Category: Dance

At the Noguchi Museum

Sunday May 29, 2011 – Kokyat and I have been talking about going to the Noguchi Museum for months and today we finally made it there.

Noguchi’s Water Stone (1986) at the Met Museum is one of Kokyat’s favorite works of art. Every time we go to The Met we make a pilgrimage to sit and observe the stone. The best times are when there are no other museum visitors around. We usually fall silent when sitting there; it creates a peaceful atmosphere. There is a very similar work at the Noguchi Museum (top photo) but it’s outdoors, and the surface of the pool refects the sky and trees in every-changing patterns.

The Noguchi Museum is not all that easy to get to from Manhattan. It’s a long walk from the nearest subway stop (though there is shuttlebus service from Manhattan) and so it is blessedly free of baby strollers, cellphones and tourist traffic. The atmosphere is wonderfully tranquil and there’s a deep connection with nature both in the wood and stone which Noguchi fashioned into masterpieces…

…and in the garden’s trees and plants, some of them native to Japan and rarely seen in the States. The blending of art and nature is so calming.

The museum is housed in what was once a run-of-the-mill industrial building. Noguchi saw something in the space and its ‘courtyard’ (then a run-down parking lot and storage area), transforming the mundane property into a spectacular sculpture garden while creating ten galleries within the building to house a large collection of his works. He also bought a small building across the street where he lived.

Noguchi did not always sign and date his work, but his signature runes (above) can be found on many pieces. Most of the works are simply presented without the title cards and descriptive information one usually sees in a museum. Noguchi wanted the viewers to draw their own inferences from his work without being steered by his own concepts in creating them.

Noguchi at Versailles in the 1950s.

We spent a long time wandering the galleries…

…then Kokyat fell asleep in the garden beneath a wall of bamboo. It is such a serene and restful place.

Isamu Noguchi’s work with Martha Graham was recently celebrated in an evening of works on which they collaborated, performed at the Rose Theater. In another connection with dance, Noguchi designed ORPHEUS for George Balanchine and his stylized lyre from that production was for years the iconic logo of the New York City Ballet.

I’ve posted some of my photos from our day at the museum on Facebook.

May 29, 2011
Aboard the USS Intrepid: HOMECOMING

On Saturday May 28 at 11:30 AM, Roman Baca’s HOMECOMING will be performed aboard the USS Intrepid. This brief but extraordinarily moving work is performed to a haunting John Corigliano score (from the film THE RED VIOLIN) over-laid by the reading of letters sent from home to US servicemen on duty in Iraq and Afghanistan. Earlier in the week, Kokyat and I stopped by the DANY Studios where Roman and his dancers were brushing up the work for its Intrepid premiere. They will dance HOMECOMING twice in succession aboard the ship. Kokyat’s photo at the top: dancers Taylor Gordon, Michael Wright and Lisa Fitzgerald.

Waiting at home: Adrienne Cousineau clings to the shirt of her husband. Mundane items like articles of clothing…

…or photographs of the servicemen keep a connection for spouses, mothers and girlfriends.

Above: dancers Aaron Atkins and Adrienne Cousineau. The joy of reunited couples is offset by the emptiness of those whose loved ones do not return from the war, or return with life-shattering injuries.

Taylor Gordon searches among the returning troops for her missing soldier.

Roman Baca enlisted in the US Marine Corps in 2000 and served in Fallujah, Iraq. Returning home, he picked up his dance career where it had left off. The resonances of his wartime experience prompted him to start work on HOMECOMING; he formed Exit 12 Dance Company to pursue his choreographic vision.

Sgt Baca has a deep personal interest in and commitment to US servicemen and -women returning from the mid-East wars who suffer from the psychological effects of their experience. His primary focus is on homelessness and suicidal tendencies among the veterans, stemming from frustration with the government’s increasing unwillingness to fittingly honor their service with care and compassion. Sadly, our troops are still abroad and at risk every day while being largely forgotten here at home.

