AWAKE explored different media for dance and addressed subjects that are both timeless and current. Since the dances were so completely different, perhaps it is best to start out with a discussion of the related contrasts.
The messages that the dances explored were both subtle and painfully obvious, and the effect on the audience was more significant than any of us anticipated. The dances were beautiful, ugly, harsh, graceful, angular, loose, interactive, and isolating.
Historic ballet steps contrasted with current street hip-hop. Explosive vocalizations occurred when the movement made it logical, but also at other moments when such a stress grunt was jarring. When moving as a tightly unified corps de ballet, some rebel dancers would break off in a frantic manner.
Pairs would gently merge and then part ways, while others indulged in erotic grappling. Gender was fluid in some of the dances, while the difficulties of male-female bonding were the crux of others. What was consistent throughout was the stunning technical excellence of the dancers and the brilliant choreography they were given to dance. This combination of excellence—given, received, and performed—made for an exceptional evening of dance combined with sometimes disturbing social commentary.
Lubovitch is one of the greatest choreographers in the history of modern dance. And, here he was! All giants, but he credits Tudor for teaching him the symbiosis between movement and music. Joyful and rhapsodic movements contrast with more forceful ones.
