Simpson/Stulberg
Collaborations presents
Still Life Dances
April 1st,
2016
Sub-divided into two
sections (one large, one small), a wall structure sat mid-stage. Choreographers
Lauren Simpson and Jenny Stulberg entered the space and began a collection of
fluttering movements and succinct, staccato gestures. Initially they were in
unison and then subsequently broke off into unique and different phrases.
With these first images,
Still Life Dances was underway, an
evening-length program by Simpson/Stulberg Collaborations, featuring three
pieces from their Still Life series –
Still Life No. 1, hold (STILL) and the newest chapter, Still Life No. 4. All are inspired by
work from the de Young museum yet they do not seek to be literal interpretations
of the paintings. Instead, Still Life
Dances embodies their spirit, examining formal elements in composition and
drawing a number of parallels between the two fields.
As Still Life No. 1 continued, its structure toggled between moments
of togetherness and individuality along with some brief instances of repose. The
choreography evolved from the microscopic finger twitches, nods and flexing
feet to vast dives, rolls, extensions and then back again. As Simpson and
Stulberg embraced in a resting pose, an image of the two in the same attitude
was simultaneously projected on the larger of the two walls. They exited the
stage and the film hold (STILL)
started rolling. Set in an industrial-looking site against a spectacular
natural background, movement from Still
Life No. 1 played out in hold (STILL).
Certainly a brilliant connective fiber in the program, it was the considerations
of subjectiveness and viewership that awed with these first two works.
Contemplating this movement in the same space, yet in two distinct formats and with
a different lens of familiarity made for a deviceful opening to Still Life Dances.
Up next was the
evening’s premiere work and the final piece on the program - Still Life No. 4, a thought-provoking
quartet. One dancer slid on her back toward the wall. As she met the structure
she placed her palm against it, touched her head and swiveled her feet. Two
other dancers hovered at the top of each wall, slung over the edge, while a
fourth sat against the very back of the stage, with her palm similarly pressed
flat. The choreography was intriguing and the dancers performed beautifully.
But it was its treatment of perspective that stood out most in Still Life No. 4, particularly the shifting
and changing of perspective. Simpson and Stulberg’s movement actually altered
the stationary walls. Unexpected angles and foci emerged throughout the dance.
Unison footwork patterns performed against the wall made it seem like a floor. As
the dancers hung from the structure, dangling their legs like a pendulum, the
wall seemed freestanding. Sometimes the wall felt like a ceiling (in the
opening slide sequence, for example), sometimes, depending on how the dancers
sat at the seam between the wall and the stage, it felt like part of a box. Occasionally
the movement made it seem short, at other times, tall. With compositional depth
and complexity, Still Life No. 4
invited its audience to view an entity in a variety of contexts, contexts that
were created by choreography.
Yet there was even more
to uncover in Still Life No. 4. Still
life paintings are often of items that we know, things that are commonplace.
While certainly stylized and placed in a theatrical container, much of the
movement here was also recognizable and relatable. The hand actions; the sitting
positions; the pedestrianism. It was accessible vocabulary, like those in still
life paintings. At the same time, the choreography was very realistic and
functional. The recurring slide motif moved the dancers across the space. It
didn’t appear to be representing a feeling or conveying some part of a story;
it was getting them from one spot to another. And yet there was a freedom that
if some emotional response was evoked by a particular movement, it was welcome.
Still Life No. 4 impressed on many
fronts, though this amazing (and rare) combination of egalitarianism, realism
and openness may have been its crowning glory.
No comments:
Post a Comment