Wu

iDANZ Critix Corner
Official Dance Review by JoiLynn
Performance:  olive Dance Theatre
Venue:  Hip Hop Theater Festival @Dance Theatre Workshop
Show Date:  Saturday, October 2, 2010
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In a triumphant return to the New York stage and Broadway, Matthew Bourne’s Swan Lake is a feast for the senses that sends you into the sky!

Mr. Bourne has introduced the great tale of Swan Lake in an innovative, inspiring, and entertaining new way.  No longer the stuffy and reserved version, Bourne’s production is refreshingly hilarious.  With tongue and cheek jabs at classical ballet, it feels strangely okay.  You almost feel as if you are watching a great John Waters film (Hairspray, Cry Baby, or Serial Mom).  Excellently balanced with his comedic side, Bourne’s choreography for Swan Lake is a brilliantly creative, demanding piece of work, a wicked challenge every dancer on that stage grab holds with committed fervor.  The dancers are extremely talented and strong, and don’t lack in technique in the least bit.  They are completely comfortable and capable in all the roles, which makes the tongue and cheek aspect so believable.

The lead characters, Dominic North (The Prince) and Richard Winsor (The Swan/ Stranger), are mind-blowing.  With their beautiful and fluid technique, these men give a commanding performance and convincing display in the portrayal of their characters. They would definitely get my Oscar for best actor of the year.  Equally amazing in their roles are Madelaine Brennan (The Girlfriend), completely hysterical, she would be a perfect match for Nathan Lane in a New Broadway Show, and Nina Goldman (The Queen) who is regal and beautiful!  However, once the Swan’s make their appearance, all bets are off and sign-me up to join the flock!!!! The Swans are all amazing and believable.  They lift the roof off of City Center, with the flapping of their wings, and soar right out of the theater!

This production is equally visually stunning; with costumes and set by Lez Brotherston, you immediately fill as if you have just walked into Dylan’s Candy Bar and can’t wait to dive in and try all the flavors.  An utter feast for the eyes, I am already hard at work trying to sample every morsel watching the ballet unfold.  Of course the score by Pyotr llyich Tchaikovsky is beautiful and does not disappoint.  It compliments Bourne’s version surprisingly perfect, like a great bottle of wine at your favorite Italian restaurant.  You very quickly forget you are listening to one of classical music’s most beloved ballets and it sounds so current!

Overall, Matthew Bourne’s Swan Lake is a complete revelation.  It is a great introduction to the dance world for anyone who would like to take a peak.  Absolutely better than a movie on a Friday night, head over to City Center and see live performance, dance, and theater at a level that is simply brilliant.

Photography by Bill Cooper

iDANZ Critix Corner
Official Dance Review by Devin Pullins
Performance:  Matthew Bourne’s Swan Lake
Venue:  City Center, New York City
Show Date:  October 15, 2010, 8pm
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Jeremy McQueen shines in a pas de duex he dances and choreographs alongside lush Alexis Convento.  Offering a loose interpretation of the balcony scene in Romeo and Juliet, they demonstrate the binds love often brings by intertwining their wrists in thick rope.  These binds cannot conceal their artistry as the two move with extreme fluidity throughout the piece.  A warm spotlight illuminates their body of work – extremities that can make anyone jealous.  Their ability to create substantial, heavy movement – running parallel to the emotional content of the piece – followed by light, airy accents acknowledges McQueen’s lens as an artist and skills as a performer.  In Convento, he chooses a true counterpart. She embodies the vulnerability of a true Juliet while also showing the strength of someone in deep desperation.  Watch out for McQueen – you won’t be sorry!

Perhaps paying homage to their own post college beginning’s, PCDC selects LeeRoc Dance Project – in good taste!  The collective work of recent UMass Amherst graduates, Andria LaRocco and Beth Liebowizt, reflects a mature choreographic voice in “De ja vu (I Think I’ve Been Here Before).”  Dancers are joined by live piano accompaniment that proves their true partnership with both music and movement.  As the largest piece in the festival, LeeRoc pushes the envelope with layered phrasing, remarkable synchronicity and astute action.  Between the music and mesmerizing movement, LeeRoc brings the audience into their world with fierce fluidity.  LeeRoc shows that a college dance degree is a piece of paper worth having!

PCDC ends the festival and deservedly so.  Their newest take on “Ancient Bruises” features Artistic Director, Melissa Gendreau, as lead soloist.  Her athleticism is nuanced with soft hands and ethereal phrasing.  On top of organizing the entire festival, she organizes her entire body in a way that brings awe to the audience.  The specificity of her movement speaks to the specificity she has as a director, choreographer and true movement artist.  PCDC dancers also travel the delicate line of athleticism vs. nuance – making sure to land in the middle.  Haunting music provides a soundscape worthy of the movement I mull over in my head for days.  Musical selections include “Sea Lion Woman” – Christine & Katherine Shipp, “She Began to Lie” – Greg Hale Jones, and “Field Below” – Regina Spektor.

