‘Summer Dance!’ show earns acclaim
A “Summer Dance!” program earned its exclamation point in a preview Thursday at the University of Oklahoma.
It was done in Studio 3002 of OU’s Reynolds Performing Arts Center, a wider than deep third floor space, with a giant mirror on one wall.
Casual active wear and tennis shoes were the order of the day in “2.14,” choreographed by Roxanne Lyst, to music by Daniel Pemberton.
Dramatic arm and especially elbow gestures gave great athletic energy and tension to “2.14,” performed by Justin Rainey with five female dancers.
Contrasting nicely was a “Giselle Variation,” staged by Boyko Dossev, performed on pointe by Amelia Murray, in a modest folk blouse and skirt.
Getting across the drama and tension of a couple who may or may not be made for each other in “Duet for____&____,” were Kieran King and Emily Nichols.
Performed barefoot, with King in black pants, his chest bare, and Nichols in a black top, legs bare, the piece was choreographed by Laura Pratt, to music by Bach.
Taking us back to classical ballet was “Paquita Pas de Trois,” staged by Dossev, in which Rainey paired with Murray and Brittany Vahalik, both wearing red tutus.
Red was the dominant emotion, not just a color, in “Diablo Rojo,” a modern dance choreographed by Michael Bearden to the Latin beat of Rodrigo and Gabriela.
Clad in a red shirt and black tux pants, King interacted dynamically with five women in long dresses, who exploited shoulder shakes and benches well, in “Diablo Rojo.”
Nichols offered a fine, classical, solo “Shade Variation” from “La Bayadere Pas,” then teamed up with Rainey in “Sehnsucht,” choreographed by Dossev to modern music by Philip Glass.
Wonderfully lighthearted and insouciant was the evening’s final offering, “La Valse a Mille Temps,” choreographed by Dossev, to a vocal number by Jacques Brel.
Dancers in bright, colorful costumes, seemed to keep speeding up in “Valse,” until one member of the chorus appeared to knock them all down, with a gesture.
Offering short, sweet, summer-length numbers, OU’s “Summer Dance!” supplied spectators with a superb classical ballet-modern dance one-two punch, and is highly recommended.
— John Brandenburg, for The Oklahoman