Michelle Mullin
Blog Post #2
Dance Performance Review
On the evening of April 2, I found myself sitting in the Meany Theater balcony, anticipating a performance by Grupo Corpo. I opened my program, hoping to acquire some sort of background before the performance began. I started reading about Seven or Eight Pieces for a Ballet and found the concept of minimalism to be of particular intrigue.
Before I could finish reading the article, the lights began to fade. The curtains opened, revealing the dancers that would begin the piece. The whole first part clearly reflected this idea of minimalism. The dancers were grouped in pairs across the stage, transferring their weight from one foot to the other. They were all in the exact same position, facing forward with blank expressions. This persisted for quite a while, and then some groups started to perform the movement subtly different, but quite noticeably, since everyone else was moving completely uniform. Then one group at a time would do a short duet together. Pederneiras, the choreographer, used repetition very creatively and cleverly, such that the observer stayed interested. Furthermore, the images and movements were crystallized and embedded in the mind through this use of minimalist repetition. It is also very inspiring to really stick with an idea, because the choreography showed just how much can be created out of just a single idea!
The music of Philip Glass that was used in the performance also reflected this minimalist theme. Being very familiar with his music, I made this connection very quickly. He tends to use just a phrase or two of music and repeat it over and over again. Or start with a phrase and develop it just a little bit more each time it’s repeated. This choice of music really supported the minimalist choices in the choreography, and vice versa.
