Ailey Citigroup Theater, New York, NY.
July 28, 2024.
Woman in Motion (WIM), the all-female company led by Rachel Thalman and Laura Kaufman, held its third season performance weekend at the Ailey Citigroup Theater in late July. Like years pervious, the house will filled with enthusiastic audience members – the result of two successful past seasons and a vigorous community of friends and family. The company has found a sweet spot in programming shorter pieces to allow for more choreographers and varied styles. As such, the group of supporters is robust and engaged – the vibes were high on a Sunday night, the night of my attendance.
The title of the show was Souls Transcending, as the directors said their goal was to “transport minds to another space and time” and let the show be an “ecstatic revelatory period” for audience members. The founders also spoke about the desire to connect, create and heal via the process of art. By sheer virtue of involving 11 dancers and an additional eight choreographers (with two current company members also contributing a piece) the goal of strengthening community prevailed.
The works ranged from ballet, to musical theater, to contemporary, and the screening of a film created especially for this performance. One of the stated goals of WIM is to allow for each dancer and artist to shine in the ways best suited to them, and this mixed repertory program supports that.
The first half of the show took us from an upbeat theater number, All You Gotta Do by Sara Brians, with dancers in exuberant orange blazers and heels, to Aliferous by founding member Rachel Thalman, an amusing balletic trio, to Grace by Mindy Moeller, a contemporary duet, and ended with Sunny Side Up by Jourdan Epstein, an adorable, joyful piece with each dancer in cheery yellow rompers.
After a short intermission, the second half opened to Flight of Heart by Rose Alice, which started with an EDM vibe and transitioned to a cinematic finish. The audience was then treated to a screening of short dance film choreographed by company member Mallory Pettee and filmed by Grace Copeland. It was a lovely short with dancers in mostly shades of blue in a bright white studio. Following the film is and we will continue + we will continue by Kristin Sudeikis, a contemporary work met with much applause. In Aspirations of a Dancer, by Isaiah Newby, we were treated to a lovely pointe piece with nude and silver sequined unitards that were costumes I didn’t know I needed to see, but was thrilled to watch move onstage. Karla Puno Garcia’s Feeling Good was a sexy and rich spectacle in its evolution, leading to the final piece of the night, Found It In Silence by Katie Drablos – a full company work that closed the show with a burst of power and community that had the audience on their feet the second it ended.
WIM consistently delivers fun shows where the dancers genuinely seem to be at ease and filled with joy – a sense that carries over to the audience, evident by the smiles and hugs in the room after the house light came up. If WIM’s goal was to transcend souls, it appears they were successful.
By Emily Sarkissian of Dance Informa.
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