Jonah Bokaer reviews

Check out your reviews of Jonah Bokaer's "The Invention of Minus One" on the Reviews page of the High 5 website.
These are the ones I got. If you'd like to submit yours, send it to Eric. If you'd like to edit anything or submit a revision, feel free!

Cathy's review
Emily's review
Jennifer's review
Kesi's review
Michelle's review
Rachel's review

Brooklyn, we feel ya.

Dance TRaC OUTING #2!

Grupo Corpo perform BENGUELÊ AND BREU this Thursday night at the Brooklyn Academy of Music.

BAM!

Make sure to get there by 7:00 to meet Brian! The show starts at 7:30.

BAM is within walking distance from the 2, 3, 4, 5, Q, N, R, M, G, B, D, and C trains.

Click the map below for more specific directions.


enjoy!

~eric

Dance TRaC meets Jonah Bokaer, tonight!

From the hyped- press release:

Named one of Dance Magazine’s “25 To Watch” in 2006, award-winning media artist and choreographer Jonah Bokaer debuts the world premiere of his new multi-media dance work The Invention Of Minus One in a co-presentation by Danspace Project and the Abrons Arts Center.

With this full length evening of technology-infused work, Bokaer endeavors to propel dance and motion capture into new realms of innovation. The program opens with False Start, a solo animated, choreographed, and performed by the artist with the use of state-of-the-art digital choreographic software. Bokaer examines the erasure of the moving body and the trace of its presence, while paying homage to Jasper Johns’ renowned painting of the same title. False Start completes a trilogy of solos of similar aesthetic concerns that includes Charade (2006) and Nudedescendance (2005).

The program also features the world premiere of The Invention Of Minus One, an epic investigation resulting from one year of motion capture research on the moving bodies of four dance artists. The Invention Of Minus One is performed by award-winning dancers: Holley Farmer, Rashaun Mitchell, and Banu Ogan. Music by Christian Marclay, virtual décor by Michael Cole, lighting by Aaron Copp, and original costumes by Isaac Mizrahi complement the work.

(I found this write-up on Craig's List. Has anyone ever gone to Craig's List to find out about shows before??)

Check out the New York Times Review from Friday's paper.

enjoy!
~eric

Spring TRaC Application now available!

Another season of Dance TRaC is around the corner!

Go the TRaC Homepage at www.high5tix.org and download the Spring 2008 TRaC Application. Also available are a flier for the new TRaC season and an invitation to the Open House on February 13th (4:30 - 5:30). Please download those and distribute to any friends or teachers or mentors who you think would be interested.

I hope to see you all at the Open House - if not before! It's only a month away already. As many of you know, having been to a TRaC Open House before, I'll need some volunteers for speaking on the alumni panel. Volunteers? Contact me if you're interested. The rest of you can just hang out, snack, and mingle with any teachers or students who are interested in learning more about the program.

And of course you should bring a friend or two! Maybe they're interested in signing up for Spring TRaC and don't even know it yet....

Looking forward to the new season!

~eric

Parsons Dance

Join High 5 Tuesday January 8 for a peformance of the Parsons Dance company. Great technical dancing and charismatic performers. A pleasurable experience is practically guaranteed!

Ailey

Although I only stayed for the first piece on the program, it was enough to illustrate the awesome talents of the Ailey dancers. Moreover, the piece, "Love Stories," which ostensibly depicts the history of the company, has a particularly cool section choreographed by Philly native Rennie Harris. The hip-hop and break dancing is quite a bit removed from the typical Ailey vernacular, and they cut loose. It's an awesome, spine tingling combination of moves and performance that is universally accessible--the crowd went wild!

2 questions to always consider....

#1
What is the art trying to accomplish?

#2
Does it succeed?

Keeping the art in mind, you can never go wrong in your reviews. You will avoid the pitfalls: "i didn't like it. it was good. i liked it. it was bad..." blah, blah. The interesting stuff is in the WHYs and the WHATs! Why did it succeed in parts, but not as a whole? What was it (the dance, the play, the painting, the song) trying to accomplish? Did it do more or less? Are you cool with where it went?

And tell us what you think! A little interpretation/a little context (do some research!) is always nice for your readers. Remember to keep them - US, your readers - in mind.... Or, just write for you. I carry a small notebook with me everywhere I go. Writers write. You are all writers because you write. That's the only requirement. :)

Open hearts, open minds.
The most important thing I want you to take away from TRaC is to be open to things foreign to you. Crain your neck, your ears, your brain to understand. Get excited, and bring people along!

Art is communication and communion.
That's what makes this fun....

happy december.
~eric