DC Theater Arts

Tag: contemporary dance

‘Love is a Battlefield’ at Flying V

Pat Benatar never could have seen this coming.

That her signature hit from yesteryear, “Love is a Battlefield” would be utilized so forcefully and literally in Flying V Theatre’s wonderful devised piece of the same name could never have been imagined by the 80’s pop diva. And yet I’ve never seen one of Ms. Benatar’s songs put to better use. With their imaginative, sexy, and very funny original play, Flying V has further established itself as one of DC’s most exciting new theatre companies.

Robert Bowen Smith and Natalie Cutcher. Photo by Ryan Maxwell Photography.

Flying V Fights: Love is a Battlefield is not a single narrative, but rather a collection of about a dozen vignettes, all non verbal, that feature some combination of love and violence. Indeed, sex is never far from death in this show, and the line that separates dance and fight choreography is often blurred. Director and Fight Director Jonathan Ezra Rubin, assisted by Jamie Doughty and Scott S. Turner, skillfully present a stunning range of fight choreography that is infused with grace and feeling. The result is a fast-moving and highly entertaining show that is physical in every sense of the word.

The ensemble consists of the multi-talented Theresa Buechler, Danny Cackley, Natalie Cutcher, Rebecca Hausman, Jon Jon Johnson, and Robert Bowen Smith. Each plays multiple roles and dies in multiple ways from a variety of causes. Oh, sure, you have your standard guns, knives, and axes. But rapiers, tridents, whips? A bowling ball? There is even a good old fashioned boys vs. girls pillow fight. The violence in the show, particularly during the extra-jam-packed first vignette (“Fighters Mega Mix”) has an aura of Saturday morning cartoons. And although there were no ACME safes in Flying V’s production, there was a certain amount of irony and even whimsy to the knockout death matches. This was complemented by a soundtrack bubbling with pop hits and a lighting design (courtesy of Kristin A. Thompson) that included two laser lights, a strobe, and ample fog. All of this spectacle fit right in with the gloriously garish Love is a Battlefield. And yes, they do use the song, and it’s delicious.

Just as I was settling in to a performance I assumed would be full of splash but bereft of any deeper emotions, Flying V pulled a fast one on me and made me feel feelings. Because apart from the Roadrunner/Wile E. Coyote dynamic, there are genuinely heavy subjects explored here. We see relationships bloom and bust, we see people torn apart by loss, sometimes literally. In the “Oh My Heart” vignette, Robert Bowen Smith thrashes about the stage in a self destructive display of heartbreak. Disturbing and compelling, Smith makes very literal the all-too-familiar sensation of giving your heart away to the person who once loved you.

It is to Jonathan Ezra Rubin’s credit that he can present the world’s most talked about subject, love, in a new light. Sometimes the abstract is made very literal, like when a fighting couple put on WWE masks and rile the crowd to their side like Hulk Hogan. Or, like during the beautiful vignette “Toxicity,” the physicality of the actors transcends literal meaning and begins to speak for itself in a language that couldn’t possibly be verbalized. It is during these moments that Love is a Battlefield shines brightest.

Given the many settings within the show, Set Designer Andrea “Dre” Moore was very successful in crafting a design that suited the needs of the actors/combatants, and was visually compelling of and by itself. Made up of sharp angles, paper screens and multiple platforms vaguely reminiscent of an urban landscape, the set also provided opportunities for backlighting and shadow play. Rounding out the show’s sharp design team was Sound Designer Neil McFadden, who, aside from the aforementioned pop tunes, utilized instrumental music and the actor’s own statements about sex and relationships to create an evocative and omnipresent soundscape.

Rebecca Hausman and Jon Jon Johnson. Photo by Ryan Maxwell Photography.

Flying V Fights: Love is a Battlefield is an endlessly entertaining assault on the senses, visually arresting, and, surprisingly, deeply moving. It is clear that everyone involved is trained, talented, and passionate about their work. But before you get into a relationship with any of them, please remember your bullet proof vest.

Running Time: 90 minutes, with no intermission.

