{"id":43958,"date":"2019-04-17T10:53:43","date_gmt":"2019-04-17T16:53:43","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/?p=43958"},"modified":"2019-04-22T10:59:18","modified_gmt":"2019-04-22T16:59:18","slug":"rdts-voices-is-a-banquet-for-the-senses","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/rdts-voices-is-a-banquet-for-the-senses\/","title":{"rendered":"RDT’s Voices is a Banquet for the Senses"},"content":{"rendered":"
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RDT in \u201cPassacaglia and Fugue in C Minor\u201d by Doris Humphrey. Photo by Sharon Kain.<\/p><\/div>\n

Watching Repertory Dance Theatre\u2019s Voices<\/em>, a show that reiterated the company\u2019s theme this season of \u201cManifest Diversity,\u201d was a distinct pleasure. Nearly every piece was preceded by a video featuring the choreographer, or re-stager of the original choreography, providing a glimpse into their intent and process, which I found to be particularly effective and illuminating for a non-modern trained dancer such as myself. This was something I especially appreciated throughout the evening: the thoughtful, unobtrusive way in which these videos blended and drew connections through the program, which then became as much a part of the program as the dances themselves. They were like delightful appetizers followed by a sumptuous main course. The program itself was a varied menu with distinctly different flavors, some emotionally gratifying, others intellectually appealing, and all of them aesthetically pleasing.<\/p>\n

The first piece, \u201cPassacaglia and Fugue in C Minor,\u201d was originally choreographed by Doris Humphrey in 1938 and was \u201cinspired by the need for love, tolerance, and nobility in a world given more and more to the denial,\u201d according to the program notes. In the introductory video, featuring Nina Watt and Jennifer Scanlon, who re-staged the piece, the audience was reminded that \u201cPassacaglia\u201d was originally conceived while Fascism was on the rise in Europe. The significance of that historical context in today\u2019s world was not lost.<\/p>\n

\u201cPassacaglia\u201d is a lyrical piece, glorious and effulgent in the dazzling confluence of Bach\u2019s music and Humphrey\u2019s choreography, and transported me to a different realm. Lauren Curley and Dan Higgins led movements that found their refrain in the ensemble silhouetted in a pyramidal configuration on boxes, some seated, others standing. There was a sense of conductor and choir, song and chorus, and the struggle of dynamic leadership, as each dancer seemed to be every other dancer, an individual yet uncompromisingly part of a whole. The blue-lit background and white costumes accentuated the arabesques and turns and further underscored the uplifting nature of the piece.<\/p>\n

Second on the program was the world premiere of \u201cEvent,\u201d choreographed by Bebe Miller, an incisive and interrogatory piece with a distinctly different tone. It was a joy to watch and a joy to listen to. Miller, in the introductory video, first told us that she is not a \u201cstoryteller\u201d and that she began the piece by observing who the dancers were together and allowing \u201cthe serendipity of interaction\u201d to come to the fore. I found it intriguing to listen to her choreographic process. Her piece centered on the idea of an event occurring in a room of six people, which then gradually evolved\/devolved from event into narrative, focusing more on each observer\u2019s interpretation, feelings, and sentiments, the recall of it, and the correspondent emotions.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvent\u201d featured a brilliant score by Mike Vargas that highlighted a penetrating text by Ain Gordon, crisply delivered in this context by Miller. The movement was dynamic and accurately reflected Miller\u2019s intent. Real drama was conveyed by the eight extremely strong dancers in the telling, retelling, and diverse experiences of the \u201cevent,\u201d until the \u201cevent\u201d became the remembered experience and no one really cared or could recall what the original \u201cevent\u201d was. What I really loved about the piece was that I totally got it. I often struggle to understand the intent behind some modern pieces, but not here. The dancers were that effective in their spatial configurations, their energetic movements, and their convincing facial expressions (Abhinaya<\/em>, as we call it in Bharatanatyam). I sincerely hope that RDT continues to collaborate with Miller.<\/p>\n

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RDT in \u201cI give myself\u201d by Bryn Cohn. Photo by Sharon Kain.<\/p><\/div>\n

