Celebrating its fifth anniversary, Lume Collective performed “Desolation” at Stomping Ground L.A. on Saturday and Sunday, August 16 and 17, 2025. The program was divided into two parts, opening with a Pre Show that included six works by members of Lume Collective and then the full-length “Desolation” choreographed Monika Felice, Maryann Chavez, Marco Palomino, Macy Swaim, and Mikey Dellavella. Over all, the evening was truly enjoyable and highlighted the numerous talented commercial dancers in Los Angeles that one does not often see in contemporary dance performances.
The Pre Show opened with “That’s My Name” choreographed by Jay Arceno and performed well by Arceno, Darlene Tandarki, Robbie Rosenmiller, Tyler Law, Audrey Bordallo, Marie Sheehan, Sophie Fouladi, Lyssy Salvador, and Nancy Castro. Although this was an excellent choice for an opening work to draw the audience in and the structure of the work was well executed, the movement vocabulary was limited and became predictable.
Lume Collective – Photo by Likewise Lens.
In a total shift of mood and music, “Her Resolve,” choreographed and performed by the beautiful and long limbed Ceci Sun, quickly focused my attention from the overt showmanship into a very intense journey of emotion and self-investigation. Sun is a wonderful performer and I hope to see more of her work.
Choreographed by Marissa Mahoney, “En Caul” was an intriguing work in spite of my inability to connect the piece with its title. According to my research on Goggle, “an en caul birth is a rare event where a baby is born still inside the amniotic sac, which is the protective bubble of fluid surrounding the fetus during pregnancy. This means the baby emerges encased in the intact membrane, rather than the sac rupturing before delivery. It’s also sometimes referred to as a “caul” birth.”
Lume Collective – Photo by Likewise Lens.
Three women, each in their separate pool of light, presented different aspects of their existence. What Mahoney did extremely well was tie the three together with very brief and understated moments of unison dancing or gestures.
The very talented dancers in “En Caul” were Cassidy Kittredge, Marissa Mahoney, and Melody Wilson.
Lume Collective – Photo by Likewise Lens.
The next work appeared to be the tale of a very complicated relationship between to women. Choreographed and performed powerfully by Sidney Klock and Tatum McClelland, “Again” was filled with very strong action/reaction movements that bordered on becoming violent. It was an excellent study between two very strong personalities. Fortunately for all, love prevailed.
“Never Felt So Alone” by Gina Menichino suffered from a lack of choreographic clarity. After a very long unison section that resembled a jazz classroom combination, the story of the lead character’s isolation and loneliness began to develop and become interesting. I suggest that Menichino take another look at the beginning of her work and learn to introduce her characters and set up their storyline.
The very fine dancers included Emilia Hamburg, Katie Grace Cleek, Sarah Florez, Stephanie Consiglio, Sydney Lettau, and Tess Drosman.
Lume Collective – Monika Felice Smith and Tori Gorny in “Stealth” choreography by Tori Gorny – Photo by Likewise Lens.
One of the highlights of the evening and a work that resembled nothing that I had seen before was the enthralling and magnetic “Stealth” choreographed by the extraordinary performer Tori Gorny. Gorny took a very rhythmic and hypnotic score and utilized almost every joint on the human anatomy. Fingers, wrists, elbows, knees, ankles, heads, ribs, mouths, eyes and hips became isolated and turned into an extremely well-rehearsed and performed duet performed by Monika Felice Smith and Tori Gorny. This is a dance that needs to be seen by everyone. Brava!
Following intermission, Lume Collective presented “Desolation”, a lengthy work structured to include a Prelude and four chapters, each investigating various emotions, actions and results of despair, unhappiness or isolation.
Chapter One took on Isolation and Betrayal, Chapter Two: Descent Into Addiction, Chapter Three: Confrontation, and finally Chapter Four: Embracing Darkness.
Lume Collective – Photo by Likewise Lens.
Although choreographed by five different dance artists, Monika Felice, Maryann Chavez, Marco Palomino, Macy Swaim, and Mikey Dellavella, “Desolation” was surprisingly cohesive ran like a well-oiled machine. This was primarily due to interrelated movement vocabularies and the transitions between sections were beautifully choreographed and totally seamless.
The work’s strength also contributed to what made the piece feel longer than it actually was; that being that the movement vocabulary was repeated again and again, often directed aggressively into the audience’s faces, and soon became predicable.
That said, “Desolation” is a work worth seeing and Lume Collective should present themselves to the concert dance audiences more often. These choreographers know how to construct a dance without the process being obvious and the majority of the dancers are top notch.
Lume Collective – Tori Gorny – Photo by Likewise Lens.
The one dancer who caught my eye throughout the evening even when she was dancing in the middle of a large group, was Tori Gorny. Her stage presence matched her technical abilities in an exciting manner and she was truly amazing to watch.
Sections that stood out from the others were Monika Felice Smith’s “Watch My Back”, “Shadows” by Macy Swaim, “Sorrow” by Maryann Chavez, and “Echo” by Maryann Chavez and Monika Felice Smith.
The Directors of Lume Collective are Maryann Chavez and Monika Felice Smith; Tori Gorny is the Assistant Director; and the full-time members of Lume Collective are Cedric “Thane” Sanders, Chloe Carr, Isabel Lacon, Mia Harris, and Tori Gorny. Company Swings include: Milcah Umali and Tatum McClelland.
Lume Collective – Photo by Likewise Lens.
The entire cast of “Desolation” whose names are too many to mention here, all deserve a round of applause for giving their best and their all.
Lighting Designer Bryanna Brock deserves a special mention for her extraordinary lighting that gave each work and each section it full attention while helping “Desolation”, a piece with many sections and themes, work as one story.
The DJ who appeared onstage throughout the evening and who did an amazing job was Mitch Villareal / Revlm (‘/Relm/’).
To learn more about Lume Collective, please visit their website.
To learn more about Stomping Ground L.A., please visit their website.
Written by Jeff Slayton for LA Dance Chronicle.
Featured image: Lume Collective – Photo by Likewise Lens.
