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Review from this weekends shows in San Francisco. From the SF Chronicle.

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The Paul Taylor Dance Company Is In Town

The Paul Taylor Dance Company is currently celebrating its landmark" first 50 years". Much cause for celebration is in order for the vast body of innovative dance works this company has produced, all of which have been choreographed by Paul Taylor. As a child, I was fortunate enough to see Taylor dance at Jacob's Pillow. He was the biggest dancer I had ever seen on stage, and the strength and clarity of his movement, combined with his large presence, made a huge impression. What reverberates in Paul Taylor's choreography, and was clearly discernible in Taylor's own dancing, is the direct simplicity and purity of the human body in motion.

On Sunday, April 3, the company presented "Cloven Kingdom", a work choreographed in 1975, which evokes many ways in which "Man is a social animal'. Clusters of organisms give birth, partner, and spontaneously regroup in dynamically evolving patterns. The male dancers, dressed in evening attire, move in wonderful, quirky synergy, while some of the women in simple long dresses sport geometric headgear. The music of 3 composers Arcangelo Corelli, Henry Cowell and Malloy Miller, together form a score contrasting and combining elements lyrical, pointillistic, and chaotic. The theme of geometric symmetry wins out in the finale as all the dancers appear on stage wearing headgear in a stage swirling with reflective light. The human animals in this dance appear strangely and perfectly ordered.

"Lost, Found, and Lost" is a brilliant 1987 work that draws on an earlier piece from 1957. It is choreographed to the lush strains of a generous montage of 1940's melodies, including "Red Roses for a Blue Lady" and "As Time Goes By". Here Taylor produces an androgynous slew of dancers in black unitards and netted veils, moving with such musicality as to almost seem like instruments of the music. It is the most interesting and humorous work of the evening, generating from a long seamless introduction involving the mundane and pedestrian. Overcome with boredom, a group moves offstage one at a time in a long, slowly moving line. Dancers assume long still pauses unencumbered by time, and then cursorily look each other over from the front and back. Simple movements and poses are examined in human encounters mixing ennui with curiosity. Here and there wild and frenzied movement erupts, and is dutifully copied by the others dancers. In this chorus line of bored athletes, languorously facile and inventive, the choreography let's the body do what it does, and it does so very well. In perfect musical and theatrical timing, the group moves beyond the boredom of conformity into an expansive and chaotic abandon. The corps of 10 dancers executes this work in a perfectly nuanced and fluid style. Jennifer Tipton's lighting design enhances this and each of the other ballets presented on the program. Alex Katz designed the strange and oddly pleasing costumes.

"Company B" concluded the evening. First performed in 1991, this ballet features songs sung by the Andrew Sisters, in an antiwar tribute of pure Americana. It is the least cohesive piece on this program. The men and women's costumes, designed by Santo Loquasto to evoke soldiers uniforms, feature pastel hues of khaki, print shirts, and bright red belts, and are very unflattering. The music after a short time becomes hard to listen to. I began to long for some Duke Ellington, George Gershwin, anything else. The Andrew Sisters songs of the World War 2 era are relentlessly upbeat and frivolous. The carefree, youthful dancing they inspire, is here and there contrasted with images of death and suffering. There are brilliant moments, as in Andy Le Beau's Tico-Tico solo, which does Gene Kelley even better. Yet overall what is missing in the choreography and in its delivery is the punch and sexiness of good show dancing.

The Paul Taylor Dance Company will be performing at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts Theater through April 10. There are some free rehearsals and family matinees offered in this San Francisco Performances run. It is very fortunate for us that this world-renowned company has made San Francisco it's second home. Last night torrential rains kept some folks at home, including a dear friend who was planning to meet me, but never made it from the East Bay. Please don't let anything short of a very major flood stop you from seeing this magnificent company now, and at any other opportunity you may have again.

<small>[ 04 April 2005, 11:04 PM: Message edited by: Hanna Takashige ]</small>

Thank you, Hanna!

