head on the ground

bill t wins tony for spring awakening choreography

2007-06-10T18:20:00.000-07:00

here he is talking a bit about the process
on you tube

and an article in the ny times

Review of Lorraine Chapman and Snappy

2007-06-06T07:09:00.000-07:00

A review of Snappy Dance (which I didn't see) and Lorraine Chapman came out in the Phoenix:
Review by Marcia Siegel

starting again

2007-06-03T06:34:00.000-07:00

i think i will try writing this blog again. mainly, i stopped writing because i felt very disillusioned with dance and where it was going. i can't say that my feelings on that have changed, but i still keep seeing dance nonetheless. maybe that means something.

may is dance month in cambridge, so i have been a bit oversaturated.

i work for anna myer, so of course i saw that.
globe review

i also saw caitlin corbett (technically in april) and lorraine chapman.
all three, boston-based companies.

what i realized from these performances is that largely i like dance based on whether or not i would be embarassed to dance the choreography myself. for these three, which is largely not the case, i wouldn't be.

critical moves - nov 17-18

2006-11-13T04:42:00.000-08:00

the last one of these was excellent...
for more info, see the critical moves website

***********************************************************************
Critical Moves Contemporary Dance
diverse, innovative, personal, vital NEW dance works

featuring New York City and Boston-based artists
Ryuji Yamaguchi
Wendy Jehlen
Digby Dance
Kairos Dance Theatre (Ingrid Schatz & DeAnna Pellecchia)
Ruth Bronwen
Deborah Butler/Kitsune Butoh w/ live Shakohachi by Phil Nyokai James

Friday & Sat, November 17 & 18th
8:00 p.m.

@Green Street Studios, 185 Green Street, Central Square Cambridge, MA
Call 617-864-3191 for reservations (strongly recommended)
or buy at the door (cash/check only)

$18 general admission; $15 students and members of Boston Dance Alliance.

For more information contact:
alissa@kinodance. org
617-718-9333

deerhoof does ballet?

2006-10-29T18:04:00.000-08:00

if you know deerhoof, you know this couldn't be your typical in school residency.
only in maine (the way life should be).
for more info and pictures, see pitchfork.

Evolution of Expressive Dance in Boston - Talk on 9.19

2006-09-11T13:26:00.000-07:00

From the Cambridge Center for Adult Education Website:

Evolution of Expressive Dance in Boston

September 19
7:00 pm | $10
42 Brattle Street

Culture Builders is an ongoing series of talks by members of our community who have made a significant positive difference in our cultural climate. Our fall lecture and reception are presented in collaboration with the Boston Dance Alliance.

“Sitting in New York theatres you get the idea that there is no dance in America outside New York worth talking about. The program of Miriam Winslow at the Brooklyn Academy of Music now has banished that idea for good. Miriam Winslow is not from New York but from Boston. And she is worth talking about.”

— “Dips and Whirls This Week”
in the Columbia Spectator, December 21, 1934. When did expressive dance first take root in Boston? While much is known about the growth of other art forms in Boston, little research has focused on Boston’s dance pioneers or the role they played in the growth of expressive dance. Dr. Jody Weber has uncovered a marvelous and interesting history of expressive dance in Boston and the movements that shaped its rise. She will introduce local figures in 19th century Boston whose work promoted new visions of health and beauty for urban populations and will also discuss the introduction of American Delsartism in Boston, the first school of expressive movement founded by the Italian Braggiotti sisters, the arrival of German influences through the work of Hans Wiener, and the convergence of ideas expressed through the work of Miriam Winslow in the 1930s.

For more information and to register.

danish dance theatre @ the pillow

2006-07-30T12:20:00.000-07:00

danish dance theatre
jacob's pillow, duke
july 28, 2006

i went in to this performance with high expectations and the second piece on the program, kridt (chalk), lived up to them.

i think jennifer dunning said it best in her review:
"Mr. Rushton has managed to say something fresh about dying."
this is the second time this company has brought me literally to tears.
the press photos give a better sense of the piece than my description would.
here is the globe review.

the first piece, silent steps, was definitely good, but it just didn't have the same depth and intensity as kridt.

