"Remembering," a contemporary dance presentation by the Bill Evans Dance Company is not your typical performance.
Instead, it will delve into both the cerebral and emotional process of memory, through classical music inspired movement. Some jazz music and tap pieces will also be presented at the South Broadway Cultural Center Sunday, Nov. 24.
Bill Evans is a professor of dance in the UNM's Department of Theater and Dance. His company will be combined with guest artists from the UNM dance company.
"Remembering" intends to touch on some tough issues, including Bill Evans' response to Sept.11 of the same name, which he choreographed as a piece for eight women to "St. Matthew's Passion," by J.S. Bach.
"My experience in the days following the cataclysmic event was pain and loss," Evans said. "But because of the horrible loss the beauty of the world around me was heightened so I tried to incorporate this into the music. The movement is very grounded and powerful but the dancers are also very lyrical and connected with each other."
Other works of the first half of the program also explore memory. Evans will also perform "Dances for My Father" to music by Count Basie.
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"Saintly Passion" is a modern performance by Evans, Linda Johnson-Gallegos, Lisa Nevada and Kyla Wallace and is dedicated to the memory of composer Michael Cava, former musical director for Evans' summer institute.
"Dreamweaver" is a solo performed by Kyla Wallace, who recently graduated from the Professional Program of the School of Contemporary Dancers in Winnipeg, Canada.
The dancers have all been working since the middle of September to cultivate truly genuine movement. The process is intensely personal for the dancers.
"Each one of the dancers has to go inside herself and find something very personal she can draw on," Evans said. "Each one has to make it authentic so she is motivated from inside herself. It has taken time, but they are very authentic and convincing of the emotional truth they bring into these pieces."
The second half of the program will be celebratory. Pieces like "Bach Dances," and "Song for My Father," though still focused around the act of remembering, will be of a lighter nature.
"He visibly accomplishes what so many dancers theorize about," said Nicole Plett writer for The Santa Fe New Mexican. "The impetus of Evans' movement flows directly from the pelvic center, giving the illusion of weightlessness to the upper body."
What: 'Remembering'
a contemporary dance presentation by the
Bill Evans Dance Company
When: Sunday 7:00 p.m.
Where: South Broadway Cultural Center
