American Dance Guild Festival: Honors Joan Miller, Ronald K. Brown and Celia Ipiotis

The American Dance Guild opened their “Leaps Beyond Bounds” performance festival at the Ailey Citigroup Theater, where four days of magic making will ultimately showcase 30 choreographic works, and the award presentations honoring three Lifetime Achievement and Distinguished Service in Dance Honorees.

Coupled with the award presentations, the Thursday night attendees were lucky enough to get
tastings of the impact Joan Miller, Ron K. Brown, and Celia Ipiotis have had on the dance
community. And that word, community, is so vital to the explanation, because of how these
dance professionals have shifted and unlocked connection-building and name-making within this
field of artistic endeavor.

The choreographic works, followed by the awards ceremony, allowed the audience to bear witness to the magic, and then see the groundwork that continuously perpetuates its vitality.

Isabelle Evans debuted “Creer, C’est Vivre Deux Fois”. The solo bounced between sharpness and fluidity, bright color and blankness. Inspired by Albert Camus’s reflection, “To create, is to live twice”, Evans embodied this doubled life force by vividly capturing the space.

Peter Stathas’ duet “Assuage,” performed by Lauren Twomley and Ty Graynor, instilled tension
within viewers. Despite the title suggesting a relief of burdens, the piece depicted a strained
relationship, exposing the dynamics of partner-conflict through reaching, searching, and jarring
connections that never faltered in intensity.

Sarah Zehnder, Samantha Cammuso, and Angelina Cohen presented “Enduring Disposition”,
addressing global injustices against women. With a soundscape of speeches by diverse women
advocating for women’s rights, performed by women of varying intersectionalities, its intention
was undeniable. The dancers moved together like gears, abrading expectations, advancing
towards the gender-neutral goal of gender equity through athleticism and vulnerability.

The voice of Emma Watson urged listeners to view equity through the lens of spectrum.
Masculine and feminine as not opposites, but qualities within everyone. Torens L. Johnson’s
performance of Stephanie Powell’s tribute to Dudley Williams, “A Tribute to Dudley”, expressed
this experience. Johnson’s entrance, amidst colorful light and billowing fabric, echoed the rest of
the movement, just as fluid and gentle, the embodiment of strength within grace.

The choreographic programming concluded with Red Clay Dance Co., Chicago’s premiere
Afro-contemporary company, presenting an excerpt from “Incarnation I” by Du’Bois A’Keen.
A’Keen explores the body as “archive, access point, and alter.” The cast enters, in a sea of red,
and as explained by A’Keen, moves to answer “How do we prepare ourselves to be good
ancestors? What are we downloading to pass on?”

The honorees and their presentations reinforced the inevitable diagnosis of dance: that it makes the world a better place. Joan Miller archives emphasized that the question is as important as the answer, Celia Ipiotis reinvigorated the audience to stay dedicated to witnessing, documenting, and accounting for the full spectrum of dance and humanity ,and Ron K. Brown stood before the audience, and declared his award as a reset, a new beginning in his artistic pursuits.

Composer Daniel Roumain once explained — if you want to live forever, put it in your art. The expertise showcased at the American Dance Guild on Thursday affirmed the enduring truth of this sentiment.

EYE ON THE ARTS, NY — Emma Edy Morris