Dance Review: Perceptions Contemporary Dance Company at Teatro LA TEA Theater

New York is about laying it all on the line..'if you can make it here you can make it anywhere' and Perceptions Contemporary Dance Company throws their hat in the 'if you can make it here you can make it anywhere' ring of NY with their explosive evening length premier at Teatro LA TEA Theater last Friday.  Relocating from Boston to NY 7 months ago, PCDC boasts fourteen highly trained and expressive dancers - including Artistic Director Melissa Gendreau and Assistant Director Molly Fletcher Lynch.  Gendreau believes that because 'Perception is experience' you should 'experience Perceptions' and this statement earns its clout throughout their work.  Pieces that showcase PCDC's promise as key players in NY were Gendreau's Magnetic Affixion and Ancient Bruises.  Guest choreographer, Natalie Teichmann, of Anahata Dance's Apres Moi shows that same promise.

Magnetic Affixion showcases sequential synergy at its finest.  Passing an itch that no one can seem to scratch, the piece reveals a charismatic quartet including Gendreau and Lynch where athletic prowess - and fashion conundrums are put to the test with sneakers and high heels in the mix.  The archetypical characters of a businesswoman, "dude," fashionista, and a running woman a la "Sporty Spice" in true NY fashion collide as the magnetic "affixion" sends each character into intense connectedness often channeling whirling dervishes.  In their exploration of contact, dancers find themselves stacked tall, held close, on their heads, hands and feet and then propelled away from each other only to be magnetized back until new configurations result.  Gendreau and Lynch's intriguing extremities pair well with Jessie Cosentino and Kyung Joon Lee's compact explosiveness.  

Ancient Bruises reveals the companies softer and more sobering side - showcasing stunning extension with tear jerking imagery in white, they unabashedly mesmerize.  Based on a  true story of domestic violence the company weaves the silver lining of a situation laced with a guttural and gruesome stigma.  Perceiving an opportunity to breathe beauty into a story wrought with grit - Gendreau's perceptions shine.  Her physical storytelling features soloist Chihiro Shimizu as the clay to mold these visions.  Striking sculptural pauses of Shimizu's musicality evokes artful upliftedness. Her navigation of connecting with fellow dancers and melting into her own limelight speak both to her clarity of the piece and to Gengreau's direction.  Lynch's artistic grasp of the choreography's underbelly leads her to stand out immensely.  The soft concavity of her gestures emanates through vibrating hands - no detail of her dancing tale goes un-traversed.

PCDC company member Natalie Teichmann also Artistic Directs Anahata Dance and her work Apres Moi provides a complementary contrast to PCDC.  With a strong tongue in cheek presence, architectural precision and an enigmatic "Thing 1" and "Thing 2" charm, Teichmann and Lauren Rosenstein delight.  Their impeccable control of both physical and spatial connectivity is channeled through alert eyes.  In turn, their audience connection grows stronger with every second.  Using the stage as a dynamic playground, a sense of fun perforates any stuffiness residue left from the 9 - 5 crowd.  Sweeping to the floor, silently they communicate a sense of peaceful ease - one I know does not hold true but resonates clearly.

The raw materials of PCDC and friends have a home in NY - now their attention must be drawn to connecting the dots through quicker pauses between pieces and other details that have little to do with artistry.  I await their new works - Gendreau has big plans for the company on, off and behind the stage with the brand new Perceptions Contemporary Dance Festival this fall, and the PCDC Summer Youth Intensive Dance Camp in August. Be sure to get to the next PCDC show to see heightened humor, subtle softness, and enough passion to claim NY as home base. 

As Gendreau says, "Perceptions is Experience...Experience Perceptions!" 

iDANZ Critix Corner
Official Dance Review by Eileen Elizabeth
Performance:  Perceptions Contemporary Dance Company 
Venue:  Teatro LA TEA Theater 
Show Date:  May 28, 2010
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Dance Review: Martha Graham Dance Company at The Joyce Summer 2010

I'm a Jersey boy, loud and proud.  It wasn't until I moved to London at 19 to study dance did i begin to question or understand my heritage.  I would tell people,"oh ya know, I'm 1/4 French, 1/4 Italian, a little German etc.. and my English friends would say, "Are you baking a cake? A little of this a little of that? What are you talking about? YOU'RE AMERICAN!"  

So what is it to be American?  Martha Graham asked this question over 80 years ago, and never found an answer.  The Martha Graham Dance Company revisited this question with their newest work in collaboration with SITI Acting Company, American Document (2010) and through this mind blowing, brave new work came to many beautifully interesting and thought provoking conclusions that Martha herself would have been proud to see come to life.