Creating collaboration @ Green Street

2006-07-18T06:52:00.000-07:00

Went to this last night:

July 17: Creating Collaboration, with Karole Armitage, John Jasperse, and Zeena Parkins, moderated by Louisa McCall of the LEF Foundation. Panel discussion at 8 pm, Green Street Studios, 185 Green Street, Cambridge.

(Peter Speliopoulos, who does costume design for Armitage, was also on the panel).

which was put on by Summer Stages Dance

All of this talk about collaboration seems a little strange to me. People have started talking about collaboration in the arts as if it is some rare, new thing. Especially in an art form where your medium is other people, it is almost impossible not to collaborate to produce art. Every dancer brings something new to a work, even if a choreographer does their best to remove a dancer’s voice and individuality. And, to quote that over-quoted phrase, “You can’t make art in a vacuum”. Of course, there are choreographers whose dialogue with other artists drive their creation, but to treat collaboration as if it is some radical idea seems unnecessary.

That’s my little rant.

There were some interesting things that came out about the artists’ process.
-Louisa brought up the idea of having control in your art and losing it or thinking about losing it when you work with other people. All of these artists really get off on exploring with other people, so the idea of control doesn’t really make sense. Jasperse related the experience to having a dinner party where there is one more interesting guest.
-It is hard and scary to go into a studio and try to make work by yourself.

-There was more, and maybe I’ll get more down later.

all at once this weekend -- free (and some wbur arts)

2006-07-17T04:41:00.000-07:00

anna myer and dancers will be performing all at once this weekend:

thursday, july 20th 7:15pm
concord academy
outside on the lawn

saturday, july 22nd 4pm
mbta silver line courthouse station

from debra cash's july dance highlight's
(which, by the way, will be phased out along with the rest of online wbur arts, see the globe and the phoenix for more info)

In "All at Once," dancers and string musicians intersect in space and Susan Davenny Wyner personifies a priestess or an oracle as she conducts them all. Now choreographer Anna Myer is restaging the work to be viewed against the reflective aluminum walls of the elegant Elkus/Manfredi T station on the new South Boston Waterfront.

john jasperse @ concord academy this weekend

2006-07-12T08:09:00.000-07:00

from the summer stages website...

July 13 & 14: John Jasperse Company: Prone.
This experiential work puts the audience on the stage, right in the midst of the action. The audience alternates between lying on the floor as the dancers move over and around them, and sitting in chairs surrounding the performance space. The work has been called “stunningly provocative” by the Village Voice and “mysterious and intense” by the New York Times. Performances at 7 and 9 p.m. at the Concord Scout House, 76 Walden Street, Concord. Tickets $30/students $20. Note: space is extremely limited, so reserve early.

see
post a couple months back for ny review and comments.

aszure & artists @ the pillow

2006-07-02T12:46:00.000-07:00

aszure & artists
jacob's pillow, duke
july 1, 2006

this show was certainly good—by that, I mean there was nothing bad. the last piece lascilo perdere (a journey of letting go) was the most coherent in its point and sentiment. all of the movement seemed to tie together with some purpose of illustrating the underlying theme of letting go or being let go. the section that struck me the most was one in which a woman down stage center performed a version of movement a couple in the upstage left corner danced fully. throughout the section the solo woman and a man slow-danced in a video projection on the backdrop. i wish that there were more moments like this throughout the program. maybe they were there, but so fleeting, that they are hard to remember. the other two works, choreographed this year, seem like pieces simply driven by barton’s signature quick clean gestural athletic movement. luckily, she has a company of dancers so strong they make it worth just watching the execution of her movement. it is clear there is a reason for all the hype surrounding barton, i just hope her constant exposure doesn’t take away from her being able to make the strong thorough work she appears to be capable of. oh, and she is only 30, i think that is important to remember.

dance comes in all forms

2006-06-16T05:10:00.000-07:00

reading friends' blogs gives you access to amazing things.
juggling master.

bill t gets boo'ed

2006-06-09T11:16:00.000-07:00

a friend pointed this blog post out to me.
after a performance of blind date at spoleto, someone yelled from the audience:
“I think it was a cliche disguised not very cleverly as third-rate art."

no doubt, his work gets people talking.

dance photography

2006-06-05T07:07:00.000-07:00

mike van sleen updated his website with photos from his last summer at jacob's pillow. these are definitely some of my favorite dance photos and worth checking out. he will be back at the pillow this summer.