A recent development in the situation shows some promise.

The USS Intrepid is docked at 150 12th Avenue, near West 23rd Street. A ticket to the Intrepid museum gets you aboard for the performance and you can stay on all day for Fleet Week activities.

These images are from the rehearsal; Kokyat also plans to shoot on the Intrepid where we spent a memorable evening last Autumn.

The dancers in HOMECOMING are: Taylor Gordon, Adrienne Cousineau, Lisa Fitzgerald, Jackie Koehler, Joanna Priwieziencew, Michael Wright, Aaron Atkins and Preston Bradley. More of Kokyat’s images from this rehearsal will follow shortly.

No matter what your stance on the war and the USA’s involvement in these far away lands, HOMECOMING is something everyone should experience.

May 28, 2011
HOMECOMING Aboard the USS Intrepid: Gallery

Here are some of Kokyat’s images from the May 28th, 2011 performances of Roman Baca’s HOMECOMING on board the USS Intrepid. The dancework was presented as part of the ship’s Fleet Week activities over the Memorial Day weekend. Read about the event here. Above: Preston Bradley.

Taylor Gordon

Taylor Gordon, Michael Wright, Lisa Fitzgerald

Adrienne Cousineau

Joanna Priwieziencew

Adrienne Cousineau

Lisa Fitzgerald

Michael Wright

Adrienne Cousineau, Aaron Atkins

Lisa Fitzgerald

Taylor Gordon

Sgt Roman Baca, choreographer and artistic director of Exit 12 Dance Company.

All photos by Kokyat.

May 28, 2011
2280 Pints!

Friday May 27, 2011 – From the many invitations that I receive each week to dance events, this one from The Neta Dance Company caught my eye because of the title of the work they are presenting: 2280 Pints! Described as a dancework for seventeen dancers and 57 5-gallon plastic buckets, it just sounded so quirky that I had to give it a go.

On entering the space at Dance Theater Workshop, we find the dancers posed like living statues as the music of Chopin’s second piano concerto fills the air. Each dancer has a white plactic bucket. Coins are distributed to the incoming audience members who then wander among the dancers, pressing pennies into the dancers’ open palms or dropping them into the buckets. A bell rings; suddenly the dancers break their poses and rush into the audience, grabbing people at random. Each dancer takes a guest onto the stage and arranges him/her in a statuesque pose. Thus did my friend Kokyat make his New York stage debut.

From there, a roller-coaster ride of movement and music commences. Neta Pulvermacher deploys her squad of dancers and their fifty-seven buckets in a richly imaginative series of danced and mimed tableaux, set to a musical smorgasbord that runs the gamut from Mozart to Sonny & Cher.

The buckets are arranged, stacked, knocked over, sent skidding across the floor; they become hats, shoes, podiums, spotlights, drums, sinks, stepping-stones; they are hoisted and lowered over the playing area. The dancers come and go as each musical number unfolds; sometimes there are big ensembles with everyone moving in unison and playing the buckets like percussionists kits. Other moments are more intimate: a girl sings the old Charlie Chaplin tune “Smile” (sings it really well, too) while four dancers simply raise and lower buckets over their faces, revealing their features as droll masks.

Does it sound like a mish-mash? To an extent, it is. What saves it and makes it brilliant is the musicality of Neta’s choreographic style and the sheer energy and commitment of her dancers. One or two segments seem to stretch out a bit long but at those times one can focus on the individual personalities of the very attractive young performers. A giant plus to the production comes from the lighting by B. Lussier.

I loved running into Taylor Gordon (either I go for months without seeing Taylor or I see her every day for a week) and to see Deborah Wingert and Matthew Westerby again. Many thanks to Alessandra Larson for inviting us to this really enjoyable evening.

2280 Pints! continues at Dance Theater Workshop (on West 19th off 8th Avenue) thru Saturday evening. Kids over 5 will get a kick out of it at a Saturday matinee. Details here, with a video trailer.