The stage is bare except for a drum and a briefcase.  The curtain is raised long before the house lights go out, and, without warning, an actor walks on stage directly to the briefcase, takes out some paper work, dons a pair of glasses and begins to read to the audience as actors and dancers begin to harmoniously fill the stage with the all too familiar shapes and floor patterns specific to the Graham vocab.  You can barely tell which are the actors and which are the dancers.  The execution is totally flawless.

American Document (2010) unfolds through poetry of Walt Whitman, writings of Jack Keroac, letters from soldiers of the Iraqi War, being followed by gorgeous selections of choreography that intertwine each monologue or conversation, seamlessly flowing from one minute into the next until you reach the emotional end of a very probing ride.

American Document (2010) makes you surrender to the hidden thoughts we all have, surrender to answering questions maybe we're too afraid to ask ourselves, surrender to accepting that, good or bad, Americans are a people of a rich diversity with blood on our hands and love in our hearts. We are a social contract and we are a melting pot of immigrants.  Illegal or not, we are all American.   Quite honestly, I am afraid to say anymore about some of the sections without giving too much away.  American Document (2010) is absolutely not to be missed.  It is a PHENOMENAL and important contemporary work.  It is sure to be a new masterpiece for the Graham repertory.

The next selection of the evening is Sketches from 'Chronicle' which I discovered from the artistic director, Janet Eilber's post intermission speech, is a piece that was created in a response to an invitation to perform in Germany during the turbulent pre WWII era when so many of her friends, people she knew and artists she respected, were being persecuted.  She declined the invitation...  Well this season at the Joyce, this work ferociously stands up to its meaning and its devastatingly reverent history.  I have never seen such power, such unity, and such strength as I see in these women. Jennifer DePalo is fiercely insane in her control and abandon; not to mention, her army of women are nothing short of Goddesses of dance in Steps in the Street and Prelude to Action.   Watching these ladies perform this piece, I can only imagine that it must be a real privilege to be apart of such beauty, power, and grace.  Their artistic interpretation and scientific precision is incomparable!  LOVE LOVE LOVE!!

What is it to be an American?   What is it to be a Graham dancer?  The answers can only be found by experiencing WHAT IT IS in which this outstanding company has to offer.

iDANZ Critix Corner
Official Dance Review by Dante Puleio
Performance:  Martha Graham Dance Company
Venue:  The Joyce Theatre
Show Date:  June 8, 2010
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Dance Review: Three Theories with Armitage Gone!

Armitage Gone's World Premiere of Three Theories at Cedar Lake on Thursday June 3rd undoubtedly proves their staying power.  Impetus for this work came from choreographer and artistic director Karol Armitage's reading of Brian Green's best selling book on theoretical physics, The Elegant Universe.  The book focuses on the conflict between Einstein's General Theory of Relativity and Quantum Mechanics vs. the newest String Theory.  This piece, using dancers as physical icons for this conflict, breathes stunning clarity into otherwise less tangible concepts.  Had physics class been this intriguing in high school I would have been a far more apt student.  Armitage's confident dancers have no limit to their physical prowess, and in moments of silence, hearing a pin drop would have echoed loudly in the packed space.  

Armitage describes the first piece Relativity as 'twisting traditional vertical and horizontal lines of dance to expose the poetry of Einstein's theory.'  Gorgeous strings pierce the echo of appreciation's silence as Kristina Bethel-Blunt and Leonides D. Arpon ooze sensuality.  In their duet limbs intertwine with care so certain it's as if they're handling a time bomb.  This piece favors exposure of sinewy lines with the women donning black bikinis and the men black boxer briefs.  Concave shapes perforate the bulk of Armitage's work in this piece.  When 10 of the 11 company members disperse into duets their undulating qualities lead into writhing that transfixes the audience.  When Bethel-Blunt and Arpon return to reprise their duet, their connectivity stands tall with Bethel-Blunts Amazon qualities and Arpon's strong grounded command.  The piece ends with a unison section so mesmerizing I barely notice William Isaac's downstage presence as he performs a solo over the undercurrent of the company.  A pre-cursor to his exemplary role in Quantum, the second piece, a second viewing would lead my eyes to his limbs immediately.

