What a troupe! Pound for fighting pound, the David Parsons Dance Company ranks amongst the best in the world. The dancers appeared at Langford Auditorium this weekend, but unfortunately their leader was unable to perform. They danced their hearts out and more than filled his shoes. It is a tribute to David Parsons’ leadership that his company fared so well without him onstage. Not that he wasn’t missed—he is a gutsy dancer with an unusual combination of athletic and lyrical qualities.
The electrifying Jaime Martinez danced the solo “Caught,” which has become Parsons’ signature piece over the years. The choreographer uses a strobe light that flashes at irregular intervals, timed to catch the soloist in motion. Martinez flexed his feet as if he were standing on the floor and jumped 10 inches off the ground. There was darkness for a second, then the strobe caught him several feet farther back in the same position. Darkness again, and he seemed to levitate across the stage to the next spot. Or he’d leap forward, his right leg lifted high off the ground while his left leg was cocked behind him. As the lights flashed off and on again, he gave the illusion of taking a long-legged stride soaring through the air. “Caught” is an extraordinarily inventive solo, and thrilling to see. Martinez has inherited it from the master and made it his own tour de force.
Parsons’ sly sense of humor shone in “Sleep Study.” Eight sleepyheads lay on the floor, dressed in identical satin pajamas of different pastel hues. They tossed and they turned. The movements were a veritable encyclopedia of restless sleepers’ postures and gestures. Heads shifted from one side to another. Bodies shifted from front to back. Sleepers rolled over in unison or sequentially, while sleepwalkers staggered in circles. At the end they all plopped down together in a huge stack of lethargic bodies, awakening the only sleeper who had not stirred a muscle the entire time. He arose, wide awake, while the others snoozed on.
“Bachiana,” not surprisingly, was performed to orchestral music by J.S. Bach. In tribute to the classical period, Parsons interspersed his individualistic contemporary style with balletic movements. The dance made use of port de bras, or arm movements, that ended in fifth position overhead; of balletic leaps with arms held in V-shapes above; and of gallant men partnering women who traveled in dainty steps. At one point, four women lined up in a row and started to engage in a Swan Lake routine, complete with little beating steps called entrechats, although Charissa Barton would melt out of the group and spin away now and then. Of course, that wasn’t all: Parsons combined headstands and cartwheels with quirky head-tossing movements to round out the eclectic choreography.
The high point of the piece was a gorgeous, sensuous duet by Ruth-Ellen Kroll and Matthew Rodarte, danced to the tune of “Sheep May Safely Graze.” The man entered slowly with bowed head, Kroll perched backwards on his shoulders. As he reached center stage, she unwound down across his body, soft hands grazing his chest, and stepped beside him. Their bodies leaned toward each other in a slow, steady incline, an erotic gesture that seemed almost Zen in its timeless pace. Lifts were strikingly inventive and varied. At one moment Kroll was a schooner’s figurehead standing on Rodarte’s knee, and another time he lifted her with one hand as she curled up and fit right into the nooks and crannies of his body.
The rest of the program featured remarkable virtuosic dancing. “Rise and Fall” showcased individual talents, such as Mia McSwain. She was particularly impressive as the maverick who always danced counter to the others. Elizabeth Koeppen and Charissa Barton performed a duet that was a model of teamwork combined with individualistic bravura technique. No wonder they gave each other a well-deserved “high five” as they cavorted about. “Closure,” in contrast, was a compelling ensemble piece, at points militaristic and aggressive, at other times lush and romantic in its texture.
The dancers’ energy level was set on max from the moment the curtain went up, with no let-up until the final curtain went down. What a troupe! Absolute dynamite.
