Why cry about the economy? It won’t help, and a succession of dirges makes for wretched choreography, anyway. America’s dance companies and presenters aren’t mourning. They’re making the best of it. They’ll trim and adjust a bit this season. But they know that, for every cutback or compromise, the dance world can still put warm […]
Julie Tice Paul Taylor Dance Company Interviewed by Susan Yung My favorite is the role I do in Esplanade. It’s like the epitome of joy. There’s nothing like the sensation of running through space to this gorgeous music by Bach. There are not many other dances that allow you to just do normal everyday sprints, […]
Pennsylvania Ballet New York City Center, NYC November 14–18, 2007 Reviewed by Susan Yung There’s something about choosing to choreograph to Carl Orff’s “Carmina Burana” that spells trouble, like opening Pandora’s box. Its mere selection seems to mandate employing certain dynamic qualities that at first glance entice, yet when strung together, can be gaudy. For […]
How does it feel to be 15? Ask Rennie Harris, whose hip hop dance company, Rennie Harris Puremovement (RHPM), celebrates its “quincearos” this month at Philadelphia’s Kimmel Center. “Prince” was Harris’s street name as an adolescent growing up in North Philadelphia; “ScareKrow” stuck with him later on. Despite the tags attached to its practitioners, hip […]
The possibilities in choreography are endless. If there was any question about that in my mind, the recent Association of Performing Arts Presenters conference in New York City reminded me. At this annual showing of performing arts from around the country, I saw sleek, contemporary ballet from BalletX of Philadelphia, explosive street tap by TenFootFive […]
Pennsylvania Ballet Merriam Theater, Philadelphia, PA June 7–11, 2006 Reviewed by Lewis Whittington F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote psychological workups of his characters before he scripted their dialogue, and Pennsylvania Ballet dancer-choreographer Matthew Neenan seems to do the same thing with dancers. In his new ballet, As It’s Going, he has essayed a multidimensional work […]
In our nation, black, white, and brown peoples inherit a mixed, shared culture. This is what makes the U.S.A. what it is. Each generation seeks new ways of dealing with old problems. American race relations in the new century are not the same as they were 100 years ago, and new ways of thinking about […]
Tara Keating (left) and Meredith Rainey in Matthew Neenan’s Vibrate. Photo by Ted Lieverman Ballet X Arts Bank, Philadelphia, PA March 8–9, 2005 Reviewed by Lewis Whittington Take one new company—Ballet X, launched by Matthew Neenan and Christine Cox, two founders of the disbanded Phrenic New Ballet—and add composers from the Network for […]
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