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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 23, 1987)
Wednesday, September 23, 1987/The Battalion/Page 3 State and Local <ker Use of color, lights helps bring performances to life > thinkofit,isakj Jid at PILHeJ ly convinced ft.; ; of material weai Modern dance troupe finds audience at A&M By Tom Reinarts Reviewer v»The Nikolais Dance Theater per formed a series of modern dance i $172 million- mgces Tuesday night at Rudder Au- networkand: ditorium in a show sponsored by the ark. AndlesskaHc Opera and Performing Arts ■d to BakkerV Somety. KThe pieces were choreographed ||d designed by Alwin Nikolais, iceived notion?:; Nikolais has won several awards n't promote for his works both in the United Bes and abroad. r , ..Bln 1985 he won the Samuel H. jimote LnnsMSjppj American Dance Festival eranysignol Award for lifetime contribution to n the infighlii modern dance. ' l l. scandalh' i: tainly hardtoiJfre dance group has been tour- , when vou’rec n 8 ever y y ear since 1953 and has —' "uairii >erformed a11 over the world - The ' ' urr< nt members are James Mur- indude a 193 1 ihy, Alberto Del Saz, Paula Aarons, ion home, fou: |pes Aarons, Sheila Lehner, Kay ( .tliforniaan bilerson, Sarah Hook, Meredith ( j Mercedes-ktege Manly, Sean Murphy, Spencer , , »Iiaiols and Noel Reiss, sn qui Q re g OI -y aru j fsikolais com- 10ns ot RollsK focd the music for the pieces, ink the motiva ^hich could best be described as new ,nd the unthirqgeland industrial. Slow and quicker lividual that were layered to accent the s'Thatishere®™^ 9 ^- contained el- discoveredi :mClUs j azz ’ and gymnas- : lal windfall c i and Tamravrl Color and lighting effects, which :"re|uently changed from kinetic to ink mavbenr itati<. combined well with the chore- agraphy to produce an interesting pniorjouml ind enjoyable show. Viewers were , n allowed to form their own impres- Hs of the meanings for each seg- mentof the performance. M^^wHwfM&aning the evening was “Pond,” a slow dance that incorporated circu- laiflighting on the stage as well as on th|eostumes. Khe artists wheeled themselves around on dollies to give them a fluid motion that one might expect eatures of the water, he Mechanical Organ,” a duet een two male company mem- ts, followed and highlighted the incredible balance and gymnastic / abilities of Murphy and DelSaz. \ V\ “Velocities” created a kaleido scope effect with lighting on the dancers that at different times was in the shape of circles, stripes and di amonds. The dancers were arranged with the use of black cloth hangings on stage in a way that created a mir ror effect among the artists. The Final dance before the inter mission was “Video Game,” a num ber that included the use of black lights and fluorescent costume col ors. “Video Game” was light-hearted and bouncy and had the appearance of the arcade game TRON. “Graph” was the final perfor mance of the evening, and was di vided into Five sections. Throughout this piece grid surfaces hanging from the ceiling and drawn on the stage itself were the central props used. The First part of “Graph” imple mented a variety of bright colors in the lighting and included most of the cast members, as did the second. Next was a duet performed by Lehner and Del Saz that included excellent timing and team work by the two dancers. In another prefor- mance, Lehner and Hook used glass backdrops to assist in a piece that re sembled the movements of the con torted hands of a clock. The Final segment of the evening included the entire cast and was done underneath a strobe light. The dancers darted back and forth be tween black boards that hid them from the audience. . P most of simple geometric patterns. Squares, circles, lines, rectangles and grids of all types were visible throughout the evening. The light ing, the props and the dance chore ography were all employed to create the various shapes in a variety of in teresting ways. Audience members in the full au ditorium appreciated the modern and at times avante-garde perfor mance, which was a treat for the eyes land ears. Even those unnaccus- jtomed to the unique style of modern (dance seemed to enjoy themselves. James Murphy and Alberto Del Saz dance to “The Mechanical Organ” during the Nikolais Dance Theater performance. Photo by Robert IV. Rimmo ave 17%-33%0n Sperf shirts. Sweaters and Jackets J 4 KG r fan, track off* * to the Corps- • obnoxious .SU student bo- otbail gameoc! 1 Department of Speech Communication & Theatre Arts Texas A&M University Present ie problems ar< : ?sent the vast New Oversized and "Washed-Look" Sport Shirts Wear the newest "in" shirts from Shah Safari' and Pier id supporter!' Connection ! 100% cotton in a huge selection of "washed" ill of the TeXJ' I * ookSi stri pes, plaids and patterns - all in a fabulous color array. h were very iology i length. The but will make gned and must »* ter. Shaker Sweaters By Brittania" & Sard! Save 20%-23% on your favorite sweater style! Great choice ot colors in washable acrylic or cotton. Ideal over jeans or with slacks & sportcoat! Orig. 25.00-26.00. You II be extra warm in KG's 100% split cowhide [“tough-out" jacket with sherpa-type or boot pile lining & knit cuffs. Grey or tan. Orlg. 65.00. 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Triple-A Plowed Under features the unique style of the “Living Newspaper”—a collage of news reel footage, projections and other theatrical devices. Please join us for an evening of innovative theatre! September 25, 26 and October 1, 2, 3 8:00 PM Rudder Forum Texas A&M University General Public $5.00 Students $4.00 Tickets available at the Rudder Box Office For reservations phone 845-1234 Underwritten, in part, by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation Produced by special arrangement with Random House, Inc.