Shawn Harper
“A People’s Cry” was inspired by the film Cry Freedom.
Kanopy Dance’s Dark Tales is an intense program of modern dance and physical theater, including a premiere of a haunting story by renowned corporeal mime performers Steve Wasson and Corinne Soum from Theatre de l’Ange Fou.
Dark Tales, running through Feb. 18 at Overture’s Promenade Hall, starts with Kanopy co-artistic director’s Lisa Thurrell’s Lamentation Variation. I have seen several iterations of the piece, but new dancers make it a different experience. Alyssa Jendusa, Brienna Tipler and Sarah Wolf were all excellent on opening night. Tipler completely inhabits this exploration of grief. She is the first to move, and her expressive upper body tells a story of pain. As she dances, the others watch her intently, but later when they take their turns, she looks away. The piece closes with the women bowed down on the floor, their hands splayed out protecting the vulnerable spot where neck and back meet.
Sandra Kaufmann, a frequent guest artist with Kanopy, performed an excerpt from Deborah Zall’s La Bonne Dame: Remembering George Sand. Recently there is renewed interest in Zall’s work; she studied with Martha Graham and is known internationally for her dramatic solo portrayals of women. Sand is certainly a compelling character to explore, but despite Kaufmann’s commitment to the role and strong technique, I wasn’t enamored with the solo, which seems dated. Early in the piece, a fluttering ribbon prop got my hackles up, and it was hard for me to be open-minded about what came after.
Kaufmann’s own piece, A People’s Cry, was choreographed in 1988 and was inspired by the film Cry Freedom about slain anti-apartheid activist Stephen Biko. Olivia Rivard (a forceful soloist), Erica Pinigis, Jendusa and Wolf dance to Miriam Makeba and Peter Gabriel, and their protest is as powerful as the wail of bagpipes in Gabriel’s eulogy, “Biko.”
Wasson and Soum’s The Melancholy of Angels, an excerpt from a larger work, is oddly beautiful and these two are fascinating movers. An angel (Soum) observes as an aging soldier (Wasson) reflects on his troubled past.
The entire second half of the program is the premiere of Wasson and Soum’s Bluebeard Through the Glass Darkly, an exploration of the French folktale. This third collaboration for Kanopy and Theatre de l’Ange Fou is set in a French castle where the wealthy Bluebeard has hidden the bodies of his former wives. He’s found a new bride, and before departing on a voyage, he leaves a key behind, which she uses to uncover his secret history of violence.
As Bluebeard, Kanopy co-artistic director Robert E. Cleary has found the perfect role, playing a menacing yet charismatic monster. As his latest bride, Rivard demonstrates that she is a fine actor in addition to being an accomplished dancer. The piece could use some tightening, but there are some genuinely frightening and ominous elements. I was spooked by the brides’ veil/shrouds and Cleary’s sudden appearance among the dead wives to ensnare Rivard.
There are dashes of wit and clever movement choices, like the herky-jerky lurching steps as Rivard and Cleary “walk down the aisle” on the table during their wedding party. They repeat the movements later as their union deteriorates. This made me appreciate Wasson and Soum’s craft.
Once again, I’m struck by Kanopy’s willingness to share the spotlight by welcoming collaborations with other artists, exposing Madison audiences to a broader range of cultural experiences. It’s clear that Kanopy’s dancers approached the work with sincerity and curiosity.
