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Last night, I went to see Cedar Lake Contemporary Ballet perform at the Chelsea Art Museum. The two organizations have been collaborating in a series of installation performances choreographed by Cedar Lake Artistic Director, Benoit-SwanPouffer. For this performance, Pouffer made decisions based of his interpretation the museum's current Iran Inside Out exhibition, curated by Sam Bardaouil. Bardaouil actually performed in the installation as a sort of narrator, using voice, song, and intense observation of the other performers - almost an outside observer, himself commenting on the display(s). Attendees moved through the exhibition space along with the dancers as they performed small, sometimes simultaneous, vignettes. This was when the performance was most interesting, as most of these smaller (both in number of dancers involved, as well as the size of the movement) trios, duets, and solos were less 'dancey' and more expressive, creative, and what seemed to be improved. The larger group dance scenes lacked a sense of genuineness with movement that didn't quite, in my eyes, relate to the overall manic, repressed, abusive mood previously established byPouffer . There were too many Iranian cliches and stereotypical images and choices made, such as the men wearing military jackets with nothing but Lycra dance shorts and a wife-beater underneath. However, the whole work was his interpretation of the exhibit, so to each his own. Overall, there are some great momentsPouffer was able to capture. I encourage everyone to see cooperative work, such as this, whenever possible.
The artwork featured in the exhibit was fantastic. There was so much to look at, think about, and learn from. The aesthetics presented are something so foreign to the Western eye, that they truly provide intriguing moments with which to explore the visual and intellectual depth of a variety of motifs and themes. And what an amazing backdrop for live performance!
Go see if your interpretation is the same as Pouffer's or if you come up with something different. Cedar Lake performs at Chelsea Art Museum again tonight and tomorrow night, September 2nd and 3d, at 7:30pm. And you must experience CAM's Iran Inside Out before it's ending date of this Saturday, September 5th - the artwork is superbly vital and thought-provoking.