The Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM) is well known for its eccentric shows. One of BAM’s most recent productions, “Run Don’t Run,” leaves the viewer with a sense of wonder and confusion. This interesting take on the struggle of man against society, or perhaps against life itself, uses the devices of symbolism as conveyed by hundreds of taught ropes lining the viewer’s plane of vision. As the performance begins, the viewer is presented with an array of straight, tightly drawn ropes. The lighting is dim. As the background music begins to play, and the dancers make their initial appearances, the audience is presented with music that would make them reminiscent of a factory, not a dance performance. The music is gritty, mechanical, and unkind.
As the performance progress, the dancers begin to manipulate the ropes. As the dancers approach the ropes, they allow their weight to bend the ropes: their eyes lack focus and their mannerisms seem mechanical and methodical. They stare into the audience as if no one is there. The dancers begin lifting one another, with two doing the lifting and the other enduring the discomfort of being pushed from either side in order to remain aloft. They continue this pattern of walking, leaning into the ropes, and hoisting one another throughout the performance. This eventually evolves into more traditional (though still far removed from tradition) dance. The dancers begin to wind their limbs around one another, with one partner leading and the other completely submissive to the will of their lead. One might compare the follow dancer to a corpse or a mannequin. The follow dancer seems to possess no will at all, save perpetuating the control of their lead.
As the ropes are drawn and clamped back by the dancers, single performers being to dance in an interpretive manner; they begin by flailing their arms and legs as if to convey some sort of anger or malice. The performance culminates with each of the performers dragging themselves toward a bright light at the far end of the left side of the stage. They move toward the light like zombies or demons. The do not move naturally, rather is as if some inexplicable force is drawing them in. It is one that they cannot resist and the performers make their final exit shortly thereafter.
The performance arguably leaves the viewer with more questions than answers. Though it is evident that a lot of thought and choreography went into the performance, the intention of the artist remains ambiguous. Further, the entire show, from start to finish, seems sloppy and hard to follow. The music, while appropriate, is almost deafening to the ear. It leaves the audience unemotionally invested in the performance. The concept of the performance is undoubtedly unique, however Brian Brooks consistently fails to attach meaning to the myriad segments of the performance. Indeed, there is a need for more finite transitions and more stability. In other words, there is too much going on without any clear purpose. It is a pity that such a group of talented dancers coupled with such an original idea fails to impress because of Brook’s inability to articulate meaning. His lack of deference to his audience was a costly mistake to an otherwise impressive production.
