Using virtual-reality goggles, a camera and a stick, scientists have induced out-of-body experiences in healthy people.
Wednesday, August 29, 2007
Nureyev: The Russian Years reviewed by Tobi Tobias
A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, a review of Nureyev: The Russian Years (PBS "Great Performances") by Tobi Tobias, from Seeing Things: Tobi Tobias on Dance et al. on ArtsJournal.com, August 29, 2007; originally in Voice of Dance, August 27, 2007.
Tuesday, August 28, 2007
Frequent flier David Leventhal speaks out
Frequent Flier: For Dance Troupe, Travel is a Test of Poise
by David Leventhal as told to Joan Raymond, The New York Times, August 28, 2007
by David Leventhal as told to Joan Raymond, The New York Times, August 28, 2007
Sunday, August 26, 2007
Friday, August 24, 2007
Out of Site at Lincoln Center
As I'd already had a very long day, I didn't stay around for Hidden Forests by Elaine Summers Dance, but I enjoyed most of 60's Snapshots, the program of Sixties-referencing dances by Gus Solomons jr (Random Funny Walks), Merián Soto (What is Love?), Yoshiko Chuma (RED CARPET 1967- ) and Summers at Lincoln Center Out of Doors at the South Plaza.
Solomons's male sextet--dressed in slouchy, hooded costumes in colors that made them evoke, in a purely abstract way, the entire produce section at Whole Foods--bounced around in nifty, diverting patterns amid the park trees and walkways to the music of Frank Zappa. The performers were Bryan Campbell, Andrew Griffin, Silas Riener, Saeed Siamak, Sydney Skybetter and Nick Strafaccia--dancing fools, indeed. Kudos to Oana Botez-Ban for the costumes and to Solomons for remembering that Zappa was a mad genius. Why don't more choreographers raid that treasure house of clever, delirious music?
Soto's What is Love? continues her "dances with branches"--deep, slow, meditative explorations. Her company of collaborating dancers--Danielle Kinne, Megan Mazarick, Shavon Norris, Jumatatu Poe and Olive Prince--is now renamed Merián Soto/Performance Practice. The ensemble, dressed in iconic Sixties hippie-wear, performed atop a platform under warm lighting that gave them--and the bare tree branches they carried, tilted and balanced--a poetic, Butoh-like cast. Soto draws sensitive viewers into a peaceful grove of awareness where time stretches into infinity.
Chuma's runway retrospective--danced up and down a long, red mat--seemed too insular and self-referential to connect with the actual site in a specific, meaningful and resonant way.
Lincoln Center Out of Doors continues this weekend with more interesting shows, including two afternoon-long La Casita gatherings--"a beloved little house, a city garden where poets and bards celebrate las palabras, the words"--on Saturday, August 25 and Sunday, August 26. Hey, don't you dare forget to celebrate my birthday on Sunday! And maybe I'll see you on Monday night for the grand finale in Damrosch Park--La India!
Solomons's male sextet--dressed in slouchy, hooded costumes in colors that made them evoke, in a purely abstract way, the entire produce section at Whole Foods--bounced around in nifty, diverting patterns amid the park trees and walkways to the music of Frank Zappa. The performers were Bryan Campbell, Andrew Griffin, Silas Riener, Saeed Siamak, Sydney Skybetter and Nick Strafaccia--dancing fools, indeed. Kudos to Oana Botez-Ban for the costumes and to Solomons for remembering that Zappa was a mad genius. Why don't more choreographers raid that treasure house of clever, delirious music?
Soto's What is Love? continues her "dances with branches"--deep, slow, meditative explorations. Her company of collaborating dancers--Danielle Kinne, Megan Mazarick, Shavon Norris, Jumatatu Poe and Olive Prince--is now renamed Merián Soto/Performance Practice. The ensemble, dressed in iconic Sixties hippie-wear, performed atop a platform under warm lighting that gave them--and the bare tree branches they carried, tilted and balanced--a poetic, Butoh-like cast. Soto draws sensitive viewers into a peaceful grove of awareness where time stretches into infinity.
Chuma's runway retrospective--danced up and down a long, red mat--seemed too insular and self-referential to connect with the actual site in a specific, meaningful and resonant way.
Lincoln Center Out of Doors continues this weekend with more interesting shows, including two afternoon-long La Casita gatherings--"a beloved little house, a city garden where poets and bards celebrate las palabras, the words"--on Saturday, August 25 and Sunday, August 26. Hey, don't you dare forget to celebrate my birthday on Sunday! And maybe I'll see you on Monday night for the grand finale in Damrosch Park--La India!
Clare Byrne's Weekly Rites
[Editor's Note: An announcement from my colleague, Clare Byrne of Clare Byrne Dance.]
Dear Dance Seers,
In this end-of-summer time, I celebrate 9 weeks of Weekly Rites, my ongoing performing online. I invite you to dip into the offerings, weekly. (Click here and on the link to Weekly Rites.)
Over the last year or so, I've been working up to a procedure, videotaping an hour's dance improvisation where-ever I am at any given week--including this summer's road trip to the Wild West--and extracting a short segment to publish online, along with writing.
I'm finding within this a beguiling mix of "what is public" and "what is private" in both performance and observance; the eye of the camera, the frame of the Youtube box, and how I dance all require an altered consideration. I also am enjoying participating in a massive global entertainment system, feeling both buffer and buffeting within it.
