Reviews
Dynamic Peromance by LehrerDance
01/10/09 22:06
Dynamic performance by LehrerDance in Norfolk, VA
By BalletCenter Blog | March 17, 2009
Rafael Delgado
This past March 5th, 2009, I had the opportunity to watch a dynamic performance by an innovative contemporary dance company from Buffalo, NY. The performance was part of the 8th Regional Dance Festival in Norfolk, VA and was hosted by the Governor's School for the Arts. The name of the company is Lehrer Dance under the direction of Jon Lehrer.
This gravity defying group of seven dancers and a single choreographer offers a jazz/modern/gymnastics/break-dancing/circus/capoeira unique style of movement that is not flashy as you may expect, but breathtaking. The company describes it as "Organically Athletic"; I describe it as "Fun to Watch!”
Years ago, I had the opportunity to work and share as dancers with Jon Lehrer, at that time his comedic skills were already well developed. So, I was not surprised to see as the opening of the program "Loose Canon", a light dance piece with impeccable comedic timing, set to the all too familiar Pachelbel's Canon in D Major.
"Loose Canon" central figure was performed by Jennifer Huffman, a petite dancer with beautifully pointed feet, who rapidly became my favorite performer that evening. During this piece, she was strong and funny. Later in the evening, during cirque-de-soleil-ish "Morphic Slip", Ms. Huffman displayed incredible athleticism and wonderful lifting skills while she was partnered by Theodore Krzykowski, a young man of short stature but gigantic stage presence.
We were given an exceptional opportunity to follow Dance Magazine's advice to watch Marideth Wanat perform in "The Way Within", a solo full of lyricism and contolled precision. Ms. Wanat was honored as one of the "25 to Watch" by Dance Magazine in 2009.
The commanding Immanuel Naylor, together with Mr. Krzykowski, danced in the primal duet "Instict". We were once again amazed by Jennifer Huffman, this time in "La Fuite" (The Escape), where she danced with Kristen Stein. They were delicate and vulnerable, then strong and virile, yet androgynous in the portrayal of, perhaps, mermaids - as hinted in the program notes by a short poem by Jannet Corneto.
As a finale the company performed "A Ritual Dynamic", a street dance meets modern technique, full company piece that made the audience jump to their feet in thunderous approval.
By BalletCenter Blog | March 17, 2009
Rafael Delgado
This past March 5th, 2009, I had the opportunity to watch a dynamic performance by an innovative contemporary dance company from Buffalo, NY. The performance was part of the 8th Regional Dance Festival in Norfolk, VA and was hosted by the Governor's School for the Arts. The name of the company is Lehrer Dance under the direction of Jon Lehrer.
This gravity defying group of seven dancers and a single choreographer offers a jazz/modern/gymnastics/break-dancing/circus/capoeira unique style of movement that is not flashy as you may expect, but breathtaking. The company describes it as "Organically Athletic"; I describe it as "Fun to Watch!”
Years ago, I had the opportunity to work and share as dancers with Jon Lehrer, at that time his comedic skills were already well developed. So, I was not surprised to see as the opening of the program "Loose Canon", a light dance piece with impeccable comedic timing, set to the all too familiar Pachelbel's Canon in D Major.
"Loose Canon" central figure was performed by Jennifer Huffman, a petite dancer with beautifully pointed feet, who rapidly became my favorite performer that evening. During this piece, she was strong and funny. Later in the evening, during cirque-de-soleil-ish "Morphic Slip", Ms. Huffman displayed incredible athleticism and wonderful lifting skills while she was partnered by Theodore Krzykowski, a young man of short stature but gigantic stage presence.
We were given an exceptional opportunity to follow Dance Magazine's advice to watch Marideth Wanat perform in "The Way Within", a solo full of lyricism and contolled precision. Ms. Wanat was honored as one of the "25 to Watch" by Dance Magazine in 2009.
The commanding Immanuel Naylor, together with Mr. Krzykowski, danced in the primal duet "Instict". We were once again amazed by Jennifer Huffman, this time in "La Fuite" (The Escape), where she danced with Kristen Stein. They were delicate and vulnerable, then strong and virile, yet androgynous in the portrayal of, perhaps, mermaids - as hinted in the program notes by a short poem by Jannet Corneto.
