[NEohioPAL] Berko review: INLET DANCE, GROUNDWORKS DANCE; DANCING WHEELS PREVIEW

[Roy Berko]

Reviews:  Inlet Dance, Groundworks; Dancing Wheels preview

Roy Berko

(Member, Dance Critics Association)

--THE TIMES NEWSPAPERS--

Lorain County Times--Westlaker Times--Lakewood News Times--Olmsted-Fairview 
Times

--coocleveland.com-

INLET DANCE AND NEHEMIAH MISSION COMBINE FOR A MEANINGFUL TOGETHERNESS

Inlet Dance, whose motto is “using dance to further people” and Nehemiah 
Mission, whose purpose is “reaching out to the entire community in order to 
rebuild the lives and homes of people of all ages, races, ethnicities, religious 
beliefs and lifestyles,” are organizations on parallel paths.  It is only 
fitting, therefore, that they should be assisting each other.  Inlet needed 
rehearsal space, Nehemiah Mission had an unused gymnasium.  Nehemiah Mission 
needed finances and Inlet is a performance company who could do a series of 
concerts to raise funds.  So the match, probably made in heaven, came to be.

Recently a two-night benefit concert was held at Breen Center on the campus of 
St. Ignatius High School.  

The program included ASCENSION, a Bill Wade choreographed piece with 
contemporary music by Ryan Lott, which investigated relationships.  Filled with 
gymnastic moves, which featured fine body control and powerful lifts, the  well 
danced piece showed respect for balance and trust.

THE DOOR, choreographed by Steve Rooks, was a series of varying configurations 
in which the dancers appeared to float through a triangle of light to illuminate 
a journey through redemption.  

IMPAIRED is a fascinating piece in which Justin Stentz and Mackenzie Clevenger 
danced blindfolded, to experience what it is like to unleash the sensitivity of 
going through life sightless.  The idea flowed from Inlet's residency at the 
Cleveland Sight Center in which they worked with impaired and blind students.

BEAUTY IN TENSION, one of my favorite offerings in the Inlet repertoire, 
features a large piece of stretch material which is held tightly by the corps of 
performers.  While in single or group units, the dancers move under the material 
and attempt to stretch their way out.  The emotional and physical tension 
created is highly involving, causing audience members to squirm in response to 
the efforts of the dancers.



The highlight piece was STONE BY STONE, a premiere dance choreographed by Bill 
Wade in collaboration with the cast and set to original music by Jeremy Allen.  
It is a contemporary telling of the Biblical story of Nehemiah, who, after the 
Jews were dispersed from Jerusalem, came back and organized the people in 
voluntary groups to rebuild the city.  This concept is much like the mission of 
the local Nehemiah Society, whose purpose is to recreate Cleveland out of the  
destruction of years of neglect and financial problems.  It visually showed how 
to rebuild cultures through eliminating the physical and psychological stones 
which block progress and present hope and restoration to the brokenness of the 
community.

Capsule judgement:  Inlet Dance created an artistic, meaningful and involving 
evening of dance in their successful fund raising effort on behalf of the 
Nehemiah Mission of Cleveland.    


GROUNDWORKS says goodbye to Amy Miller with engrossing production

Since 1998, Amy Miller and David Shimotakahara have been the artistic backbone 
of Groundworks Dance.  Unfortunately, for the company and the audiences who have 
come back again and again to see the ensemble, Miller is moving to New York 
City.  The company's recent program at Trinity Cathedral, a repeat of a 
presentation done earlier this season at The Akron Ice House, was a final 
tribute to the relationship between the dynamic duo.  

Nothing could more exemplify Shimotakahara and Miller's bond than the last 30 
seconds of 'DnA,' when the duo stood face-to-face bathed in share warmth.  It 
was an emotional tribute to the connection that comes from two very talented 
individuals who melded into a powerful artistic force to give joy to both each 
other and audiences.  Bravo!

The opening number, the world premiere of choreographer Jill Sigman's 'SPLIT 
STITCH,' was set to original music by Gustavo Aguilar.  Each of the four-part 
movements found the dancers displaying a different set of emotions.  Coordinated 
and segmented moves, interaction, lack of interaction, lyrical and static bodily 
actions, all highlighted by Dennis Dugan's lighting which cast shadows and moved 
in coordination and discordance with the dancers, created a series of 
illusions. 

The final piece, 'JUST YESTERDAY,' was a recreation of a Dianne McIntyre 
choreographed number which is a series of vignettes, based on stories being told 
by the dancers, which are recreated in movement.  Nostalgia, joy, sadness, 
personal traditions as they related to food, hi-jinks, fads, movies, family, and 
people who touched the dancers' lives, flowed forth.  The fine acoustics of 
Trinity Cathedral allowed for clarity of hearing the spoken words.  All in all, 
this is a fascinating selection, which got a wonderful performance.

Capsule judgement:  As has come to be expected, the sold out performance of 
GROUNWORKS DANCE THEATER at Trinity Cathedral was a visual delight.  Good luck 
to Amy Miller and welcome to Katie Wells, the newest of the company's dancers.

THE DANCING WHEELS premiers PINOCCHIO!

The Dancing Wheels Company will present the world premiere of the classic 
children's story, Pinocchio, the puppet who came to life, at the St Ignatius 
Breen Center on December 2 and 3 at 10:30 a.m. Sunday, December 5 at 2:00 p.m.  
The dance is choreographed by Ginger Thatcher, the former Cleveland Ballet 
dancer.  

Tickets for PINOCCHIO! can be purchased by calling (216) 432-0306, or on line at 
www.dancingwheels.org (special large group rates available, inquire by phone). 
Roy Berko's blog, which contains theatre and dance reviews from 2001 through 
2010, as well as his consulting and publications information, can be found at 
http://royberko.info.  His reviews can also be found on www.coolcleveland.com 
and www.NeOHIOpal