Reducer worked on me

Last night was the inaugural performance of The Woods Dance Project as part of Repertory Dance Theatre’s LINK Series. The show featured three works by Nichele Woods that gave us a sense of her choreographic taste, artistic voice, and aesthetic values, each in unique and clearly defined ways. 

The first work Clear… as a burnt-out match in a dark room was performed by UVU dance students and demonstrated masterful group dynamics, impressive technique, and satisfying changes in texture. The dancers watched each other with an impartial gaze for most of the piece, only really seeing each other towards the end as they returned to their staged places with warm, human qualities and facial expressions. For me, everything in this piece ended right before it was complete and left me wishing for more development of the community relationships.

Photo by Becca Webb.

The second work, Volcano, with music by Michael Wall, was my personal favorite. I got lost in the feeling of unrequited longing and savored the moments that pull was reciprocated even if it wasn’t constant. Natalie Border showed incredibly subtle but poignant emotion in her physicality and her partnering with Jon Kim was a beautiful mix of accent and intimacy. Their close attention to the music slowed down time and turned the work into a trio, with the piano as another partner in the dance. As Jon followed Natalie off stage, I found myself wanting to join them and see the other half of the piece that was surely about the unfold in the wings.

The final work, For Scylla began in the familiar fluid shifts of energy and long lines and arcs that we saw in the previous two pieces but was interrupted by quick percussive strength. As the piece evolved, a sensuous, cautious, brave, animal energy emerged from the group. I enjoyed how the dancers changed characters but still offered the same images of hero and creature, challenge and loss, individual and whole.

Nichele did a great job of introducing herself to the community with this show. Her work has been in Salt Lake for a while, but it was really nice to experience a whole evening in her voice. I learned that she likes to structure her work in vignettes and reprises, she tends toward softness in partnering, and involves the gaze in every movement. While I started to recognize her choreographic patterns by the last piece, they were all used very effectively and contributed to a sense of what Bebe Miller calls “storyness” – where none of the movement expressed specific characterization, but I could sense an underlying narrative in the impressions and interplay of the group. William Peterson’s lighting design added to the sense of theatre, creating a set out of the architecture of the light.

Photo by Becca Webb.

Following the show, my friend and I talked about everything we liked and didn’t like and eventually found ourselves in a conversation about how movement reveals the most core aspects of our humanness, how it strips away all of the frills of our societal characters and reduces us to just what we are: a human in a body. Nichele’s program note states “We are reducing to see more clearly. Lessening… to expand” and ultimately, that process worked on me last night. I would highly recommend catching this show tonight or Saturday (no show on Friday) because it might just do the same for you.

Kara Komarnitsky grew up in Salt Lake City and recently graduated with a BFA in Dance from Ohio State University with minors in Environmental Science and Business. Her work approaches the complexity of human interconnection with the planet, pulling inspiration from the natural world and environmental research. While her primary medium is dance, Kara regularly uses projections, film, sound, and interactive technology to create immersive performance experiences. Her piece Tales of the Deep (2018) recently won third place in the Midwest Climate Summit’s Climate Stories Competition and her thesis, Interconnect (2022), received an Honorable Mention at the OSU Denman Research Forum 2022. Other places her work has been presented includes the OSU Student Concert, OSU BFA Showcase, and the Ohio Dance Festival Professional Concert.

Queer Spectra rides again

The first night of the Queer Spectra Arts Festival began on a high note with DoubleTake by Meagan Bertelsen and Haileigh Larmer. This piece explored tactile movement, with dancers engaging in floor work and touching their bodies. The music by Scott Lippitt and thandii added an upbeat, celebratory, and light-hearted atmosphere to the performance, making it feel like a joyous celebration.

The highlight of the evening was The Marthaodyssey, an embodied dialogue between Martha Graham and Madonna. Far from a parody, this piece cleverly integrated Graham's iconic cupped hands with a Madonna song, creating a performance that was both humorous and thought-provoking. The solo dancer, dressed in a cape and tightie-whities, lip-synced to recordings of Graham discussing dance technique and what makes a good dancer. This creative blend of humor and homage provided a delightful end to the show. 

The Marthaodyssey, photo by Essie Shaw (@essiedolly).