In developing as a dancing contemplative (my own in-progress definition), this work is part of "enclosure" for me, as well as finding ways to fish regularly, ritually, not for new movement, ideas, or process -- but the movements that are, if I listen, calling to be done.
all my best,
Clare
Video from Gleanings post, August 23, 2007
Out of Site on Bowling Green
Accounting for Customs--a new site-specific ensemble work by choreographers Andréya Ouamba (a Congolese performer from Senegal) and Reggie Wilson (U.S.)--utilizes the main entrance steps of the former Alexander Hamilton U.S. Custom House at 1 Bowling Green at the tip of Broadway. Some months ago, during an interview for Dance Magazine, Wilson told me of his fascination with the history of this building, designed by Cass Gilbert, that now houses a federal bankruptcy court and the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian. He spoke of the slave trade--foundation of the rapid economic development of colonial states--and of his eagerness to dig into the story of the Custom House's connection to slavery.
The collaboration, including several dancers from Reggie Wilson/Fist and Heel Performance Group as well as six guest dancers, is a project of Sitelines, curated and produced by Nolini Barretto and presented by Lower Manhattan Cultural Council as part of the annual River to River Festival.
Publicity for Accounting for Customs alluded to "questions of memory and loss and how people innovate within and against traditions...questions of preservation, continuity, memory and loss...stolen pasts and troubled and hopeful presents..." All of this led New York Times senior dance critic Alastair Macaulay to remark, "Such words...belong on grant applications."
Indeed, some dance publicity, rather than offering an accurate preview of what will be shown, seems tailored to appeal to funders' sensibilities. I suspect that Ouamba and Wilson have sincere, genuine objectives in mind. But the resulting 15-minute work led Macaulay to dwell on allusions to Florenz Ziegfeld and Busby Berkeley and to write, "It would be a pity to watch this work more for socio-historic meaning than for sheer sensuous pleasure." (To read Macaulay's review, click here.)
What's a pity is that the original vision quest has not produced a work that more forthrightly asks more of us than appreciation of its "sensuous pleasure" and its craft. Or perhaps the pity is when powerful critics are reluctant to look beyond the surface reticence of certain dances to their more eloquent sociopolitical undercurrents. Or perhaps the pity is about how much depth of investigation can you realistically accomplish in fifteen minutes, or outdoors, downtown, at lunchtime. Whatever the pity is, I hope that these choreographers will have an opportunity to revisit their original themes, perhaps when the apparent aesthetic distraction of 1 Bowling Green and its staircase is no longer a factor.
In the meantime, I believe I saw in Accounting for Customs some signs of love and community (dancers embracing), resistance (rolling up the steps against gravity), crowding in the slave ships (bodies piled up), slave auctions (extension and display of limbs), as well as timeless images of hard labor, abduction and independent will and action.
Remaining performances of Accounting for Customs are scheduled for today and tomorrow at 12:30pm and 1:30pm. For further information, click here.
Here's a 1994 video clip of In-between Baobabs by and featuring Andréya Ouamba and Esther Baker.
clipped from www.youtube.com
The collaboration, including several dancers from Reggie Wilson/Fist and Heel Performance Group as well as six guest dancers, is a project of Sitelines, curated and produced by Nolini Barretto and presented by Lower Manhattan Cultural Council as part of the annual River to River Festival.
Publicity for Accounting for Customs alluded to "questions of memory and loss and how people innovate within and against traditions...questions of preservation, continuity, memory and loss...stolen pasts and troubled and hopeful presents..." All of this led New York Times senior dance critic Alastair Macaulay to remark, "Such words...belong on grant applications."
Indeed, some dance publicity, rather than offering an accurate preview of what will be shown, seems tailored to appeal to funders' sensibilities. I suspect that Ouamba and Wilson have sincere, genuine objectives in mind. But the resulting 15-minute work led Macaulay to dwell on allusions to Florenz Ziegfeld and Busby Berkeley and to write, "It would be a pity to watch this work more for socio-historic meaning than for sheer sensuous pleasure." (To read Macaulay's review, click here.)
What's a pity is that the original vision quest has not produced a work that more forthrightly asks more of us than appreciation of its "sensuous pleasure" and its craft. Or perhaps the pity is when powerful critics are reluctant to look beyond the surface reticence of certain dances to their more eloquent sociopolitical undercurrents. Or perhaps the pity is about how much depth of investigation can you realistically accomplish in fifteen minutes, or outdoors, downtown, at lunchtime. Whatever the pity is, I hope that these choreographers will have an opportunity to revisit their original themes, perhaps when the apparent aesthetic distraction of 1 Bowling Green and its staircase is no longer a factor.
In the meantime, I believe I saw in Accounting for Customs some signs of love and community (dancers embracing), resistance (rolling up the steps against gravity), crowding in the slave ships (bodies piled up), slave auctions (extension and display of limbs), as well as timeless images of hard labor, abduction and independent will and action.
Remaining performances of Accounting for Customs are scheduled for today and tomorrow at 12:30pm and 1:30pm. For further information, click here.
