Tina F. Berkett Founder and Artistic Director of BODYTRAFFIC brought “This Song Reminds Me of You” to The Wallis in Beverly Hills, on Dec. 6th and 7th. On Sat. the 7th, I joined the nearly full house in the lovely Bram Goldsmith Theater, to see their latest works including the world premiere of Trey McIntyre’s “Mayday.”
“Mayday” by Trey McIntyre. Pedro Garcia and Ty Morrison – Photo by Trey McIntyre.
“Mayday,” is McIntyre’s exploration of classic songs by rock and roll legend Buddy Holly. The dancers are dressed in stylized grey suits and large black glasses designed by Karen Young, as an homage to Holly and his bandmates “The Crickets.” A red model airplane featured within the choreography is a constant reminder that though the music is often playful, Holly’s plane went down ending his life just as it was beginning. McIntyre’s work is in perfect synch with the nostalgia of the tunes while we sense that beneath the fun tragedy looms. Knowing this brings emotional dimension to the work above and beyond the impeccable technique and acting ability of the performers.
McIntyre has put together a compilation of Holly’s greatest hits including “Every Day,” where he introduces body slaps to accent the rhythm of the tracks. “Learning The Game,” a dance for two, “Love Not Fade Away,” danced with its hard edges, “Why You and I” with its stunning solo work and “Peggy Sue” which brings a stamina defying run for one tireless dancer. His work is technically demanding, quirky and loaded with emotional subtext.
“Mayday” by Trey McIntyre. Jordyn Santiago – Photo by Kevin Parry, courtesy of The Wallis
While deftly using his vocabulary of acrobatic contemporary movement McIntyre also has a handle on creating a through line and building tension from one tune to the next so that collectively we dread what is to come yet we have a great time getting there. His attention to staging draws us in as round after round of dancers merge seamlessly in and out of the scenario.
This is a near flawless piece of choreography one that brings joy and pathos all at once and which is perfectly cast with extraordinary dancers. Lighting by James F. Ingalls enhances the spirit of the piece.
BODYTRAFFIC IN “I Forgot The Start” by Matthew Neenan – Photo by Guzmán Rosado.
Matthew Neenan is a prolific and much in demand choreographer who has created pieces for many of the most prestigious dance companies in the country. His work “I Forgot the Start” was up next.
“The work is an honest exploration of resilience in the pursuit of connection, despite life’s uncertainties. We are reminded that there is no light without dark.” Neenan.
Coming out of the pandemic into the light was at least in part the inspiration for this piece but moreover it is about resilience. This is an abstract ballet built on a gorgeous and emotive compilation of tunes; “In this Heart” by Sinéad O’Connor, “Machu Picchu” by Heather Christian & The Arbonauts, “Paka Ua“ by Ozzie Kotani & Daniel Ho, “Anthems For a Seventeen Year Old Girl” by Broken Social Scene and “Flint” by Sufjan Stevens.
BODYTRAFFIC – Katie García, Chandler Davidson, Jordyn Santiago in “I Forgot The Start by Matthew Neenan – Photo by Kevin Parry, courtesy of The Wallis.
Dressed in gauzy white costumes designed by Marion Talan de la Rosa, the dancers seem to illuminate the stage while constantly swinging their arms in a repetitive movement that mesmerizes rather than bores. Neenan uses repetition successfully throughout the piece while interspersing the choreography with intricate patterns, solos, and duets. Again, this is ballet based with a contemporary flair and whimsical style all performed with great panache by the dancers. Because of his extensive ballet background Neenan uses lifts comfortably and often including one breathtaking moment when a male dancer lifts a female dancer over his back and suspends her mid-air as if momentarily frozen in place until he lifts her even higher before she slowly descends. It is a singular moment and one I will not forget anytime soon.
If Neenan’s goal were to bring us to the light after darkness, he succeeded in artfully drawing us out and into his world.
Sets, lighting and lovely video design by Christopher Ash enhances and supports the action onstage.
“Incense Burning on a Saturday Morning: The Maestro” a tribute to the scintillating work of painter Ernie Barnes, by choreographer Juel D. Lane, closed out the night.
BODYTRAFFIC – “Incense Burning On A Saturday Morning: The Maestro” by Juel D. Lane – Photo by Guzmán Rosado.
“The Sugar Shack,” the iconic Barnes painting, is the underpinning of this dance in its depiction of movement which Lange captures as “guided by ancestral rhythms, the work emphasizes resilience and serves as a poignant reminder of our shared humanity.” Or as stated by Barnes himself, “movement is what I wanted to capture on canvas, to show that African-Americans utilize rhythm as a way of resolving physical tension.”[28]
The audience is met with a downstage scrim that will serve as the canvas for Barnes who sits at his easel as the lights come up. Using this device, we see what he sees as he tries to recreate the vibrancy of the nightclub, the wildness of the music and the beauty of the dancers who lose themselves in “sin.”
BODYTRAFFIC – “Incense Burning On A Saturday Morning: The Maestro” by Juel D. Lane – Photo by Guzmán Rosado.
As the artist’s studio becomes the club the dancers fill the space with wild abandon. Though choreographer Lane has a modern/contemporary background, he has infused this piece with a distinctly Afro-Cuban flair that serves the music-scape by Munir Zakee perfectly. The dancers handle the style with raw energy and fierce commitment deftly drawing the audience along with them into the steamy night. The woman in “Yellow” figures prominently in Barnes’ paintings and on the stage as she fascinates him with her aloof yet alluring movement and thus becomes something of a muse or a memory never forgotten.
The choreography cleverly jumps between Barnes in his studio and Barnes in the club as the dance becomes a riot of movement and color building in energy along with the images on the scrim until the finished “Sugar Shack” emerges in all its breathtaking technicolor glory.
The brightly colored costumes designed by Jarrod Barnes mimic the nightclub dancers of the painting, while the saturated lighting design by Michael Jarett and evocative video design by Yee Eun Nam enhanced the mood at every turn.
This was a night of truly inspirational choreography danced by the top flight dancers of BODYTRAFFIC. Thank you to the Wallis for continuing to bring quality dance to its grateful patrons.
The extraordinary company dancers are; Chandler Davidson, Katie Garcia, Pedro Garcia, Anaya Gonzales, Sierra Herrera, Alana Jones, Ty Morrison, Joan Rodriquez, and Jordyn Santiago.
To learn more about BODYTRAFFIC, please visit their website.
For more information about The Wallis, please visit their website.
Written by Tam Warner for LA Dance Chronicle.
Featured image: BODYTRAFFIC in “Incense Burning On A Saturday Morning: The Maestro” by Juel D. Lane – Photo by Guzmán Rosado.