As a finale the company performed "A Ritual Dynamic", a street dance meets modern technique, full company piece that made the audience jump to their feet in thunderous approval.
Extended Views gives timely topics unique spins
01/10/09 22:05
'Extended Views' gives timely topics unique spins
By Lucia Mauro | Special to the Tribune
November 9, 2007
Choreographic development has been a long-term goal of John Schmitz, co-founder/artistic director of Dance Chicago, the monthlong festival spotlighting local dance artists at the Athenaeum Theatre. On Wednesday, he inaugurated a variation on that theme with "Extended Views," a program featuring a condensed body of work by two choreographers with strong Chicago ties: Jon Lehrer, formerly of Giordano Jazz Dance Chicago, and independent artist Dmitri Peskov.
Both men recently started their own companies: LehrerDance in Buffalo and Dmitri Peskov and Dancers here. Each exhibited a clear point of view, with Lehrer taking a more athletic-theatrical route and Peskov favoring dark, distraught subjects. On the surface, their approaches appeared vastly different. Yet, in their own way, both have crafted tragicomedies that speak of love, betrayal, conflict, primal urges and cosmic mysteries.
"Extended Views," a substantial evening of expression, allowed audiences to peer into the minds of the two choreographers exploring timely issues in unexpected and intelligent ways.
One of Lehrer's most astute pieces is "Loose Canon," which plays off Pachelbel's "Canon in D Major" as a cry for liberation in a vague asylum of the mind. Humorous without being hurtful, it expanded into a feast of body contortions and lush physical dexterity by Lisa Ientilucci, Marideth Wanat, Matthew Farmer, Ted Krzykowski and Immanuel Naylor. Lehrer's male duet, "Instinct," has a clay-like feel, as if Lehrer shapes his war paint-covered dancers (Naylor and Farmer) into mounds of conjoined earth awaiting an unknown enemy.
The program was framed by two of Lehrer's solid but less adventurous pure-movement orchestrations: "Iambus," in which the ensemble is transformed into aquatic life, from darting eels to lilting anemones; and the new "A Ritual Dynamic," a magnetic eruption of bodily shapes.
By Lucia Mauro | Special to the Tribune
November 9, 2007
Choreographic development has been a long-term goal of John Schmitz, co-founder/artistic director of Dance Chicago, the monthlong festival spotlighting local dance artists at the Athenaeum Theatre. On Wednesday, he inaugurated a variation on that theme with "Extended Views," a program featuring a condensed body of work by two choreographers with strong Chicago ties: Jon Lehrer, formerly of Giordano Jazz Dance Chicago, and independent artist Dmitri Peskov.
Both men recently started their own companies: LehrerDance in Buffalo and Dmitri Peskov and Dancers here. Each exhibited a clear point of view, with Lehrer taking a more athletic-theatrical route and Peskov favoring dark, distraught subjects. On the surface, their approaches appeared vastly different. Yet, in their own way, both have crafted tragicomedies that speak of love, betrayal, conflict, primal urges and cosmic mysteries.
"Extended Views," a substantial evening of expression, allowed audiences to peer into the minds of the two choreographers exploring timely issues in unexpected and intelligent ways.
One of Lehrer's most astute pieces is "Loose Canon," which plays off Pachelbel's "Canon in D Major" as a cry for liberation in a vague asylum of the mind. Humorous without being hurtful, it expanded into a feast of body contortions and lush physical dexterity by Lisa Ientilucci, Marideth Wanat, Matthew Farmer, Ted Krzykowski and Immanuel Naylor. Lehrer's male duet, "Instinct," has a clay-like feel, as if Lehrer shapes his war paint-covered dancers (Naylor and Farmer) into mounds of conjoined earth awaiting an unknown enemy.
The program was framed by two of Lehrer's solid but less adventurous pure-movement orchestrations: "Iambus," in which the ensemble is transformed into aquatic life, from darting eels to lilting anemones; and the new "A Ritual Dynamic," a magnetic eruption of bodily shapes.
Dance Magazine
01/10/09 21:58
Dance Magazine
LehrerDance
Athenaeum Theatre, Chicago, IL
November 7, 2007
Reviewed by Lynn Shapiro
The Chicago premiere of LehrerDance took the house not so much by storm as by quantum physics. As part of the month-long Dance Chicago festival, Jon Lehrer’s strikingly original choreography transformed the stage into an energy field of super-charged particles.
