DANCE REVIEW: LMCC SITELINES

Review by Cory Nakasue for The Artists Forum Magazine
Edited by: Amos White V for The Artists Forum, Inc.
Image: LMCC by Douglas Back

danscores by Ofelia Loret de Mola: “Available Space”

NEW YORK, NY (September 14, 2008) Transforming a park in the Financial District of downtown New York City into a Mexican circus is no small feat, yet danscores by Ofelia Loret de Mola set out to do just that. To be fair, changing the way we see downtown was the purpose of the whole Sitelines ’08 series presented by the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council and the performance of “Available Space” proved to be a fitting end to the series.

Choreographed by Ofelia Loret de Mola with Cori Kresge, the world premiere of “Available Space” (presented in part by Celebrate Mexico Now 2008), suffused City Hall Park with festive noise and color on one of the most stiflingly humid nights of the summer. The company of nimble, and dynamic performers set the scene by approaching all passerby to sit down at chess tables and benches, flirting, offering tickets, and inviting people to play games. I felt sorry for the old Chinese couple having dinner at one chess table - they were both puzzled and a little frightened, and ultimately ran away. Such is the price of invasive, audience participation theatre; there will always be innocent bystanders caught in the crossfire. Onward. The performance space was adorned with twinkle lights and hanging paper mache/decoupage sculptures. Ten dancers burst onto the scene decked out in punk rock-meets-burlesque costumes and immediately dove into a hyperphysical game of charades.

The scene was perfectly set. I felt instantly transported to an art school I’d once visited in Barcelona; graffiti and sculpture blossoming out of a multicolored, urban bohemia. I also had visions of Oaxaca during Dia De Los Muertos - a celebration of macabre, mystical chaos juxtaposed with the city’s political complexity and rich history. Good site-specific work not only conjures visions like these, but also should draw attention to the site itself. For the first time, I noticed the chess tables that the performers danced on, and the grassy knoll with a “no trespassing” sign where all ten of them collapsed into an orgy of “worms”. Incorporating games as a choreographic device to create an instant carnival atmosphere was ingenious.

The piece meandered literally and figuratively down a cement stretch of park. The audience followed along as the dancers became limp and had to be carried by other dancers as if they were dead. Some were dragged along by yellow “CAUTION” tape, and as each body lay on the ground, a chalk outline was drawn around it. There was virtuosic dancing throughout, but it seemed superfluous to the scene being created.

When we got to our destination (the other side of the park), the dancers inhabited a large square (performance area), and the spell was broken. The result being an outdoor performance art piece on an ostensible stage, complete with all of the traditional theatre watching rules: the audience is no longer involved and we must obediently watch lots of gyrating and jerky group movements with little organization and lots of pretending; pretending to fight, pretending to have fun, pretending to pretend. The difference between capturing the spirit of chaos and revolution and merely being chaotic is marked. This piece is a successful study in both.

The evening ends with a marching band leading the performers across the Brooklyn Bridge in what hauntingly feels like an exodus from lower Manhattan. The events of 9/11 looming so large because of proximity and time, one can only hope that the Sitelines series will continue to conjure new visions of downtown while reminding us to respect its history.

WEBSITES:
LMCC Sitelines 08: http://lmcc.net/art/programs/2008/sitelines/index.html,
dancescores: http://lmcc.net/art/programs/2008/sitelines/danscores.html,
Celebrate Mexico Now: http://www.mexiconowfestival.org/08/index.php

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Cory Nakasue is freelance writer and choreographer who lives in New York City. She co-directs the performance group SPINE, and teaches Pilates, yoga, and dance in studios and schools across the country.

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