August 2006

July was a surprisingly busy month. Therefore a significant number of images will overflow into August.

Steve Tomlinson's American Fiesta, was an interesting experience. Keeping and audience engaged for 90 minutes of monologue is no easy feat. The dialogue and delivery - weaving history, human behavior behavior, obsession, symbolism, and of course...Fiestaware, was fascinating. The staging also made me think of ways to make the performance images interesting. I am moderately pleased with the photos.

The World Premier of Austin's newest dance company, the American Repertory Ensemble, was an absolute treat on several fronts. This company is unique - offering both live music and dance together. Additionally, the quality of the dancers was exceptional. How could it not be.... with dancers from professional ballet companies across the country...Ballet Austin, Boston Ballet, Atlanta Ballet, Joffrey Ballet, and Oregon Ballet Theater. Each of the five dance pieces (with and without Pointe), each had a very unique feel. The display of the broad spectrum of different styles of movement, and the variety in choreography kept me glued to the whole performance. The manner of exploring the wide array of emotions was very engaging. I got a chance to recapture two pieces I had photographed before, but with a different set of dancers. Solumn Opus, the piece from ACDFA, performed at the Kennedy Center and the second was the Tchaikovsky PDD by Balanchine. Both were an educational experience on how the same choreography performed/interpreted by different dancers could have a different feel. After the Austin show, the group was featured at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival for several runs. Artistic directors David Justin (Dance) and Rob Deemer (Music) have brought fresh and high caliber art to the dance world. I wish them the best in their journey. Visit their web site at www.americanrepensemble.org. More knowledgeable folks than I have detailed their impressions at the following links:
www.austin360.com/, www.austinist.com/, lightning.austin360blogs.com/, and www.austinchronicle.com/.

I has been more than a year since I experienced a performance of KDH Dance Company. And Then There were Twelve, their latest offering had three pieces. The opening and the finale were my favorites. The way lines were used in contemporary/modern for was interesting. The choreography was more structured than what I remember from the last performance. Houstonians can look forward to the company at the Weekend of Texas Contemporary Dance in September.

Guru Bichitrananda Swain's troupe Rudrakshya is touring the USA for the first time. I had seen his group when they were with the Odissi Dance Academy a few years ago. There were several new faces in this group. The quality of the choreography is as appealing as ever. Two of the pieces were the same from the 2003 show, but it was a pleasure to see them once more. The dancers were of high quality - beautiful form. Some of the minor stylistic differences between the dancers was more obvious this time. The proscenium was a little small for the size of the group, but they seemed to space well. Photography was a challenge since I was a just a few feet away from the performers. The group will be in the country until mid September. Let friends and family know of their visit. More information can be found at http://rudrakshya.com/.

Coming up - Austin's newest dance company, American Repertory Ensemble's Dialogues, Zilker Theatre's Summer Musical, 7 Brides for 7 Brothers, Stars of the Cuban Ballet, Austin Summer Stock West Side Story, Proposals, and Stinky Cheese Man, and finally the play American Fiesta.

Images from these shows and the compilation galleries can be viewed until September at insightphotography.smugmug.com/Dance and insightphotography.smugmug.com/Theater.