Opening with Interstice by Indigo Cook, Noori, a showcase at TWIG Media Lab, set the tone for what they called “a gathering for light and screendance”. Throughout the opening piece, it was already apparent that we would be getting up close and personal with each dancer on the screen in front of us. The use of shadows in the opening scene created an ominous feeling as we got closer and closer to the dancer. Filling the screen with twenty or so squares sequentially, Interstice had camera and editing work that I had never seen before. It slowly transitioned from ominous to colorful and captured the attention of all watchers in the building. Each body part was highlighted per square and felt was the weight of how powerful our own bodies are. Overall, Indigo and her team captured the essence of light and it was a beautiful opening to such a wonderful show. Applause and cheers came from all parts of the audience and would continue on through the night.
Free Pool continued on to show how screendance can create an intimate and close environment with each performer. 11 Walls in 7 Days was the combination of seven individual solos that came together to sum up a week in the life of each dancer. Transitioning color from light into the form of costumes and props, Free Pool stepped out to allow the audience to see how versatile screendance can be. “Friday” was especially intriguing, with the use of an eighties style TV center screen and the male performer laid over as though he was in the movie we were watching. With small clips of pop culture movies such as The Breakfast Club in between sections of movement, there was a sense of comfort and relatabiity. Audience members have once been this teenager dancing to classic eightes rock in their bedroom. It was a great moment of fun and creativity woven within other movements that embraced the sound of silence.
Just like Indigo Cook, Free Pool showed their ability to use colorful lights and shadows in a successful way. Pop Culture plays a large part in society and it was such a pleasure seeing it in combination with dance. Sadly, once “Saturday” and “Sunday” came around, I was starting to lose interest in the concept as a whole. For the length of this piece, I feel as though Free Pool would have been just as successful having their own premiere to show just how much work was put into this almost-thirty minute piece.
A still from the pool scene in Deliquesce
After Primary Colors by Arin Lynn, was my favorite piece of the night — And Artists had me hooked the entire time I spent watching Deliquesce. Seeing multiple familiar faces from the local dance community, it felt as though I was walking into a film that consisted of happy summer memories. Each dancer’s level of commitment astounded me as I watched them perform. We slowly zoomed in to see firecracker popsicles dripping down the arms and legs of the performers, without any fidgets or moves out of character. This was represented equally as well with each “swimmer” dancing in the empty pool. With summer feeling as though it was taken away from us during The Pandemic, And Artists, in collaboration with film production company Blank Space, found a way to still have fun without a pool full of water. Dressed in neon yellow swimsuits, swim caps and goggles, the dancers rolled and traveled across this rough stage without a twitch. For me, Deliquesce had the perfect combination of pedestrian movement and movement we would see in any staged dance performance. Tying it all together in the end, we saw each dancer one last time. They beautifully performed solos which led to the end and a roar of applause. Noori was a beautiful and quaint gathering for locals and art admirers to share a night of beautiful screendance and the organizers did a fabulous job. They succeeded in choosing “a gathering of light and screendance” as an overall representation of the show and it was a joy to watch.
Alexis Guerrero is a Salt Lake City born and raised dancer and choreographer. Creating and performing for the majority of her life, she is continuing her training at University of Utah where she will graduate with a BFA in Modern Dance in 2022. As both a dancer and a mental health advocate, she integrates healthy practices into both her day to day life and movement practice. Finding inspiration from being outside and the people closest to her, her choreography is inspired by what is important to her, with day-to-day changes welcomed. A goal of hers is to create a sense of home and safe space for all.