April 28-May 4, 2005

dance

Flash Dance

by Janet Anderson

Twenty members of the dance troupe Complexions, dressed in red, pounded away in linear formations to Jimi Hendrix's rendition of the Star Spangled Banner. Red, excerpted from Complexions artistic director/choreographer Dwight Rhoden's full-length Anthem: Red, White and Blue, established the evening's runaway-train mood of pounding feet, clapping hands, shrieks of sound and whipping spotlights that never let up. And co-artistic director Desmond Richardson had the opportunity to show why he's considered one of today's great dancers in his muscle-rippling Red solo.

Rhoden likes to take modern dance's push downward and constantly shift it into ballet's lift and linearity. It's interesting for those who notice, but not always emotionally involving for everyone else. Even if only subconsciously, viewers automatically follow a movement through to its logical conclusion. "Pay attention!" these movement jolts of interrupted expectation seem to be saying. Rhoden's background includes stints with Alvin Ailey and American Ballet Theater, as well as television and movies, and he makes use of every bit of his experience choreographically. Ailey's torso-centered Lester Horton technique, with flat back and generous arm movements, shows up constantly. But often the Horton torso flows unexpectedly into an on-pointe ballerina in full arabesque. The lighting here, especially those long avenues of white light across the dark stage, suggested Broadway, Fosse and even Vegas.

Complexions showcased five short works danced to everything from Bach to Prince (yes, Bach works fine with no-holds-barred, muscle-bound movement.) Especially appealing in this group was Gone, performed by the excellent Gideon Poirier, Clifford Williams and Leyland Simmons to Odetta's gorgeous voice. These guys actually danced in the music instead of on top of the beat, as happened too mind-numbingly often with this troupe. Their bodies were like vibrations of Odetta's soul-piercing wail.

Pretty Gritty Suite, danced to 11 Nina Simone songs, wrapped things up. In If I Should Lose You, Edward Franklin, Juan Rodriguez and Jae Man Joo were good, socking out the message with staccato movements, whipping and punching the air in exasperation. However, nothing had the immediacy of Images, danced by Miho Morinoue, whose whole body seemed to mourn as it accompanied Simone's heartrending lyrics of "brown women" and how "dishwater gives back no images."

Complexions April 21, Annenberg Center