Here's a 1994 video clip of In-between Baobabs by and featuring Andréya Ouamba and Esther Baker.
clipped from www.youtube.com |
Thursday, August 23, 2007
On the Fringes again
Congratulations to choreographers Jennifer Schmermund and Anahid Sofian, the well-respected Middle Eastern dance master, for their charming contribution to John Goldfarb, Please Come Home, concluding its Fringe Festival run on Saturday, 7:30pm, at NYU's Skirball Center. With its book by William Peter Blatty--yes, the Exorcist guy--and direction by Jeffrey Lewonczyk, this musical comedy about spy planes and bellydancing harem girls and Arabs who love football seems anything but promising at its start. It's dated and peppered with cultural references that fall flat today, pitched at people who actually remember who Polly Adler was. (For the rest of us, I Googled her: a notorious madam.) But I sat tight and held on as the comedic acting improved, and the gently satirical silliness pulled me in. The music--written by Michael Garin, Robert Hipkens and Erik Frandsen--is played live on the side of the stage by a wonderful combo led by Garin. It's old-school entertainment, and you probably won't be able to get "Bubbi, Habibi, they both mean baby" out of your head. Want to risk it? For ticket information, click here.
Another Fringe production at the Skirball had the exact opposite effect: growing more absurd and annoying by the minute, lasting many minutes indeed and seeming to last even more minutes than it actually did. The Hoarde: A Dance Drama by Courtney Ffrench's Vissi Dance Theater promised much in its firey opening, full of complex and inventive deployment of its multicultural cast of dancers. However, it quickly degenerated into a hyper and showy confusion of musical and dance styles. Designed by Ffrench as a feverish fantasia, the piece involves events in a village under siege and in the dark kingdom of the Hoarde. Two gentle, young lovers (Min and Isis, danced by Ariel Polanco and Jalila A. Bell) are victimized and abducted by invaders (the Hoarde, whose goose-stepping march is curiously Rockette-like) led by arrogant Osiris (Charles Logan) whose makeup and costuming suggest a theatrical mashup of punk, goth and gay. The musical collage might have been served up by an out-of-control iPod, featuring everything from John Williams movie scores to Roberta Flack's "First Time Every I Saw Your Face" (for the love scene) and Donna Summer's "Love to Love You, Baby" (for the rape scene), everything from Carl Orff to Carlos Santana. Characterizations get muddy, the story grows sloppy and nuttily operatic towards the end, and the dancing suggests everything from derivative Ailey to Las Vegas extravaganza, sometimes simultaneously. Ffrench commands a hearty, skillful and often genuinely expressive cast of dancers who put it all out there for you. The final show runs on Saturday at 5:15pm. Want to risk it? For ticket information, click here.
Lucid--a less-than-satisfying Fringe drama about quantum physics, lucid dreaming and expanded consciousness at the Cherry Lane Theatre--does not have dance but it does have the luminous presence of Natalie Thomas (formerly, a Ballett Frankfurt soloist) and sharp, appealing performances by Jeremy Goren and Pat Swearingen. Two shows remain: Friday at 4:45pm and Saturday at 9:15pm. For ticket information, click here.
Another Fringe production at the Skirball had the exact opposite effect: growing more absurd and annoying by the minute, lasting many minutes indeed and seeming to last even more minutes than it actually did. The Hoarde: A Dance Drama by Courtney Ffrench's Vissi Dance Theater promised much in its firey opening, full of complex and inventive deployment of its multicultural cast of dancers. However, it quickly degenerated into a hyper and showy confusion of musical and dance styles. Designed by Ffrench as a feverish fantasia, the piece involves events in a village under siege and in the dark kingdom of the Hoarde. Two gentle, young lovers (Min and Isis, danced by Ariel Polanco and Jalila A. Bell) are victimized and abducted by invaders (the Hoarde, whose goose-stepping march is curiously Rockette-like) led by arrogant Osiris (Charles Logan) whose makeup and costuming suggest a theatrical mashup of punk, goth and gay. The musical collage might have been served up by an out-of-control iPod, featuring everything from John Williams movie scores to Roberta Flack's "First Time Every I Saw Your Face" (for the love scene) and Donna Summer's "Love to Love You, Baby" (for the rape scene), everything from Carl Orff to Carlos Santana. Characterizations get muddy, the story grows sloppy and nuttily operatic towards the end, and the dancing suggests everything from derivative Ailey to Las Vegas extravaganza, sometimes simultaneously. Ffrench commands a hearty, skillful and often genuinely expressive cast of dancers who put it all out there for you. The final show runs on Saturday at 5:15pm. Want to risk it? For ticket information, click here.
Lucid--a less-than-satisfying Fringe drama about quantum physics, lucid dreaming and expanded consciousness at the Cherry Lane Theatre--does not have dance but it does have the luminous presence of Natalie Thomas (formerly, a Ballett Frankfurt soloist) and sharp, appealing performances by Jeremy Goren and Pat Swearingen. Two shows remain: Friday at 4:45pm and Saturday at 9:15pm. For ticket information, click here.
Wednesday, August 22, 2007
Jazz-inspired David Parsons
Judy Carmichael--Grammy-nominated jazz pianist and host of one of my favorite podcasts, Jazz Inspired--has a wonderful interview with choreographer David Parsons that I think you'll enjoy. Download it via iTunes (podcast power search: Jazz Inspired).
Carmichael's well-produced radio series features a wide range of creative people talking about how jazz has inspired their own creative process.