Among the performances, Cael Crosby's poetry readings stood out for their emotional depth and resonance. Another memorable work was the short film Dusk by Khol Avalos Bybee, which impressed with its well-crafted dialogue, striking visuals, and effective use of blue tones, adding a layer of visual poetry to the narrative.

Saturday's performances were equally compelling, starting with One Day I Will Be on Time by Charlotte Stemeyer. The dancers wore eye-catching, sexy Victorian-era costumes adorned with lace, pearls, and corsets. Some sections of the dance were performed without music, with the dancers creating rhythms through clapping and footwork in a group locomotive shape. This innovative approach was visually and auditorily captivating, making the performance stand out.

Creator Destroyer by Chloe Barry was a mesmerizing screendance in which the performers embodied the power and beauty of volcanoes and lava. As a volcanologist, Chloe's deep appreciation for the subject was evident in her performance. The screendance featured video of spewing lava paired with Chloe dancing with a bundle of red string lights, symbolizing lava. The film's editing, which overlaid erupting volcanoes with Chloe's dance, created a stunning visual effect, making it appear as if she was dancing on the volcano itself. Chloe's use of red string lights wrapped around her body added to the mesmerizing imagery, making it look as if she was in direct contact with the flowing lava.

Another standout was Undefinable / Fabrication Together / We Experience by Milo Ono, Edison Corvera, Jordan Reynosa, and Hunter Hazard. This short but impactful dance featured well-executed lifts and choreography. Hunter's music composition complemented the dance beautifully, enhancing the overall performance. A particularly intriguing element was watching the dancers put on clothes from a pile on the ground, adding a layer of spontaneity and creativity to the piece.

Rae Luebbert's screendance Greenware: My Queer Clay Body was another highlight. The film began with text explaining that greenware is clay that has been shaped but not yet fired, setting the stage for the visual and thematic exploration that followed. I felt like I could hear Rae’s voice in the written text, it was very concise and effective. The film featured scattered images and videos of the clay-shaping process, displayed in small squares, which allowed viewers to follow different stages of the process simultaneously. The middle section of the screen was filled with video clips resembling the curved and rounded shapes of the clay, creating a visually cohesive effect. The ending, which combined the sounds of the pottery wheel, the slapping clay, and Rae’s hands shaping the clay, formed a satisfying auditory experience that left a wonderful sensory impression.

The festival concluded with the whimsical and joyful I Feel All Right by Severin Sargent-Catterton and Sophia Heiner. This dance explored the multifaceted nature of love and collective joy without the need for explicit explanation. The joy on the dancers' faces and the playfulness in the choreography were palpable. Set to ABBA’s "Super Trouper," the music choice was perfect, adding to the happy and upbeat atmosphere of the performance. The symmetry of the dance and the dancers’ beautiful technique provided a visually pleasing and emotionally uplifting finale to the festival.

Overall, the Queer Spectra Arts Festival showcased a rich tapestry of performances and artworks that celebrated queer identity through innovative and diverse artistic expressions. Each piece, whether it was dance, film, or poetry, contributed to a vibrant and thought-provoking exploration of what it means to be queer in today's world. The festival not only entertained but also challenged and inspired, making it a memorable and significant cultural event.

Shelby Strickler's dance journey began in Baltimore, Maryland. Having graduated with a BFA in Modern Dance from the University of Utah in December 2023, she is a performer and teacher in Salt Lake City, passionately sharing her love for dance.

Tiny House Dance Collective’s new evening

Salt Lake City’s Tiny House Dance Collective impressed audiences this weekend with the premiere of three new works in How To Want To Go. Kenzie Gannaway, serving as assistant director, choreographed Insomni-Ack, a piece that held viewers attention with its hypnotic canon formation and dynamic sequences of partnering, culminating in a satisfying movement crescendo against a dimly-lit backdrop.

Courtesy of Tiny House Dance Collective

In The Endless Cycle of the Bitter Flu, by Hayley Stoddard, the audience was drawn into a poignant narrative exploring societal pressures and the struggle for individual identity. Through the symbolic placement of jackets and evocative movement, Stoddard conveyed the weight of expectations, as one dancer bravely resisted conformity amidst a sea of coercion, ultimately succumbing under the weight of societal norms. 

