“The Daedalus Effect and Other Dilemmas” Arturo Vidich
Yvonne Rainer and Group
Trisha Brown Dance Company
The Daedalus Effect and Other Dilemmas Arturo Vidich Invisible Dog Art Center Brooklyn, NY January 24, 2013
Inventions have consequences. Daedalus, the mythological Greek archetype of the craftsman, created both the Labyrinth and the wings that allowed his escape from Crete – and killed his son. For “The Daedalus Effect and Other Dilemmas,” Arturo Vidich, a polymath – metal-worker, dog-trainer, performer – has surrounded himself with objects mostly created by him: inventions that have effects, but no causes.
“The Rite of Spring” is about to hit 100. Nijinsky's epochal creation to Stravinsky's pounding score was first performed in Paris in 1913, marked by infamous rioting at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées. The ballet was all but lost, but in 1987 after painstaking research, Millicent Hodson and Kenneth Archer mounted a reconstruction for The Joffrey Ballet. A pivotal source was Marie Rambert's orchestral score annotated with Nijinsky's commentary.
Braving the underworld is older than Gilgamesh and Enkidu, and Rashaun Mitchell added a new page to the myth with his stately, cryptic “NOX.” A riveting performer from the final generation of Merce Cunninghams's company, “NOX” premiered last May at Danspace, and was given a reprise performance for the APAP conference.
It takes talent, and a little bit of nuttiness, to combine Scottish folk dance and voguing. But Doug Elkins has that kind of imagination, and “Scott, Queen of Marys” made a welcome return to New York after 16 years absence.
Classical Indian dance is both showy and pious, and so Malavika Sarukkai’s concert began with a flourish and ended with devotion.
A small, powerful woman wrapped in green silk, Sarukkai trained in her native India. “Yatra,” Sanskrit for seeking or pilgrimage, was 70 minutes of concentrated solo bharatanatyam dance in four sections. One of several styles of classical Indian dance, bharatanatyam is intricate and percussive. Arms slice and curve outwards and return to the center of the torso. The feet drive down, ever downward into the floor.
Risk + Reward. The name itself sets up expectations. The risk is the experiment, the elusive reward a work of genius. But in this performance series, now in its second season at the Museum of Arts and Design, it’s more realistic to hope for a fascinating attempt or a noble failure – yet both can pay off later. Arturo Vidich’s “The Daedalus Effect,” by a comfortable margin, was a fascinating attempt. It’s not – and wasn’t meant to be – a finished product, but you knew it would lead to one. In fact, Vidich used the opportunity as a sketch pad for performances to come in January at the Invisible Dog Art Center.
Producing independent ballet takes nerves of steel. Four days after Sandy flooded New York, Satellite Ballet played John Jay College for a single night. The company had to hope that all the elements of the show, musicians in Oregon, dancers in Detroit, could somehow get here. After two days on a bus, the cast made it; the programs coming from New Jersey didn’t. For the audience that could reach the theater, the short evening showed a venture that was both energized and weighed down by conceptualizing. But the promise outweighed the weaknesses.
To the joy of Las Vegas’ residents, The Smith Center, a $470 million dollar cultural complex, opened last March. Because of the plethora of casinos with auditoriums, the city was one of the last its size not to have a municipal center. The new, art-deco theater is imposing – its detailing was based on design elements of the Hoover Dam – and fills a function The Strip doesn’t. The gathering of three Western companies to perform George Balanchine’s “Jewels” is a prime example.
It made sense that the cast of “ECLIPSE” wore reflective safety vests over their street clothes. They were metaphorically cutting the ribbon on the new, $50 million BAM Richard B. Fisher building.
“ECLIPSE,” Jonah Bokaer and Anthony McCall’s hour-long piece that inaugurated the space, had the kind of team you might assemble for construction. Bokaer choreographed and directed, British artist Anthony McCall created the installation – an environment of light and sound. Aaron Copp provided further lighting, David Grubbs did sound design. Though this was not a narrative piece there was a dramaturge, Youness Anzane.
A heat wave threatened, but cool breezes on a balmy Saturday night made for an ideal occasion to sit outdoors and watch Chicago Dancing.
The festival, now in its sixth season, is a week of performances, exhibitions and discussions at several theaters and the Museum of Contemporary Art. The closing night performance took place at the amphitheater in Millennium Park. The metal petals of Frank Gehry’s design curled up and away from the stage, forming a frame and canopy for the shows.