May 26, 2011
HOMECOMING Aboard the USS Intrepid

On Saturday May 28 at 11:30 AM, Roman Baca’s HOMECOMING will be performed aboard the USS Intrepid. This brief but extraordinarily moving work is performed to a haunting John Corigliano score (from the film THE RED VIOLIN) over-laid by the reading of letters sent from home to US servicemen on duty in Iraq and Afghanistan. Earlier in the week, Kokyat and I stopped by the DANY Studios where Roman and his dancers were brushing up the work for its Intrepid premiere. They will dance HOMECOMING twice in succession aboard the ship. Kokyat’s photo at the top: dancers Taylor Gordon, Michael Wright and Lisa Fitzgerald.

Waiting at home: Adrienne Cousineau clings to the shirt of her husband. Mundane items like articles of clothing…

…or photographs of the servicemen keep a connection for spouses, mothers and girlfriends.

Above: dancers Aaron Atkins and Adrienne Cousineau. The joy of reunited couples is offset by the emptiness of those whose loved ones do not return from the war, or return with life-shattering injuries.

Taylor Gordon searches among the returning troops for her missing soldier.

Roman Baca enlisted in the US Marine Corps in 2000 and served in Fallujah, Iraq. Returning home, he picked up his dance career where it had left off. The resonances of his wartime experience prompted him to start work on HOMECOMING; he formed Exit 12 Dance Company to pursue his choreographic vision.

Sgt Baca has a deep personal interest in and commitment to US servicemen and -women returning from the mid-East wars who suffer from the psychological effects of their experience. His primary focus is on homelessness and suicidal tendencies among the veterans, stemming from frustration with the government’s increasing unwillingness to fittingly honor their service with care and compassion. Sadly, our troops are still abroad and at risk every day while being largely forgotten here at home.

A recent development in the situation shows some promise.

The USS Intrepid is docked at 150 12th Avenue, near West 23rd Street. A ticket to the Intrepid museum gets you aboard for the performance and you can stay on all day for Fleet Week activities.

These images are from the rehearsal; Kokyat also plans to shoot on the Intrepid where we spent a memorable evening last Autumn.

The dancers in HOMECOMING are: Taylor Gordon, Adrienne Cousineau, Lisa Fitzgerald, Jackie Koehler, Joanna Priwieziencew, Michael Wright, Aaron Atkins and Preston Bradley. More of Kokyat’s images from this rehearsal will follow shortly.

No matter what your stance on the war and the USA’s involvement in these far away lands, HOMECOMING is something everyone should experience.

May 25, 2011
Roman Baca’s HOMECOMING: Gallery

A gallery of Kokyat’s images from a studio rehearsal of HOMECOMING, a timely and evocative dancework created by Roman Baca. HOMECOMING is to be performed aboard the USS Intrepid on Saturday May 28th at 11:30 AM. Read about this work here. In the photo above: Michael Wright and Lisa Fitzgerald.

Preston Bradley with Adrienne Cousineau and Taylor Gordon

Michael Wright

Adrienne Cousineau

Jackie Koehler

Taylor Gordon

Joanna Priwieziencew

Aaron Atkins, Adrienne Cousineau

Adrienne and Lisa

All images by Kokyat. My thanks to him, and to Roman Baca and his dedicated troupe of dancers for sharing this experience with us.

May 25, 2011
John J Zullo’s HOW BRIEF ETERNITY

Thursday April 28, 2011 – A fresh choreographic voice and a new (to me) venue as John J Zullo Dance presented two works at the Theater for The New City over on 1st Avenue. Kokyat and I met John and his dancers at a rehearsal earlier this year and we liked what we saw and heard there.

John’s HOW BRIEF ETERNITY is an eight-movement dramatic dancework set to music by Mio Morales, Maya Beiser and others. Although not a narrative, each vignette revolves around elements of prejudice and hatred that continue to thrive in modern societies thanks to the pernicious influence of racism and religion. These themes are presented in a gritty movement style with much physical contact by the dancers. There is no artifice in John’s choreographic style; his seven dancers move naturally and powerfully thru the changing partnerships and ensemble segments. Each member of the troupe makes a unique contribution to the whole and their distinctive personalities are given full range.

