Editor’s note: This is the first of an occasional series of short notes on local dance by dance writer Tara Mitton Catao.
By Tara Mitton Catao
Saturday night, in support of the local dance scene, I went to the Duncan Theatre to see create.Dance.florida. Eight works were presented by 45 dance artists. Although there was a great variety in the caliber of the performers and the works presented, overall it was a worthwhile and quite impressive presentation.
The Dancers’ Space is now in its second year as an organization, having joined forces with the Duncan Theatre and the Kravis Center with a shared mission to connect, nurture and present dance artists from South Florida. Under the directorship of Danielle Armstrong, Diana Hoffmaster and Donna Murray, the organization is carving out substantial opportunities for artists and audiences alike.
Arriving early enough, I stood in a very long line of very amiable people to buy tickets. I’d like to think everyone was in such a good mood because we were all quite pleased to see such a great turnout for local dance.
The local dancers even had a chance to perform a work by renowned choreographer David Parsons. The Dancers’ Space had commissioned this work in partnership with the American Dance Legacy Initiative, an organization based at Brown University that shares similar goals.
There were a number of works that were strongly dance theater. Lara Tinari’s edgy James: 69 Love Jigs (-64) Love, Death & Motown and Rosie Herrera’s randomly humorous Dining Alone resonated. Both artists are Miami-based and each has her own project/company; respectively, the TOC project and Rosie Herrera Dance Theatre.
But it was Boynton Beach resident and Juilliard graduate Kyra Jean Green who stole my eye. It was truly sublime to watch the subtlety she displayed in her solo from The Man Who Travelled Nowhere in Time. The somewhat off-the-wall movement was so engaging, and when it was combined with Green’s calm and beautiful technique, it became something quite exceptional, revealing an intimacy that perhaps only a choreographer can expose when dancing her own steps.