Carmichael's well-produced radio series features a wide range of creative people talking about how jazz has inspired their own creative process.
Tragic loss of dancer Tanja Liedtke
Read Tanja Liedtke, Dancer, 29, Is Killed By Truck in Australia
by Jennifer Dunning, The New York Times, August 22, 2007
by Jennifer Dunning, The New York Times, August 22, 2007
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
A sense of balance
Read Without a Net--Daniel B. Smith's review of Balance: In Search of the Lost Sense by Scott McCredie (Little, Brown & Company)--in The New York Times Book Review, August 19, 2007.
Smith writes, "Balance is a 'multimodal' faculty...perhaps best thought of as the sum total of other senses." He quotes McCredie: "The act of balancing a mass as large as a human body over a base as small as two human feet is exceptionally demanding. It's roughly equivalent to trying to balance a triangular object over one of its points; the natural tendency is for gravity to push it over."
Smith writes, "Balance is a 'multimodal' faculty...perhaps best thought of as the sum total of other senses." He quotes McCredie: "The act of balancing a mass as large as a human body over a base as small as two human feet is exceptionally demanding. It's roughly equivalent to trying to balance a triangular object over one of its points; the natural tendency is for gravity to push it over."
Monday, August 20, 2007
New yoga classes begin September 10
Seema Christie presents hatha yoga practice on Monday nights at 44O Studios, 440 Lafayette Street (near St. Mark's Place), Manhattan. Room 4G.
Monday evenings, beginning September 10, 8:15pm-9:30pm
This will be a nurturing, deep, relaxing practice, incorporating Integral Yoga and Swami Radha's teachings of insight through asana. Essential oils will be used to enhance the asana practice during the class in a subtle way to help focus and relax each student. Seema will also incorporate hands-on Reiki healing for students who are comfortable with touch. This class is appropriate for beginners as well as experienced practitioners. Please bring a mat and towel.
Suggested donation $15. No one will be turned away for lack of funds. Give what you can--especially if it is just your presence in class!
Please confirm your attendance: seema_christie@hotmail.com.
History evoked by choreographer Joanna Haigood
San Francisco-based choreographer Joanna Haigood specializes in site-specific dance and aerial dance. Her Zaccho Dance Theatre is currently presenting Invisible Wings (1998), inspired by the slavery-era Underground Railroad, at one of its historic New England sites, Jacob's Pillow, through Saturday, August 25. Collaborators include Linda Tillery, director of the Cultural Heritage Choir, storyteller Diane Ferlatte, lighting design by Jack Carpenter and design by Wayne Campbell.
Read Freedom Bound in Forest Dance by Gia Kourlas, The New York Times (August 20, 2007).
Read Freedom Bound in Forest Dance by Gia Kourlas, The New York Times (August 20, 2007).
Friday, August 17, 2007
Thursday, August 16, 2007
They Got "Game"
Movement Forum Dance Company will present three more rounds of The Game, its very entertaining, hour-long show at the New York International Fringe Festival. This Utah-based ensemble specializes in fast, fluid improvisational dance, and the current production turns a dance concert into a combination of challenge solos, nutty duets, old-style game shows and raucous party games. Program notes tell us the rules; very simple: "No choreography!"
You'll surely have your favorite contestants--mine being the rangy Graham Brown who moves like a wild man and takes big risks, and the beautifully grounded, capoeira-smooth Chris DelPorto--but these well-trained, flexible and expressive dancers are all winners.
Although we were promised (threatened with?) audience participation, there was a minimum of that in the Thursday afternoon show I attended. Every show, of course, is one-of-a-kind. Take your chances and try to see them tomorrow (Friday) at 7:45pm, Saturday the 18th at 6:15pm and Sunday the 19th at noon. Click here for details and ticketing.
You'll surely have your favorite contestants--mine being the rangy Graham Brown who moves like a wild man and takes big risks, and the beautifully grounded, capoeira-smooth Chris DelPorto--but these well-trained, flexible and expressive dancers are all winners.
Although we were promised (threatened with?) audience participation, there was a minimum of that in the Thursday afternoon show I attended. Every show, of course, is one-of-a-kind. Take your chances and try to see them tomorrow (Friday) at 7:45pm, Saturday the 18th at 6:15pm and Sunday the 19th at noon. Click here for details and ticketing.
Roxane Butterfly’s Worldbeats at LC Out-of-Doors
Roxane Butterfly rocks out at Lincoln Center Out-of-Doors. Background, left-to-right: Graham Haynes, Sinan and Arturo Martinez (Photographer: Rowshan!)Not for nothing did the great Jimmy Slyde give French tapper Roxane Butterfly her unusual last name. Typically dressed in something colorful and funky that sets off her slim, wiry frame, she appears to skim the earth, touching down frequently but briefly, lightly and musically. Tap has always been quite diverse in styles, and hers is one of the styles I dearly love. Her dancing is virtually calligraphic. She has ease in the knees, an ability to make fleet, precise sounds, not just bash and pound away. It takes refined control to express this much joie de vivre.
