Review-End.Stop.Line- Dance Kho
6-10-12
DANCE Kho is a new contemporary dance company that just began this year. They had an opening night performance of End.Stop. Line. at the Fringe Club on the 5th of October 2012. This performance featured two dancers, Kirsten Ho and Takao Komaru, who recently returned to the East after spending a few years in New York City working with numerous dance companies, including The Alvin Ailey American Dance Centre. Choreographed by Kirsten, they presented six 10-minute pieces that focused around different themes, ideas and movements. Each of them used a unique approach and had their own story to tell.
The first piece, entitled The Sound of Letting Go, began with Kirsten standing alone, outside a single drop of light. This began her exploration of holding on to this 'light' or letting go. The circle of the light grew and I enjoyed her exploration of the space and playing with this thing she was holding on to. Through choreographed tension and physical tension, she effectively explored the struggle we all go through when it is time to let go...
The second piece entitled Definition was performed entirely to a mix of spoken voice and physical percussion. The voices were defining different forms of dance and movement. It was a clever exploration in dance and would be a really good piece to show beginning dancers. I really enjoyed the physical percussion that they used at the beginning and thought they could have used this more throughout the piece. That being said, this piece had a great sense of humor about it and was fun to watch.
The third piece, entitled Two Steps Forward, One Step Back, began in silence. About a third of the way through it, music joined in. At the beginning, they seemed to be doing their own individual exploration of self and their limits and what was possible. They had some great moments when they moved synchronously without the aid of music or a beat, which emphasized that these two dancers worked well together. For most of the piece, they explored their internal motivations, breaking in and out of synchronous movement, and then began to affect one another’s movements. This was an intricate piece with a lot of thought, requiring a great deal of give and take between the performers.
The fourth piece entitled Vessel was an audio visual presentation, projected on the white sheet in the corner of the room. The performers did not appear on stage. Instead, their bare arms and legs and backs and chests all appeared in a mixture of movement and well executed video editing. This piece seemed to be one of the most talked about afterwards. My own thoughts were echoed by a couple of other audience members – this is the type of piece that is seen in the Metropolitan Museum in one of the side rooms where it loops again and again all day long. It was beautifully put together.
The fifth piece had the clearest story line. It was entitled The Grass is Always Greener Where You Water It. It was an exploration of relationships - the good and the bad. Personally, I enjoyed how the woman in the story was the one that ultimately pulled away, leaving the man alone and hurt. It was also the only piece where they interacted with the multi-media projection.
The final piece entitled P.T.O. was more of an exploration in movement. I am not sure of the meaning of P.T.O. but I am sure it mattered to the artists. The artists took the time to explore movement on their own and together. This piece seemed to be the one where there also seemed to be the most joy. They seemed to just get lost in the movement and enjoy dance for the sake of the dance.
Overall, it was an enjoyable evening. It was all under the general umbrella of contemporary dance but it offered a variety of different styles and approaches within that genre. And, even though there were only two dancers, they were able to maintain their energy and focus throughout the entire program. I was a little concerned at the beginning when Kirsten began. Her first movements were strong and focused, then they lost several moments of that tension when she took a quick look at the audience. It was obvious that she had put a lot of effort and thought into the program but she seemed to need a quick glance at the size of the audience. The tension and focus dropped for a moment. But she built it back up and, once she was in the zone, she showed herself to be a talented dancer who enjoys movement and expression. Truly my favorite moment of hers was in the final piece when her whole face and body was joy. She was smiling from head to toe. She choreographed the pieces with a lot of thought, ingenuity and used her space well. The "new and improved" Fringe provides a very rough hewn, bare brick atmosphere which was a great setting to bring her visions to life. There wasn’t anything but the dance, movement and expression of the performers to be seen. She also adapted well to the annoyingly bright exit sign that is more like a spotlight than a safety beacon.
Takao is a remarkable dancer who has a strong background in ballet. His lines and extensions and control were stunning. He moves about the space effortlessly. Yet he was able step outside of his ballet roots and break his lines for that contemporary feel. His face never moved but he showed a depth of expression in every other aspect of his being.
DANCE Kho is definitely a company to watch. It would be great to see them grow. Support them and keep them in mind the next time you want an enjoyable night out. They will have another performance in the new (still in need of renovations) Fringe performance space on the 6th of October at 7:30pm.
Comments
Candy
The Exit sign was so annoying! Some one needs to fix that at the Fringe as soon as possible. The glare from the sign was brighter than the lights on stage! Put some gel on it, for pete's sake.
06 October 2012danceboy
the boy was a much better dancer than the girl. the lighting design was shit- you couln't see their faces. the a/v stuff was cool. it was ok, not great.
08 October 2012happy
I thought the boy was much better than the girl.
10 October 2012