Beginning in 2015, Stephen Petronio, in part, like dance pioneer, Paul Taylor set out to celebrate and preserve legendary dance works with the series titled “Bloodlines.” So far, The Paul Taylor Dance Company has presented Doris Humphrey’s Passacaglia (1938), Donald McKayle’s Rainbow ‘Round My Shoulder (1959), Martha Graham’s Diversion of Angels (1948) and Merce Cunningham’s Summerspace (1958). Since becoming artistic director of the Martha Graham Dance Company in 2005, Janet Eilber has also been uncovering and reconstructing some of Graham’s works. Imperial Gesture (1936) and Exstasis (1933 – reimagined by Virgine Mécène) are just two. And, like Taylor, Eilber have invited younger choreographers to reimagine masterworks by some pioneers. Petronio’s “Bloodlines” fall in line with these newfound directives given the danger of keeping the arts alive. “Bloodlines has been a gift and a deeply emotional process…” says Petronio. “I am incredibly lucky to revisit the work of choreographers who shaped me as a young dance artist. Decades later, I feel I can approach these masterpieces with a level of intellectual and physical rigor that finally matches my personal awe and emotional connection.” Up to now, his company has presented Cunningham’s RainForest (1968) and Trisha Brown’s Glacial Decoy (1979).
For their third season of “Bloodlines” at The Joyce Theater (March 28 – April 2), Petronio and Company brought to life a medley of improvisation-driven and pedestrian-powered works by Judsonites and their teacher, Anna Halprin. The program included Yvonne Rainer’s Trio A with Flags (1966/1970), Chair-Pillow (1969) and Diagonal (1963), an excerpt from Steve Paxton’s Goldberg Variations (1986), plus Halprin’s The Courtesan and the Crone (1999). In their profound 2017 presentation, the dancers of Stephen Petronio Company took on the task of again bringing the past to the present and offered up humor and command of complicated patterns, blowfish faces, a good deal of counting, and no music except for their sneakers squeaking in Diagonal. Deep in concentration and flowing seamless through the now famous pharases, they dance individually in Trio A With Flags, and then each with a chair and a white pillow, they are mesmerizing when they move mostly as one in Chair-Pillow. Petronio appeared briefly at the end, toting his pillow and chair and sits quietly, in the middle until the lights fade. The gems of the evening are Nicholas Sciscione’s embodiment of Paxton’s Excerpt From Goldberg Variations and Petronio’s heartfelt interpretation of Halprin’s The Courtesan And The Crone. Though starkly different, Goldberg… replete with movement that filled the space, and Courtesan… built on rich gesture, both were exquisite and especially intimate. Halprin performed Courtesan… at age 79. The evening closes with Petronio’s new work, Untitled Touch, a lovely conversation through movement centered solely on the intimacy of touch. The music was by longtime collaborator Son Lux. The dancers are: Ernesto Breton, Davalois Fearon, Kyle Filley, Jaqlin Medlock, Tess Montoya, Nicholas Sciscione, Joshua Tuason and Megan Wright.
For their third season of “Bloodlines” at The Joyce Theater (March 28 – April 2), Petronio and Company brought to life a medley of improvisation-driven and pedestrian-powered works by Judsonites and their teacher, Anna Halprin. The program included Yvonne Rainer’s Trio A with Flags (1966/1970), Chair-Pillow (1969) and Diagonal (1963), an excerpt from Steve Paxton’s Goldberg Variations (1986), plus Halprin’s The Courtesan and the Crone (1999). In their profound 2017 presentation, the dancers of Stephen Petronio Company took on the task of again bringing the past to the present and offered up humor and command of complicated patterns, blowfish faces, a good deal of counting, and no music except for their sneakers squeaking in Diagonal. Deep in concentration and flowing seamless through the now famous pharases, they dance individually in Trio A With Flags, and then each with a chair and a white pillow, they are mesmerizing when they move mostly as one in Chair-Pillow. Petronio appeared briefly at the end, toting his pillow and chair and sits quietly, in the middle until the lights fade. The gems of the evening are Nicholas Sciscione’s embodiment of Paxton’s Excerpt From Goldberg Variations and Petronio’s heartfelt interpretation of Halprin’s The Courtesan And The Crone. Though starkly different, Goldberg… replete with movement that filled the space, and Courtesan… built on rich gesture, both were exquisite and especially intimate. Halprin performed Courtesan… at age 79. The evening closes with Petronio’s new work, Untitled Touch, a lovely conversation through movement centered solely on the intimacy of touch. The music was by longtime collaborator Son Lux. The dancers are: Ernesto Breton, Davalois Fearon, Kyle Filley, Jaqlin Medlock, Tess Montoya, Nicholas Sciscione, Joshua Tuason and Megan Wright.
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