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AUDIENCE REVIEW: Project AUM at the Moving Beauty Series

Company:
Project AUM at the Moving Beauty Series

Performance Date:
04/18/2013

Company / Show / Event
Project AUM at the Moving Beauty Series

Performance Date
04/18/2013

Venue / Location
The Secret Theater

A bit about you:
(your occupation, your website, etc.)
Cecilia Camara

What was the last time you moved your body?
Yesterday

Why did you go to the show? What did you expect to see?
I was invited by my friends. I had very high expectations of the pieces. I expected to see body-conscious dancers who could move in unimaginable ways!

Freeform Review:





“How To Be: A Mind & Body Dialogue”,  is a contemporary dance performance which recently had  its debut in  The Moving Beauty Series,  at The Secret Theater on Long Island City.

“How To Be...” was a collaborative effort between Studio Anya and Perceptions Dance Company. The joint venture, called “Project AUM” grew out of  an education initiative using the techniques and principles of Studio Anya's Curriculum AUM to support the creation of visual and performing arts.

"How to Be...",  was the first movement performance of Project AUM which featured Studio Anya's community of teaching artists and Perceptions Dance company members as collaborative creators. It put a heavily accented mind+body fitness spin on what we know as contemporary dance.

As the piece moved along we found ourselves entranced by ideas promoted by Studio Anya ; for example, “Creating space to find alignment” and “Space: simplify, polarities, align, contract, expand”  and “Notice the space between the inhale and the exhale”. By the end of the show one was left with the feeling of just having had an intense yogi-inspired meditation session, without barely having to blink an eye.

It may come as no surprise that Studio Anya’s founder and teacher , Courtney Bauer danced in the performance. What may be a bit of a shock to discover is that this was her first time performing. It may have been her years of training in body and mind work that made her move so effortlessly , or it could been the incredibly supportive attitude of artistic director and Perceptions Dance founder, Melissa Gendrea.  Gendrea considers   both Bauer and Curriculum AUM an inspiration.

Gendreau, not lacking in achievement, has performed professionally with various companies before focusing on the development Perceptions Dance. The company   has toured nationally, performing and educating students of all levels and backgrounds.

The other performers of the evening  should not go without mention.  While Bauer’s opening of the performance  (in conjunction with Oscar Truijillo) may have been exceptionally executed, the point  would not have  been driven home without Trujillo, Lori Ann Cobos, Laura Colon, Eileen Klugh, Britni Lariviere, Kyung Joon Lee, and Sarah Sadie Newett - all of whom are teachers and students of the Curriculum AUM.

What was  the point?  Perhaps it was  to convey that the body’s boundaries and potential are different for every individual; that everyone is beautiful despite their limitations;  that we can all strive to achieve our body’s best, which just may be a good dance. 

The only question now is: When is the next performance?

Studio Anya: www.studioanya.com
Perceptions Dance: www.perceptionsdance.org
Project AUM: www.studioanya.com/project-posture/project-aum