In Quantum, the time bomb Bethel-Blunt and Arpon handled so attentively explodes in a fashion that makes destruction seductive.  At the crux of this are Isaac and Emily Wagner in a duet thickly infused with sexuality and a 'don't you dare look away' attitude that cannot be denied fruition. Wagner is a snake en pointe with piercing eyes, Princess Leia buns, impeccable technique and with her head permanently cocked forward on her spine, she has an uncanny ability to get as close to the audience as possible.  The duet comes down center at one point and Wagner nearly leaps onto the lap of a front row viewer - and not to his disappointment in the least.  Clifton Taylor's lighting drowns them in fluorescent light only to switch to a blackout - and when the lights return the dancers are found in a new position across the stage as if controlled by a switch.   No detail goes forgotten as Wagner and Isaac's ooze about the stage with acute sharpness and exaction.  Rhys Chatham's original score features 100 drums and guitars whose cacophony give way to exclamatory extremities that gain momentum with every moment.  Best described as magical, the crazy orchestral crashes fuel the tenacious take-no-prisoners-prowess of every dancer.  Dubbed the "Punk Ballerina" by Vanity Fair, Armitage demands the same attitude of her dancers and each delivers.  Prim holds no bearing in this work that uses volatility like air to get their message to the masses.  Another highlight is watching Mei-Hua Wang being held in a straddle above Marlon Taylor-Wiles head only to be turned 360 degrees at a crescendo's dictation.  Far outnumbered by the instruments that accompany them Armitage's dancers evoke the strength of an army.

Perhaps because this theory is the youngest, the final piece derived from String Theory is the most lackluster.  Largely due to the intense impression Quantum leaves, String seems to wane in the memorable arena.  The stunning Megumi Eda serves as "the one dancer consumed by big volumes of geometry influencing the company" as Armitage states in her intro speech.  Enveloping subtle movement with sinewy limbs the company supports Eda with largely unison phrases.  Settling into submissive poses on the floor, the heat created throughout the eve leaves beads of sweat dripping and flying through the air.  Melting into mellowness, the dancers are bathed in warm light revealing each pulsating muscle in the final stage picture.  The company circles around Eda with outstretched arms yearning for her.

In one evening, Armitage cultivates envy in the eyes of each person at Cedar Lake.  Rising simultaneously to their feet, the audience applauds through several rounds of audience bows.  Go see Armitage Gone! to connect to physics with the same desperation and transformative energy Armitage conducts, so generously, with her audiences.

iDANZ Critix Corner
Official Dance Review by Eileen Elizabeth
Performance:  Three Theories
Compay:  Armitage Gone!
Venue:  Cedar Lake
Show Date:  June 3, 2010
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Dance Review: Ailey II: A Force to be Reckoned With in the Dance World

Usually when you’re watching second companies perform you anticipate small mess-ups: slips, nervousness, unclean pirouettes, lack of confidence.  However, this was far from the truth with Ailey II at the Joyce Theater.  As part of the 1.2.3 Festival, Ailey II, along with ABT II and Taylor 2, take the stage for a shared week of performances.

Ailey II has reached above and beyond the caliber for a 2^nd company.  Under the direction of Sylvia Waters and Troy Powell, this company has the total package:  maturity, presence, and artistry.  Now combine these qualities with beautiful dancers, flawless technique, and exhilarating choreography then you have an excellent show.

The evening opens with Thang Dao’s Echoes (2008), featuring the entire company in a beautifully crafted contemporary ballet piece.  Although there isn’t a clear narrative, the piece does have strong intention that creates a thru-line for the work.  Performing with strong fluidity, Chang Yong Sung tears-up the stage during a solo section of the piece.

Christopher Huggins' Essence (2002), performed by Ghrai DeVore is the highlight of the evening.  In this heartrending work, we witness a woman going through a kaleidoscope of emotions in an effort to express the multifaceted aspect of a woman’s character.  Ghrai DeVore, is simply stunning in this solo, fully expressing each emotion and really taking the risk of going the extra mile to make the audience experience her raw emotion.  DeVore is mesmerizing, strong-spirited, and naturally beautiful in her element.

Carlos dos Santos’, Proximity (2009), adds an interesting flavor to the line up with a vibrant and cleverly groovy quartet. Jarvis Mckinley has this urban quality and virtuosic presence that magnetizes your attention to him when he’s on stage. He is definitely a talent to watch out for! Similarly Fana Fraser, has a sensuously chic flair that complements her exquisite movement.

The evening closes with Judith Jamison’s epic work Divining (1984).  This piece really captures the essence of Ailey II and the foundation of what makes them extraordinary.  There is something deeply rooted in this work that the entire company connects to and manifests in their performance.  DeVore does it again in this piece as the leading lady.  Let’s just say that she is the kind of dancer that makes you want to come up with a new word to express the idea of “fierce.”

