BWW Reviews: DANCE IN PRISONS: CONFINEMENT VS FREEDOM, WHAT IS IT? Demonstrates How Dance Can Save Lives

Edward Henkel presented his event Dance in Prisons; Confinement vs. Freedom, What is It?, as part of his MovementTalks: Dance as a Catalyst for Change series, which is in its fourth season, at the 92nd Street Y on Friday, December 13. The former dancer welcomed Katherine Vockins, founder of Rehabilitation Through The Arts (RTA), to the stage to talk about her program, which she started in Sing Sing Correctional Facility in 1996. Since then the creative arts program has branched out to four other men and women's prisons in New York State. RTA offers activities for inmates to get involved in, such as theatre, singing, painting, creative writing and dancing.

Another guest invited to speak onstage for the majority of the presentation was former prisoner Andre Noel. He joined Figures in Flight 5 Dance Company, a facet of RTA's dance department, after witnessing one of their dance pieces titled "Each Other." While watching the routine, it reminded him of his life on the streets and gave him goose bumps. After feeling such a strong connection with the dance he decided to join the company. Noel now holds the position of dance captain of the group. During some practices in the prison he occasionally filled in for head choreographer Susan Slotnick and assistant Bethany Wootan-Noel when they were absent.

Noel, who was first incarcerated at age 17, performed the first piece of the night, which was a solo to Sam Cooke's "A Change Is Gonna Come," wearing an all-black outfit topped with a fedora hat. He started off the dance sitting in a chair and from the moment he rose up his passion-filled movement called attention to the audience. His motions were predominantly fluid with sharp accents intermittently thrown into the mix. While he glided along the floor with ease and radiated a steady stream of confidence, this added to the piece's overall themes of hope and resilience. The lyrics and tempos in the music seemed to greatly inspire the movements.

The second performance of the night was a duet by Noel and Felix Machado to "Motherless Child" by John Legend. The dance commenced with Machado moving first on stage with Noel joining him about a quarter of the way through the routine. There were moments of unison and separation where the two dancers would display pleasant juxtaposition. Much of the movement was fluid, yet there were times when they would display tension in their bodies, creating a constant wave of build-up and release during the progression of movements.

For the last piece the entire company, which includes Noel, Machado, Ray Brito, Andrew Kelley, David Montalvo and Jecoina Vinson, performed "Be Grateful" by Walter Hawkins featuring Lynette Hawkins. The piece began with everyone slowly raising their arms up, symbolizing freedom, followed by lowering into hunched over positions, signifying confinement. Through the art of dance these former inmates showed their familiarity with both states of existence and while watching them dance, it is apparent how these two ideas have immensely affected their lives. There was one standout moment where each dancer acted as if they were in a significant amount of pain and receded from these poses afterwards to form a huddle in the middle of the stage. This transition showed their journey as they left their feelings of desperation behind and found the support they needed and received from each other after they had found positive outlets, such as dance. Overall, this performance was powerful, heartfelt and received a standing ovation.

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