Butterfly brought her troupe–now called Roxane Butterfly’s Worldbeats–to the Josie Robertson Plaza for an early evening gig at Lincoln Center Out-of Doors. The current lineup includes two effervescent tapdancing sidekicks, Claudia Rahardjanoto and Ali Bradley, the latter a real powerhouse who grooves deep into the music without losing accuracy. Sol, a flamenco dancer from Buenos Aires, solos as well as occasionally weaving among the tappers. This juxtaposition could look contrived but never does.
Butterfly’s band, with the fantastic jazz cornetist Graham Haynes, her longtime collaborator, leading the charge, reflects her rich cross-cultural background and taste: Venezuelan percussionist Tony De Vivo, jazz bassist Damon Banks, flamenco guitarist Arturo Martinez (“Espiritu Gitano”) and guest oud player, Sinan. American jazz and the heady rhythms of Spain, North Africa and the Middle East sound pretty good to me. I like them separate or together. I just plain like them.
“You know, in jazz we have ‘1 and 2 and you know what to do.’” Butterfly said. “I decided I didn’t want to know what I was doing for a change!” And so she gives us a kind of Mediterranean tap fusion–featuring excerpts from works-in-progress–with fresh rhythms and fresh takes on the familiar. In keeping with this approach, the show ended with a Worldbeats-style revisioning of the Shim Sham Shimmy--the beloved dance routine that every tapper must know–here dubbed the Shim Sham Gypsy and powered by Turkish rhythms.
What a world-class party!
© 2007 Eva Yaa Asantewaa
Wednesday, August 15, 2007
Congress on Research in Dance (CORD) 40th Anniversary Conference
November 8-11
Barnard College, New York City
An interdisciplinary gathering of scholars and artists to explore dance's past, present and future through the critical prism of migration
Keynote Address • José Moya, Professor of History and Director of the Forum on Migration, Barnard College , Columbia University
Awards Luncheon • Honoring 2007 CORD Awardees Robert Farris Thompson (Outstanding Contribution to Dance Research), Susan Leigh Foster (Outstanding Leadership in Dance Research), George Dorris (Outstanding Service to Dance Research), and Outstanding Graduate Student Research Awardee
Performance • Choreographies of Migration Dance Concert featuring the José Limón Dance Company; Dana Tai Soon Burgess & Co.'s Tracings , an homage to the first Korean Americans, commissioned by the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Program and the Kennedy Center; and a performance by New York-based choreographer and performance artist Sita Frederick.
Plenary • Dancing Diaspora in Brooklyn: Folk Feet Traditional Dancers discuss and demonstrate transnational dance forms, presented by Brooklyn Arts Council, Folk Arts
Film Screenings • Including Meredith Monk's Ellis Island
Over 100 Presentations • Papers, workshops, and lecture-demonstrations focused on the relationship between dance and im/migration.
Membership Meeting
Book & Media Exhibit
Click here for complete information.
Tuesday, August 14, 2007
Fringe Benefits
See the New York Times's slide show of images of dance from the 2007 New York International Fringe Festival. Click here.
And here's a Fringe tip you're probably savvy enough to not need: A Beautiful Child is a charming adaptation of Truman Capote's essay about his friendship with Marilyn Monroe. Not dance but it does have choreography (brief and cute) by Ben Munisteri. It's directed by Linda Powell and stars Maura Lisabeth Malloy (Monroe) and Joel Van Liew (Capote) who collaborated on the adaptation. Van Liew looks nothing like Capote, which is not in the least distracting since he's otherwise entertaining and wisely avoids trying to be a sound-alike.
Remaining performances--Thursday, August 16 (3:30pm) and Sunday, August 19 (1:45pm)--are probably sold out, but you can give it a shot by clicking here or here for ticketing or call 212-279-4488 or 1-888-FringeNYC. Advance ticketing (more than 24 hour hours before show time) is recommended. Otherwise, purchase tickets at the door, cash only, 15 minutes before show time.
© 2007 Eva Yaa Asantewaa
And here's a Fringe tip you're probably savvy enough to not need: A Beautiful Child is a charming adaptation of Truman Capote's essay about his friendship with Marilyn Monroe. Not dance but it does have choreography (brief and cute) by Ben Munisteri. It's directed by Linda Powell and stars Maura Lisabeth Malloy (Monroe) and Joel Van Liew (Capote) who collaborated on the adaptation. Van Liew looks nothing like Capote, which is not in the least distracting since he's otherwise entertaining and wisely avoids trying to be a sound-alike.
Remaining performances--Thursday, August 16 (3:30pm) and Sunday, August 19 (1:45pm)--are probably sold out, but you can give it a shot by clicking here or here for ticketing or call 212-279-4488 or 1-888-FringeNYC. Advance ticketing (more than 24 hour hours before show time) is recommended. Otherwise, purchase tickets at the door, cash only, 15 minutes before show time.
© 2007 Eva Yaa Asantewaa
Monday, August 13, 2007
23rd Annual New York Dance & Performance Awards
The 23rd Annual New York Dance and Performance Awards
("The Bessies")
Honoring outstanding innovative achievement in dance and related performance work during the 2006-2007 season
Monday, September 17, 2007 at 7pm
The Joyce Theater
175 Eighth Avenue at 19th Street
Hosted by Justin Bond and Taylor Mac
Advance ticket purchases required
General admission: $15
To purchase tickets: Call JoyceCharge at (212) 242-0800
Or come in person Monday through Sunday 12pm - 6pm
at 175 Eighth Avenue at 19th Street
Ticket holders must be seated by 6:45pm
Tickets are non-refundable
Sunday, August 12, 2007
Nā Lei Hulu I Ka Wēkiu returns to LC Out-of-Doors fest
What a delight to welcome back San Francisco's Patrick Makuakane and his grand Nā Lei Hulu I Ka Wēkiu for another summer of Lincoln Center Out-of-Doors at Damrosch Park Bandshell! A freakish cold snap kept Friday evening’s attendance unusually low, but Saturday night’s warm weather encouraged a huge turnout of old and soon-to-be fans, including a fair number of Hawaiian New Yorkers.
