The show consisted of four world premieres by Los Angeles and Spain-based choreographers showcasing works “that explore how our inner lives affect our outer behavior.” of touch of time by Spencer Theberge in collaboration with the performers; The Weight of Water choreographed by Mario Glez; Leaving with Hope by Myles Lavallee in collaboration with the performers; and It’s Not You, It’s Me choreographed by Jamila Glass.
According to the program notes, “These four works began their process in LACDC’s 2023 Fall Creative Residency. Collaborators and Artists workshopped experimental and new movement ideas, prioritizing discovery over mastery.” And that they did.
of touch of time by Spencer Theberge was an ‘investigation.’ It was the performers being aware of the present moment onstage and remembering what was brought out in the rehearsal process and the differences that emerge from the two aspects of rehearsal/performance. Theberge wanted to allow the performance to be an ‘experience of process’ rather than a finished product. This piece is the pursuit and questioning of the immediate rather than a dogged adherence to rehearsed steps.
And yet the performative aspect of the piece was secure. The unison sections were exact and uniform highlighting the breakout individual all the more. The costumes by Ashley Kayombo were basic rehearsal sweats giving the overall feeling of watching a live rehearsal. There was spoken word, but only in terms of making sure the audience was included, “Can you hear me?” to which the audience response was “Yes.” Sound cues were called out, etc. Lighting by Ric Zimmerman was overhead white fluorescents with no gels giving the feeling of a rehearsal studio. It also created interesting shadow work. Original music by Maxwell Transue was engaging and certainly held our attention.
The Weight of Water by Mario Glez was visually well constructed. The unison sections were tight and well-rehearsed. There was text that was underlining the theme of ‘overthinking.’ Costumes were all black midriffs with black pants, the men in black mesh tops. This worked under the white lights quite well bouncing off of the gleaming skin tone. Music by AEREA was riveting. The movement here was clean and effective running through various scenarios where self-doubt was portrayed by different individuals opposite the group.
Leaving with Hope by Myles Lavallee began with a solo female outside of the group upstage right. Interestingly, all the pieces on the program began with the group as well. All six performers of L.A. Contemporary Dance were in all four works. There were no duets or solo works, no trios or foursomes. These groupings were evident in the separate works on the program, but all four pieces presented were remarkably similar given that there were four different choreographers. Choreographically there was a great preponderance of attitude turns which I found interesting, en-dedans and en-dehors all throughout every piece. How is it that four different choreographers each utilized these turns in order to further their intent? Mere coincidence? One of the themes of this piece was the manipulation of others. This had many manifestations, and some were more potent than others.
The last piece was It’s Not You, It’s Me by Artistic Director Jamila Glass. This reflected the same construct as the other pieces with the group holding a community through unison work and the odd individual breaking off to explore their own voice or experience. The music by SebastiAn was more immediate and controlling, adding a dimension of pressure to conform to the choreography. Costumes here were different for each individual adding to the tension of being in a group or claiming one’s right to be unique.
One odd aspect to the evening was the lengthy time in between pieces on the program. There was a 10-minute pause in between the first two pieces, then a 20-minute intermission, and then another 10-minute pause between the second two pieces. This was an extraordinarily long time to wait between only four works on a program. The show was already 20-minutes late in starting and then for the audience to sit for an additional 30-minutes was incredible. Usually, the curtain is held for a change of set. This was not the case as there were no sets involved.
The performers were: Colleen Loverde, Lily Massie, Kelle Meschede, Jonacy Montero, Melody Morrow, and Dawson Walker. All were very good movers with clean technique. I only wish the choreography and movement syntax were more varied in order to let them grow more as physical artists.
To learn more about Los Angeles Contemporary Dance Company, please visit their website.
For more information about the Glorya Kaufman Performing Arts Center, please visit their website.
Written by Brian Fretté for LA Dance Chronicle.
Featured image: LACDC in Leaving with Hope by Myles Lavallee – Photo by Taso Papadakis.