Review: DAYTON CONTEMPORARY DANCE COMPANY at The Joyce Theater

There is excitement and impressiveness in witnessing a group of dancers execute multiple genres of dance in one evening. In the heart of Chelsea, the dancers of Dayton Contemporary Dance Company share what is vital to the dance industry nowadays: versatility. As part of its 56th season, the company’s run at the Joyce Theater is a triple bill performance highlighting the works of Ray Mercer, Rennie Harris, and Paul Taylor.

Ray Mercer’s This I Know for Sure opens the evening program. Originally premiering in 2014, the work is a choreographic celebration of differences, between ourselves and each other. Colorful and speedy, the dancers whirl in gray tanks and black shorts, dedicated to the quick-paced demands of Mercer’s athletic choreography. Red, blue, and purple tones created by light designer Matthew J. Evans bleed into each other like a smeared color pallet, cutting into the smoky fog rising above the dancers.

This I Know for Sure is divided into six distinct sections. Each chapter represents a phase in the cycle of an artist’s creative spark, between contracting an idea to running with the artist’s creative impulse. “Art is not an absolute,” says Mercer in a program quote. “It has different feelings, textures, intentions, and vantage points, and I think that’s what makes art so beautifully divine.” Filled with dynamic double pirouettes and coupé turns, the cyclical nature to Mercer’s movement choices is mesmerizing and poignant. Formations shapeshift on the stage from three duets, to clumps of dancers, to stacked lines, leading the eye to dart stage right and left. At a certain moment, dancer Devin Baker sits underneath a single hanging lightbulb. He plays with his hair, jumping in and out of the spotlight to ascend and descend to the floor in record time. The dark image is evocative and moving.

Switching pace in momentum and style comes Jacob’s Ladder choreographed by urban legend and hip hop pioneer Rennie Harris, which was originally created in 2006 as part of COLOROGRAPHY, THE DANCERS OF JACOB LAWRENCE. Harris, driven by the power and elevation of hip hop as an art form, powerfully explores the roots, history and culture in JACOB’S LADDER. Dressed in differing street style type uniforms in black and white, the dancers appear to move underwater. Distinctly slow and elongated, the dancers move across stage, either in duets or by themselves. The buildup in anticipation of Harris’s exciting, classic house style simmers. Suddenly, the beat drops and the lights starkly brighten.

The energy in the room, both on stage and in the audience, begins to rise, as the dancers perform house dance style grooves, hip hop, and elements of breaking. Dancer Sadale Warner stands out immediately, her smile beaming as she leads Harris’s choreography with heart and soul. Joy exudes from the company dancers as they quickly exit and re-enter by stepping, grooving, and sliding. Composer Darrin Ross has created a lively sound score of fast beats and drumming, which echoes in the walls of the theater. It is clear Harris has made a powerful statement: the influence of hip hop in New York City has a worldwide influence, and it’s here to stay.

Switching gears from hip hop to modern dance is Paul Taylor’s masterwork Esplanade, originally premiering in 1975. Originally inspired by the sight of a girl trying to catch a bus, Taylor incorporates pedestrian patterns such as walking, running, and falling in the work. Set to two Bach violin concertos, the music begins before the dancers are seen. When the curtain rises, the dancers, in bright warm colors of orange, pink stand with invitational smiles. As they begin the first section of five, they pace themselves for the modern dance marathon of Esplanade.

The strums of Bach soothe, provoking a sense of nostalgia as the dancers twist, opening their collarbones to the sky with wide gaze and expansive por de bras. Taylor’s choreography and codified technique is built upon an idea of expansion and release of the arms and chest, and the use of weight shifting to create unpredictability with which direction a dancer may go. The fifth and final section is undeniably most memorable and exciting, full of wistful leaps, slides, and running. As some dancers jump into each other’s arms, others quickly slide to the floor, rolling offstage in a fast frenzy. The dancers commitment to the intensity of Esplanade outweighs their exhaustion. Esplanade is classic and exhilarating at the same time, leaving audience members at the edge of their seats.

Celebrating their 56th company anniversary with artistic delivery, joy, and voices of contemporary African American dance, Dayton Contemporary Dance Company is not one to be missed.

 

 

Founder: Jeraldyne Blunden

Artistic Director: Debbie Blunden-Diggs

Associate Artistic Directors: Qarrianne Blayr, Crystal Michelle

Production Director: Matthew J. Evans

Dance Artists: Edgar Kawoq Aguirre, Devin Baker, Qarrianne Blayr, Emily Bryan, Nicolay Dorsett, Sean Ferguson, Alexandria “Peach” Flewellen, Aaron J. Frisby, Niarra Gooden-Clarke, Donovan McFadden, Allyia Nelloms, Robert Pulido, Elizabeth Ramsey, Fabio Tello, Sadale Warner, Countess V. Winfrey

Photos by Steven Pisano

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