BWW Reviews: Battery Dance Company's 37th NY Season - Past, Present and Future

After traveling through Europe, Africa and Asia, Battery Dance Company returned home to New York City for its 37th season, performing and offering workshop classes. Members of the company have made it their mission to offer instruction on proper dance technique and choreography to regions where no formal dance education is available. These trips inspired the company to create new and exciting works, which fuse traditions of folkdance with modern and ballet technique.

The night began with Not All Those Who Wander are Lost, choreographed by Jacek Luminski from Poland. The piece was highly physical, full of fast, refined jumps and extensions that the ensemble of five performed with effortless ease. The dancers appeared to move with frantic grace, as if running through New York City, fighting through the daily urban struggle to find their own unique identity. In the midst of the fast motion, a moment of serene calm occurred when the dancers came forward, as if to offer us their hearts and individuality. This illuminated the purpose of the piece: to exemplify that novel, radical and stunning movement that builds upon folkdance traditions to create the contemporary dance style so popular today. The costumes, reminiscent of everyday clothing, along with the jazzy folk music, complemented the theme.

Following the demanding piece, the dancers took a well deserved ten-minute intermission before performing Shell Games. The darkness of the stage revealed five dancers fighting to break out of a sheer cocoon to reveal their true identity to the audience. However, at times they returned to their encasing, perhaps to find security and comfort in their outer protective shell. The technical precision, partnering, and peaceful white costumes, accompanied by the sheer cocoons, created a piece that was playful and visually appealing.

Battery Dance not only offered the audience their hearts and souls in the evening's performance, but also a level of technical expertise that anyone could appreciate. Artistic director JoNathan Hollander, speaking to the audience prior to the performance, mentioned that the dancers themselves had taken a greater role in the artistic direction of the choreography and company. This contribution to the natural and organic quality of the movement, along with the fusion of modern and folk traditions, created a unique take on our contemporary dance style.

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