Artistic director Christi Harris brought the evening to close with Soup, an exploration of timing with refreshing thematic cohesion. The deliberate synchronization of gestures and rhythmic interplay showcased the collective's technical abilities, while ingredients simmering in a pot were brought to life through the ensemble's vibrant costuming and dynamic formations. Overall, Tiny House Dance Collective delivered an evening of thought-provoking choreography and compelling performances.

Shelby Srickler's dance journey began in Baltimore, Maryland. Having graduated with a BFA in Modern Dance from the University of Utah in December 2023, she is a performer and teacher in Salt Lake City, passionately sharing her love for dance.

Ririe Woodbury presents two world premieres and a 2020 restaging

Ririe Woodbury concluded its sixtieth anniversary season this weekend with a unique collaboration. The concert included two new works, one by former director Charlotte Boye-Christensen and another  by current artistic director Daniel Charon. Charon’s work was brought to life by a live performance from the Salt Lake Electric Ensemble. The company also restaged a 2020 commission by Stephanie Batten-Bland, showcasing political and theatrical works as expressions of the company’s postmodern aesthetic. 

An audience of college students and seasoned dance lovers almost filled the house on Friday night. The black box provides a great view of the dancers but lacks some of the finesse of the main stage at the Rose Wagner. This could, of course, be an intentional choice to pull the curtain back and expose some of the behind-the-scenes activities. 

As a whole, the concert did not ascend terribly high but moved at the pace of a burbling stream with a few punctuated highlights. The dancers are highly skilled and mesmerizing to witness, but as most will agree, an interesting dance concert provides more than impressive technique. I’ll highlight a few of the most memorable moments of the evening… 

Moving Tables in Look Who’s Coming to Dinner

Batten-Bland’s dance addressed the 1960s film Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner. The piece comments briefly on COVID-19, belonging, race, and a proverbial “seat at the table.” I wonder if some of the work's potency was lost in the restaging. It felt like it moved at a nearly glacial pace. 

There is a lovely surprise about halfway through the work. The dancers dismantle the tables and turn them sideways. This allows them to hide behind the tables and move individually through the space, taking on a ghostly appearance of changing iconography. Alexander Pham has a riveting solo on what could be a closed door, which later becomes a mirror. Pham defies gravity by hanging, perching, and launching their body into, and off of the table-turned-door, almost as if it were a partner. 

The company in Look Who’s Coming to Dinner, courtesy of Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company

Later in the work, the tables are assembled to resemble a low wall across the stage from side to side. Peter Farrow engages in a highly virtuosic solo in and around the front of the wall, leaping over it, dive-rolling to the floor, and flinging his limbs with reckless abandon. This section feels post-apocalyptic, with bunker blue lights focused on center stage. 

While I felt this work could have benefited greatly from an editor and dramaturg, I appreciate its statement on the necessity of belonging and the difficulty of fitting oneself into the world. Tension and nuance might have improved the messaging of this theme, but I appreciate and applaud the company’s investment in making socially conscious work. 

Salt Lake Electric Ensemble 

Dance doesn’t pair with live music often, usually due to budgetary constraints. Ririe-Woodbury and Salt Lake Electric Ensemble made it happen for the final work of the evening by Daniel Charon. Charon has collaborated with the Electric Ensemble a few times and did not disappoint with his new Storyograph. Abstract choreography was amplified by customized leisurewear by Melissa Younker – black, white, and gray with pops of neon yellow. 

In the middle section, dance and music integrate, swelling in additive unison phrases and quieting with smaller, more intimate duets. Near the end of the work, the dancers leave the stage completely, allowing the audience to take in the musicians while they continue to play live. This moment was a delightful surprise, and when the dancers re-entered, repeating choreography from the beginning of the dance, they pushed the syncopation and demonstrated a quick dynamism through to the end of the dance. 

As with much concert dance these days, the works feel too long. Beautiful, flowing, overlapping solos and trios are not enough for the modern audience. We want to see the physical logic and poignant ideas made real in the moving body. Editing can amplify the heart of the work, creating tension and depth. 

Of course, artists always balance making work that is true to themselves and making work that audiences want to see. This time, Ririe-Woodbury’s show was a bit self-indulgent, and didn’t measure up to the choreographic development I’ve seen in the past. However, the company is stacked with six powerhouse dancers, an experienced artistic director, an energized executive director, and an exciting summer collaboration coming up in July. I look forward to seeing what new collaborations and developments are to come in the sixty-first season.

