Evolving Dynamism
English National Ballet’s latest mixed bill presents a trio of works from William Forsythe, a dancemaker known for slanting ballet into new gradients, some playful, some confrontational, all of them spirited and agile.
PlusWorld-class review of ballet and dance.
There may not be a direct correlation between bibliophiles and lovers of Butoh— the Japanese modern dance form created as a response to the bombing of Hiroshima that is sometimes referred to as the Dance of Darkness—but it’s safe to say that there never has been—nor will there ever be—a bookworm, literally, quite like Oguri.
Indeed, this paragon of Butoh, who’s been making dances in his adopted hometown of Los Angeles for more than three decades, began his latest collaborative opus—with Andrés Corchero—“Body as Evidence, Phase II,” unseen and under a pile of books. Then, in a momentous reveal, he emerged—nearly nude—looking nothing less than a literal bookworm, a trail of tomes running the length of his physique as he slinked and stalked the stage. Here was a caterpillar-like pharaoh of sorts, a twenty-first-century very learned homo erectus, if you will.
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English National Ballet’s latest mixed bill presents a trio of works from William Forsythe, a dancemaker known for slanting ballet into new gradients, some playful, some confrontational, all of them spirited and agile.
PlusMartha Graham is the Georgia O’Keefe of dance. No matter what the source material, the primary subject of her works is womanhood.
PlusPetite in stature, with beautiful, delicate features, Scottish dance artist Suzi Cunningham is nonetheless a powerhouse performer: an endless shape shifter whose work ranges from eerie to strange, to poignant, or just absolutely hilarious.
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