When it comes to second companies, Ailey II is in a class of its own and standing strong next to the first company.  I look forward to seeing what new young talent comes through this company and how these gorgeous dancers evolve as their own artists over the next couple years.

iDANZ Critix Corner
Official Dance Review by Simone Sobers
Performance:  Ailey II
Choreography:  Thang Dao, Christopher L. Huggins, Carlos dos Santos, Judith Jamison
Venue:  Joyce Theater
Show Date:  Wednesday, March 14, 2010
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Dance Review: Youth America Grand Prix 2010 Gala “Stars of Today Meet the Stars of Tomorrow”

YAGP Gala presents a delightful mixture of dance prodigies and top dancers from around the world.

All week the city has been buzzing with visiting dancers from top international dance schools.  Recently, I’ve been encountering the YAGP people quite a bit around the city in classes at Peridance and Steps.  Now, I get to see them perform at New York City Center for the gala performance.  YAGP attracts dance school personnel from top schools to recruit and award scholarships.

Since its birth eleven years ago, the YAGP has grown into being the largest competition for student ballet scholarships worldwide.  Dubbed the “internet of the dance world” for connecting a diverse population of dancers around the globe, YAGP became a member of the Conseil International de la Danse (CID) by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in 2005.  More than 25,000 dancers worldwide have participated in YAGP workshops, competitions and audition classes, and more than 250 YAGP alumni dance with major companies around the world.  Most outstandingly, over two million dollars in YAGP scholarship funds have been contributed to dance schools worldwide to aid in furthering dance education.

Full of energy and witty phrases, Peter Sagal from Wait Wait...Don’t Tell Me! on NPR hosts this year’s 2010 YAGP Gala.  He even attempts to demonstrate some of his own knowledge and ballet technique, amusing the audience by showing off each ballet foot position and his favorite steps.  Peter Sagal hysterically announces the start of the show doing a penché while holding the mic in one hand and grabbing onto the curtain for support with the other before dashing away as the music begins.

The evening opens with a cute cowboy dance by a ten year old boy.  Apparently not being from New York City he probably is unaware that it is illegal to have toy guns that appear real.  Perhaps his holsters do indeed contain real guns which he brandishes about between double tours.

A youthful girl with long limbs performs a contemporary dance number, “Wild Horses.”   Although, perhaps a bit too provocative in short shorts for her age, she certainly has lovely split leaps and a nice trot.  Many of the young dancers performing have incredible technique, but their expressions, though plastered on with practice, cloud with anxiety and pressure as they prepare before a turn or other virtuosic display.

A twelve year old boy from Japan delightfully sticks out in his playful routine with a mop.  The story is typical:  a cleaning man becomes playful and starts dancing around with his mop, only to return to cleaning.  Untypical is his expressiveness, which is endearing as he falsely prepares for turns, teasing the trick-hungry audience.  Another twelve year old from Italy displays exquisite line, interspersing contemporary movements with clean classical technique, easily whipping out double sauté basque turns and more than five pirouettes.

Receiving the honor of Best School, The Orlando Ballet School presents an exceptional all male quartet performed to an Enrique Iglesias tune.  The movement of the four boys, so dramatic in their skin-tight skinny jeans along with the music, makes a few audience members erupt into laughter, but by the conclusion the audience concurred with the judges that these dancers have had some wonderful training.  Their lines, port de bras and technique are breathtaking… though choreographically, the dance could have been performed as a solo except for the sappy moments of arms around each other and back-patting.

With a costume obviously inspired by the dress worn by Bjork at the Grammy’s, a bronze medalist rail-thin fifteen year old girl of China, Shang Yao Qian, performs an interesting contemporary solo entitled “Black Wing.”   This awesomely awkward girl is adorned with long limbs and beautiful “cashew” feet, a perfect representation of an ugly duckling struggling to grow into a graceful swan. 

Silver medalist, Zhao Wan Ting, explodes into sensual gestural choreography, alternating with walking, almost strutting sequences.  Grand Prix champion, William Bracewell performs with calm delicious port de bras.  Although after seeing a few hops, I wonder if his performance had been better during competition rounds; but, I forgive him quickly as he elegantly arabesques.  Besides, this is an educational competition program whose purpose is not to find perfection, but to aid in its perpetual pursuit.

