Live Performance 2
I had the pleasure of going to watch my sister perform in the Morton Street Dance Center’s end of the year performance. The dance performance included all styles of dance and all levels of dance, from 3-year-olds to high school students. This year’s performance was of an original story that took place in South Africa. It featured two American sisters who were going on a vacation to South Africa with their parents. The sisters were not thrilled because they did not want to leave their friends to live in the wilderness. In addition, the two sisters did not exactly get along, so they did not want to spend the summer with just each other and their parents. Once in South Africa, the girls began to explore the wild grasslands full of wondrous creatures. As the sky began to darken, the girls realized that they are lost. The sisters were whirled through a series of adventures including a run in with a pride of lions and a stampede of elephants. However, they were able to make it home safe and sound guided by the loving spirits of the Safari and the mystical Lady of the Lake. When they finally were reunited with their parents, the entire village celebrated with song and dance.
Conveying a story through a dance performance can be a tricky endeavor because there is no dialog involved. However, the ways in which the pieces were put together, the choreography, the costumes, and the expressive movements and facials of the dancers told the stories beautifully. The costumes were perhaps the biggest clue to what was happening as the story moved along. The costumes were tailored to be as obvious at possible while still maintaining the flexibility needed for dancing. The costumes ranged from the stewardess costume,s with button up jackets and petite caps, that accentuated the sassy jazz moves of the piece perfectly to the lion costumes, featuring fuzzy leotards with ears and a tale, that made the three-year-old ballerinas nearly too cute to handle.
In terms of performance quality, because it contained all ages, it was not the most amazing in terms of technique. However, the little ones were adorable. At least one was always going in the completely wrong direction, or waving at the audience, or just standing there mesmerized by the crowds of people in front of them. It was heartening to see the middle school students try their hardest, and gradually improve by level. The couple of students who were extremely well trained were amazing to watch. They moved with such strength and elegance.
My favorite part of the piece was the ending celebration. The celebration consisted of all of the leads, the most talented dancers in the studio, performing an amazing African dance piece. They were dressed in colorful clothes and danced to an ensemble of lively djembe drums. The choreography was so full of energy it looked exhausting yet the dancers made it look easy. It was a joy to watch. Watching this performance was also so enjoyable because I used to dance at Morton Street Dance Center when I was in high school and so it was amazing to see how far my sister and all of the other younger dancers had come since I had last seen them. They have all improved so much.