The program opened with "Six Piano Pieces Harlem Style," a showcase of traditional ballet with acoustic piano accompaniment by Melody Fader. This segment was underscored by precise synchronization in various combinations of solos, duets, and group pieces.
Choreographed and described by Robert Garland as "post-modern urban neoclassicism," the next segment entitled "Return," featured performances to the music of James Brown and Aretha Franklin. "Mother Popcorn" integrated modern, ballet, and classic James Brown movements popularized with the release of the song in 1969. The next dances, performed to Aretha Franklin's "Baby, Baby, Baby" and "Call Me," transitioned from up tempo and rhythmic to smooth and graceful. "Baby, Baby, Baby" began with dancer, Mayuko Shoka, performing a short, dramatic solo with no musical accompaniment and was accented by the stage and backdrop lit in scarlet red. As she was joined by male dancer, Frederick Davis, for a duet, music was introduced, lighting changed, and the piece was completed with other dancers joining. "Call Me," featuring dancer, Renee Bharath Kim, revealed the tender story of a young women being wooed by several men as she emoted to each on the lines, "I love, I love you, and I love you too." The mood shifted once again as the high energy instrumentation of James Brown's "Superbad" (originally released in 1970) and "I Got the Feelin'" inspired dancers to incorporate ballet, Dunham, 1970s dance steps, and a Soul Train Line.
The mystic blue, dream-like segment, "In the Mirror of Her Mind," was choreographed by Christopher Huggins and performed to the "Symphony of Lamentation Songs" by Polish composer, Henryk Gorecski. Dancers, Alexandra Jacob Wilson, Fredrick Davis, David Kim and Jehbreal Jackson masterfully conveyed emotional turmoil and evoked empathy. The final act, "Contested Space," featured a contemporary musical composition of African drum rhythms and other percussions, jazz inspired strings, and synthesized riffs. Dancers matched the intensity of the rhythms by combining Dunham, ballet, and African inspired movements.
"Incredible! I didn't even know the human body could do those things," an audience member commented as theatre goers socialized at the close of the event.
Dance Theatre of Harlem Ensemble delivered a flawless presentation that unquestioningly upholds the company's reputation for cultivating some of the finest talent in the country. Dynamic, non-traditional costuming and superb lighting expanded the dimension of the show and accented the tone and mood of each dance. In general, lovers of dance and the performing arts no doubt left the theatre with a renewed commitment to hone their crafts and continue supporting the arts.
Dance Theatre of Harlem, founded more than forty years ago, has maintained a focus of training young people in classical ballet and associated arts, providing arts education, community outreach and positive role models while it presents "a ballet company of African-American and other racially diverse artists who perform the most demanding repertory at the highest levels of quality." Artistic Director, Virginia Johnson, is a founding member and was the principal ballerina until she retired from the stage in 1997. Dance Theatre of Harlem Ensemble, under the direction of Baltimore native, Keith Saunders, is the second company of the organization. As the name indicates, the Dance Theatre of Harlem School is located in New York City's Harlem community. With scholarships and tuition assistance, every year, the school serves more than 500 students from the inner city and around the world, regardless of ethnicity or economic circumstances. For more information about the school, the company, or bookings, visit their website, www.dancetheatreofharlem.org.
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