Marcus Schulkind @ Green Street

2006-06-05T07:03:00.000-07:00

here is a review of the performance in the Globe.

"Six solos were given expert performances over the weekend in a memorable evening to benefit Schulkind's artistic home, Green Street Studios."

I tried to see this Friday night, but it was sold out--that's sort of nice to hear, even if I couldn't get in.

summer stages dance

2006-05-23T10:38:00.000-07:00

karen campbell wrote a nice previewof this year's summer stages dance program taking place at concord academy.

john jasperse and karol armitage will be there.

the article also mentions new programs in development to include more boston-based choreographers:

"The festival is also sponsoring performances, seminars, and master classes in the Boston/Cambridge area to create stronger connections with the local contemporary dance scene and with an eye toward possible year-round programming as the festival moves into its next decade.

''We're trying to make a circular relationship between Boston/Cambridge, Concord, and New York," explains Spencer, ''mixing Boston dancers with those that we bring from afar.""

boston, you've got a long way to go

2006-05-12T06:38:00.000-07:00

debra cash posts about the state of nudity in boston dance on the
wbur blog.
i guess in cambridge, we're a little better off.
iris fanger wrote of the piece in question (caitlin corbett's yield)in the globe:
"A new duet called ''Yield," for Nicole Pierce and Victor Tiernan, set to the music of Ray Charles, did not proceed as advertised. In an apologetic pre-curtain speech, Corbett explained the dance was meant to be topless because she wanted to explore issues of gender equality while celebrating the human body. But last week her host, Boston University, said that female nudity violated the school's agreement with the city for an entertainment license. ''Pasties would be allowed," she was told, but Corbett declined. No matter. Tiernan appeared bare-chested, Pierce wore a bra, and the two strong dancers touched and lifted each other, trading balances in mirror fashion to convey Corbett's intentions."

ideas in motion 2006 - again

2006-04-23T09:18:00.000-07:00

being in the audience at last night's ideas in motion and last week's critical moves performances gave me some hope that things might actually change in this city dance-wise. both of these evenings showed works that were more on "the cutting edge" than what is typically seen in boston. somehow having this work here might give visibility to other boston-based artists that are doing quality work that, despite not being "cutting edge", is worth some notice.
gauging by the quality of the questions asked at both of these performances, i would say that the audiences seemed both engaged and ready to see more.
aces.
by far, the hit of the evening was the piece by bridgman/packer dance. not only was it technologically stunning, but it had a sense of emotion and purpose that had value beyond technically wizardry. maybe working together for so long (28 years) is one of the reasons why the work seems to stand despite the use of video. i had similar feelings (less so, but similar) when i saw last week's pieces by terese freedman and jim coleman. the ideas seem to come first, and then the technology is worked in--not the other way around.

critical moves -- again

2006-04-19T09:48:00.000-07:00

apparently it takes a choreographer cleaning up shaving cream after someone else's piece and moveing a piano to get new work seen in boston.
kudos to alissa cardone and green street for making this event possible.

here is a comment from the review in the herald:

Cryptic ‘Moves’ stumbles - but with style
By Theodore Bale
Saturday, April 15, 2006

"Fuller’s “Stations” was one of six innovative dances chosen by curator Alissa Cardone for a new series called “Critical Moves.” The works she chose defy indifference, and the series represents an insightful development in local dance."

...

check out the review to read more about the pieces.

cal performance -- a 100 years of presenting dance

2006-04-14T07:12:00.000-07:00

an interesting article at voice of dance on the history of cal performances' presentation of dance.

critical moves -- this friday

2006-04-12T11:38:00.000-07:00

CRITICAL MOVES
a new series of contemporary dance

featuring artists from Boston, Western MA, New York & West Africa
Coleman/Freedman
Lacina Coulibaly (from Burkina Faso)
Nell Breyer w/ dancers Joe Seitz and Justin Norris
Zack Fuller w/ live music by Jonathan Vincent & Katt Hernandez

Friday, April 14, 8:00 p.m.

