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AUDIENCE REVIEW: Movement Research at the Judson Church

Performance Date:
Monday, September 15, 2014

Freeform Review:

Last Monday night at Judson Church, four unique pieces were presented as a part of the Movement Research Show. This show was free to the public and was fairly short but it was sure to leave lasting impressions on audience members in attendance.

The show opened with a solo performance by the Minna Harri Experience Set entitled "Possibellyties". This piece could have been more fluid in movement quality and the form of dialogue did not align with the subject matter, however through her choreography I was able to immediately grasp what a main part of her piece was about. The creative title itself gave audiences a hint of the intentions of this piece and so for that, I credit the artist on her ability to express her theme.

The second piece titled "Study #2 for Thunder" was a quartet created by Tatyana Tenenbaum. This piece I enjoyed the most. One of its greatest details was having the four girls sing and dance simultaneously. The delicacy of their choreography intertwined with the harmonization of their chanting really led audience members to slip into a trance of pure emotions. There were so many moments that stood out such as the contact improv, the highlights of Graham technique, and the illusion of them gliding through space rather than just moving. This piece was a bit lengthy but not in the way that you would want it to be over; you only wanted more.

Next up was another solo artist Melissa Krodman who performed a monologue and movement combination choreographed by herself and Kelly Bond. This was more of a durational piece because her monologue featured her repeating a conversation she had with a character named Terry. Throughout this repetition, it was interesting to see how subtly she would move or change positions. It was almost puppet like but she did it with such clarity, grace, and perfection that it was very astonishing to watch. She ended her performance by slowly traveling by way of animal like movement into the audience as the lights slowly faded.

The last act featured a violinist and a mover. This piece seemed to be the least developed of the four. For its first half the performer continuously log rolled across the space as the violinist would play. The last half was just her dancing, with what seemed to be a mixture of choreography and improv, until she ended her piece. There was no piece description at the time, so it was assumed that the audience could have their own interpretation on what this all meant.

I personally would not go see this show again but I do recommend it to those who enjoy viewing such unique works as they are in the process of being formed.

Photo © Architectural and interior design firm g3arch.