Other performers include Anahata Dance Company, JKDance – Jaclyn K Walsh, Jennifer Buzzotta & Nicole Sao Pedro, Lauren Withharte, LeeRoc Dance Project, Sarah Sadie Newett, Trio Dance Collective and Vanessa Rea.  Gendreau states, “The first Perceptions Dance Festival was a huge success, and we owe it to the amazing participants, volunteers, and supporters.  I am thrilled to have been able to provide this opportunity to artists around the country, similar to those opportunities that helped my artistic growth.  I hope to continue this tradition for years to come, and with the support of the community the Perceptions Dance Festival can grow to become a staple to artists around the country and beyond.”  Sounds like a done deal to me!  Stay on the lookout out for PCDC performances – you won’t want to miss them!

iDANZ Critix Corner
Official Dance Review by Eileen Elizabeth
Performance:  1st Annual PCDC Dance Festival
Compay:  PCDC and Guests
Venue:  Manhattan Movement and Arts Center
Show Date:  September 18, 2010
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Waking into Joyce SoHo for the performance of Deacadance Theater, I am immediately massaged by the sounds of Hip-Hop beats.  Creating the vibe on the ones and twos is DJ Henry C, spinning the joints that hype everyone to get crunk.  Finally the house lights dim and the crowd erupts into thunderous applause, and we are ready.

The first piece on the bill, choreographed by Jennifer Weber, The Cage (inspired by Jerome Robbins), takes hip hop dance soaring to heights as high as the Empire State building!  Brilliantly danced by the ladies of Decadance crew (Ann-Sylvia Clark, Lucile Graciano, Nadia Lumley, & Taeko Koli), these X chromosomes take complete control of the stage like a well-oiled machine.  Their movements are fluid and smooth, a hot knife through butter, and I am ready to be SLICED!  I watch with awe in suspense as they move from slow to fast with ease like waiting for a YouTube video to buffer and load.  Once they get going…   oh how satisfying it is!  These b-girls are highly athletic and strong, flipping through the air and spinning on their heads as if they are Olympic gymnasts.  I score them a 10!

The next piece, The City Breathing, also choreographed by Weber, is an imaginative triumph.  The dancers are on stage dancing in jogging suits, the lights go out, and then, out of nowhere, their costumes light up!   Immediately, at first I think,… hmmm…  "Walt Disney World’s Main Street Electrical Parade."  However, delightfully it turns out to be a piece I only WISH they’d march through Walt Disney World!  They seem to disappear and reappear out of nowhere, floating through space.   These dancers are amazing doing steps you would only see men doing and at a speed that would make anyone shout,  "WORK!"   Overall, another perfect score 10.

The next and final piece on the bill is a total slam-dunk:  the world premier, When The Sky Breaks.  For Weber, this is the most ingenious and ambitious piece on the bill that even I would want to get up and join.  All I have to say is “Step-Up 3D”…  That’s right, folks, put on your 3D glasses and pop some popcorn.  With an integrated 3D video created by multimedia artist, Holly Daggers, you feel like you actually are in the middle of the dance.  Weber incorporates a little house dancing, more awe inspiring moves, and the most intricate, isolated, fast-hand choreography I have ever seen.  Weber almost seems to take a page out of The Matrix and Madonna’s Vogue video.  So, I guess you can call this a little Vogue Matrix 2010…  The Decadance dancers are athletic, musical, and beautiful, and I am very pleased with the final product.  Once again I’ll give them a score of 10!

Wow!  Just like the Olympics, 3 perfect 10’s….   And the gold medal goes to…  DECADANCE THEATER!   All the evening’s pieces are masterfully directed and choreographed by Jennifer Weber.  Watch out “So You Think You Can Dance” Decadance is HERE.  A must see!

iDANZ Critix Corner
Official Dance Review by Devin Pullins
Performance: Decadance Theater
Choreographer:  Jennifer Weber
Venue:  Joyce SoHo
Show Date:  July 17, 2010
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Performance:  Savion Glover’s "Sole Power"
Venue:  Joyce Theater,  www.Joyce.org
Run:  June 21 – July 10, 2010

Listen to Interview NOW…..

Definitely an inspiration to all young tappers and future Broadway dancers… Savion Glover takes the theater world by storm with youthful zeal as a 12 year old prodigy performing in his first Broadway show, The Tap Dance Kid.   By 15 years old, Savion performs in Black & Blue, in which he is nominated for a Tony, and by 18 years of age, Savion stars in Jelly’s Last Jam.   By age 23, Savion solidifies his place as the "Son of Sound" (coined by our very own iDANZ Critic, Martine Quigley) by starring and choreographing his own Broadway show, "Bring in da Noise, Bring in da Funk,"  co-directed by George C. Wolf, which Savion wins the Tony for best choreography.  Savion continues to perform as a featured guest artist, in addition to performing his choreography in his own full-length productions showcasing his artistry to audiences worldwide. 

On Monday night, June 28, I had a chance to interview Savion Glover in his dressing room at The Joyce Theater immediately following the performance of Sole Power, an intergalactic show that pays homage to the greats such as Jimmy Slyde and Gregory Hines and showcases the versatile feet of the great contemporaries such as Mr. Glover and Marshall Davis Jr.  In this interview, Savion expresses the importance of always being a student of life and developing relationships with "old people" in order to gain wisdom and constantly grow as an artist… His message, "Keep Slyde Alive!"  Moreover, Savion talks about his "dark period", after which, he felt like a new man whose reasons for performing changed dramatically. 

On a lighter note, Savion talks about the tap shoes he’s been wearing for years and also talks about the process leading into the famous Tony Award Winning show Bring in Da’ Noise, Bring in Da’ Funk. 

Enjoy this fascinating peek into the life of Mr. Glover!  -Adrienne Jean "AJ" Fisher, iDANZ Critix Corner

Check out Savion Glover’s Sole Power at The Joyce Theater June 21 through July 10.  For more information, visit www.Joyce.org.

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