Rich movement invention coupled with high-risk partnering were signatures of Lehrer’s choreography throughout the four pieces. He seamlessly integrated his dancers’ gymnastic skills with modern dance forms. Surprise landings and tableaux that sliced space into unexpected geometrics kept the audience on the edge of their seats.
Iambus showcases the sunny “I love to dance” exuberance of all seven athletic members of Lehrer’s newly formed company. Set to taped music of Bobby McFerrin and Yo Yo Ma, the piece is rooted in the contrast between flow and sculpted multi-body constructions. The dancers happily invade each other’s space to connect, break apart, and recombine with daring speed and high-flying abandon. Their swift transfers of energy create both riveting visual design and breathtaking physical excitement.
Loose Canon exercises a deliciously restrained sense of caprice. Lehrer’s humor capitalizes on Ted Kryzkowski’s acrobatic ability as the unassuming victim of his fellow dancers’ manipulation. Contrasting Palchelbel’s bucolic Canon in D major, voice commands such as, “Stop! Rewind!” and “Use humor to get your point across!” add to the irony and surprise of the choreography. Wild near misses and unconventional couplings of women lifting men brought a change of pace the audience welcomed with raucous laughter and applause.
Lehrer’s affinity for air-born antics doesn’t keep him from making stunning use of the floor and stationary movement in the duet Instinct. Dancers Matthew Farmer and Immanuel Naylor assault the ground, their ritualistic gestures less giving into gravity than diving into it. Animal energy seethes as the two predatory beings move from mutual dependence through the pain of emerging independence, to the breach that finally separates them. The power and dramatic tension of their bodies connecting and separating casts the space between them as a third partner.
In the final piece, the premiere of A Ritual Dynamic, the dancers snap into action like rubber bands pulled to the max, launching their bodies into flight, aimed seemingly at thin air. Then, miraculously, another body materializes from the ether of moving space, and zot! They hit their human targets mid-flight, cradle in each other’s arrested motion for one luxurious moment, and move on.
LehrerDance
Athenaeum Theatre, Chicago, IL
November 7, 2007
Reviewed by Lynn Shapiro
The Chicago premiere of LehrerDance took the house not so much by storm as by quantum physics. As part of the month-long Dance Chicago festival, Jon Lehrer’s strikingly original choreography transformed the stage into an energy field of super-charged particles.
Rich movement invention coupled with high-risk partnering were signatures of Lehrer’s choreography throughout the four pieces. He seamlessly integrated his dancers’ gymnastic skills with modern dance forms. Surprise landings and tableaux that sliced space into unexpected geometrics kept the audience on the edge of their seats.
Iambus showcases the sunny “I love to dance” exuberance of all seven athletic members of Lehrer’s newly formed company. Set to taped music of Bobby McFerrin and Yo Yo Ma, the piece is rooted in the contrast between flow and sculpted multi-body constructions. The dancers happily invade each other’s space to connect, break apart, and recombine with daring speed and high-flying abandon. Their swift transfers of energy create both riveting visual design and breathtaking physical excitement.
Loose Canon exercises a deliciously restrained sense of caprice. Lehrer’s humor capitalizes on Ted Kryzkowski’s acrobatic ability as the unassuming victim of his fellow dancers’ manipulation. Contrasting Palchelbel’s bucolic Canon in D major, voice commands such as, “Stop! Rewind!” and “Use humor to get your point across!” add to the irony and surprise of the choreography. Wild near misses and unconventional couplings of women lifting men brought a change of pace the audience welcomed with raucous laughter and applause.
Lehrer’s affinity for air-born antics doesn’t keep him from making stunning use of the floor and stationary movement in the duet Instinct. Dancers Matthew Farmer and Immanuel Naylor assault the ground, their ritualistic gestures less giving into gravity than diving into it. Animal energy seethes as the two predatory beings move from mutual dependence through the pain of emerging independence, to the breach that finally separates them. The power and dramatic tension of their bodies connecting and separating casts the space between them as a third partner.
In the final piece, the premiere of A Ritual Dynamic, the dancers snap into action like rubber bands pulled to the max, launching their bodies into flight, aimed seemingly at thin air. Then, miraculously, another body materializes from the ether of moving space, and zot! They hit their human targets mid-flight, cradle in each other’s arrested motion for one luxurious moment, and move on.