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From SeeingBlack.com Theater/Dance
In Love Stories, the mostly female cast celebrates, laments, worships and wistfully reflects on all manner of love. This dance theater piece with the vocal stylings of Billie Holiday requires a wide range of acting and dance skills. In the "Obsession" section of Love Stories, the dancers portray women who have a serious jones--be it luxury, men or simply being in love with love. Tracey Vogt particularly stands out as a woman in love with jewels and her own reflection. She preens and primps, caressing her baubles with the knowledge that jewels are constant, a love that can be counted on and controlled. In the "Hope Springs Eternal" section, couples reminisce on the joys of a love that once was. De Lavallade effectively choreographs to the aching rawness of Holiday’s voice with movement that suggests bittersweet memories. The couples intertwine, reach and arch their bodies toward a time when love was comforting, rich and overwhelming. Ronald K. Brown proves once again with the New York premiere of his For Truth [excerpts] that he is a choreographer that understands how to combine Black social dance styles with the more trained technique one would expect to see on the concert stage. In For Truth, dancers bodyroll, snake, shimmy, hallelujah shout and do the get-down, while maintaining centered turns and extending well-stretched legs and feet to the high heavens. This piece is a true celebration of Black dance and what it means to be free. Perhaps Brown’s truth is the truth that can be found in that confluence of formal training and letting it all hang out. Daniel Ezralow’s Pulse, with original music by David Lang, is in the genre of Twyla Tharp’s Catherine Wheel. To the minimalist music of Lang, dancers dressed in translucent-like pajamas, slide and caress the floor, simultaneously at times, sometimes stopping on a dime, accelerating, or sometimes as if in slow motion. Unlike De Lavallade’s piece, Ezralow has totally erased gender and traditional couplings. Men lift the women, women lift the men, men lift each other or vice versa. The sliding technique used in this work creates the illusion of manipulation by outside forces. Ezralow shows in this ballet that he is master at creating abstract ensemble pieces in which the main character is the work itself. Christopher L. Huggins’ ballet Cottonwool is about going beyond one’s limitations, whether it is physical or mental. The challenges are displayed in the many difficult lifts and pyrotechnical demands of Huggins’ choreography. Elizabeth H. Bell, Corey Baker, Odara N. Jabali, Tracey Vogt, and Gary W. Jeter, II completely embody the explosive sexiness of Huggins’s work. Attired in off-white and beige unitards, the women jete into the arms of the male dancers, only to be quickly lifted overheard into full extensions. Each couple is a different representation of physical allure and sexiness; some are sexy cool, some coquettishly playful, others passionately carnivorous. In Cottonwool, Philadanco proves that it is a company that can handle technically difficult pieces comfortably, while highlighting the distinct individuality of each dancer. With this season, Philadanco has solidified its position in the upper echelon of modern dance companies. No longer second best or an alternative to the Alvin Ailey Company, Philadanco stands uniquely and gloriously on its own feet. And like a tried and true brand, satisfaction is guaranteed. © Copyright by SeeingBlack.com |