The next piece, \u201cI give myself,\u201d choreographed by Bryn Cohn, was also a world premiere. As highlighted in her video, Cohn\u2019s choreographic process starts with aesthetic empathy and articulation. She observed, and thus is able to spotlight for the audience, the energetic traits and mutual connections between the eight company dancers. The score, composed by Michael Wall, felt unbroken but was actually three distinct sections \u201cI give myself\u201d began with dark undertones; there was a relentless feeling of dread in the sometimes-convulsive movements and the music reinforced this sentiment. It did gradually evolve to become a more optimistic endeavor, with the sense that the dancers withheld nothing and \u201cgave themselves,\u201d surrendering their vulnerabilities to interactive movements and embodying a confidence and mutual trust. The stark lighting, by Pilar Davis, and dark costumes were effective as well, further emphasizing the sheer strength and technical prowess of each dancer.<\/p>\n

The next piece, \u201cVoices,\u201d was a lovingly crafted tribute to Salt Lake City\u2019s community of dancers, teachers, and mentors, choreographed by Nicholas Cendese with input from the performers, who were dance educators from across the Wasatch Front. The piece had a gentle, lilting feel to it, and the plethora of \u201cvoices\u201d that informed it shone through without being discordant. It was moving to see and appreciate the generous contributions of local dance educators; our community, I have come to recognize, has one of the richest, most supportive dance cultures in the country.<\/p>\n

Israeli choreographer Danielle Agami\u2019s \u201cTheatre\u201d was the last piece on the program and was \u201cdedicated to non-actors,\u201d according to the program notes. Incredibly athletic in scope, the piece had the dancers fittingly attired in costumes with numbers on the back, as though they were members of a sports team. There were moments where the dancers would build up enormous momentum, bump into an invisible barrier, stop, and then recede with such control and finesse; at other moments, they seemed to engage in common exercises that one might see a team do before a match, except magnified and transformed with an inexplicable panache.<\/p>\n

The extremes to which Agami pushed the dancers of RDT, getting them to explore their limits or perhaps realize that they have none, was a powerful display of mutual enjoyment and a feat of singular stamina. Agami informed us in her video that she is interested in seeing how dancers convince her that they are engaged in her fantasy, and then uses that as a medium in creating her work. One could see RDT\u2019s exceptional and diverse dancers rise to this challenge, and with support and encouragement, exult in exceeding any confines to create a fitting finale to the evening.<\/p>\n

RDT is currently composed of Jaclyn Brown, Lauren Curley, Daniel Do, Efren Corado Garcia, Dan Higgins, Elle Johansen, Tyler Orcutt, and Ursula Perry, an excellent ensemble who had us at the edge of our seats. I learned, speaking to a friend, that this was Efren Corado Garcia\u2019s final season with the company. His note in the program thanking local employers for their flexibility in accommodating dancers\u2019 schedules caught my eye and brought a lump to my throat: “All of you dealt with my tired body, long working days \u2026 your patience, commitment to me \u2026 helped me live a dream.”<\/p>\n

\u201cVoices\u201d was a banquet to be relished, and I left the theater satiated and eager for another program by Repertory Dance Theatre.<\/p>\n

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Tyler Orcutt in Danielle Agami\u2019s \u201cTheatre.\u201d Photo by Sharon Kain.<\/p><\/div>\n

This article is published in collaboration with loveDANCEmore.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Watching Repertory Dance Theatre\u2019s Voices, a show that reiterated the company\u2019s theme this season of \u201cManifest Diversity,\u201d was a distinct pleasure. Nearly every piece was preceded by a video featuring the choreographer, or re-stager of the original choreography, providing a glimpse into their intent and process, which I […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1619,"featured_media":43959,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[3404,3405,3402,2595,3399,3381,1739,3400,3398,3146,3403,3401,1626,2594,1740],"class_list":["post-43958","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-dance","tag-ain-gordon","tag-bebe-miller","tag-bryn-cohn","tag-dan-higgins","tag-daniel-do","tag-danielle-agami","tag-efren-corado-garcia","tag-elle-johansen","tag-jaclyn-brown","tag-lauren-curley","tag-mike-varas","tag-nicholas-cendese","tag-repertory-dance-theatre","tag-tyler-orcutt","tag-ursula-perry"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/danielleagamitheatrebysharonkain.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-04-24 04:46:16","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43958","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1619"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=43958"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43958\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":43962,"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43958\/revisions\/43962"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/43959"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43958"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=43958"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=43958"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}