CorbinDances.Dance Place Washington, DC August 2-3, 2008 For 16 seasons in the Paul Taylor Dance Company Paul Taylor Dance Company, is a contemporary dance company, formed by Paul Taylor, an American choreographers of the 20th century. One of the early touring companies of American modern dance, the Company has "performed in more than 500 cities in 62 countries"[1] , Patrick Corbin stood out among a cohort of beautiful and bold dancing men. CorbinDances, founded in 2005, shares many Taylor attributes: uninhibited uninhibited /un·in·hib·it·ed/ (un?in-hib´i-ted) free from usual constraints; not subject to normal inhibitory mechanisms. , brash, spirited, musical, space-engulfing. But Corbin is no Taylor acolyte. His works are fully and uncompromisingly danced, drawing from his own early classical training--at The Washington School of Ballet, among others--before dancing with the Joffrey Ballet. On joining Taylor, Corbin assimilated earthier experiences. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Romantic Conversions relied on lush modulations of Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 2 to set a rich, semi-classical tone for two couples--Corbin and Elizabeth DeMent de·ment tr.v. de·ment·ed, de·ment·ing, de·ments 1. To make (a person) insane. 2. To cause (a person) to lose intellectual capacity. in black, Gregory Dolbashian and Sharon Milanese in white. Parsing an evolving series of port de bras port de bras n. The technique or practice of positioning and moving the arms in ballet. , patterns of circles unwound un·wound v. Past tense and past participle of unwind. unwound unwind and intertwined, growing into swoops and sweeps atop the cadence of the music. The evening's centerpiece, Reach, featured the full company in a hurtling mashup of bodies, coming and going, connecting and departing, to an itchy, edgy Phillip Glass score. Muscular powerhouse Orlando Martinez, clad only in blue briefs, became a focus as dancers converged in an ever-tightening circle. For the Good Times highlighted Corbin's attentive partnering. Joined by sensuous Adele Nickel, the two sparred around Kris Kristofferson's potent lyrics sung by Al Green. A solid foundation on which to build, the dance will be part of Bathing Jeff, the full-length work Corbin is creating in memory of fellow Taylor dancer Jeff Wadlington. Game-like patterns in Nelly van Bommel's quirky Adele's Skirt, along with voluminous white petticoats worn by the women, made this piece feel like a party gone haywire. But the pitch of the repetitive, work-oriented gestures and folkish folk·ish adj. 1. Of or characteristic of folk music, art, or literature. 2. Simple or natural; folksy: charmed us with his folkish wit and humor. Russian score by Svetlana de Loutchek and Les Musiciens de Leiv suggested these seven dancers sprang from heartier, old-country stock. Their awkward shapes, curved backs, tiptoed crawls, sharp elbows, and gangly gan·gly adj. gan·gli·er, gan·gli·est Gangling. [Alteration of gangling.] Adj. 1. legs induced giggles but accumulated into poignant tableaux. Both group works--the evening's most compelling--should fare better in a venue offering more space to play and explore. |
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