There is no setting per se, though overhead on a screen homophobic slogans and anti-gay buzzwords are projected. As the dance progresses there are moments of violence, tenderness, torture, brotherhood and frustration – the last depicted by silent screams. In a gender-bending duet, the tall, beautiful and rather androgynous Brigitte Mitchell and the slender, boyish Or Sagi don matching corsets and flouncy skirts (Or wearing bright red lipstick) and dance a seductive duet to a stunning rendition of Roy Orbison’s Cryin’, sung in Spanish by Rebekah del Rio (for the film MULHOLLAND DRIVE). There is a dance for four comrades – Or, John Zullo, Ashley Linsey and Mike Hodge – where the boys slip out of their trousers and into short skirts. Jenna Liberati – a lyrical dancer with a surprising edginess – and Christina Chelette – a petite woman with an intense personal style – complete the cast.

HOW BRIEF ETERNITY is tightly packed with movement; John’s style isn’t like anyone else’s that I’ve seen and he plays to his dancers’ individual strengths: Or Sagi’s ballet training for example lets him show off a flourishing extension. The Theater for The New City‘s atmosphere – redolent of the dark, shabby backstage perfume of old costume trunks and forgotten shows of yesteryear – was an ideal place to present this work: we are close enough to the dancers to see individual beads of sweat.

HOW BRIEF ETERNITY might well have stood on its own but – after a break – a second piece, a more generalized dancework about fleeting relationships entitled INSIGNIFICANT OTHERS, proved a pleasant contrast. The dreamlike echoing voice of Patsy Cline gives way to music of Peteris Vasks and Tractor’s Revenge as the dancers pair off variously in various hetero- and homosexual combinations, looking for love or someone to help them make it thru the night. The seven dancers from ETERNITY were joined by Kate Vincek.

The second work was less engrossing than the first but it provided an additional opportunity to focus on the individual dancers.

April 28, 2011
Dance Against Cancer: Tech Rehearsal

Monday April 25, 2011 – Since I was unable to attend the Dance Against Cancer benefit performance at Manhattan Movement and Arts Center this evening, I had the good fortune to be invited to watch the technical rehearsal which started at noon today. Above: a snapshot I took of Matthew Rushing of the Alvin Ailey Company. Matthew was the first artist to tech today.

A lot goes into staging a dance production and while the major companies have lighting and sound crews and stage directors and stagehands all on staff, for a one-time gala like DANCE AGAINST CANCER, all these elements need to be brought together at the venue in a short span of time on the day of the performance. Having performers from several companies on the programme, the gala coordinators need to mesh schedules with classes and other rehearsals that the dancers might be involved in. Since several of the gala participants are member of NYC Ballet, they were having their traditional Monday off in the midst of preaparing for their opening week of Spring Season which starts on May 3rd. Stars from Ailey, Lar Lubovitch, Keigwin & Co and Carolina Ballet along with special guests Martin Harvey, Alex Wong and Tara Jean Popowich all had to be scheduled for tech sessions for the individual numbers in which they are involved.

What happens at a tech rehearsal? Musical and lighting cues are coordinated; spacing, timings, entrances and exits, even the bows are all worked out in minute detail so that the dancers will know their way around the performance space and the wings. Musicians who are playing ‘live’ for the individual numbers also get a feel for the space, find out where to enter from (invariably in the dark!) and how they will maintain visual contact with the dancers during the showing.

Dance Against Cancer is presented by MMAC‘s Erin Fogarty and New York City Ballet’s Daniel Ulbricht.

