Dance in the City « Just Raquel

Dance in the City

02Oct07

Friday night, amongst the joy of having Lisa in town and Ken in tow, I witnessed the Fall for Dance throwdown at City Center. What a perfect NYC treasure – 5 dance pieces, performed by 5 different companies, all for $10. And these aren’t just your Average Joes, there were some heavy hitters in the line up, along with a couple US premiers. The variety is perfect, particularly for easily fatigued dance neophytes.

As predicted, my least favorites were the established: American Ballet Theater’s performance of the famous pas de deux from “Le Corsaire”, and Doug Varone’s modern swishing in a new piece entitled “Lux”.

The most awesome, and a must see for just about anybody with a nervous system was “Terraine Vague” by Compagnie Kafig. Unexpected – a bunch of lanky white French guys breaking like kids from the Bronx – in contexts that were truly fresh (picture suits, slick hair cuts, and tape measures). I loved everything about this group. The French just seem to get it sometimes.

I was a bit weepy watching the Cuban number by Ballet Hispanico, still longing for a little salsa and sass (considering classes at the Salsa Salon on Smith Street – the “barber shop by day, studio by night” oddity in the neighborhood. I never did get the hang of Salsa On2.)

The fifth piece, a jazzy plaything choreographed by Carmen deLavallade (she’s been dancing for 50+ years), was very fun. She has a great laugh. Check out her performance of “The 5th Wheel” if you see it.

The festival runs through this weekend. Check craigslist for tickets.