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Leaving Us in the Dark

“Panorama”

Paige Martin

Danspace Project

New York, NY

April 10, 2010

By Martha Sherman

Copyright © 2010 by Martha Sherman

Dance constituted only a small percentage of the almost two-and-a-half hour “Panorama,” Paige Martin’s contribution to Platform 2010: Back to New York City, curated by Juliette Mapp for Danspace. The work offered a three-part evening, including a short outdoor prelude, a lingering party punctuated by brief naked performances, and a second lingering segment, a blast in the dark introduced by a mini-lecture. The long interludes were more boring than challenging by the time we dribbled out, but Martin had delivered panoramas of sexually charged movement and used the evening to make a strong, if not convincing, statement about the responsibility of an audience for its own amusement.

Possokhov Remembers

"Rush", "Classical Symphony", "The Concert"
San Francisco Ballet
War Memorial Opera House
San Francisco, CA
April 9, 2010

by Rita Felciano
Copyright © Rita Felciano, 2010

Anyone who thinks that the expressive potential has been squeezed out of classical ballet's language, should talk to Yuri Possokhov, Choreographer in Residence at San Francisco Ballet. His new "Classical Symphony," set to Prokofiev's "Symphony No. 1 in D Minor," is a charmer of a finely crafted neo-classical ballet that called up a standing ovation the likes of which I cannot remember a world premiere having received at SFB. Or at least, not one as well deserved.

Brownian Motion

"If you couldn’t see me” and “Opal Loop/Cloud Installation #72503”
Trisha Brown Dance Company
Howard Gilman Performance Space
Baryshnikov Arts Center
New York
April 7, 2010

by Kathleen O’Connell
copyright © 2009 by Kathleen O’Connell

As part of its ongoing 40th anniversary celebration, the Trisha Brown Dance Company showcased two of its founder’s short but telling works in a little amuse-bouche of a program at the Baryshnikov Art Center’s Howard Gilman Performance Space. Taken together, Brown’s 1994 solo “If you couldn’t see me” and her 1980 quartet “Opal Loop/Cloud Installation #72503” clock in at just under a half–hour, but they form an apt synopsis of what’s wonderful about Brown’s work—and what’s disconcerting about it, too.

The Old College Try

"Excursions", "Enjoy Your Rabbit", "Five Songs for Piano", "Navarasa", "Ah, Mio Cor", "Solid Ground"
Columbia Ballet Collaborative
Miller Theatre
Columbia University
New York, NY
April 9, 2010

By Mary Cargill
copyright © by Mary Cargill

The Columbia Ballet Collaborative, founded in 2007 by a group of Columbia students who had been professional dancers, presented six ballets by young choreographers.  The Collaborative is of course, a part-time venture, but the presentation was completely professional, well-rehearsed, and elegantly danced.  The choreography was of the contemporary ballet style, with a tendency towards black leotards, harsh overhead lighting, and blank looks, and unfortunately, the dances weren't as interesting as the dancers. "Excursions", by Claudia Schreier to music by Samuel Barber, which opened the evening, had many echoes of Balanchine's "The Four Temperaments", though without its solid structure or feeling of being inside the music.  The dancers, though, led by guest artist Dan Friedewald, were clear and sharp, and the apparently strapless black leotards (no costume designer was credited) were beautifully cut and very flattering.

Ah, Youth

"No Matter What", "Mystery in the Wind", "Little Stories", "Touch", "Utopia", "Inner Voice"
Avi Scher & Dancers
Alvin Ailey Citigroup Theater
New York, NY
April 3, 2010

By Mary Cargill
Copyright ©2010 by Mary Cargill

  25-year old Avi Scher made his New York debut as a company director with the help of a number of extraordinary dancers.  His aim, he explained in his opening welcome, is to present top-level dancers in intimate venues at affordable prices.  He has put together a luxurious pick-up company, with the likes of Marcelo Gomes, Veronika Part, Ashley Bouder (a last minute substitute for Sara Mearns), and a bevy of other fine dancers.  For several years, he has been a name that was spoken, after his charming 2002 piece "Jouons" for the ABT Studio Company. "Jouons" was steeped in Jerome Robbins (not that there is anything wrong with that), and so far his choreography tends towards the trendy Forsythe/Elo style, with a bit of Robbins added in.  The evening opened with "No Matter What", an exercise in alienation (the dancers generally looked sullen) set to some percussive, electronic sounds by Aphex Twin and Adam Lewis.  The dancing was of the pretzel and taffy variety, with quick changes of direction and visual ticks, mainly of the fish-arms style of Elo.  This echoed the jerky music, but meant that there was little flow to the steps, though the dancers (Kelsey Coventry, Jennifer Goodman, Nancy Richer, Robert Colby Damon, and Ralph Ippolito) were riveting; Damon especially was both grounded and fluid.  The heart of the work was a more lyrical pas de deux for Victoria North, and Ja'Malik.  North, a tall and gracious beauty, whose middle name seems to be "grace", avoided the stone-faced demeanor of the other dancers and reacted to her partner, giving the pas de deux a welcome warmth.

The Fifties, With Students

"Juilliard Dances Repertory"
Peter Jay Sharp Theater
New York, N.Y.
March 24, 2010

By Carol Pardo
Copyright ©2010 by Carol Pardo

The Fifties took center stage during this year’s "Juilliard Dances Repertory" with Merce Cunningham’s "Summerspace : A Lyric Dance" and Jerome Robbins’ "N.Y. Export : Opus Jazz, " both dating from 1958, sharing the stage with "Last Look" from 1985 choreographed by Paul Taylor (Juilliard ’53). At the opposite end of the spectrum from the Composers and Choreographers series held in the fall, in which new dances choreographed by and for students take pride of place, these performances are intended to expose those students to established works. Although Taylor has long been represented on these programs, works by Cunningham and Robbins are being performed here for the first time.

Changes and Standards

“Changes,” “Sunset,” “Esplanade”
Paul Taylor Dance Company
New York City Center
New York, NY
March 11, 2010

by Leigh Witchel
copyright © 2010 by Leigh Witchel

Paul Taylor has his ups and downs, but a triple bill like this has very few downs. “Changes,” which was co-commissioned in 2008 by San Francisco Ballet, isn’t a great work but it looks its best on his own dancers. The popular song structure that Taylor’s used many times before (“Company B,” “Black Tuesday”) doesn’t lend itself to great works, but rather to modular, easily rehearsed ones. Still, there’s an authenticity to Taylor’s tone and his refusal to look at the Sixties through rose-colored glasses.