Best Dance Concert: Nora Chipaumire
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Nora Chipaumire.
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Pittsburgh dance is in a growth spurt, a good thing for the art form. But that meant, due to scheduling jams on weekends, it wasn't possible to see it all. It also meant that it was harder than ever to pick a Top 10. With a nod to other contenders like Gia Cacalano, Nicole Canuso, Heidi Latsky and Staycee Pearl dance project, the list was undeniably a hair-splitter as never before.
1. Nora Chipaumire (August Wilson Center for African American Culture, March 8): The title by this Zim- babwean-born artist is a mouthful: lions will roar, swans will fly, angels will wrestle heaven, rains will break: gukurahundi. The performance was also an eyeful, filled with Ms. Chipaumire's gloriously authentic movement and a mesmerizing video projection that swirled around it. And it was an earful, courtesy of Thomas Mapfumo, the legendary Afropop pioneer and The Blacks Unlimited. The emotional impact of this African odyssey still resonates.
2. Paul Taylor Dance Company (Pittsburgh Dance Council, Byham Theater, Oct. 22): He is a modern master, the leading choreographer of his generation. We got a swell overlook of his extensive repertoire with "Mercuric Tidings" (1982), "Piazzolla Caldera" (1997) and "Three Dubious Memories" (2010), all magnificently performed by those singular Taylor dancers. No one else delivers such a blend of humanity, humor and mathematical intellect.
3. Stephen Petronio Dance Company (PDC, Byham, Jan. 22): Maybe Mr. Taylor offered a view of 50-plus years and Mr. Petronio weighed in at only his 25th anniversary. Maybe that's why there was this sense of urban urgency in his New York-laden choreography. All kidding aside, it was all delivered with a clarity and energy that grabbed the stage.
4. Abraham.In.Motion (Kelly-Strayhorn Theater, Nov. 18): Kyle Abraham is the biggest choreographic force coming out of Pittsburgh and has taken a prominent place as a must-see choreographer on the New York scene. In "Live! The Realest MC," a hip-hop take on Pinocchio, he did a star turn as the bullied puppet/boy. Consider this a two-fer -- Mr. Abraham also performed at the August Wilson Center May 21 with his previous hit, "The Radio Show," choreographically compelling although unfortunately marred by numerous lighting errors that stopped the performance. But I don't think Mr. Abraham minds keeping company with the likes of the venerable artists ahead of him on this list.
5. Pennsylvania Dance Theatre (Kelly-Strayhorn, Sept. 9): German expressionist Andre Koslowski's physical theater work, "por la blanda arena," still vividly transports its seemingly disparate images of roses, body parts and wet tissue. A work with brush strokes of absurdist brilliance.
6. newMoves Festival (Kelly-Strayhorn, May 12-15): In its third year, this festival attracted a savvy audience of dance lovers and artistic adventurers. The overall choreographic standard went up, and the festival expanded to other sites, a real achievement for KST.
7. Attack Theatre (New Hazlett Theater, Jan. 21): This program was simply called Show #58, which was an accomplishment in itself. It nimbly stretched from "Typeset," a nifty little dance noir piece, to an educational video game and a minimalist psycho-dance. Because the Attackers like to turn things upside down, it all ended with "Beginnings" and, of course, included the company's terrific house band, Dave Eggar and Deoro.
8. Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre (Benedum Center, April 15): Even though the PBT dancers don't necessarily train in the Balanchine style, they dug deep to tackle some masterworks in the dramatic "The Prodigal Son" and abstract "Agon," with a nifty "Sylvia Pas de Deux" thrown into the mix.
9. Quantum Theatre (East Liberty YMCA, March 24): So "Maria de Buenos Aires" was technically an opera produced by a theater group. But the essential underpinnings came from the dance. Composed by lord of the tango Astor Piazzolla and rendered by Quantum Theatre, both Quantum director Karla Boos and Attack Theatre's Michele de la Reza contributed mightily to a production that constantly moved with all of its essential elements in sync.
10. August Wilson Center Dance Ensemble (August Wilson Center, Jan. 23): Many an American dance company would kill for the kind of programming that artistic director Greer Jones conjured up in AWCDE's first year. With premieres by Kyle Abraham, Antonio Brown and Darrell Grand Moultrie, this young and exciting company had a ready-made, built-in touring program, "The Dynamic Men of Dance," that helped to launch its early success.
First Published December 22, 2011 12:00 am