The evening’s treats included traditional tunes by the musical duo Kūpaoa (Lihau Hannahs and Kellen Paik) as well as Makuakane’s surprising and wonderful hula interpretations of recordings by the likes of Annie Lennox and Peggy Lee. The company’s suite of authentic and contemporary hula works ranged from the romantic to the satirical, honoring deities and great leaders, celebrating the erotic and poking fun at the mindless, cheesy kind of hotel hula Hollywood and tourists have often confused for the real thing.
It takes fine, flowing coordination--of articulate hands and arms, of smooth turning, dipping and rising--to tell hula’s stories and express its heart. Hula teaches us that stories have physical logic, that the truest language is spoken by the flesh. The dances--short, dreamy narratives--convey a sense of the dense network of nature and spirit, interconnected worlds of stories.
The visual charms of Nā Lei Hulu I Ka Wēkiu’s presentation reflected Makuakane’s meticulous taste and craft. I loved the women’s sleek velvet gowns that turned them into a uniform chorus of gentle vamps and the bunchy, scrunchy skirts that looked like watercolored, upside-down camellias. The male dancers’ moxie and joy lit up the stage.
“Always leave them wanting more!” Isn’t that what the old entertainers used to say? Indeed, Nā Lei Hulu I Ka Wēkiu once again leaves me eager for this company’s next return to New York.
© 2007 Eva Yaa Asantewaa
The evening’s treats included traditional tunes by the musical duo Kūpaoa (Lihau Hannahs and Kellen Paik) as well as Makuakane’s surprising and wonderful hula interpretations of recordings by the likes of Annie Lennox and Peggy Lee. The company’s suite of authentic and contemporary hula works ranged from the romantic to the satirical, honoring deities and great leaders, celebrating the erotic and poking fun at the mindless, cheesy kind of hotel hula Hollywood and tourists have often confused for the real thing.
It takes fine, flowing coordination--of articulate hands and arms, of smooth turning, dipping and rising--to tell hula’s stories and express its heart. Hula teaches us that stories have physical logic, that the truest language is spoken by the flesh. The dances--short, dreamy narratives--convey a sense of the dense network of nature and spirit, interconnected worlds of stories.
The visual charms of Nā Lei Hulu I Ka Wēkiu’s presentation reflected Makuakane’s meticulous taste and craft. I loved the women’s sleek velvet gowns that turned them into a uniform chorus of gentle vamps and the bunchy, scrunchy skirts that looked like watercolored, upside-down camellias. The male dancers’ moxie and joy lit up the stage.
“Always leave them wanting more!” Isn’t that what the old entertainers used to say? Indeed, Nā Lei Hulu I Ka Wēkiu once again leaves me eager for this company’s next return to New York.
© 2007 Eva Yaa Asantewaa
Saturday, August 11, 2007
Orientarhythm takes Manhattan!
Ladies and gentlemen, the Fringe is on! For rabid fans of this dog-days-of-theater festival, that means it’s once again time to dash around downtown, from venue to venue and for better or for worse.
My first Fringe foray this month came down on the better side with the New York debut of the fierce yet personable Japanese duo known as Orientarhythm--Katsumi Sakakura and Eiko--and their versatile ensemble of women dancers. According to the troupe’s Web site, the unbelievably slick Sakakura’s superpowers include locking, street nunchaku (the pair of weaponry batons linked by a cord or chain), karate and boxing; silky-butchy Eiko (not to be confused with the famous avantgarde dancer of the same single name) claims panking, jazz, hip hop, street nunchaku and body boarding.
Their Fringe show is wonderful fun, combining Japanese youth culture and martial arts with hip hop culture in a confident and often humorous way. I wanted to see them slip in a little juicy capoeira for good measure, but I'm content with their electrifying staccato style. The show could be improved by snipping out the contemporary dance--Sakura--which two young women perform competently. This number displays no discernible choreographic flare, especially compared to the wit and dramatic fireworks of the duet that follows it--Sakakura and Eiko’s ninja fight dance, Shadow master.
When Orientarhythm returns to New York, I hope they’ll have a far better venue than the musty assembly hall of Our Lady of Pompei Church (West Village). If you go, take your earplugs, or don’t sit in the music’s line of fire; this troupe likes to crank up the volume.
Remaining shows: tonight (Sunday) at 7:15PM; Monday, August 13 at 9:30PM, Tuesday, August 14 at 6:45PM, and Wednesday, August 15 at 7:45PM. Click here or here for ticketing or call 212-279-4488 or 1-888-FringeNYC. Advance ticketing (more than 24 hour hours before show time) is recommended. Otherwise, purchase tickets at the door, cash only, 15 minutes before show time.
