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AUDIENCE REVIEW: (Emotionally) Stirred by Chutzpah Dance's "Unshaken"
Company:
Chutzpah Dance
Performance Date:
February 8, 2025
Freeform Review:
In Unshaken, Erica Isakower’s company Chutzpah Dance delivered a poignant and viscerally charged exploration of trauma, resilience, and healing through movement. The roughly 40 minute work, a fusion of modern dance and rhythm tap, transcended genre boundaries to construct an intricate physical narrative — one that probed the ways trauma and emotion are stored in the body and, ultimately, how movement and community serve as vehicles for healing.
What made this work particularly compelling was its nuanced approach to storytelling. Rather than relying on a linear narrative, the choreography unfolded in cycles, mirroring the ebb and flow of resilience itself. The juxtaposition of grounded, weighted modern dance phrases with the crisp percussiveness of tap created an unexpected but deeply effective tension. The body, at times fluid and at others fragmented, became both the site of trauma and the means of catharsis.
The soundscore was equally layered, incorporating classical compositions, electronic soundscapes, silence, acoustic tap, and, most strikingly, samples from a testimonial interview with Ann Monka, a Holocaust survivor. These elements worked in concert to deepen the work’s emotional resonance. Silence, in particular, was employed masterfully — allowing the dancers’ breath, footfalls, and the sheer weight of their physical choices to hold space for reflection.
Chutzpah Dance is notable for its visible inclusivity, and this casting choice lent authenticity to the work’s core message. The dancers, each with a distinct physicality and movement identity, embodied resilience in its myriad forms, reminding the audience that healing is not monolithic but personal, cultural, and collective.
As the piece progressed, the shift toward jazz-inflected movement and showier tap sequences signaled transformation — not merely survival, but reclamation of joy. The stylistic evolution within the tap vocabulary underscored this shift; what began as an almost percussive exorcism of tension evolved into a celebratory articulation of selfhood.
The evening concluded with a post-show discussion, offering insight into the dancers’ experiences in embodying this deeply personal and communal work. Hearing their reflections reinforced the impact of the performance — not just as a piece of dance, but as an act of artistic and emotional testimony.
As a fellow dance professional, I found Unshaken to be a refreshing departure from conventional concert dance formats. Isakower's choreographic voice is both sophisticated and deeply personal, drawing from a broad movement vocabulary to craft a work that is as intellectually rigorous as it is emotionally evocative. I left the theater creatively renewed and grateful for having made the journey into the city to witness this remarkable piece.
Author:
Rebecca Davidson
Photo Credit:
Photo: Erica Isakower