Here is the announced programme:

On The Other Side; Choreography: Benjamin Millepied; Dancers: Janie Taylor and Tyler Angle
Love Songs; Choreography: Larry Keigwin; Dancers: Kristina Hanna and Aaron Carr
Mozartiana (excerpt); Choreography: George Balanchine; Dancer: Maria Kowroski
Untitled World Premiere; Choreography: Robert Fairchild; Dancers: Tara Jean Popowich and Alex Wong
Little Rhapsodies; Choreography: Lar Lubovitch; Dancer: Attila Joey Csiki; Piano: Kathy Tagg
Tatum Pole Boogie; Choreography: Daniel Ulbricht; Dancer: Daniel Ulbricht
Untitled World Premiere; Choreography: Earl Mosley; Dancer: Matthew Rushing
Who Cares (excerpt); Choreography: George Balanchine; Dancers: Sterling Hyltin and Amar Ramasar
Untitled World Premiere; Choreography: Attila Bongar (Principal at Carolina Ballet) Dancers: Lara O’Brien and Attila Bongar
Carmen (excerpt); Choreography: Christopher Wheeldon; Dancers: Maria Kowroski and Martin Harvey
After the Rain; Choreography: Christopher Wheeldon; Dancers: Wendy Whelan and Craig Hall; Piano: Cameron Grant; Violin: Arturo Delmoni

I’ve arranged with photographer Erin Baiano, who is shooting the actual performance, to have some of her images for my blog. They will be posted here soon.

April 25, 2011
The Godfather

Michelle and Abrar

On Saturday April 23rd my god-daughter Michelle is getting married. It seems centuries ago that I first saw Michelle and her tiny twin sister Melissa at the hospital in Hartford where their mom, my Filipina co-worker Rose, had given birth just hours before. I was one of the first visitors to the hospital nursery that day and the nurses assumed I was the father; they made quite a fuss over me – I even received a round of applause from the staff and visitors – til I convinced them all that I was merely the god-father.

The christening was a huge affair since each of the little twins had two sets of god-parents. So there were eight of us (plus their parents, of course) on the altar and at the party that followed, where the babies – now referred to as The Twinkies – were passed around between their parents, grand-parents, god-parents, aunties, cousins and friends.

For a couple of years god-parenting was part of my routine but as The Twinkies grew up we saw them less and less. Everyone was busy and they lived just far enough away to make frequent visiting something of a chore. Their mom took another job and left the Company where we had met and worked together; once the girls were in school their lives filled up with friends and activities and the god-parents drifted out of the picture.

So now Michelle is all grown up and about to become a bride. I would guess that it’s been 20 years since I last saw her. So the wedding will also be a reunion. Let’s see how many of the eight original god-parents show up.

This will be the first wedding I have attended since the mid-70s when my friends Helen and Larry got married in a tiny civil ceremony just a few close friends in attendance.

Since I’ll be without the Internet for a few days (my friend Richard who I am staying with doesn’t own a computer, amazingly enough) my blog will be dormant til Easter evening.

April 21, 2011
At the Cherry Blossom Festival in DC

Gina Ianni of TAKE Dance, photo by JR Cook.

When I mentioned to my friend JR that TAKE Dance would be performing SAKURA SAKURA at the annual Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington DC on March 26th, I thought it would be something that she’d enjoy watching. But she decided to try her hand at dance photography (for the first time) and arranged with the Festival to shoot the performance. Here are some of her images:

Gina Ianni, Nana Tsuda Misko

Nana & Gina

Gina Ianni, Lynda Senisi

Nana Tsuda Misko, Marie Zvosec

Kristen Arnold

Jill Echo, Marie Zvosec

Nana, Marie, Lynda, Jill, Gina

SAKURA SAKURA (Cherry Blossoms) was created in 2005 by Takehiro Ueyama and is set for six women to traditional Japanese music and Mozart; it’s a perfect Festival piece for its ritualistic feeling and its clarity of expression.

TAKE Dance will premiere their newest work, SALARYMAN, at Dance Theater Workshop May 18th – 21st. Information here.

March 27, 2011