Peter Kyle Dance at Triskelion
September 30, 2011
ten dances in the Step Down Room
Peter Kyle has a loyal following. Creative twists and flair mark his straight-up modern choreography. Kyle danced with Murray Louis and carries on that master's pure abstract dance concerns. When veteran Merce Cunningham dancer Holley Farmer joins Kyle in this program of shortish dances, their lineages merge nicely.
Kyle's closing solo at Triskelion Arts in Brooklyn satisfied on opening night, September 28. His body takes angular forms, beginning with a plank-like fall into an overstuffed chair. He slides onto the rug. Then, sitting in the chair, spent, Kyle has us with a final gesture, a sort of appeal. His slumped body reiterates the confident relaxation that softened his precise, pristine lines and forms throughout.
Elsewhere in the program, two men held the rug upright and it served as a backdrop. The scene design says less-is-more, with different textures and surfaces creating deep and shallow "rooms" and planes for performance.
These two good-looking stage hands are actors Scott Giguere and Scott Nath. They take the stage for Perch, a divertissement. Sitting on a gym bench, they work crossword puzzles while swinging their lower legs in unison. It's so relaxed in its rhythm that the rotations fall out of synch at one point and break the spell. Perch starts to feel like watching someone else play a game.
But speaking of rhythm, Mercedes Searer performs two dances nearly in place, in which her feet bang out the audible element. Her steps are nothing like tap, flamenco stampas, or any familiar form. Thus, the dances are original and interesting. I wonder if and how they could expand. Surprising and gutsy, she yells "Zwoo!," in that eponymous dance, over and over. There is no other musical accompaniment.
For most of the works, Lori Goldston plays apt and improvised classical cello at the edge of the performing area. But as if this would conflict, a lesser recording of James Bigbee Garver music accompanies Rock Star. Kyle dances with a Venske & Spänle sculpture, a heart-shaped blob, I'll call it. The hard (marble according to the program) organic-looking form recalls a kangaroo pouch, a baby, or a shield, depending on how Kyle holds it. It supports him like an armature at one point, and then finally it is surely mutable; yes, it is a vessel for the music. Kyle plays it like an air guitar. His dance filled the blank object with fluid music.
Kyle danced Maibild with Farmer. Their abstract formations come from different, complementary techniques. Painter Paul Klee inspired Maibild. He fits colors together like the dancers' interlocking body parts. Farmer's dress is a lavender that recalls Klee's early trees.
It's initially surprising to see Farmer dancing to music. Her solos, three called String: Final Approach, String: in the Conciergerie, and String: Brocade are compelling enough for us to wonder if Goldston is playing to her dance. Her Garo Sparo Marie Antoinette dress inspired the fragmented story. (The other dances in the program separate these three.) Farmer's costume of romantic tulle and corset is anything but fetching. She's playing dress up. The designer is known for his couture as well as his costumes. This one sets the time-warped tableau. In the duet Maibild, Farmer wears a gauzy shift that looks much more comfortable and conducive to movement. Sparo costumed Kyle, the rock star, in wonderful dark blue briefs that extend up to a point at his flat midsection. This excellent group gave an imaginative and solid show.
