Friday night was definitely an unforgettable experience as it was my first time to attend a dance festival in New York City, and more importantly, all dancers from the four performing companies did a fabulous job. Of the four shows, the second Tango and the third Acosta Danza El Cruce Sobre El Niágara are two of the most impressive ones to me.
One of the biggest differences that the Tango show distinguishes itself from other three shows is the presence of the musical band on the background. The main instruments running through the whole show are the accordions played by two elder musicians sitting in the front center. The continuous accordion melody mixed with piano and occasional sound from the trumpet, violin, cello and drums composed a powerful live symphony, which serves as a non-negligible highlight in addition to the dance. The two dancers were undoubtedly the main components of the tango. The whole show was divided into four sections. In my point of view, besides the third section, which was a sole performance from the band, each section represented a part of the story that took place between the two characters. Section one was their encounter, section two was the development of the two characters’ relationship and section four represented the deepened commitment of their relationship. I am especially impressed by how adept the two dancers cooperated with each other. I noticed during the show that the female dancer was wearing a three to four inches thin high heels. Nevertheless, despite with all the complex and fast-paced dance steps, she didn’t step on the male dancer’s feet. They not only skillfully mastered the sophisticated movements, but also created an atmosphere of romance in corresponding with the theme of their dance. It’s indeed a marvelous show that the audiences can hardly not be impressed.
(Picture of theAcosta Danza El Cruce Sobre El Niágara)
The other show I want to talk about is the Acosta Danza El Cruce Sobre El Niágara. The name of the dance translates as the crossing over Niagara in English. As the name implies, the dance is based on the story of a tightrope walker called Blondin, who carries a friend over the Niagara Falls on his back. As we saw at the show that physical balance and uniform movements of the two dancers are the elements especially emphasized in the dance. Compared to the other three dances, Acosta Danza El Cruce Sobre El Niágara is particularly quiet and slow in pace, the costume is also extremely simple as contrast to the others, which really helps the audiences to focus on the body movements and the masculinity of the dancers. To me, it is an imposing show that perfectly explains less is more, the simplicity of the setting enhanced the audiences’ experience by immersing them solely in the dance while not being distracted by anything else.
Watching the dance shows on Friday night were indeed an worthwhile and unforgettable experience, and I am already looking forward to next year’s show now!
I enjoyed reading your response for how in-depth your analysis was about the movements and themes of the dances. I agree that the performance of Acosta Danza’s show focused on the physical balance and uniform movements of the two dancers. Their movements and embrace evidently demonstrated gay pride, but I also felt like they mimicked Yin and Yang concept. Both the light and dark-skinned dancers acted like shadows with their precise movements and balanced each other out as inseparable forces who need each other for better or worse. The Tango show I particularly enjoyed because of the music and the glamour of the attire and movements of the male and female dancers. Your statement about the three sections of the relationship was insightful and well-developed. I felt the dance illustrated how they initially fall in love, then they experience some hardship, and in the end, they solidified their commitment to each other. I also was amazed by how the female dancer could dance flawlessly in heels. The entire performance of all four shows gave me a more significant appreciation for modern dance.