Category: Dance
Review: Spring Desire (Joffrey Ballet Chicago)
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Spring Desire Choreographed by Edwaard Liang, |
Review: Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater
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Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater From Artistic Director Robert Battle |
Review: Come Alive (Hubbard Street Dance Chicago)
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Come Alive Choreographed by Alejandro Cerrudo, |
Review: Winter Fire (Joffrey Ballet Chicago)
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Winter Fire Choreographed by William Forsythe, |
Review: danc(e)volve: New Works Festival (Hubbard Street Dance)
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danc(e)volve: New Works Directed by Taryn Kaschock Russell |
Review: Come Fly Away (Broadway in Chicago)
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Come Fly Away Conceived and Directed by Twyla Tharp |
Review: The Nutcracker (Joffrey Ballet)
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The Nutcracker Music by Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky |
Review: Don Quixote (Joffrey Ballet Chicago)
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Don Quixote Choreographed by Yuri Possokhov Check for half-price tickets |
Review: Faust (TheMASSIVE at Stage 773)
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Faust Choreographed and Directed by Check for half-price tickets |
Review: War and Peace: A Dance Theater Short (Viaduct)
A scintillating evening of dance and theater
| Jim Manganello presents |
| War and Peace: A Dance Theater Short |
| Adapted and Directed by Jim Manganello Choreography by Amanda Timm and Sarah Fornace at Viaduct Theatre, 3111 N. Western Ave. (map) through May 22 | tickets: $15 | more info |
Reviewed by K.D. Hopkins
War and Peace: A Dance Theater Short is a collaboration of theater and dance companies. They are some of the best that Chicago and London across the pond offers. The result is a funny, relevant, and brilliant evening of theater. The artists and the support team hail from Redmoon, The London International School of the Performing Arts, Starkid, and Collaboraction.
Tolstoy’s novel of the aristocracy, patriotism, and Napoleonic aggression rings frighteningly true of today’s society and the conflicts the world over.
This adaptation strips the novel down to a stark set with meager props. The set is colored in by the actors and dancers in a frenzy of stage combat, graceful dance, satirical renderings of the aristocracy, and stark reminders of the cost of war.
The players in this piece are exceptional together and individually. The timing for satire is more crucial that what is needed for traditional comedy. The segment of Napoleon being bathed, fed, and dressed while in the midst of a tirade is visual poetry. Napoleon, played by Marc Frost, is rolled in on a table stuffed with his limbs out in a zinc washtub. His head is adorned with a gilded laurel crown. From there is a brilliant pantomime of scrub, rinse and powdering the mini tyrant. Frost’s nudity is covered by a perfectly timed placement of towels and bath accoutrement.
Lauren Lopez does a funny turn as an aristocratic lady mocking the advances of a suitor. The baseness and ludicrous mores of the upper crust in Napoleon’s reign is brought to glaring light. She seduces a guest with the prospect of canapés and biscuits. Ms. Lopez is one of the founding members of Starkid Theater Company and true to her bio, she prances about the stage in a sylph-like manner that is seductive and endearing.
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Blake Russell plays a patriotic young man off to war. This segment is a poignant sketch of how a family is affected by war. The youth are drawn in by an atavistic need for battle-the territorial imperative. The result is the same no matter the era when war takes its toll. Russell imparts the disillusionment and sadness of a generation whether it be 1812 or modern times.
Dustin Valenta of Redmoon among others has an impish appeal as the prologue narrator and others in the production. There is a mischievous twinkle in eye that bodes gleeful mayhem to come.
Rounding out this cast is Luke Couzens as the Russian Captain and others. He stands out in the opening combat segment after he is stabbed by Dustin Valenta‘s character. The action represents 1812 but his screaming, "You fucking stabbed me! No I’m not alright!" brings the action to present day. He is touching and funny with a young man lost appeal.
War and Peace: A Dance Theater Short is minimalist with the props, but when they are used it is for maximum impact. A hidden fan produces a funny moment and the gauze/linen draping is a wonderful representation for the frozen tundra of Russia. Look out for the table in all of its incarnations and you may reconsider your relationship with pasta after one segment.
