CSULB dancers bring light, themes to the stage

By Brooke Karli
Online Forty-Niner
Staff Writer

Dancers performed premiere works inspired by Martha Graham's "Helios from Acts of Light" from Nov. 17 to 21 at the Martha B. Knoebel Dance Theatre, reflecting Graham's themes of love, death and rebirth.

The "Acts of Light and other dances" was performed by over 50 dancers and created by five faculty members of CSULB's dance department.

Four of the works were world premieres, created and produced by choreographers Keith Johnson, Sophie Monat, Douglas Nielsen and Andrew Vaca. The show's featured work was Susan McLain's reconstruction of Martha Graham's "Helios from Acts of Light."

Graham's "Helios from Acts of Light" originally premiered in February of 1981, proving once again that her use of time, space, lighting, costumes, sets and music turned every work into a groundbreaking piece of art. In the reconstruction performed over the weekend, 19 dancers gracefully flowed in gold attire to its original choreography and music. The work was inspired by the words of Emily Dickinson, a prominent woman who Graham often created and portrayed within her works. The modern dance composition was extracted from Dickinson's words, "Thank you for all the acts of light which beautified a summer now past its reward."

Graham was named "Dancer of the Century" by Time Magazine and has been compared to other creative minds such as Picasso, Einstein, Stravinsky and Freud. She founded the principles of contraction and release, supporting the idea to "increase the emotional activity of the dancer's body," which allowed her to create 181 ballets, ranging from the inspiration of the American frontier to the stories of Greek mythology.

Other pieces within the program consisted of contemporary dance, ballet, dance theatre and jazz. Douglas Nielsen, concert director and creator of "Gyral Umbrella," inserted dialogue into his dance theatre routine. By doing so, "the audience feels included," Nielsen said. His inspiration was derived from a toy that was given to him by a brilliant cello/accompanist Chris Lancaster. The toy sparked thoughts of innocence, simplicity, meditation and memory. Throughout the performance itself, dancers shouted out how they wanted their coffee, as one would do on a typical visit to Starbucks.

Dancers appeared to have desired youthfulness in a world requiring maturity. Playing with toys and simple child's play seemed to have been interrupted by the "adult world" and the quest for the perfect latte. As dancers slid across the stage in their felt costumes, the audience was bombarded by a giant, hanging mobile, signifying the exploration of the concept of balance. Nielsen described his piece as, "unrelated relatedness, wanting to dig into the world of truth, lies and coffee addiction."

The remaining dances touched upon society, lifestyles, the cycle of life and both the light and dark outlook upon life itself. Although the ultimate theme of the overall production was "unrelated relatedness," all five pieces seemed to intertwine with each other, sharing the foundation of undefined light, even in a world of darkness. All pieces proclaimed the beauty of light and how it could be found in all aspects of emotion, sexuality and spirituality.

The overall production of "Acts of Light and other dances" proved to be professional, well-organized and welcoming. Lighting, sound, costumes and make-up were all done by professionals, rather than by students. All five performances were sold out, giving proceeds to the dance department's scholarship funds. Auditions took place in the beginning of September, allowing choreographers plenty of time to cast, dress and rehearse with their dancers. "People should feel comfortable when coming to a dance performance," Nielsen said. "Each dance allows one to openly interpret what they see, with no concrete right or wrong. It's body language. And these dancers communicated very well; they made each dance their own."