A Diamond in the Rough

Neither my eyes nor ears could process the bizarre performance that was being given to them. I wanted to laugh and cry at the same time, and the feeling disturbed me almost as much as the happenings on stage.

When the dancers of Xover first entered the stage, I thought that for some reason, they were warming up and doing sound checks in view of the audience.  I sat patiently, waiting for the performance to start. As time went on, however, I began to fear that I was wrong, and this discombobulated jumble of dance and noise was the performance.  The dancers, in their uniform white unitards, floated around the stage with what appeared to be complete disregard for the noise that surrounded them. I don’t blame them. No one, no matter how talented of a dancer they may be, could find any sort of rhythm to move to within the “music” that was playing. For me, and many other people I am sure, dance is about the ability to control one’s body in cadence with sound.

Not only were the sounds completely disarrayed, they were quite uncomfortable to listen to. One sound, a strange throaty croak, was repeated over and over again. This sound has been used in many films as the sound a person makes when they are strangled to death. This horrifying repetition was patterned with strange lines that made no grammatical sense (“the moon is full of black”), said in a voice which I imagined belonging to a mentally unstable old woman. I realize that an extraordinary amount of work went into creating the performance, which makes me even more confused as to why it seemed so completely unprepared. If they were aiming for “organized chaos”, I believe they missed the organization and dive bombed straight into chaos. I have never been to a dance performance expecting complete chaos, nor will I ever again. I would like to say the show opened my eyes to a new form of dance, but I cannot be that generous.

This was Xover’s New York Premiere, and honestly, I think they need to go back to wherever they came from.

Thankfully, I was able to shake off any remaining discomfort when the next troupe, GALLIM DANCE, took to the stage. Perhaps they seemed better due to the performance before them, but I believe that I Can See Myself in Your Pupil is the most astounding dance I have ever seen. The originality and color of each individual was refreshing after the white unitards of Xover. The dancers were animated and moved in ways very reflective of the dancing that is popular with my generation. They combined these somewhat spastic movements with pirouettes and leaps that showed their true abilities as professional dancers. The music used was the type of music I often listen to when I wish to energize myself. It was certainly the type of music I enjoy dancing to.

What astounded me most was the chemistry between all of the dancers. There seemed to be an electric charge between all of them; especially in the fun, somewhat raunchy duet. The lighting created a visual feast for my eyes as I watched the dancers contort their bodies in ways that seemed illusionary. I never wanted the performance to end.

Sadly it did, and I found myself enjoying an Odissi dance entitled Vistaar. While the unison of the dancers was quite extraordinary, and the intricate movements of the girls’ feet and wrists quite entertaining to watch, I found my mind drifting back to I Can See Myself in Your Pupil, wishing they would come back onstage. In comparison to that, the somewhat repetitive Vistaar could hardly keep my attention.

I was looking forward to the final performance, as it came from the Ballet Company of my hometown. While the dancers were extremely skilled in their movements, that too could not hold my attention like I Can See Myself in Your Pupil had done. Aside from the fact that the music was from the 1980s, it played out like a regular ballet.

Overall, I enjoyed Fall for Dance, because of the absolutely delectable troupe GALLIM DANCE. I commend the others for their efforts, but no one came close to the utterly beautiful innovation of I Can See Myself in Your Pupil. It completely stole the show and left me with an aching desire for more.