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DAY IN THE LIFE OF DANCE: Announcing the Winners of The Dance Enthusiast Fall 2024 Audience Review Contest
By Christine Jowers/Follow @cmmjowers on Instagram
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Published on December 3, 2024
I started the Audience Review Section on The Dance Enthusiast soon after the site launched. At first, being the only one writing about dance made me uncomfortable — not that I don’t have opinions or a history and expertise in this art form — it’s just that I have, for better or worse, never been comfortable being seen as a sole authority. I prefer conversation to proclamation. I prefer encouraging curiosity to delivering my tastes as THE tastes.
Our Audience Review Section is an unedited area that invites any and every dance-goer in. We welcome their thoughts and questions, and, hopefully, publishing them encourages more writing. I have learned about artists, programs, and presenters new to me while reading these reviews. I have also seen familiar groups through new eyes. I treasure this education.
It takes a special dedication to commit dance to words. The thought process, the note-taking, the search for the perfect turn of phrase to describe what you’re seeing and what you think about it requires time and patience. Today, with instant communication prized and attention spans growing shorter and shorter, spending time to publicly articulate one’s feelings about dance performance could almost seem a lost cause. This is why I am particularly grateful to the participants of our Fall 2024 Audience Review Contest.
These participants are champions, generously giving their words to support the art and artists of dance. What they share here are not merely “reviews” but windows into dance history. —Christine Jowers, Founder/ Editor/Writer
2024 Dance Enthusiast Audience Contest Winners and Special Mentions
with excerpts of their writings (for the complete reviews go to Audience Reviews here)
Winner Rush Johnston writes on The Power of Perspective Finleigh Zack Dance and Coming Home Estia Fest 24-
“…what Finleigh Zack Dance did was transform this gallery into a watering hole for arts and culture for an evening, using dance and movement to animate the space in a unique and memorable way…There is a causal air that puts me at ease, and suddenly the space is brought to life…We watch as their calculated, gestural movements carve out a landscape of duet. There is an intimacy both between the dancers and between us as viewers, close enough to see the sweat generating on their brows. The dancers begin to alternate and watch each other, reflecting back the viewership that we as audience members hold. And just as quickly and quietly as it started, the first piece is over. The dancers rejoin the crowd and casual conversation takes over. We are given just enough to be left wanting more.”
“To attend is to submerge oneself in art of many forms and to resurface different than you were before. It is a truly immersive experience, allowing the viewer to awaken all their senses and experience art in a myriad of ways all in one remarkable evening. Founded by Artistic Director Lydia Perakis and Production Director LOLA, ESTIA Day Fest is an extension of ESTIA Creative Home, a platform and arts hub that draws inspiration for the Greek goddess of the home…Each of the main stage pieces created worlds and many of them crafted homes as well thorough scenery and subject matter alike.”
Winner Marine Fox writes on RIZOMA by Choreographer Cecilia Fontanesi in Collaboration with Visual Artist Fred Hatt and David Appel's "The Unfolding Scene (each time we meet)
“What I found most inspiring was how "RIZOMA" elegantly bridges the gap between art and science, drawing from neuroscience and environmental philosophy to tell a story about cooperation, predation, and natural harmony. It made me think about intelligence in a new way—not as something hierarchical but as a web of interactions, all crucial to survival and balance. Ethically, the piece is strikingly relevant. It reminds us of our responsibility to recognize and protect the interdependence that exists within ecosystems—between species, plants, and even us humans.”
“Ultimately, The Unfolding Scene is an invitation to observe how we move through life, balancing our personal trajectories with those of the people around us. Appel’s piece asks us to consider the ways in which we meet others, both physically and emotionally, and whether we can, even for a moment, step out of time to truly engage with the present. This meditation on human connection was made all the more poignant by the intelligence and artistry of the dancers, particularly in those duets that felt like conversations taking place in motion.”
Winner Layla Barber writes on An Evening With Ballet X and Healing with Bill T. Jones’ Still/Here
“This piece was an explicit display of the company member’s excellent technical facility and complex partner work. [Jodie]Gates’ partnering choreography… relied on challenging shifts in weight placement, which was interesting to see. In combination with the heartening music scheme, the movement quality of the dancers expressed a type of optimism and hope; albeit occasionally interrupted by corny hugging that could have had more depth…Following a short pause, the audience was catapulted away from Gates’ hopefulness, and into the stern world of Takehiro Ueyama’s piece, Heroes. The start of the work unfolded with a slow duet between a female and male presenting dancer, both in striking red suits. While extremely grounded through the entire runtime, there was a sense of urgency in the group section following the duet which made it quite an interesting watch…Ending the evening was a peculiar and subversive piece by Loughlan Prior, set to the musical score by Claire Cowan. Every element… was an unexpected and fascinating celebration of queerness.”
“Bill T. Jones’ Still/Here, staged on the Bill T. Jones/ Arnie Zane Company provides a raw and captivating account of human illness. Though it’s premiere 30 years ago was met with major controversy, the complexities of the work do not just echo the distant cries of the AIDS epidemic; rather, audiences are thrust into the reality that sickness is inescapable and intertwined in everyone’s life in some way.”
Honorable Mentions:
Best Quote: -John Gillespie -Maureen Fleming's The Alchemists Veil
“She is equally choreographer, danceographer,” photographer, lyricist, and coordinating master of the multiple aesthetic aspects of performance, reminiscent of an orchestral conductor. Restated, she doesn’t “do” dance, she is the dance; she doesn’t merely perform, she’s the total performance.”
Best Intro - Daniel Williams- Take Root- Allison Cook Beatty Dance at Green Space
“The word that comes to mind is captivating.”
Best Visual Art representing Dance-Chuck Schultz-Reflections: Terry Back’s “return to Tomlinson Theater," presented by Temple University Dance Department
Artist Most Frequently Highlighted Across Audience Reviews- Dahyun Kim
Dahyun Kim Headshot as Featured on her website: Check it Out : https://belaangel95.wixsite.com/dahyunkim
Mentioned in the Four Reviews Below:
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Writer Nicholas RiesGerzog- Elements of Life-Umami Playground Dance Company at Sparkfest in Texas
“but it was Dahyun Kim’s nuanced performance that added an extra layer of expressiveness and connection. Her ability to embody the essence of each element, from the moon's tranquility to the sun's fiery power, left a lasting impression…”
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Writer Jaden Lee “Club Caucus at WADE Pride Residency-Fever Dream Dance Collective”
“Among the talented ensemble, Dahyun Kim’s performance shone brightly, offering a captivating and nuanced interpretation of the work’s biting critique.”
- Writer Yiran Shu -Joy' by Dahyun Kim at Queensboro Dance Festival 2022 (article contributed in 2024
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Dahyun Kim Photo as Contributed to The Dance Enthusiast Audience Review Section
“ In '흥|Joy,' Dahyun Kim offered a fresh, invigorating perspective on Korean culture, challenging the often one-dimensional view of it as reserved or melancholic. Her performance was a vivid expression of resilience and the ability to find exuberance even in the face of life's struggles…”
- Writer -Chaewon Jeong-Review of Dahyun Kim’s DUMBO Performance -Dahyun Kim & Miaotian Sun (X & Y Quadrant Dance Company)
“Choreographed by Dahyun Kim and Miaotian Sun, ‘Blooming | 绽放 | 개화’ was a standout piece at the Dumbo Dance Festival, offering a visually and emotionally compelling exploration of growth, transformation, and cultural fusion…”
