Body Vox: Smoke Soup, March 2010 (Grade C)

Artistic Directors Jamey Hampton & Ashley Roland
World Premiere of Smoke Soup

sez says: I love this dance troupe--so I am not ever happy to be critical of them. But their dancing in this show was uneven and so were the dances themselves. Hampton's opening Light No Lamp was just awkward--it was hard to see and it didn't work. Next All Blues Hail Mary--was slow to start and once it picked up interest it ended. SUIT ON A FRAME was the stuff we go to Body Vox to see, great choreography--and with a few more days of practice might have been one of the best in the show. "My Favorite Cage"--was almost embarrassing. But things did pick up from there. TRAMPOLINE was energetic and fun--and Melissa Kanavel had perfect poise, balancing action with a complete nonchalant relaxation as she got tossed around the room. Then came CIVILIANS--probably my favorite  --but again the dancers needed to be a little more  in sync.  Write My Book was entertaining and clever and Hello Stranger was full of fun energy.
After the intermission THE MAN I KEEP HID started things off right, with humor and all the right moves...but again with some dancers not being entirely in rhythm with the group. Another stand out in the second half was PROGRESS OF LOVE--which was sensuous and fun at the same time. STOP worked well and was spot-on in both execution and choreography--with Hampton hopping about with two mannequin types.  We'll Meet Again followed by Death to the Storm flowed together seamlessly -- but the second part seemed to need a larger space.   Finally Rough and Tumble has humor and style but the end number STARS didn't have enough oomph for the finale.

On the really positive side--the costumes were wonderful--and the music was well performed. I like Joe Henry's music, and I give credit for trying to use as the basis of the show--but I am not so sure it was a good decision. There are, after all, so many very great pieces of music to choose from.

Overall grade C

39-Steps, Portland Center Stage (Grade A)

Director: Nancy Keystone
Adapted by Patrick Barlow from the novel by John Buchan and the Movie by Alfred Hitchcock and an original concept by Nobby Dimon and Simon Corble

Cast:
Richard Hannay          .....           Leif Norby
Anabella/Margaret/Pamela   .....  Christine Calfas
MAN #1             .....                  Darius Pierce
MAN #2             .....                  Ebbe Roe Smith

sez says: This is fun, laugh out loud theater. It is full of purposely missed cues, intentionally broken props, fake knives, and jokes of all sorts flying around.  And while all four of the actors deserve praise the show belongs to MAN #1 and MAN #2 (Pierce and Smith) who are both exceptional talents. Pierce has become one of my favorite Portland based actors: he is fearless and brings just a hint of madness to his characters.  Smith--whom I'd not seen before--matches the deadpan mayhem that Pierce provides--with the delivery of a physical comedy that sent waves of laughter through the audience with a simple change in facial expression alone.  Of course you need the right vehicle for their talents --and 39 Steps is it.  The carrying on of these two never fell into madcap but never missed a beat in the requirement to shape-shift from one character to another and to keep the party fun all night long.   Norby too was well cast and fully engaged -- but  he didn't top Calfas performance -- whose training in Indian Classical Dance lends itself to her body-language that is both camp yet sensuous.

mjc says:  this was very fun, the kind of theater I like, lots of body stuff and dialogue to match.  RECOMMENDED - Grade A

Wayne McGregor, Random Dance, ENTITY, 2010 Whitebird Uncaged (Grade A)

Choreography: Wayne McGregor in collabpration with the dancers
Concept and Direction: Wayne McGregor
Dancers: Neil Fleming Brown, Catarina Carvalho, Agnes Lopez Rio, Pablo Mangiola, Daniela Neugebauer, Anna Nowak, Maxime Thomas, Antoine Vereecken, Jessica Wright
Original Music by Jody Talbot & Jon Hopkins

WAYNE MCGREGOR / RANDOM DANCE COMPANY

sez says-- what a wonder these dancers are --precision, perfection dexterity, seeking the edge of the the human body's capacity for altering and presenting itself--alone and in relation to other bodies.  These are world class dancers -- in control of their physical selves in a way that is seldom seen. Each time a dancer changed partners--or a new dancer entered into relationship with a pair of dancers, forming a triad,  a new 'entity' presented itself...like a new chemical combination --having something in common with the last combination but also being entirely new.  I was awe struck within minutes of the start --and with only a few exceptions--remained mesmerized throuhg the entire show--60 minutes --no intermissions. Thank you and thank you again --maybe I'll become a groupie and follow this troupe around--or at least, I'll be in the front of the line to get tickets to see them if they show up in this part of the world again.

The Receptionist, Portland Center Stage

By Adam Brock
Directed by Rose Riordan
At Portalnd Center Stage
Feb 2010

Cast:
Lorraine Taylor   .....   Laura Faye Smith
Martin Dart   .....   Chris Harder
Beverly Wilkins   .....   Sharonlee McLean
Edward Raymond   .....   Robert M Thomas

sez says: I am more impressed by Sharonlee Mclean every time we see her. She did a spot-on job in her role as the Receptionist in this play of the same name.  She led the way in the creation of a work place many of us have been in, in which daily personal drama mixes with whatever the goal of the office staff might be.  In this case, the goal of the staff is a never fully identified creepy backdrop to office antics which the Receptionist tries, half-hardheartedly, to keep in check.  All we know is that whatever these people do in their work life it requires torturing people--and they can be added to the list of those to be tortured.  Meanwhile they prance about worrying about tea cups and old boyfriends, and dreaming of fly fishing.  Are we all really that alienated from the products of our labor?    Karl Marx said we were and maybe Adam Brock agrees.  Robert M Thomas also provided a droll rendition of a man who may have caught a glimmer of the reality behind his job.  We are hopeful about his possible contributions to Portland's community of actors. Chris Dart was a little flat and Laura Faye Smith was a bit to broad in our opinion.  All in all this is an interesting piece--but it is a little thin. I wouldn't tell my friends to avoid it but then I wouldn't tell them to rush out to see it either.  Grade C-

