What kind of dance did we see that evening? How were the companies different? similar? Did they try to tell a story? Did they try to shock you or, to the contrary, to enchant? Was any of the pieces intentionally controversial? Did any of the choreographers appeal, perhaps, more to your intellectual understanding than sensual pleasure?
Here, a few more photos.
Ohad Naharin, ‘Minus 16’ (1999), photo by Christopher Duggan
William Forsythe, ‘Neue Suite’ (2012), photo by Costin Radu
‘AP15’ (2010), photo by Coolbox
The photos from your show look really great!
I know that during the performances I saw, the Trisha Brown Dance Company particularly tried to push some of the boundaries of what the audience may consider to be dance, music, or even art. The movements weren’t exactly graceful, but they were purposeful, like the choreographer was trying to prove a point. The music, similarly, was dissonant. Nothing really felt like it fit together. Although I didn’t necessarily find that performance appealing, I appreciate the controversy of the piece and the limits that it seemed like they were trying to transcend.
Each company has a very unique style. The Semperoper Ballet Dresden performed ballet, but made each dance a different style of ballet; some were more classical, while others were more contemporary. Ramirez and Wang had a more contemporary style to it, while Lucinda Childs Dance Company was not as modern. Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater was very different from the other performances, as it included the dancers sitting in chairs for parts of the performance. The performances were similar, however, in the incredible amount of synchronization that each dance required. None of the performances exactly told a story, but “AP15” seemed to have a plot behind the performance that was not completely explained, but did contribute to the performance. I thought each performance tried to enchant us, except “Minus 16”, which tried more to shock us with a very unconventional routine. I do not think that any piece was particularly controversial, but “Minus 16” raised the issue of conformism, which could be controversial to some, but did not seem so to me. “Minus 16” appealed more to my intellectual understanding than my sensual pleasure, which is not surprising because this was the only performance that used any words. This performance was also not a traditional dance style, as much of it took place in chairs, so I understood this more on an intellectual level than through my senses.