Jean Butler, left, during a Riverdance performance
Riverdance is a dance that probably almost everyone has heard of. It is the Irish foot dance that weaves Celtic mythology with Irish history in a series of complicated foot movements and step-dancing styles. It is face paced and requires years of technical training. It is a very distinct dance style. So when Jean Butler, the lead dancer of Riverdance throughout the nineties, decided to shift to a different genre of dance, many assumed that it would be impossible for her to out-do her Riverdance performance, one that she is so closely associated with. However, in a dance review written by Alastair Macaulay for the NY Times, he claims that it is possible she has surpassed her Riverdance days, and certainly those with years more practice in the world of contemporary dance.
Jean Butler performed “Day”, a 45 minute piece choreographed specifically for Butler by Tere O’Connor at Danspace Project. Alastair calls Butler “still elegant, reserved, cool; her feet, posture and brio are still exceptional. But she’s also testing out many new personas: bending that torso, lying down on the floor, puffing her cheeks out like a balloon, hurling her parted fingers like claws and suggesting a snarl, wittily deadpan in sudden shifts of mood.” This description is very different from the Riverdance style of dance. In Riverdance, one’s arms remain stiff and straight by one’s sides, while the feet do virtually all the work. However, in this particular dance piece, Butler experiments with different body movements, many of them coordinated by shifts in the mood.
Like the postmodern dances of Merce Cunningham and Yvonne Rainer, “Day” doesn’t have a continuous flow throughout, but rather switches from one theme to another in a series of non sequiturs. In this piece, Butler exemplifies how versatile she can truly be. I think that is what separates truly talented dancers, as well as all artists, from the rest – when they can attempt new styles of dance (or art) and still be great at what they do.
Butler, in "Day"
It is very interesting to see what happens to people after their 15 minutes of fame has expired. Jean Butler (and the entire Riverdance crew) was very talented. I remember watching them with amazement, but then being quickly tired of the entire genre. Glad these talented dancers are doing something new to challenge themselves and their audiences.