One Good Quote: Kristin Damrow & Company in EAMES (January 25-27, 2018)

From Blog Director Jill Randall:

In Fall 2017, Life as a Modern Dancer launched a new concept for post-performance discussion and writing. The goals are multi-fold:

What are new ways to invite post-performance writing (since so few publications now print dance reviews, and there are fewer and fewer dance critics in the United States)?
How can choreographers hear and read more from audience members about their impressions and experiences of dance events?
Can we offer new mechanisms for choreographers to gather language about their work, to further their work and to promote their work?

The premise is simple. If you attended a performance of Kristin Damrow & Company in EAMES at ODC Theater on January 25, 26, or 27, please take a few minutes here to leave a comment. Write down images, impressions, appreciations, and questions from the performance. These can be words, phrases, or a few sentences. Then please sign it with your name and a descriptor, such as:

Jill Randall, Director of Life as a Modern Dancer

Chris Randall, dance enthusiast

Reed Randall, first-time audience member

We thank you for your time, support, and thoughtfulness. Here's to more dialogue, more reflection, and more writing on the dance performance experience. As choreographer Mariah Steele noted, we are "democratizing dance criticism."

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4 responses to “One Good Quote: Kristin Damrow & Company in EAMES (January 25-27, 2018)”

Jill Homan Randall

Jan 25, 2018 at 10:24 pm

Thank you, Kristin Damrow and company, for a delightful, imaginative evening. From start to finish – I so appreciated and admired your attention to detail. (The graphic design, paper program, lobby exhibit, set, costumes, sound score….wow!)
All five dancers were just stunning – and gave an impressive 100% for 65 minutes straight. Clarity, commitment, humanness. Their endurance and exhaustion was a beautiful symbol and metaphor, in my mind, for the design process that Ray and Charles Eames pursued and committed to.
Kristin’s choreography explores strong lines through space with the arms, legs, and whole body yet also involves playful gestures closer into the body. There was fluidity all around – in and out of the floor, in and out of whole group work and solo moments, and a beautiful relationship of choreography to sound score. Aaron Gold’s composition was a standout; in the audience I felt the music in my own body and loved the moment as each new section of music was revealed.
Overall, I loved seeing the concepts of imagination, design, and collaboration take shape in motion, time, and space before my eyes tonight at the ODC Theater.
Thank you for your care, craft, and sharing tonight.
Jill Randall – Artistic Director of Shawl-Anderson Dance Center and
Blog Director of Life as a Modern Dancer

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richard leiter

Jan 28, 2018 at 6:58 pm

This was an unusual dance experience for me, because my mind never wandered. Not for a second. “Eames” is a series of breathtaking little surprises – in movement and music equally. It’s one of the very few times that, when it was over, I wanted to see it again.
Richard Leiter
Owner: Words & Music

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Tanya Chianese

Jan 29, 2018 at 4:52 pm

Eames is an exceptionally cohesive, well-researched and delightful production. A remarkable top contending example of contemporary dance’s version of the “story ballet,” Eames easily and excitedly brought me into the 1950s and the story of Ray and Charles Eames. Damrow and her collaborators’ scrutiny of historical accuracy was evident in the score, costumes, set and story line, and this attention to detail is a large part of the work’s deserving success. Additionally, each performer’s physical agility was inexhaustible and spellbinding – I was mesmerized throughout the performance. My only request is the opportunity to see it again so that I might experience, digest and catch all of Damrow’s well-crafted choreographic moments!
Tanya Chianese, Artistic Director of ka·nei·see | collective

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David Miller

Feb 1, 2018 at 4:43 pm

Hi Kristin…Eames was an amazing experience. So interesting, both the history of Charles and Ray Eames, but also how you dealt with the material.
The lobby was helpful to set the mood and give me an introduction to Charles and Ray. The set was just right. It caught the essence of the time period and the primary colors connecting the space to the costumes was perfect. It made the concert an immersive experience.
Dancers were all amazing. Committed, clear, technical and disciplined. They embodied their characters (or characteristics) effectively. Loved when each of them stepped out to take focus. You set up a clear vocabulary that kept the narrative clear in my mind as the piece went on. There was a simplicity to everything that didn’t make confuse me or make my mind wander. But the piece also had a creative and technical strength that made me want to see the it again and again. I know I would have found new things each time.
Lastly, the soundtrack. Beautiful. Sucked me in from the beginning. I would LOVE to listen to that again. I hope Aaron releases it. I would buy a copy in a heartbeat. It had a contemporary feel AND an mid-century vibe. Very difficult to do I’m sure, but it sounded awesome.
Loved loved loved everything about Eames. I did not know about Charles and Ray before your show. It was an interesting choice on which to base your concert. And it was very cool. Can’t wait to see what you come up with next.

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