Flying V Fights: Love is a Battlefield ends its run today-Sunday, June 29th at 2:00 PM at The Writer’s Center-4508 Walsh Street, in Bethesda, Maryland. Purchase tickets online.

LINK
Jon Jon Johnson on ‘Flying V Fights: Love is a Battlefield’-Which Plays Through This Sunday at Writer’s Center.

https://youtu.be/2BEbk4gOzRA

June 29, 2014
Jon Jon Johnson on ‘Flying V Fights: Love is a Battlefield’-Which Plays Through This Sunday at Writer’s Center

I had been approached to audition for projects with Flying V before, and I had always been busy. When I was approached to audition for Flying V Fights, it felt like the stars and planets all aligned. They were looking for fight choreography and movement experience, which is something that I don’t typically get to do.

Robert Bowen Smith and Natalie Cutcher. Photo by Ryan Maxwell Photography.

So I brought along a pair of deer-horn knives (a weapon specific to Bagua Kung Fu, which I studied), and showed them a routine. When directors look at actors my size, they don’t ever expect that I can move in the way I do. I’m always prepared to meet skepticism, but Jon Rubin and Jason Schlafstein were so open about this that they didn’t care about my appearance.

So I wound up in this cast, and haven’t looked back yet. The other 5 in the cast (Theresa Buechler, Danny Cackley, Natalie Cutcher, Rebecca Hausman, and Robert Bowen Smith) all brought movement styles vastly different to my own. Considering the highly martial nature of our show, we all immediately developed a close bond of trust with one another. After all, we had only a month to devise, develop, and rehearse several different scenes, all revolving around combat, violence, and love. We had to open up, be vulnerable with our emotions and spirits, and also be trusting of our partners to not hurt us in the staged combat. While that’s a tall order, I was so pleased to see everyone else in the crew and cast step up. The Flying V Team runs their rehearsals with a high level of transparency; nothing is withheld from us, people speak clearly, attempt to communicate, and never try to manipulate.

Such a rehearsal process cultivates an excellent rehearsal room; both a physically and emotionally safe one.

The show itself is quite unique. The only other times I’ve seen shows combine this many varieties of stage violence or stage combat have been at the Fringe Festival. At the same time, without being satirical, Flying V Fights looks at relationships through clowning, tango, Pro-Wrestling, Knife Fighting, MMA, Bo Staff, Gladiator style battles, contemporary dance, and a few others. For me, as a performer, I find utter joy in the eclectic mix of styles and stories, and I’m sure that many in the audience feel a similar delight! It’s also rare to feel the sheer joy of exploration and creativity in a rehearsal room mix with the special adrenaline of staged combat. Combine that with the energy of a well-thought out, painstakingly crafted devised piece, and everything just feels electric! That explosive mix of energy reverberates through the space in a way entirely new to me, and hopefully to audiences as well.

Knife-happy Jon Jon Johnson. Photo by Ryan Maxwell Photography.

Flying V Fights: Love is a Battlefield is delightfully different, and differently delightful. So far, each audience member I’ve spoken to has found something enjoyable, something that resonates, or something that hits home. That energy I spoke of earlier? We just want to share it with you! I encourage (and not just because I’m in it) everyone to come see our work! Come early for the pre-show lobby, where you can play some Cards Against Humanity or some old-school Rock’em Sock’em Robots, then stay for the show where we’ll romp and revel with you!

REMAINING PERFORMANCES

Writer’s Center
4508 Walsh Street
Bethesda, MD (10 minute walk from the Bethesda Metro on the Red Line)
1 hour, 30 minutes

TONIGHT: Friday the 27TH at 8 pm

TOMORROW: Saturday the 28TH at 2 pm and 8 pm

SUNDAY the 29TH at 2 pm.

BUY TICKETS HERE.

https://youtu.be/2BEbk4gOzRA

June 27, 2014
‘Hubbard Street Dance Chicago’ at The Kennedy Center by Derek Mong

You’ve never seen dance quite like this.