Watching a Paul Taylor program is like experiencing a rerun of your favorite TV show -- everything's satisfyingly familiar, with very exciting plot twist and joke eagerly anticipated.

However, I think these may be perceived as fighting words by longtime Taylor fans. A few looked like they were insulted when I expressed the feelings above and one prominent ballet dancer/choreographer took exception.

Is it because it implies that comforting entertainment has replaced the thrill of excitement in PTDC?

Nevertheless, I felt the company is much improved, with the younger dancers seemingly now grown beyond the eager enthusiasm from a few years ago towards professionalism and even the older dancers seemingly rejuvenated. Silvia Nevjinsky in particular but also Richard Chen See and Lisa Viola look much more alive compared to last year.

The PTDC is the favourite modern dance company of a couple of my ballet loving friends. However, I suspect that PTDC wouldn't be no.1 for most contemporary/modern lovers. Has anyone else come across this phenomenon?

I still can't decide if I'm a Paul Taylor lover or not. I was exposed to his style in undergrad, where my favorite dance instructor danced with Taylor in both Martha Graham's company and Taylor's. But after seeing several of the programs in both rehearsal and performance, I feel like the works themselves have become repetive. Yes, the dancers are good (although I feel like their technique isn't up to par with comparable modern companies, ODC for example), but the choreography seems overly recycled. And as Taylor does update works if need be, he really should modernize the costumes, too. I think the important thing though, when seeing Taylor's work, is to view it in the context of the times, as he truly is an icon in American modern dance.

On an additional note, the freebie open rehearsals are over. They were last Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. Tickets, though, are still available!

<small>[ 08 April 2005, 12:47 PM: Message edited by: RaHir ]</small>

That might be true, in the today's context -- I think there are more than a few modern dancers who feel Taylor's works today are more ballet-like than modern dance. In fact, I think they put Taylor into his own category outside of modern dance.

However, I know a couple of PTDC fans who think ballet dancers don't seem to get Taylor works right and therefore I assume they don't see Taylor as ballet.

I don't think accessibility is the issue either. There are several contemporary modern dance crafters who produce accessible yet highly innovative works. Examples include Jiri Kylian, Lucinda Childs, Pina Bausch, etc.

A review from Rachel Howard of two programs. It sounds like she had mixed feelings about the Jewish Appalachian-inspired world premiere:

The Akron Beacon Journal previews the Taylor Company's Cleveland performance on Saturday, May 14, 2005:

http://www.ohio.com/mld/ohio/entertainment/11626279.htm

I agree Azlan with you, although I would classify myself as a staunch Taylor fan. When I saw his company here in Seattle in the Fall, the company seemed larger (in terms of numbers) and more streamlined than ever. But oddly souless, Lisa Viola (spelling) being one notable exception. I have been watching the Taylor company since 1976, and my, how they have changed! I guess when I think fondly of Taylor, I think of this company and the rep at that time of my first viewing. I guess I view the BODY of his work over the years, not just basing my high opinion on the current incarnation. Such works as "Last Look", "Esplanade", "Big Bertha", and "Sunset" are just masterpieces. But so much of what I love about them is tied up with the performances of the past, particular dancers in those works.. David Parsons, Nicholas Cage, Linda Kent, Lila York, Christopher Gillis, Elie Chaib and many others. To me, their interpretations of these works are irreplacable. They had personalities and zest which flew across the footlights, and enthralled the audience. They had that ability to capture the choreographic essence and bring it to the audience. I just don't seen the current compnay doing that.

Trina, it's interesting you say that. I rank performances of Taylor choreography as follows:

1. Performances by the PTDC dancers from the 70 through early 80ss because they were strong, energetic, expressive, and grounded;

2. Performances by ballet dancers, because even though they're not grounded, they're strong and expressive;

3. Performances by today's PTDC dancers.

I know people however who like the current crop of PTDC dancers while bemoaning performances by ballet companies because they don't feel that ballet dancers get Taylor. Well, I don't know if today's PTDC dancers get it either...

From Theodore Bale in the Boston Herald:

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