If a dance company receives too many good proposals for new works to fit into one show, what can they do? Why, put on two shows, of course!
See Chicago Dance was invited to a preview of Hedwig Dances “’no idea but in things’-PART TWO,” which premieres April 5-7 at Ruth Page. The performance features three company premieres by Natasha Adorlee, Paula Sousa and Anna Sapozhnikov, each presented with the intent of merging movement with a striking visual environment. These works were submitted for “PART ONE” last year, and instead of throwing them on the cutting room floor, artistic director/founder Jan Bartoszek decided to include them in a second show a year later (hence the “part two”).
Each piece is unified by the theme of human connection—how one interrelates with another person, the rest of humanity, or their inner self. The preview focused on the movement; the show will feature large and elaborate props, original music and projections by media designer John Boesche.
Michael Jackson’s iconic lyric in “Man in the Mirror” asks his reflection to “change his ways”; in “Kindred Spirits,” Emmy Award-winning choreographer, filmmaker and composer, Natasha Adorlee, asks: What if the reflection in the mirror jumped out and changed you?
Adorlee draws inspiration from filmmaker David Lynch to create a work steeped in spiritual and metaphysical models. An electronic buzz pervaded by an ostinato of beeps builds in intensity as dancers Paula Sousa and Heriberto Meneses inhabit alternate dimensions, staring at each other through a magic mirror. Meneses slyly slips a hand past the edge of the frame and grabs Vangelatos by the wrist. The danse macabre that follows is equally thoughtful and heartbreaking.
They are joined by others from the mirror dimension, but are they friend or foe? The sound of ominous knocking means there are other forces trying to get in. Part psychological and introspective and part ghost story, the work produces a chill in the viewer that remains after the piece concludes.
Image from Hedwig Dances’ "META | MOR | PHOS; A Triadic Fiction" from April 2023; Photo by Linda Pense
Company dancer Paula Sousa takes on the role of choreographer in “Under My Thumb,” which imagines a world where humanoid automatons operated by artificial intelligence (A.I.) attempt to understand what it is like to be human.
Sousa asked an A.I. program, “How can I make the best dance piece in the world?” The answer: Less improvisation—i.e. spontaneous human expression—more synchronous movement and formations. Disappointed, Sousa nonetheless persevered with the experiment.
The problem addressed in the work: A.I. can reproduce human feelings but cannot really feel. Like A.I. videos found on the internet, the dancers look human, but something is off. They imitate newborns taking their first steps, awkward duck walking with heads staring forward, deadpan expressions glued to their faces. They stiffly dance in a circle around glowing light bulbs in a pile like an electric bonfire. They pound their chests in a reenactment of an ancient ritual. It’s like they’re evolving right before our eyes!
Politics and marriage coalesce in Anna Sapozhnikov's “Svad'ba,” a work that investigates the traditional Russian and Ukrainian family structures within the 21st century. Sapozhnikov is inspired by her own Ukrainian background, and Bronislava Nijinska’s choreographic interpretation of Igor Stravinsky’s composition, “Les Noces” (The Wedding) (1923), a work that comments on the restrictive nature of a woman's duty to marry.
Against the drone of modal chanting, dancers bound over and around bouquets of wheat—representations of marriage, abundance and utility—scattered across the floor, treating them as both obstacles to avoid and anchors that draw them nearby. Swoosh! Legs sweep over the amber bouquets, toes barely brushing against the spikes of grain. Like serfs seeking autonomy, the ensemble parades in formation, clenched fists protecting their hearts, feet pounding into the floor. Like guerrilla brides, they march down the aisle not towards subservience, but towards freedom.
“’no idea but in things’-PART TWO” continues Hedwig Dances’ legacy of presenting surreal works that wrestle with complex issues. Their goal is not to obfuscate from reality but to augment it, showing us a radical point of view that leads to a deeper understanding of living in the real world.
Hedwig Dances presents “’no ideas but in things’– PART TWO” at Ruth Page Center for the Arts, 1016 N. Dearborn, from April 5-7. Fri. & Sat. at 7:30pm; Sun. at 2:30pm. Tickets are $20-$55 at HedwigDances.com or by clicking the event link below.