Green Street Studios, 185 Green Street, Cambridge, MA
Directions: http://www.greenstreetstudios.org/about-us/directions/

$16 general admission; $12 students and members of Boston Dance
Alliance.
Reservations at 617-864-3191 or buy at the door (cash only)
RESERVATIONS STRONGLY RECOMMENDED

Critical Moves is curated by Alissa Cardone
More information:
www.criticalmoves.com/series
www.greenstreetstudios.org/performances

Coleman/Freedman: Performs three works which all explore the interface of projected video and live dance action and mark a new direction in the work of Terese Freedman and Jim Coleman. “talking heads” offers an elusive debate between one live and 3 virtual talking heads over the virtues and pretenses of contemporary dance; “on turning ten (after billy collins)” is a surreal autobiographical look at the life of 10 year old Zoe Coleman, set to a sound collage score that includes Billy Collins’ poem of the same title; “written in the body” is a collaboration with visual artist Neal Parks exploring the relationship of artist and muse, featuring live drawing, projected video imagery and live dance.

Zack Fuller: premieres “Stations” with live music by Jonathan Vincent and Katt Hernandez. A grotesque/beautiful, spiritual/toxic, collaborative, dance/music/no words theatre performance: medieval in its structure.

Lacina Coulibaly: Hailing from Burkina Faso director and choreographer of the acclaimed La Compaigne Konga Ba Teria, Lacina is in Boston until May 2006 as the result of his ongoing residency at Brown University in Providence, RI. Lacina has been working for years to develop his own unique style that exists at the intersection between the traditional styles of his home country, the expressions that emerge from the exploration of the self, and the techniques of European modern dance.

Nell Breyer: Capoeira’s history molds oppression and self-defense, fight and play out of the same act. As two people approach extreme closeness, their split reactions belie vacillating cycles of trust, betrayal, freedom, suppression, power and helplessness that litter our history, politics and personal experience. (Originally premiered 2002 for the Dancespace Project at St. Mark’s Church)

Dancing for the Greats @ Harvard

2006-04-05T12:18:00.000-07:00

a potentially interesting discussion later this month...

Sunday, April 23, 2006 at 3:00 PM

Panel discussion moderated by one of Boston's leading Dance critics, Debra Cash.

Panelists, who will discuss dancing for the great choreographers of the 20th century will be:
* Christine Dakin - former principal dancer Martha Graham Dance Company
* Heather Watts, former principal dancer, New York City Ballet
* Jennifer Scanlon, former dancer, Jose Limon Company
* Jeff Shade, former Bob Fosse Dance Captain and protege

The four master works performed during the Dancers Viewpoint VI program will be performed with the panel discussion.

For more information, see the Harvard Box Office Web Site.

boston arts

2006-04-04T06:39:00.000-07:00

gotta love when someone with no "arts background" is put in charge of arts in boston...

Hotline: Changing of the arts guard

Tuesday, April 4, 2006

In a surprise move, Julie Burns has been named Boston’s new director of the Office of Arts, Tourism and Special Events. The announcement was made without fanfare on former director Susan Hartnett’s last day on the job. Burns does not have an arts background, but as a former deputy chief of staff for Mayor Thomas M. Menino and as executive director of Boston 2004, she has longheld ties to the mayor. Insiders say Menino is eager to tap her fund-raising skills in the corporate community. Word is that her former high-ranking position on Menino’s staff also will give her authority over sometimes reluctant departments whose cooperation she needs.

- TERRY BYRNE
herald article

ideas in motion 2006

2006-03-29T08:17:00.000-08:00

this should be really interesting..
Boston Cyberarts and Dance Theater Workshop
present
Ideas in Motion 2006
Saturday, April 22
7 pm
Green Street Studios
185 Green Street
Cambridge

our own little drama

2006-03-28T07:42:00.000-08:00

a recent post on the dance-action-network has started quite a dialogue. i re-post it, since obviously this person wants their voice heard. before reading, know that i disagree and agree with points.

"On Sunday, March 26, 2006, the Boston Dance Alliance convened for its annual Members Meeting and Performance at Roxbury Community College. This year, an audition accompanied the meeting, similar to a theater cattle call, offering combinations in ballet, modern, jazz and hip hop for dancers to show their strengths to choreographers in and around the Boston area. While filling a void in the Boston Dance Community, the event as a whole has noticeable room for improvement in the coming years. Let us focus, however, on the performance, which promised to highlight some of the best dancing in the Boston area but failed to deliver.