In all, I hope that there will be more collaboration of these talented actors, dancers, puppeteers, and acrobats. They work well together and their respect for the individual craft as well as the collective has produced something wonderful. This is a short run so get out this weekend to see War and Peace: A Dance Theater Short. The Viaduct is a great space. It is fun and artistic without airs of pretentiousness. It is literally located under a viaduct at 3111 N. Western Ave. There is a laid back lobby bar where you can chill before the performance. Go see it!
| Rating: ★★★½ |
Review: Alvin Ailey Dance – Revelations (Auditorium Theatre)
Annual visit visually majestic, exquisitely visionary
| Auditorium Theatre and Blackwell Global Consulting present |
| Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater |
| at Auditorium Theatre, 50 E. Congress (map) thru May 22 | tickets: $30-$87 | more info |
Reviewed by Katy Walsh
This show is a celebration! Having first performed in Chicago in 1969, the Alvin Ailey dance company is commemorating its 140th performance on the Auditorium Theatre stage. In addition, the annual visit by the New York based troupe marks the final season of Artistic Director Judith Jamison’s leadership. The Auditorium Theatre of Roosevelt University and Blackwell Global Consulting present Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. The limited engagement will produce six Chicago premieres during the six performance and two student matinee run. Although each show will have a different program schedule, Revelations will be the consistent finale. Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater uses a spectacular combination of elegant and primitive body movement to narrate vivid folk tales.
Anointed (2010, video), choreographed by Christopher L. Huggins, illustrates the leadership change at Alvin Ailey. It’s a beautiful memoriam to founder Alvin Ailey, a stunning tribute to Judith Jamison and an exciting preface to Robert Battle. Set to music by Moby and Sean Clements, the dancing starts as an intimate coupling. Linda Celeste Sims and Jamar Roberts intertwine in fluid connectivity. Dressed in simplistic black, they are mesmerizing in a poetic union. Sims exits and Roberts has a masterful and athletic solo before his departure. It’s an inspirational heartbreaker. Sims arrives back in fuchsia and the dance continues. The music shifts to salsa-funk and the ensemble showcases innovative feats of energetic expression. Roberts returns in white as divine intervention within the chorus. The piece powerfully ends with Sims and Roberts in a reconnecting duet. As the ensemble exits the stage, the last 
dancer turns around. He joins Sims and Roberts to make the ultimate trifecta. It’s a poignant demonstration to the timeless vision. WOW!
After an intermission, The Evolution of a Secured Feminine (2007, video), choreographed by Camille A. Brown, features Rachael McLaren. The sassy McLaren exercises her inner masculine side. She confidently struts and gyrates in player style. It’s an intriguing manly exhibition that is partially performed without any sound. The illusion is enhanced with a stylish peak-a-boo suit and fedora by costume designer Carolyn Meckha Cherry. Next, The Hunt (2001, video), choreographed by the Incoming Artistic Director Robert Battle, is male bonding to music. Six male dancers are clad in long skirts. Their exposed torsos are eye-gawking sculpted art. The number is tribal and primitive with pounding drums and ritualistic gestures. The primal movements generate definite heated sensuality. Ooh-la-la!
The finale is introduced with a short film. “Revelations at 50,” produced and directed by Judy Kinberg, is a wonderful introspective of the Alvin Ailey’s 50+ year history. The founder dances and speaks with passionate conviction. It’s a perfect preface for the three phased finale: Revelations (1960, video) choreographed by Alvin Ailey. The sequence initiates with dancers dressed in natural tones for the Pilgrimage of Sorrow. The movement has an earthy groundedness that contrasts beautifully to the next section’s fluid whimsy. Take Me to the Water uses white costumes and blue silks to emphasize the spiritual cleansing. The dancing becomes joyful and uninhibited. The concluding segment, Move, Members, Move, brings the company together for a sensational culmination. The visual is a majestic pageantry of African American history rooted in its own unique, community spirit. A timeless classic devised by the founder, Revelations is an Alvin Ailey force
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater is always an annual riveting spectacle. This year’s show feels particular momentous as the resigning Artistic Director Judith Jamison says farewell to Chicago. It’s a goodbye party that shouldn’t be missed.
| Rating: ★★★★ |
Alvin Ailey’s Revelations continues through May 22nd, with performances May 19-20 at 7:30pm, May 21st at 2pm and 8pm, and May 22nd at 3pm. Running times vary – see below the fold for exact timeframes. Tickets are $30-$87, and can be purchased by phone (800-982-2787) or online here. For more information, go to the Alvin Ailey tour webpage. Complete repertoires for each performance are also listed below the fold and on Alvin Ailey website. See all Alvin Ailey dance videos here.