The company of Hubbard Street Dance Chicago blew audiences away at opening night of their 3-day run at The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts’ Eisenhower Theatre. Under the artistic direction of Glenn Edgerton, the company performed four distinct pieces—related by the intense focus on the exactitude of human movement, the mellifluous fluidity by which each member of the company seamlessly moved, and their refreshing, jolting take on contemporary dance.

Billed as a contemporary dance company “acclaimed for its original and innovative repertoire created by an eclectic group of the world’s leading choreographers as well as its wonderfully versatile dancers,” Hubbard Street Dance Chicago lives up to the hype as “one of the most original forces in contemporary dance.” As it celebrates 36 years of world-class dance, it’s no surprise that the dance company is back at The Kennedy Center after a sold-out performance in 2010. It’s also no surprise that The Washington Post calls them “a gamble worth pursuing,” while The New York Times praises their talent: “When it comes to trendy, glamorous repertory, it’s hard to think of an American company as well stocked as Hubbard Street.”

Hubbard Street Dancer Emilie Leriche and ensemble in ‘Fluence’ by Robyn Mineko Williams. Photo by Quinn B Wharton.

The evening began dramatically with Little mortal jump by Choreographer Alejandro Cerrudo. If contemporary dance ever had a strong opening, this was it. The seamless integration of flowing, upbeat music, lighting design (Michael Korsch), set design (Alejandro Cerrudo), and costume design (Branimira Ivanova) transported audiences into a dream-like fantasy where the light and darkness themselves become characters in a choreographed daydream of romance and intimacy. With four giant black squares that the dancers would spin to selectively reveal and hide the dancers, the piece was captivating and mysterious from the very beginning, and the perfect integration of stagecraft and dance. The opening sequence, when a single dancer leaped from the stage and, after a flash of light, disappeared into the orchestra pit, is the perfect example of this—which left audience members dumbfounded in a collective, audible gasp.

The evening continued with Fluence choreographed by former company member Robyn Mineko Williams. Full of staccato movements and twitchy movements, set to futuristic, almost cacophonous music that could be the soundtrack of any sci-fi movie (music by Robert F. Haynes), the piece was intentionally unnerving—as if the performers had become abducted by aliens or were possessed by some outside force. The combination of swift, karate-like movements and composed puppetry made the performance unforgettable and illuminated the leading edge of contemporary dance. Billed as a piece with “quick double-takes and stuttering movements [that] suggest that the entire piece itself is fighting internal glitches, disintegration, or a faulty internet connection,” the five men and four women who performed this piece certainly did it justice, seeming strangely human and foreign all at once.

A shorter piece in the evening came with Cerrudo’s next piece PACOPEPEPLUTO, a comic piece in which three male dancers—clad only in dance belts, dance sensually to Dean Martin hits. The piece, contrasted against the visual intensity of the previous pieces, was certainly refreshing as it balanced “aesthetic austerity” and the choreographer’s “sharp wit.”

Hubbard Street Dancers Ana Lopez, left, and Alejandro Cerrudo in ‘Casi-Casa’ by Mats Ek. Photo by Todd Rosenberg.

The finale piece of the evening was leading Swedish choreographer Mats Ek’s 2009 work Casi-Casa. The piece—which had only a minimalistic set design (Peder Freiij) made used of simplistic, everyday objects—highlighted how even everyday encounters can hold a sense of wonder and richness. As Choreographer Mats Ek puts it: “What’s important to me most is reading the newspaper, watching my children, watching animals move in the park, watching the traffic—things that are not meant to be seen.” The piece ultimately shows the relatability of contemporary dance, dispelling a common misnomer of contemporary dance as foreign and grounding the sensory experience in a very real, common sense of reality.

Running Time: 2 hours and 9 minutes–Piece 1 (25 min); Intermission (20 min); Piece 2 (20 min); Pause (3 min); Piece 3 (7 min); Intermission (15 min); Piece 4 (39 min).

Hubbard Street Dance Chicago has once more performance tonight at 8 PM at The Kennedy Center’s Eisenhower Theater – 2700 F St NW, in Washington, DC. For tickets, call the box office at (202) 467-4600, or purchase them online.

October 18, 2013