Next on the program, I am delighted to see Russel Ferguson, champion from So You Think You Can Dance, take the stage to show us what krumping is all about.  In this special surprise guest artist appearance, Russel Ferguson wobbles his rotating legs in and out while simultaneously popping his chest.  His incredible control shines through his isolations.

Peter Sagal returns to preface the finale number, in which a large number of students dance together.  He explains how Youth American Grand Prix brings together over 2,000 dancers from around the world to compete and study dance for one week together, in a sense, creating a “UN of dance.”  All practiced soloists, the young dancers still try to outshine each other…  Despite the chorus staging, they do not dance together (which could be a result of short rehearsal time).  It is, however, mesmerizing to see so many young dancers take the stage at one time and finish in an elaborate tableau.

Intermission sends streams of dancers, parents, teachers and industry people into the lobby where refreshments of champagne and chocolate covered strawberries are served to celebrate the conclusion of this year’s YAGP. The intermission is extended for the socializing to take place.  Everyone is abuzz with excitement about the talent just witnessed and the awaited post-intermission performances of the more celebrated, professional dancers.

The second half of the Gala performance features today’s stars, YAGP alumni that now perform with top dance companies from around the world.

Opening is the Act II pas de deux from Giselle, danced by Paris Opera Ballet ‘s Mathilde Froustey and Mathias Heyman, the perfect pair to match old classical style. The couple gives generous lovely port de bras.  In The Moment is a contemporary piece with ABT’s Michelle Wiles and Tulsa Ballet’s Wang Yi dancing round a chair, accompanied by a live on stage singer, Aurora Barnes.  Yearning, sharp and contrasting movement choreographically builds the urgency of this dance.

Another passionate pas de deux is with Isabella Boylston-what extension!- and Blaine Hoven of ABT in Sognato, using music by Schubert.  Following is another pas de deux, Parting, choreographed by Yuri Smekalove, who is partnered by Yevgenia Obraztsova, both of the Mariinsky Ballet.  It is Yevgenia Obraztsova’s New York debut, and she is welcomed with an abundance of cheers and applause.  Joaquin De Luz of NYCB dances Five Variations on a Theme with music by Bach.  With lovely sustained attitudes and a casual air, Joaquin De Luz delivers magnificence.

Ballroom World Champions Slavik Kryklyvyy and Anna Melnikova tear the stage apart in Jive eliciting many screams of excitement from the audience. The number includes standard ballroom elements- exposed skin, undulating hips and accentuating air bites.  The step-tap looks stunning with the right degree of foot bevel, though the over-twisting of the wrists I find almost grotesque.

From American Ballet Theatre is Joseph Gorak with his billowy shirt adding fluidity to his arm movements in the solo to Nocturne, music by Chopin.

Rubinald Pronk of Morphoses dances L’effleure as a solo because his partner, Shirley Esseboom of Nederlands Dans Theater, is ‘stuck in traffic’ according to the announcement by Peter Sagal.  Rubinald Pronk is a dramatic presence on stage-his fluid portebras and red flowing pants look like spilling blood.  Gorgeous music by Vivaldi seems to pour through Rubinald Pronk- undulating the torso, articulating through his limbs, lengthening into breathtaking lines.  He is so stunning by himself, one easily forgets that Rubinald Pronk is dancing what is supposed to be a duet, not a solo.  A rose stays delicately in his mouth the entire dance, only to drop at the last moment.

Donizetti,choreographed by Manuel Legris, is performed by Mathilde Froustey and Mathias Heyman, the only couple to do more than one spot on the Gala program. Joaquin De Luz returns to the stage with Tiler Peck to perform Balanchine’s Stars and Stripes.  The American classic makes the audience roar up in applause, and the dancing couple are radiant, bursting with energy.

Polina Seminova of the Berlin State Opera Ballet and Marcelo Gomes of American Ballet Theatre dance the pas de deux from Manon, an amazingly executed, beautifully portrayed love scene.

Closing this fabulous evening is Sarah Lamb and Sergei Polunin from the Royal Ballet with the pas de deux from Diana and Acteon. Sergei Polunin delights the crowd with amazing effortless jumps.

YAGP proves again to be the must see ballet performance. Bringing world premieres of new dance work and the world’s best dance talent to one stage, YAGP Gala is a delightful highlight to a wonderful program that offers so many opportunities to young dancers.

iDANZ Critix Corner
Official Dance Review by Lea McGowan
Performance: Youth America Grand Prix 2010 Gala “Stars of Today Meet the Stars of Tomorrow”
Venue: New York City Center, New York City
Performance Date: Friday, March 26, 2010
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