Fall For Dance!

Last night I got to see a wonderful program at the Fall for Dance festival at City Center. I think this is the fourth year in a row I've gone. Definitely at least the third year.

The program included:

1. Merce Cunningham Dance Company. I had never seen them before and was particularly excited for this opportunity. They performed XOVER, Cunningham's last collaboration with Rauschenberg. The music was Jonh Cage's Aria and Fontana Mix. I have to say, I've always had trouble with Cage. Because of this, XOVER was difficult for me, and it took me a while to really enter the piece. Once I was there I was transfixed, but the experience seemed rather cerebral to me.

2. Gallim Dance. I had never heard of this company before, but they were FANTASTIC. Really acrobatic and exuberant and joyous and funky. The dance they performed was I Can See Myself in Your Pupil and the music was by an Israeli band called Balkan Beat Box (I'm going to download a CD tonight!). They are the company pictured here.

3. Madhavi Mudgal performing Vistaar. This was Indian dance with live musicians (our seats were so sucky we couldn't see them at all). The dance was beautiful, but kind of monotonous and less interesting than the other pieces in the program.

4. Miami City Ballet performaing "The Golden Section" choreographed by Twyla Tharpe to music by David Byrne. I LOVE Twyla Tharpe and found this dance so dynamic and fun. It was on par with the Gallim piece. It was aggressive and sexy and tight at the same time that it was complex and vast. If that makes any sense. It really uplifted me.