A pas de deux offered by the Boston Arts Academy opened the showing. The “deux” part of the dance was somewhat unclear, though, as Laura Montas danced around Joe Gonzalez, typical of male facilitation in classical ballet. Why not invite Paul Pierce to accompany Ms. Montas rather than a young man who breathes of dance technique? Only one moment of chemistry existed, where Ms. Montas ponched into the arms of her kneeling courtier, almost nuzzling his nose. This glimmer of young love was nearly realized but was soon squelched by the following attitude, pas de bourree, *repeat* combination that our prince only pretended to watch, looking as though he would rather be at home playing video games while his princess shopped online. The saddest part of it all is that Ms. Montas is actually a lovely dancer, with her soft-shoed feet being as pliable as her expressive, swanlike arms. She, like her partner, lacks experience and performance quality that formal artistic training could provide given a dose of artistic wisdom. We are left with a class combination dressed up in the plum shades (not even matching) of the Arabian Variation from a high school rendition of The Nutcracker.

Next, EgoArt was talked up by several members of the audience, but Nicole Pierce (not to be confused with our Celtic variety) lived up to the prelude in neither the choreography or the performance of her untitled solo. The vivid, tangerine costuming choice was the most interesting element of the piece. I was glad to have the translucent, geometric shape of her lapa to focus on for the duration of the dancing. With the inspiration of an African sunset, this costume wants so badly for a happiness that does not exist in the movement or in its draping over the unexpressive Pierce. This was not dancing, but a series of movements that one might find in yoga or tai chi class where one actually gets a work out. I thought my brain might get some stimulation(a work-out in and of itself) when a nodding, bowing movement, reminiscent of a bird, repeated itself and for a movement captured an animal instinct somewhere deep within. But, the connection did not exist between the lunging gestures that followed that made me want to vinasa and chant “om,” far, far away from Roxbury College.

I could use some yoga after the third piece, which made me want to scream and bite my nails. Why, why, why, why, why, is the willowy body of Will Weaver so unabashedly underused as a playground fixture? Three men alternate roles as the support of a swing holding a childlike character, who sometimes writhes and sometimes just plain clings on for dear life. Sure, there is something to be said for making an audience uncomfortable, but this is ridiculous. At one point, I do not think I was alone in seriously being fearful for her life. I thought that this might transcend for me when the typically fragile female attached and re-attached herself like a tree frog to the afore-mentioned Mr. Weaver. Unfortunately, my focus instead went towards the awkward transitions and how hard they both were fighting to make the shifts happen. The audience would be much better off seeing the languid, captive limbs of Mr. Weaver move in space instead of being grounded like a tree as choreographer Callie Chapman Korn envisions them.

Perhaps I had had enough at this point, but Rebecca Rice’s solo for Cydney Neilson entitle “Inside” was the absolute edge for me. If I had had a wall, I would have been banging my head against it. First of all, what an awful musical pairing! The finger-nails-on-chalkboard string instrumental by Frank Proto was not convincing as accompaniment to the cutesy antics of the young, brunette soloist. She danced primarily downstage, in a place where the audience longs for the performer to be intimate. However, when she was not engulfed in bad pantomime using a red book that mysteriously ended up in her dancing space, she certainly was not engaging the audience or letting them into her world. What of this book and the brown tank top with black pants that I wear to class? I would rather check my calendar for coming events than watch this piece and upon further investigation of the audience, I am not alone.

“Wow!” is all I have to say for the finale, entitled “Break Out.” OK, maybe I will throw in a “thank goodness,” as well. These kids can move: Hip Hop, West African, theatrics and gymnastics...you name it. Choreographer Sophia A. Haynes did not even need to be a “Smooth Criminal”, as her musical collage suggests, to steal this show. Two things on this: Who are the teachers at STAJEZ Center for the Arts and how do I sign up -PLEASE!?

To an extent, the dancers are not to blame for such a horrific display. For now, let us challenge the choreographers to dig deep and see what happens."

"Anna Medette"

oh, i forgot to mention the e-mail was entitle "Boston, let's raise the bar..."