The Dance Enthusiast Asks Crystal Pite

Kidd Pivot Frankfurt RM, the company whose name refers at once to a boxer, gunslinger, pirate (Kidd) and precise, elegant movement (Pivot) provoked a huge sensation both critically and popularly with the work Dark Matters. Crystal Pite, Kidd Pivot's choreographer and artistic director, has been cited by Ella Baff, the executive director of Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival, as "one of the most talented, intelligent, and original dance makers to come along in recent years." Baff is not the only fan. Pite and Kidd Pivot are worldwide sensations.

Last year, Pite won the coveted Jacob's Pillow Dance Award for her visionary artistry and explorations. Now, by popular demand, Kidd Pivot will return to the Pillow this summer to re-share that sensational work created, according to Pite, (out of) " that relationship I have to have with the unknown."

Is it any wonder then that this past February’sperformance of Pite's The You Showat The Baryshnikov Arts Center in New York sold out instantly?

Fortunately, our Dance Enthusiast team ordered tickets way in advance and got in. We also hit the jackpot and were able to watch the company in rehearsal, shoot some video and speak with Pite about her choreography.

Word is that Kidd Pivot Frankfurt RM is returning to New York to perform at the Joyce Theater in the fall. Keep your ears and eyes open. Youdon’t want to miss this group.

" 'A Picture of You Flying' touched me the deepest of the four pieces presented as "The You Show." The tangible story line and use of technical prowess to further that very accessible matter of trying to be a superhero while loving someone (even though they cannot share) was funny, yet serious...It was as complete a work as could be. All in all, the dancers of Kidd Pivot should grace New York's stages more often. Their skills were certainly appreciated by the whole audience."
Brittany Beyer for The Dance Enthusiast
 

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The You Show

 

Crystal Pite: I was interested in narrative…going back to some really familiar story lines of love and heartbreak, conflict and loss and just using the body as a way to get narrative, without “really” trying to get at any story. I rely on stories that are familiar and generic in a way. So that people can inhabit the dance. I overtly invite the audience to inhabit the dance - to imagine themselves really represented in the performer. That’s why it’s called The You Show.

 

It starts off with a voice-over that invites the audience to locate themselves in the dancer, “Look this is you. This is your hand.This is your back. This is you reaching back. This is the shape of your back as you reach.”The audience can imagine themselves really represented.

 

I have a favorite proverb, which is, “Talk to a man about himself and he will listen for hours.” I think there is the key to good theater making. When the viewer really has a sense, a feeling that the performance is about them, then they are going to be more invested.
 

Kidd Pivot Frankfurt RM in The You Show , Photograph Michael Slobodian

 

 

Crystal Pite: I rely on the performers to help me build the material. I try to work to their strengths. And, I try to not waste movement. I make lots of choreography that I throw away and don’t ever use, what I mean about “not wasting movement” is that with any movement, there is always something to follow, or a grip that wants to be used to its’ fullest. If something is proposed physically, I like to either see it interrupted, or to see it exploded or imploded - I like to see it flow or morph into something else. I don’t like to see movement dropped and wasted, in a sense. There is always a trajectory or an energy that is proposed in any particular movement and I like to try to follow that. I find that the movement really informs me about the act of choreographing itself. There is always information there about where to go next.
 

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CJ: Has choreography always come easy to you? What are you challenged by?
 

CP: I am more challenged by the theatrics of choreography, the theatrical side of making work, of structuring a performance, of following through with content, of bringing all the collaborators together trying to make piece that is cohesive in concept and to pace something out and make a compelling, rich, water- tight experience for the audience.The actual choreography the actual making of the movement that’s where I am most comfortable. It is not easy. But, relatively easy, in comparison with the other things.
 

Kidd Pivot Frankfurt RM in The You Show, Photograph Michael Slobodian

 

CJ: In one of the duets for The You Show, the grande finale, the dancers become Transformers, a la the action figures, and they do a really great job of it. I kept thinking what a perfect show this would be for my children to see. I also really enjoyed it. Why the interest in Transformers?

 

CP: I change little things every time we do it. Even today I just changed some little things that make it more efficient, that direct the viewers eye a little bit better-- timings, little adjustments. I actually really like this show. It is made of four different pieces. Each of them is a favorite, in a different way.

 

I enjoy watching, these four duets. Even though the final duet has the whole company in it, I still I consider it a duet because at the heart of that pieceis the relationship between two people. I enjoy watching each of these performers highlighted and presented in their own world. That was also the original impulse (for the piece). I wanted to give each of the dancers ownership over a quarter of the show, so rather than having an experience as an artist in one world where everyone is in it for the whole performance, I wanted to create smaller worlds --worlds that they could inhabit more fully or be more responsible for.
 

Kidd Pivot Frankfurt RM in The You Show , Photograph Michael Slobodian