FALL FOR DANCE Program 5

What might a classical Indian dance and a pas de deux by French choreographer Maurice Bejart
have in common? Drama. Lots of drama. At Fall for Dance, the celebrated opener of the New
York dance season, unlikely connections like these are made. Each program highlights commonalities or sharp differences between genres and companies – or simply gives the chance to discover, as the enthusiastic FFD audiences appreciate time and time again.

One of the most striking aspects of Bijani Satpathy’s riveting solo Sitaharan was the power of
her jumps – yes jumps – which gave a decidedly modern look to her crystalline storytelling.
Satpathy’s command of Odissi style Indian classical dance included beautifully crafted mudras
(hand gestures) and sharp, wide-open, dramatic eyes. The surprise came with how hearty these
usually delicate expressions and movements can be, especially with the symbiosis between
dancer and singers and musicians Bindhu Malini Narayanaswamy, Anjib Kumar Kunda,
Sibasankar Satpathy, and Srinibas Satpathy.

When she burst onto the stage, Satpathy circled the space in small speedy runs and quick jumps, conjuring the flight of a deer or other wild creature. Later she transformed into a warrior shooting an arrow, and a lover dancing with a partner. Every step and movement, such as deliberately slow placement of her red-tinged arch gently on the floor, conveyed more than a thousand words.

Bejart’s Songs of the Wayfarer created for Nureyev in 1971, and danced by Paris Opera stars
Louvet and Marchand, brought us a different sort of drama – the intensity of losing a lover, or
maybe even oneself. Danced to the German lieder of the same name by Gustav Mahler, two
men start standing, one behind the other like a shadow, mirroring each other with gorgeous
technique and deeply connected interactions; sometimes angry, sometimes tender. The natural
homoeroticism that emanated was muted: one saw friendly competition, mentorship,
domination, as well as patient tenderness.

The venerable Maina Gielgud, who worked with Bejart himself, has explained how the nature of the work and its meaning changes with each cast. These two etoiles, who grew up together at the POB school, gave us a playfulness that ended in despair… the cause remaining mysterious in the end.

The Brazilian company Grupo Corpo’s gut-busting finale, Gira by Rodrigo Pederneiras, conveyed an outward intensity full of sheer athleticism, sex, and stamina. Dressed in white Afro-Caribbean skirts, both men and
women were topless, with the exception of a minimally supportive sheer mesh for the women.
The blend of modern dance, ballet, contemporary flexible torsos and spines that rippled
endlessly, with Afro-inflected movement, blended into a signature rag-doll-like thrashing of the
head and arms that accompanied the staccato sharp movement of the feet.

Male/female duets with explicity sexual bumping and grinding seemed both over the top and no big deal, helping to build the non-stop energetic frenzy reminiscent of Tharp’s In the Upper Room. And just like
that, the dancers brought us to a shared, exhilarating climax. A fitting conclusion for the 20 th
anniversary season of Fall for Dance.

EYE ON THE ARTS, NY — Nicole Duffy