BWW Reviews: Art at the Heart of Partnering | FACETS with Alison Chase Performance

Alison Chase Performance: A Demonstration of the Creative Process

By Jennifer Fried

Alison Chase, known for founding the movement collective Pilobolus, bravely presented her creative process before an audience at the 92nd Street Y. In 2008, Alison Chase founded Alison Chase Performance, a platform to explore interdisciplinary work utilizing film, photography, live music and museum installations.

Chase began the evening by explaining her creative process with live improvisational exercises, all accompanied by a violinist. These exercises were of various levels of success, some resulting in beautiful and exciting novel images, others leading to repetitive and static movement, Chase's commentary allowed the audience to understand that the failures of improvisation are just as important as the successes when creating new sequences of movement., preventing her choreography from monotony and imbuing it with fresh movement.

The improvisation led to a Fantasy, a pas de deux from Chase's Drowned, a collaborative work with a film maker and photographer. The dance was erotically charged as the dancers intertwined; yet it felt natural, expressive and spontaneous. Chase commented that her choreography is so embedded in partnering that her dancers feel lost without it.

Chase then presented another section from Drowned. The influences of the photographer and filmmaker became evident as the dancers moved through the space, almost as in a way reminiscent of silent films. The music added to the work's appeal.

Following the more abstract pieces, Chase presented Tsu-Ku-Tsu, a Pilobolus classic. The opening scene was striking-female dancers, standing as tall warriors upon a moving male dancer. The movement was quiet at times, then explosive. The dancers expressed a quiet elegance that allowed their superb concentration and acting skills to shine through.

The evening concluded with a new piece, Red Weather, accompanied by violinist Rob Flax. The dancers moved in inventive ways through the space and around their partners, still and calm, yet breathless, presenting the audience with numerous images to take in at once.

After viewing Chase's final piece, the evening came together as a study in the creation of fresh, refined, natural movement. The evening would be suitable for a dancer or choreographer seeking inventive and clean movement. Chase's interjections between the pieces and with her dancers created a memorable, intimate evening.

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