Gala performances often feature patrons in black ties and evening gowns, cocktails and expensive seats.
Saturday night’s season opening gala for Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival was an entirely different affair.
“Global Pillow: A Virtual Gala” took place online.
Admission was free of charge.
Best of all, if you missed Saturday night’s performances, you can still see captivating performances by the nine dance companies featured in Global Pillow through next Saturday, June 19.
Many of us have become accustomed to watching performances online in the past year. Virtual performances will never take the place of live, in-person performances. There’s nothing quite like the thrill of watching performers live in person with an audience seated around you.
And for those who crave live, in-person performances, they will have the opportunity to see them at Jacob’s Pillow in Becket later this month. The internationally renowned dance festival will feature onsite, outdoor performances from June 30 until August 29. (There are no indoor performances this summer.)
But there’s also something special about being able to see performers anytime, anywhere from around the world. That’s one of the virtues of online performances. That’s what makes this summer’s Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival so unique. If you cannot make it in person this summer to The Pillow as it’s affectionately known by dance fans, you can see most of the performances online.
The globetrotting nature of the Global Pillow online gala is one its strong points as well. One minute, you are in the opulent Palais Garnier in Paris watching an excerpt from a stunning new work by the Paris Opera Ballet. The next minute, you are on a sandy beach in Senegal watching a dancer perform an intimate solo with the soothing sounds of the ocean in the background.
Global Pillow’s gala features nine different performances from nine different countries.
The first performance is an excerpt of “Lalita Lavanga,” a duet performed by two women from Nrityagram Dance Ensemble in India. Filmed in their dance studio last month near Bangalore, India, the playful piece features fluid, elegant movements set to lush, rhythmic music.
Next, it’s off to England to see Candoco Dance Company, the London-based dance company that includes disabled and non-disabled dancers performing works by some of the world’s leading choreographers. The piece featured in Global Pillow, an excerpt from Jeanine Durning’s new work, “Last Shelter,” features angular, Merce Cunningham-like movements set to sparse music and dialogue.
The third piece on the program is the elegant solo on the beach in Senegal performed by Germaine Acogny, the Senegalese dancer that founded Jant-Bi, the dance company that performed one of the most stunning pieces I have ever seen at Jacob’s Pillow in 2000. Acogny’s Global Pillow solo features no music, no words – just the sound of the ocean and her graceful, stylish movements.
Any dance company wondering how to pull off a visually stunning virtual piece can learn a lot from Companhia Urbana de Danca in Brazil. Filmed on a sidewalk in Brazil, “Falling Apart” features a man and a woman dancing together at night wearing black masks many of us have grown accustomed to wearing this past year. The couple seems to push and pull each other as subtle, electronic music plays in the background. Suddenly, it’s daytime on the same sidewalk. Then it’s night again. Then one dancer starts running and it feels like we’re watching an action movie. It’s simple, cinematic and captivating.
Next, we’re treated to a dazzling tap dancing solo by Dormeshia, the recipient of the 2021 Jacob’s Pillow Dance Award. Performing on a simple stage with a blue background and a pianist performing offstage, Dormeshia shows why she’s considered one of the best tap dancers of her generation.
The Paris Opera Ballet next performs an excerpt from “Et Si,” a mesmerizing ensemble work that features hypnotic music and movements that build in intensity. A combination of Twyla Tharp meets Pina Bausch, “Et Si” simply left me wanting to see more of this work featuring these dazzling dancers.
Next, Hong Kong Ballet performs an excerpt of its upcoming, new production of “Romeo and Juliet.” Choreographer Septime Webre reimagines this classic ballet, setting the star-crossed lovers in 1960s Hong Kong. The movements are fast, crisp, vivid and thrilling.
Jacob’s Pillow regulars Nederlands Dans Theater then perform an excerpt from Hofesh Shechter’s “From England With Love.” Dressed in school uniforms, the dancers gradually become more disheveled as they thrash about to excerpts from classic British rock songs.
Finally, we’re transported to New Zealand for an excerpt from “Surface,” a rhythmic, propulsive piece performed by Black Grace. This large, ensemble work illustrates why Black Grace has been such a festival favorite at Jacob’s Pillow. And here’s looking forward to more memorial moments from them and other dance companies from around the world at Jacob’s Pillow this summer and for many more years to come.
“Global Pillow: A Virtual Gala” can streamed online for free through Saturday, June 19 at 7 p.m. To register and watch the performance online, go to https://www.jacobspillow.org/events/global-pillow/
Tickets for all other onsite and online events at Jacob’s Pillow are currently on sale. To purchase tickets, visit jacobspillow.org or call (413) 243-0745.
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June 14, 2021 at 03:25AM
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Review: Jacob’s Pillow Virtual Gala features dazzling dance performances - MassLive.com
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