Hannah Fischer is a professional writer and dance educator in Salt Lake City, UT. She holds an MFA from the University of Utah and a Laban Movement Analysis Certificate from Integrated Movement Studies. Hannah has written for loveDANCEmore since 2018, and in addition to dance, loves backpacking and boxing.

Bijayini Satpathy returns to Salt Lake City

A last-minute decision took me to the Rose to see Bijayini Satpathy for the first time in my life and hopefully not the last. I was excited to meet with my friend and colleague Claudia Norman, Satpathy’s manager and a multilingual, award-winning producer, consultant, and artist based in New York City.

After catching up with Claudia, I stepped into the Leona Wagner Black Box. My seat was three rows from Mayor Erin Mendenhall and her family. As a freelance artist, I appreciate seeing a political leader attending this event, although it would be even more valuable to see her actively involved in a local artist’s work. (My family and I are local artists who are very active in the arts scene in Utah and this is the first time in my more-than-three years here that I have seen the mayor at an arts event.)

Abhipsaa: A Seeking started and I sat there choosing to empty myself of any preconceived idea, stereotype or expectation, hoping to generously receive what was being offered. I am a Mexican contemporary dancer and creator, and I did not feel like I should be writing a review on a dance style I do not know intimately, but perhaps I could offer an appreciation of the universal language of movement even without a deep knowledge of the cultural context. And, I was not wrong, there was so much to enjoy.

Photo by Prem Shashi.

It is impossible not to see the mastery in Satpathy’s body as she navigates the Odissi Indian classical dance style. Years of experience were emerging in front of our eyes and pouring out of every step. A solo in four parts, this was a poetic journey taking the audience through metaphoric atmospheres, longing, joy, and freedom, depicted with a precision only Satpathy could muster. The performance was followed by a Q&A where it became evident that this work had inspired everyone in the room, perhaps particularly the young dancers present. Surprisingly, this has been one of very few events I’ve attended in this community where white people have been in the minority. It blew my mind seeing all these young girls excited to take a photo with the artist, inspired by a role model who will last in their minds for the rest of their lives, and, moreover, one in whom they could see themselves represented. This does not happen often and it cheered my spirit.

On the other hand, while observing and waiting for Claudia to speak before leaving the city the next morning, I was saddened by the fact that so many people I know in Salt Lake City had missed this performance. Bijayini Satpathy is a world-renowned artist who spent twenty-five years as a principal dancer, teacher, researcher, and administrator in the acclaimed company Nrityagram, and then decided to undertake a journey as a choreographer and solo dancer in 2019. Since then, she has been commissioned by Duke Performances and Baryshnikov Arts, has been an artist-in-residence at the Met, a Rockefeller Foundation Bellagio scholar, and a fellow at the Center for Ballet and the Arts at NYU. She was recognized with a Dance Magazine Award in 2023 and Bessie in 2020. In 2019, Dance Magazine acknowledged her as “Best Solo Dancer.” Why did Salt Lake City miss seeing  such a world-class performer? Where were the dance students? Where were the faculty of the dance departments in the area? Where was the dance community in general? I know end-of-year events might have been underway, but surely this is the sort of thing that faculty and students ought to make time for. Why miss the extraordinary opportunity to see such an exceptional artist in our city? 

Photo by Prem Shashi.

Sometimes I wonder why those of us in academia aren’t collectively in the habit of being up-to-date on things happening off-campus. Were there really no dance departments in the area interested in a master class with this esteemed artist? Or a talk, or another performance? Where were the bigger presenting organizations? The evening was produced independently by Srilatha Singh, who founded Chitrakaavya, a local company exploring Singh’s abiding passion for the classical Indian dance. To my knowledge, this was Satpathy’s only performance while here in town. 

Still, at the end of the day, perhaps those of us who were there — members of the Indian community, a few white people, and this Mexican — were the best audience this show could have had. We are so lucky to have had Bijayini Satpathy come directly from India to perform in our city. 

(The evening also notably included compositions by Srinibas Satpathy and Bindhumalini Narayanaswamy, and lighting design by Sujay Saple and Itohan Edoloyi.)

Stephanie Garcia is a multi-awarded Mexican artist, arts advocate, and arts administrator living between Salt Lake and Mexico City. More info at stephaniegarcia.art.