© 2007 Eva Yaa Asantewaa
My first Fringe foray this month came down on the better side with the New York debut of the fierce yet personable Japanese duo known as Orientarhythm--Katsumi Sakakura and Eiko--and their versatile ensemble of women dancers. According to the troupe’s Web site, the unbelievably slick Sakakura’s superpowers include locking, street nunchaku (the pair of weaponry batons linked by a cord or chain), karate and boxing; silky-butchy Eiko (not to be confused with the famous avantgarde dancer of the same single name) claims panking, jazz, hip hop, street nunchaku and body boarding.
Their Fringe show is wonderful fun, combining Japanese youth culture and martial arts with hip hop culture in a confident and often humorous way. I wanted to see them slip in a little juicy capoeira for good measure, but I'm content with their electrifying staccato style. The show could be improved by snipping out the contemporary dance--Sakura--which two young women perform competently. This number displays no discernible choreographic flare, especially compared to the wit and dramatic fireworks of the duet that follows it--Sakakura and Eiko’s ninja fight dance, Shadow master.
When Orientarhythm returns to New York, I hope they’ll have a far better venue than the musty assembly hall of Our Lady of Pompei Church (West Village). If you go, take your earplugs, or don’t sit in the music’s line of fire; this troupe likes to crank up the volume.
Remaining shows: tonight (Sunday) at 7:15PM; Monday, August 13 at 9:30PM, Tuesday, August 14 at 6:45PM, and Wednesday, August 15 at 7:45PM. Click here or here for ticketing or call 212-279-4488 or 1-888-FringeNYC. Advance ticketing (more than 24 hour hours before show time) is recommended. Otherwise, purchase tickets at the door, cash only, 15 minutes before show time.
© 2007 Eva Yaa Asantewaa
Friday, August 10, 2007
The soul of the dancer
The Dancer
(from Khalil Gibran's "The Wanderer")
Once there came to the court of the Prince of Birkasha a dancer and her musicians. And she was admitted to the court. And she danced to the music of the flute, the lute, and the zither.
She danced the dance of flames and fire, and the dance of swords and spears; she danced the dance of stars and the dance of space, and then she danced the dance of flowers in the wind.
When she had finished, she approached the prince and bowed her body before him. The prince bade her to come nearer, and said unto her, "Beautiful woman, daughter of grace and delight, whence comes your art? And how is it that you command all the elements in your rhythms and your rhymes?"
(from Khalil Gibran's "The Wanderer")
Once there came to the court of the Prince of Birkasha a dancer and her musicians. And she was admitted to the court. And she danced to the music of the flute, the lute, and the zither.
She danced the dance of flames and fire, and the dance of swords and spears; she danced the dance of stars and the dance of space, and then she danced the dance of flowers in the wind.
When she had finished, she approached the prince and bowed her body before him. The prince bade her to come nearer, and said unto her, "Beautiful woman, daughter of grace and delight, whence comes your art? And how is it that you command all the elements in your rhythms and your rhymes?"
And the dancer came near and bowed her body again and said, "Gracious majesty, I know not the answer to your questionings. Only this I know: The philosopher's soul dwells within his head, the poet's soul dwells within his heart, the singer's soul dwells about his throat, but the soul of the dancer abides in all her body."
Thursday, August 9, 2007
HERE's "Bearshow"
The cozy and blessedly air-conditioned HERE Arts Center in Soho is presenting Johanna S. Meyer’s Bearshow for one more night as part of The American Living Room annual festival of emerging arts. Bearshow is described as a “humorous and allusive work that explores images of real women, from courtesans to movie stars, while focusing on the Roman myth of the Big Dipper, in which a jealous god’s wife turns his mistress into a bear.” Sandwiched between two brief one-act plays, this avant-garde duet of poetic scrambles and nonsequitors features absorbed and absorbing performances by fake-fur-clad Alejandra Martorell and Jennifer Monson, both looking as scrubbed down and down-to-earth as can be, a few indicators of the trappings of lust and luxury notwithstanding. Watching them wind their way through this dance is like linking all the stars in a constellation.
Despite New York’s rain-wracked transit troubles, the theater was packed, and seats might be once again hard to get this evening. Call 212-352-3101 after 4pm today or click HERE.
Despite New York’s rain-wracked transit troubles, the theater was packed, and seats might be once again hard to get this evening. Call 212-352-3101 after 4pm today or click HERE.
Sunday, August 5, 2007
Results of "Your favorites?" poll
Your favorites?
