Reviews
Going With the Flow
The eight company members of CrossCurrents Dance Company enjoy the strength and sweep of company director Debra Kanter’s choreography and the force and passion of co-director Helen Hayes.
But guest choreographers Cathy Paine and David Parsons emphasized the dancers’ unique abilities and personalities at the company’s performances at Dance Place over the weekend.
Baltimore-based Paine relies on improvisation to shape her works. “The Reflective Surfaces, Art Versus Nature, Who Am I Anyway Blues” incorporates spoken text and movement material contributed by the six women. Twitches and fidgets upstaged the staid sweeps and runs as the women jiggled their thighs, checked their tummies and fussed with their hair. Brief monologues recounting performance nightmares – things like ending up backwards on stage, forgetting a costume – and descriptive phrases – “skin no longer elastic”, “generous heart” – painted a fuller picture of the dancers as individuals and Paine as a witty dancemaker.
Elisa Clark in “Parson’s Etude” by New York choreographer David Parsons
“Parsons’ Etude”, by New York choreographer David parsons, employed a percussive score by local choreographer and composer Tony Powell. Guest artist Elisa Clark, a Juillard student originally from Washington, excelled at the driving force and angular athletic movement. Another local dancemaker and dancer, Gesel Mason, joined members of the company for the premiere of Kanter’s “Precipice”, a muddy trio exploring the aftermath of a life-shattering event. But the work – which revolves around two props; a framed photo and photo album – rarely came into focus. Onlty mason was able to suggest the loss that “precipice” sought to sketch.
Kanter’s “Grey Zone”, a duet for the elastic Clark and lanky Ted Freeman, offered high-relief snapshots of a relationship gone sour. Company member Sarah Lowing’s “Leashlessness” found humor in her dog’s life with agile jumps and finicky twitches that mirrored the simple but restless lives of dogs.
“In the Heat of the Night” (set to the Chris Isaak tune), in which Freeman was surrounded by for women competing for his attention, provided a solid finish.