Dance Floor Liberation
Los Angeles–based dance artist Jay Carlon knew that the proscenium stage couldn’t house his 2024 work, “Wake,” in its fullness. So he moved it elsewhere: to a rave.
PlusWorld-class review of ballet and dance.
Many contemporary choreographers, especially recently, have attempted to capture the distinctively visceral, freeing experience that comes from dancing at a rave, that phenomenon where the lights go down and the music revs up; where people release their inhibitions and give in to the beat.
But the experience of dancing at a club is environmental, as much dependent on the space, lights, and sounds, and importantly, the other people, as the physical movement. Even among exciting new rave-inspired concert dances that have appeared over the past several years, a question has always lingered: Is it possible to truly portray what it's like to let loose at the club if the show consists of professional dancers performing onstage for a seated audience?
Performance
Place
Words
“Uncommonly intelligent, substantial coverage.”
Your weekly source for world-class dance reviews, interviews, articles, and more.
Already a paid subscriber? Login
Los Angeles–based dance artist Jay Carlon knew that the proscenium stage couldn’t house his 2024 work, “Wake,” in its fullness. So he moved it elsewhere: to a rave.
PlusChoreography wasn’t on Lia Cirio’s radar when artistic director Mikko Nissinen asked her to participate in Boston Ballet’s ChoreograpHER initiative in 2018. The principal dancer had always thought, “Oh, that's not something for me. I just like being in the room and helping people and being choreographed on.” But her good friend and colleague at the time, Kathleen Breen Combes, gave her a nudge.
PlusIngrid Silva’s expression is calm, the side of her mouth upturned a few degrees, as if she’s delighting in the reception of her own joke.
PlusFrench choreographer Lea Tirabasso makes dense, intricate work which explores existential concerns connected with science, nature and morality. Witty, vivid and visceral, her work pushes beyond simple genres or choreographic language, creating something far richer and more complex. Her most recent piece, “In the Bushes” is part of the Edinburgh Festival this year. Fjord Review caught up with Léa Tirabasso ahead of the Summerhall run.
Plus
comments