classical ballet: 3 (25%)
contemporary ballet: 7 (58%)
ballet-modern fusion: 4 (33%)
traditional modern dance: 5 (41%)
postmodern dance: 9 (75%)
contact improvisation: 2 (16%)
African/Afro-Atlantic (e.g. Caribbean, Afro-Brazilian): 3 (25%)
flamenco: 4 (33%)
South Asian: 2 (16%)
Middle Eastern: 2 (16%)
other world dance/folk dance: 2 (16%)
jazz/Broadway: 0 (0%)
tap: 4 (33%)
Latin dancing: 5 (41%)
other social dancing: 3 (25%)
other: 2 (16%)
Votes:12
Poll closed as of 8/5/07
classical ballet: 3 (25%)
contemporary ballet: 7 (58%)
ballet-modern fusion: 4 (33%)
traditional modern dance: 5 (41%)
postmodern dance: 9 (75%)
contact improvisation: 2 (16%)
African/Afro-Atlantic (e.g. Caribbean, Afro-Brazilian): 3 (25%)
flamenco: 4 (33%)
South Asian: 2 (16%)
Middle Eastern: 2 (16%)
other world dance/folk dance: 2 (16%)
jazz/Broadway: 0 (0%)
tap: 4 (33%)
Latin dancing: 5 (41%)
other social dancing: 3 (25%)
other: 2 (16%)
Votes:12
Poll closed as of 8/5/07
Saturday, August 4, 2007
Memorial for Sekou Sundiata -- August 22
Two announcements from Bernadine Jennings of Attitude: The Dancers' Magazine
Publisher Carolyn Butts and Editor Layding Kaliba are looking to publish as many dedications to him as possible; therefore, no submission should be longer than 500 words. African Voices also wants to include photographs to accompany the dedications.
A special memorial for Sekou Sundiata takes place on Wednesday, August 22, 2007 (his birthdate), at Tishman Auditorium, New School University, 66 West 12th Street, exactly from 6pm to 8pm, with poets, musicians, family and friends...
African Voices magazine [africanvoices@aol.com] is looking for poems and short comments from friends and fellow artists who were influenced and inspired by Sekou Sundiata.Publisher Carolyn Butts and Editor Layding Kaliba are looking to publish as many dedications to him as possible; therefore, no submission should be longer than 500 words. African Voices also wants to include photographs to accompany the dedications.
All submissions should be sent to African Voices [africanvoices@aol.com] no later than midnight, August 20, 2007, in order to include materials gathered in the very next issue.
Interested parties may submit materials via email and/or call African Voices at 212-865-2982.
Chi Kung with Laura Shapiro
Announcement from Laura Shapiro
quicksilverdance@yahoo.com
Dear Movers, Meditators, Healers,
This is to let you know about a NEW, small group, chi-based movement class for people who want individual attention and feedback as they cultivate more flexibility, strength and energy.
The class will be held on Friday mornings, 9-10:30am at New Dance Alliance, a lovely dance studio at 182 Duane Street, 3rd floor (walk up two flights), in Tribeca. The classes will be designed for the particular concerns and interests of the people attending and will be offered in two 6-week series: September 14-October 19 and October 26-December 7 (no class the Friday after Thanksgiving). The cost is $105 for each series, $200 if you attend both. NEW STUDENTS MAY TRY THE FIRST CLASS FOR $15.
In addition, the Monday night class at West Side Family Pre-School, 63 West 92nd Street, will CONTINUE in September, also with two 6-week series: September 14-October 22 (no class on Columbus Day) and October 29-December 3. The cost is also $105 for each series, $200 if you attend both. NEW STUDENTS MAY TRY THE FIRST CLASS FOR $15.
Below you will find more information about Chi Kung. Please let me know if you are interested in attending one of the classes and feel free to pass this on to friends and colleagues.
Best wishes,
Laura
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ABOUT CHI KUNG
Traditionally, in China, Chi Kung/aka Qi Gong was an intrinsic aspect of martial arts, medicine and meditation. Often translated as “life force energy practice,” Chi Kung uses separate gentle movements, specific postures and the breath to circulate and revitalize energy, improve balance and coordination, increase flexibility and cultivate inner strength of body, mind and spirit. It can be adapted for every body.
The full benefits of Chi Kung reveal themselves with ongoing regular practice over an extended period of time. Once the movements, postures and breathing become familiar, their repetition allows the nervous system and the muscles, the mind and emotions to calm down, generating feelings of peace, harmony and well being, and allowing us to be more fully present.
LAURA SHAPIRO is a dancer/choreographer with over three decades of experience teaching people of all ages and ability. She currently teaches for Fu-Yu International Foundation, the Center for Kinesthetic Education, the Arthritis Foundation and McBurney YMCA as well as privately.
Friday, August 3, 2007
It's a jungle in there!
You've probably missed the Wendy Osserman Dance Company--amiable and talented performers--exploring and responding to conceptual artist Federico Uribe's HUMAN NATURE exhibition at Chelsea Art Museum (August 2). But you can still see this exhibition now through August 18 and perhaps visualize some jungle-y dancing of your own amid the gallery of sculptures of wild flora, fauna, landscape and weather conditions, all imaginatively constructed from pieces of PUMA footwear. The show is irresistible and fun but tense and cautionary, too. That prowling panther has a stuffed toy monkey dangling from its jaws dripping blood made of red laces, but Uribe fully implicates humans--with our devastating effect on the environment--in that red-in-tooth-and-claw business.
Ailey bloggers
Dancer Matthew Rushing and choreographer Camille A. Brown have begun blogs about their personal experiences working with the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. Access these blogs by becoming an Ailey e-club member (free) at the site.
Wednesday, August 1, 2007
Kids take on the greats
[Editor's Note: In addition to being a dancer and choreographer, Tara O'Con is a graduate of my Spring 2007 Writing on Dance course at Dance Theater Workshop. Here's a snippet of her feature piece about Kids Company, a project of Diane Jacobowitz's Dancewave, just published in the Brooklyn Eagle. Click here for the complete article.]
 clipped from www.brooklyneagle.com
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