American Buffalo. Third Rail

By David Mamet
Director: Daniel Stern
Theater THIRD RAIL
Actors:
Donny ..... Bruce Burkhartsmeier
Bobby ..... Brian Weaver
Teach  ..... Tim True
LINK:  American Buffalo

sez says: David Mamet is like a magnet for me. That is because a view through his window on the world never fails to leave me thinking..and often feeling...something new.  American Buffalo is not a new play, but I had not seen it before and I am glad for the opportunity to be introduced to it by this production.  Weaver and True brought their characters to life with performances that exceeded 100% involvement. They passed by something that might be called 'perfect portrayals' and added that magical extra piece to their presentation of these characters. They gave us a glimmer of the souls of  Bobby and Teach. And, nothing less than that would do this play justice.  Mamet has written a play that presents men who are inarticulate.  The very nature of these characters is their limited ability to use words to explain themselves: their desires, their pain, their aspirations, their fears,  their affections, and so on.  So to know them, to see them, to grasp them, the men who portray them (the actors) must show us who they are...becasue the script alone cannot do it --the script only lets us see them struggling to find a way to express themselves...words are not tools they are skilled using/ that is part of the point of the play/--so their actions must do much of their speaking.  And True and Weaver pulled it off, they bring Bobby and Teach to life.  Having a limited verbal vocabulary they do much of their speaking through their actions, and their kind of talk is rough and violent and lacks order.  You can think what you want of Donny and Bobby and Teach. But I have no doubt that men like them exist. And knowing they are among us is at least a step toward seeing the full expanse of our culture and its products--the things we are given, and that we create, that we throw away. They all wait in the silent dark for us.  GRADE B+

Body-Vox-2

Feb 2010
Director Zachary Carroll
Performers: Jeff George; Kara Girod; Melissa Kanavel, Jonathan Krebs, Josh Murry

sez says: this band of young dancers is a delight to watch...they are not always a precision assembly...but each one of them has personal powers to develop and they provide a glimpse of  what the future holds in the world of dance.  And that is a happy vision. Jeff George can leap and twirl as if he were born to fly but he seems less comfortable with some of Body Vox classic Body Voice moves.  Jonathan Krebs has energy and enthusiasm to spare but sometimes his movements do not flow as smoothly as you might wish.   Kara Girod mixes sensuous beauty and phenomenal physical strength but needs to learn to present those skills in a more subtle manner -- as if they did not exist. Melissa Kanavel may be small of stature but she has a giant personality that shows through in both her exquisite movement and, most impressively, in the expressions on her face while she dances. She is able to convey the tenor of each dance and her involvement in the body's voice with a sidewards glance, a smirk, a sultry smile. Josh Murry held up his part of the sky but he never rose above the surface to be of note.

Of course these lucky Body Vox Apprentices got to dance some of the company's most fun and enjoyable pieces like THE BUNNY -- which I could start my day, every day, watching.  Equally enjoyable is the Body Vox perennial Hopper's Diner, that full of fun romp of a story, that literally revolves around a dinner table and that is packed with humor and requires perfect timing-- which this troop managed well. Three pieces stood out  1) the USUAL SUSPECTS in which the need To Belong is demonstrated with light humor and a touch of pathos.  2) SOS  flows like water and sets off waves stroking the shore: it is nothing short of beautiful. And of course 3) LIVE WIRE a dramatic fun mechanical explosion, that conjures up robots and space men and plays with synchronization in a tour'd force ending of the show.

The tickets are a little expensive to see apprentices dance--but it always seems worthwhile to support this troupe. And we got a little shot of joy from the show -- which is priceless.  Grade B- 

Bruno Beltrao / Grupo De Rua, White Bird Uncaged

Artistic Director: Bruno Beltrao
Dancers Bruno Neres; Bruno Duarte; Danilo Pereira; Augusta Eduardo Hermanson; Fiilipi De Morais; Kleberson Goncalves; Kristiano Goncalves; Luis Carlos Gadelah; Thiago Almeida.

Dancing H3

sez says --wowzers! this started off a little slow and I feared at first that it was some sorry version of Kung Fu Fight'n....but then, after the first segment, (which, I can you tell, I was not grabbed by)  it took off like a rocket and it never stopped.  This is MALE and it is URBAN -- you can feel the testosterone in the room as these young men power up and begin to fly.  The energy and precision movements --the speed, the cooperation and chest-bumping one-up'smenship,  the technical skill and non-stop street energy is 100% captivating.  While there is love demonstrated in this dance -- there is nothing gentle about it.  While there was competition, there was nothing hostile about it.   Beltrao has taken hip-hop and given us a new form of dance that makes you want to stand up and cheer for humanity, creativity, strength and dexterity--and we did cheer. And we would be happy to go back and see them again--but all of their performances are sold out here in Portland for this visit. We will be watching for them to come back!  GRADE A