Review: PERIAPSIS OPEN SERIES

BWW Review: PERIAPSIS OPEN SERIES Presents Five Collaborations of Dancers and Musicians

Hidden within DUMBO, the beautiful stripped down Gesley Kirland Performing Arts Center presented five distinct collaborations of dancers and musicians as part of Periapsis Open Series. Too often audiences only associate live music with classical ballet or modern dance. However, Periapsis provided audiences with a refreshing variety of musicians and contemporary performing artists.

The first offering was Cleaved, choreographed by Leigh Schanfein and set to music by Matt McBane. Two dancers eerily trotted upon the stage accompanied by music that was gorgeously haunting. The piece had moments of rapid movement, yet it mostly consisted of mundane pedestrian movement. The movement complemented the music.

Next, DoubleTake Dance presented a longer contemporary jazz piece accompanied by singer and composer JC Gonzalez entitled I Will Die For You; The Cage; The Inferno; A Coming of Baby Flowers. The rapid, vigorous, textured, and at times sinister movement choreographed by Ashley Carter and Vanessa Martínez de Baños carefully crafted to suit the edge rock singer's melodies gave audiences a refreshing jolt of action. Particularly captivating was a moment on stage where the dancers entangled one another in a silver thread leaving the audience restless, on the edge of their seats waiting to see how the next movement would intertwine the dancers. The work masterfully translated to the audiences from the dark 80's inspired make up done by Emmanuel J. De Jesús, to the rock music and theatrical performance of the dancers could have been mistaken for a midtown musical.

After that came Potential Energies, Act 2, Movement 2, choreographed by Barbie Diewald accompanied to music by Sugar Vendil. The striking piano music continued the dark motif of the night. While the movement was a bit repetitive, the dancer moved with a graceful elegance and the relationship between her and the pianist kept the audience intrigued.

Next up was Babel, choreographed by Royce Zackery to music by Margaret Lancaster. The choreography was simple ballet-inspired movement. However, what the flutist played captivated my entire attention so that I did not even mind.

In conclusion, Test Site 1: (In)Habit choreographed by Coco Karol performed by dancer and pianist Sugar Vendil presented a fusion of photography, movement, and music. The piece would be well suited for a site specific multimedia presentation.

It is energizing to see the collaboration of musicians and artists to create unique and thoughtful works. Hopefully Periapsis Open Series will continue to attract a broader audience.

Photo Credit: Flores, Wallace

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