SOUNDspace

Review by Celia Ipiotis

Two industrial sized fans stood guard cooling down the Danspace Project in the East Village– and then there was silence. Rhythmic running echoed overhead in the balcony, down the staircase and then there she stood, Michelle Dorrance, the good natured pied piper of tap. Wearing loose black shorts, black top and socks, Dorrance smiled and initiated the beat, the base of all life.

From the corners and sides of the three sided stage,  talented members of her collection began to appear, complementing and counterpointing the rhythmic structures Dorrance initiated along with body slapping. In a signature move, Dorrance  and her colleagues flapped their feet on the floor forward and back, placed legs apart and dropped into a crouch. Ready, set, go!

Dancers broke off into duets, and trios, slipping into a strip of white light across the lip of the stage. Each dancer displayed their own signature style that smoothed into unison sequences, humps, slides and kicks.  in his solo, Byron Tittle’s arms swung out to the sides while tagging taps to balletic movements that sprinted into basketball player, Michael Jordan style sky-high jumps. 

About two thirds of the way in, bassist Gregory Richardson (responsible for the original music) hauled out his bass and collaborated in a musical call-and-response with dancers like the charming Luke Hickey who resembled a young, athletic Gene Kelly. 

A crowd pleaser, the compact Zakhele “Bboy Swazi” Grabowski wowed everyone with his astonishingly highly controlled, low to the ground, hip hop moves mixed into tap combos. Another impressive improviser, Elizabeth Burke switched out rhythms and tap styles in a well crafted, stylish solo.

The rest of the stand-out dance collection performing the revival of SOUNDspace (2011) included Brittany Destefano, Asha Dahomey Griffith, John Manzari, Leonardo Sandoval, and Dylan Szuch.

From the looks of it, tap dancers no longer only work the legs and feet; now the whole body cooperates in a syncopated and driving force. Tap might be the base, but Dorrance’s innate swing-dance sensibility and canny choreography add to the production’s overall euphoria.

EYE ON THE ARTS, NY — Celia Ipiotis

*All Photos By: Taylor Craft