Fringe Fest 2013 Reviews: Day of Dance

The
dance community in Rochester is more vibrant and diverse than most probably
realize. But if you went to the Day of
Dance at RAPA during the final day of the Fringe Fest, you certainly left
knowing that. From swing and Lindy Hop to contemporary, step dance, and hip-hop,
to tap and even Bhangra, the performances really ran
the gamut in terms of style.

Members
of Groove Juice Swing started things
off with a fast-paced fun Lindy Hop piece. Watching these young folks twist,
twirl, flip, and triple-step around their partners with ease is, in a word,
fun. They were all grinning from ear to ear the whole time. Their passion for the
art of this dance form oozed out of every move. And it’s not just enthusiasm
for the dance; they’ve got the technique, too. Blink and you’ll miss every
little triple-step in between the spins, kicksk and
flips. How they didn’t pass out by the end of their set is beyond me. The group
(in various combinations) performed more than a dozen routines, including a
graceful tribute to Fred Astaire (tap shoes, tux with tails and all), classic
Charleston-inspired flapper routines, and more Lindy Hop routines than I could
keep track. Their were also a couple of numbers by the organization’s all-girl
jazz and Charleston group, Flower City Follies, which were part dance, part
Lucille Ball-esque antics, and 100 percent
entertaining.

After
their first few numbers, Groove Juice traded off sets with different groups
from the University of Rochester’s Diversity
of Dance program. The first few pieces were contemporary, with about a
dozen or so dancers taking over the stage. The intense pounding music of the
first number seemed to move the dancers naturally, each going off in rounds of
arabesques and contortions. Two of the dancers appeared to fight or perhaps
just struggle against one another, but the intention of the dance wasn’t
necessarily crystal clear. Although it was danced well, the numbers were,
unfortunately, not particularly memorable.

The
next few numbers from the UR dancers flew by: a belly dance routine (stellar
hip control and smooth and slinky arm motions, which matched the emo music perfectly), a fast-paced, passionate, and raw bachata (these dancers were really feeling it), and a
hip-hop/step dance (the most in-sync routine of the day. The dancers were
fierce and knew how to work the crowd.

After
a brief intermission, Rhythm Tap
Rochester took the stage again. I had seen their show earlier in the week
and was pleasantly surprised that William “Bill” Evans and Cheryl Johnson opted
to show different routines this time than they did in their other show. Unlike
their previous performance, this focused on some more popular and well-known
(at least in the tap world) types of performances. They started with a routine
made famous by Bill “Bojangles” Robinson set to “Bye Bye Blackbird,” sung by Sammy Davis, Jr. Classic
combination. It was jazzy and full of intricate rhythms the pair hit hard and
right in sync. Next, Johnson attempted a Nicholas Brothers duet…by herself. And
she pulled it off (don’t ask me how, I’m still trying to work that out). Her
feet move so fast, but with such accuracy and flow, it’s mesmerizing to watch.
The pair ended with an a cappella piece that really cooked. I wish they had
included at least one of these routines in their other performance at Fringe
Fest — they’re crowd pleasers that were danced brilliantly.

Members
of Rochester Dance Project took the
stage next. Their performances were not only wonderfully choreographed and
danced, but perfectly paced. The first few routines
flowed one right into the next. The extension these dancers have is incredible
— it’s clear from their flawless arabesques and perfect pique turns they’ve had
years of training. Most of their numbers were slow, smooth, and beautiful, but
some had more of an edge. The fourth piece featured four girls, clearly ready
to kick some ass. The style was a mix between contemporary and a kickboxing
class, and made for a fun and fascinating watch. My other favorite was Kelly
Johnson’s solo, set to “Be the Best You,” a monologue set to music encouraging
you not to be a cookie cutter, or a follower, but to be an individual, a
tailor-made you, the best you can be. Johnson embodied this speech without so
much as uttering a word. It was one of the most unique performances of the
afternoon, and one of my favorites to watch. The group closed out with “Falling
into Palpable Wonder,” the same piece that was performed at Present Tense
Dance’s show at Eastman earlier in the week. Sitting at much closer range, I
was able to notice some of the beautiful subtleties of the routine than I saw
the first time around in the bigger venue.

The
final group, GeneseoBhangra, had
the most energy of all and closed out the show with a bang. The first part of
the piece included the use of props — three spears and three accordion-like
wooden tools, which the dancers clapped and slapped in perfect unison to one
another. The dancers squatted and bent and shook to the music with such
excitement and joy, it was impossible not to smile. They even added a bit of a
hip-hop edge in parts of it, which, surprisingly, jived remarkably well with
the beats of this traditional Punjabi dance.

My
biggest beef with Day of Dance in general was how it was organized, or rather
not. The groups were chunked off by time segments, some went on longer than
perhaps was necessary, others felt like they barely had any time on stage and
the whole thing felt disjointed. On top of it, while RAPA is a wonderfully
intimate space, it wasn’t particularly conducive for this kind of show. People
were coming in and out all the time (I think that was the idea — I was one of
the few who was there for all three hours), but the only way to enter was to
cross the front of the stage. Most people were polite enough to wait until
between dance numbers to sneak in or out — but on the whole, audience etiquette
has really gone to shit. It’s not only disrespectful to the performers, who no
doubt worked their asses off to put on a brilliant
performance, but it’s distracting to fellow audience members. A bigger space
where people could come and go as they pleased, from the back of an auditorium,
would have worked better here.

That
aside, the Day of Dance was a wonderful afternoon that gave the audience a
small taste of what Rochester has to offer in terms of dance.

This article appears in Sep 25 – Oct 1, 2013.