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Review: Dancing Out Loud in SBCC Spring Concert
SBCC’s Spring Dance Concert, at Center Stage Theater on Friday and Saturday, was directed by Pamela Lappen and titled “Behind the Words.” Intriguing, as movement is so far removed from words and yet we have nothing but words with which to describe dance, to frame it, to explain it.
“Just a Thought” by Kay Fulton was a quintet of female dancers in contrasting solid-colored dresses, soft and flowing, set to music by Laurie Anderson. The choreography was simple, but made good use of unison movement and patterns. Sometimes the dancers moved in a tight flock like shorebirds, but in slow motion, stepping slowly and stately, with a relaxed, sisterly quality.
Fulton’s 50-year teaching career included establishing the dance curriculum at SBCC and directing 27 SBCC dance concerts. What a joy to see her still involved even after officially retiring, as a choreographer and adjunct teacher.
SBCC alum guest artist and director of her own SonneBlauma Dance Theatre, Misa Kelly choreographed and performed “Ranunculus,” a solo set to a mix of eclectic music and vocalizations.
Kelly is clearly a highly-trained and accomplished dancer, and yet unlike many, she is also capable of projecting great expression. Between frenzied moments of leaping and tossing her body about wildly while making guttural sounds in her throat, she would pause and give the audience such an arch look over her shoulder that the texture of the piece immediately deepened.
Some dance tells a story, some is abstract. This piece seems to present an abstract story, dreamlike — but one of those odd dreams where lots of strange, disjointed things happen and you’re afraid if you tell anyone about it, you might sound kind of crazy. Perhaps it is an embodiment of the subconscious mind, with all its twists and turns. At once tragic and heroic, innocent and all-knowing, the persona Kelly presented here was as fascinating as the piece was gorgeously multilayered.
E. Bonnie Lewis, SBCC faculty and co-director of DramaDogs, contributed “Voices Outside My Head,” which began with, literally, a collage of recorded voices discussing themes of identity, passion and art.
Nine women and one man, dressed in neutral browns and grays, moved together in a piece that was modern but with a beautiful flow to it. The single male dancer partnered several of the women in turn with strong, creative lifts and turns. One segment had pairs of dancers coming together to hug, but sometimes falling just short of reaching each other, or overshooting and passing with empty arms. In another compelling section, the dancers ran, then suddenly stopped and moved backwards as if being pulled by their hips by an unseen force. These felt like deft portrayals of those times in life where the best intentions can’t save a moment from missing, somehow.
At the end, the voices came back, and the final, haunting words were a refrain from the beginning segment, “Anyone who thinks only sunshine brings happiness has never danced in the rain.” Lewis’ work shows a great depth of humanity and spirit, with a refreshing movement style.
First created by Lappen last fall, “Visions, Dreams and Memories” was originally a site-specific performance piece at the SBCC Horticultural Gardens. (Click here to read the review.) It was later filmed, with a screening on the campus. The piece was then reset for the Center Stage Theater and presented with the film as a backdrop to a large portion of it.
Based on a detailed story, an original fairy tale, about sisters who traveled around the world in search of the true spirit in words such as tranquility, darkness and flight, the piece unfolds as it follows the sisters’ adventures with the roustabouts of a traveling circus, their discoveries of their alter-egos as the embodiment of the words they cherish and their tragic loss at sea in a storm.
A central section of the piece is the dance of the four spirits, with the film as background. Lush and artful, the film captures a feeling of fleeting magic — dancers in fairylike costumes and makeup cavort among glades of trees and on grassy knolls in the brilliant sunshine. The dancers onstage wore flowing white skirts with colored accents reminiscent of the original costumes. Their cone-shaped hats, as well as their ethereal and exotic movements — sweeping the full skirts with the leg — were reminiscent of Thai temple dancers.
The large cast of dancers was enthusiastic and each embraced his or her part adeptly. But having seen the original piece outdoors, this incarnation felt somewhat cramped and closed in. This being said, following the path of deconstruction and reconstruction, change is inevitable, and all involved are to be commended on keeping the process of evolution moving forward.
— Justine Sutton of Santa Barbara is a freelance writer and frequent Noozhawk reviewer.
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