$10
8:30 PM, Fri., 3/5
2:30PM, Sat., 3/6
4:00 PM,Sat, 3/13
Latecomers admitted
California Arts Academy SEVERANCE -1401 N Wishon
Welcome to the premiere of Fresno’s newest nonprofit dance company: Fresno Dance Collective/artistic director Amy Querin! We hope to help produce Fresno dance artists, develop emerging dance talent, and enrich the arts in the Fresno area! www.amyquerin.com
Artistic Director Amy Querin with guest artist
Megan Yankee
www.amyquerin.com
Fresno, California
Genre: Contemporary Dance 45 min. Rated: G
No infants please
Positives: nuanced choreography, skilled execution, giggly and whimsical sense of playfulness within the theme of secrets, emotional depth and expressiveness in the more serious pieces. An enjoyable performance! Loads of talent here!
Constructive: please reconsider the wording (or even the necessity) of your introductory/promotional talk. I’m sure it was unintended, but it sounded incredibly condescending – akin to ‘we’re delighted to bring some culture to you people and tell you not to be scared of modern dance .’ Instead, perhaps just trust the performance to speak for itself, and trust your audience to be capable of receiving it. The raison d’être improv chatty part should go in a flyer so it doesn’t interfere with the cadence and arc of the performance.
Regards and best wishes for your remaining shows at the Rogue.
WTF??
Ten bucks for a 30 minute show?????
As for the dancing? Meh.
I’m always thrilled to support new dance companies, but there wasn’t anything shown that we haven’t seen before (save perhaps the human helicopter, that was kinda neat).
There seemed to be quite a lack of direction…one of the featured dancers spoke to the crowd and asked for us the open our minds to modern dance, that the dance didn’t need to have a meaning or story. We know that…but I for one would like at least the dancers to know what the backstory or character or meaning is…the overall faces were model-pose-dead.
The Icarus piece had one dancer that stood out above the rest in talent, but the choreography in that one left me dry as well, and the literal feather theme was also…meh.
If Twyla Tharp is a 10 and me dancing in my living room is a 1, this new company rates a solid 4.
Another review comment: I SO wish the lighting could have done more…I liked the venue space with the teaser wings, but the lighting couldn’t feature the bodies, the lines, or help the mood at ALL. I get that the venue has many a show so they’re using a rep plot, but…well, I wish!
Here’s The Beehive’s review:
http://fresnobeehive.com/2010/03/rogue_review_fr.html
While I do not wish to make excuses, and it was certainly not a flawless performance, I would like to mention that the husband of the director passed away the night before the first show, and several changes were made to the program.
I’m always excited to see good modern dance so it was with great anticipation I went to the Fresno Arts Academy to see The Fresno Dance Collective. In watching this performance I was struck by two things: Some of the dance was recycled from previous performances (different company but same dancers and same choreography), and the remainder looked more like teasers than full-fledged performances. Though the show was supposed to be themed ’secrets’ there really was very little play on that theme. I thought that the $10 for 30 minutes of teasers was a bit much. Overall the show was a disappointment. Next year it might be a good idea to have a full program.
I thought this show was a fantastic compact view of what NOCO has up their sleve! Though it left me wanting more, the choregraphy challenged the very idea that is called open-mindedness. The dynamics of the entire show kept me on the edge of my seat never knowing what was to come next. All in all, my favorite piece was the newer and more improved redition of “Belonging” and thought the theme of the dance was beautifully executed.
Another note:I would like to commend all the dancers durring such a period of loss. I would like add that like, Joannie Rochette(silver medalist of this year winter olympics) it is not easy to go out there and perform as though nothing happened the night before. My condolences to NOCO director Amy Querin and the rest of the Querin family at the loss of her husband.
It made me happy to see a new modern dance company in Fresno. They are young and a bit wet behind the ears, but they are promising. Cut them some slack and enjoy the show.