Category: Arts

REVIEW: Kuinka

Abbey Rose Leave a comment
                                           Kuinka

The Accidentals, a quirky trio out of northern Michigan, opened tonight’s performances at The Ark. A violin, guitar, and percussive element gave way to an evening of diversion for a room full of Ann Arbor folk.

Like first stepping into a hot tub, I paused before allowing myself to fully understand and accept such a hard-to-pin-down genre as presented by The Accidentals. When I listen to a group I have never heard before, my first instinct is to liken them to a band I am already familiar with.

When I was unable to do so after the first few songs, I was puzzled yet intrigued. As their set picked up in tempo, I developed a newfound liking for their style and a respect for their distinctive sound.

Kuinka, the main act of the evening, was absolutely remarkable. Kuinka embodied all that is good in music: well-blended harmonies, stringed instruments, and a wholesome, happy energy.

I was impressed by Kuinka’s ability to pull off a quieter, acoustic, and raw sound in addition to their strong, loud, and lively numbers of the night. Their members are multitalented and, and they are a band worth your attention and time.

REVIEW: They, Themself, and Schmerm

tintinj Leave a comment

Like performer Becca Blackwell, it’s hard to define They, Themself, and Schmerm as a specific “type” of performance. Like a stand up comedy special, it’s funny, observational and at times, oddly insightful; but, unlike a regular gig, Blackwell’s narrative highlights scenes from their entire life, like a cohesive, revealing, well-told memoir.

Blackwell’s performance is an attempt to connect the dots in their sexual identity, both for themselves and their audience. They questioned the origins of their queerness (“I wasn’t aware I was a girl between ages 0 to 3” “What makes a man? I acted like a boy, I looked like one, the only thing I didn’t have was a penis.” ). They prodded at their impressions of binary gendered people (“before I took testosterone, men were just shades of grey, obstacles that got in the way of women”). They broke down their insecurities in public life (“I hated the men’s room- there were all these unfamiliar sounds and sights–I had to turn my feet this way and that to pretend I was peeing standing up”). And they shared their various roles in other people’s lives, like when Blackwell was cornered into a mother figure for a niece because the rest of the men “blanked out.”

Blackwell’s delivery is raw and honest. One of my favorite parts of the show was Blackwell’s use of “Blerrgghh” (while jutting out their head and wiggling their fingers) to refer to her femininity. It’s an honest portrayal of the interwoven confusion, annoyance, lust, unpredictability, and fear of the vagina and female hormones. It’s also a metaphor for the confusion that comes with figuring out who we are, who we love/lust, and why we love.

After a dive into their engaging stories, I came out with a better sense of the complexity of gender identity as well as its salience, in the form of socially awkward and even dangerous moments, for people who don’t conform to the binary standard. And it’s resonant, not only with people who are involved in the LGBTQ+ community or remotely identify themselves as such, but also with those who claim to be part of the more mainstream identities. The innocent questions that were brought up in Schmerm were definitely in my head at some point of my life, but I didn’t have enough of the curiosity nor the courage to follow it up even further. And I’m certainly not alone in this. Schmerm is a call to acknowledge, appreciate, and question without fear, the uniqueness of our own identities.

“A schmerm is a schmear of gender. It is basically the sound that people make as they try to figure my gender out.”- Blackwell in a short opening video.

REVIEW: Dancing Globally

Mary O'Byrne Leave a comment

A beautifully put together four number show, Dancing Globally made me feel connected to the raw emotions that its dancers put out on the stage. I have never seen a modern dance performance before, but now know I will be attending many in the future. I loved the show, from its choreography to costumes to lighting to music.

The first number, ‘Excerpts from KYR (1990), Anaphase (1993), and Mabul (1992)’, was an impactful piece in which the dancers began wearing business attire, and they gradually tore off those garments – all but one dancer, who appeared to be stuck in some way. This dance was very intimate throughout, and especially towards the end as it had only two dancers left on stage. I thought this was an ideal introduction to the show because it was not hectic on stage, so I was able to take in the beginning of the show at calm pace.

The second number, ‘Vox (2018)’, was the number I enjoyed the most. I think this was because while there there was a lot going on with many dancers on-stage, the staging and choreography was well done so that you watch the intricate parts performance without being too overwhelmed.

‘fall(s) (2018)’ was the third number, one in which the dancers wore outfits with large pieces of vibrant fabric that hung off of their bodies, complementing the black backdrop that had huge, colorful flowers spread across it. The many colors and overload of movement was something that made this dance very hard to follow. While it was still aesthetically very pleasing, it seemed a bit more unkempt next to the other numbers.

The fourth number, ‘Minûtus Luminous (2018)’, was an interesting piece inspired by Jóse León Sánchez, who was sentenced to 30 years in prison for a crime that he didn’t commit. The number is intended to be “a song to those families and communities who have had to live with misfortune.”* With complex staging and large structures that mimicked the inside of a dreary building, likely a jail, it was a finishing number with palpable heart and storytelling.

While I still remain undereducated on modern dance, seeing this performance sparked an interest in me that I didn’t know existed. The dancers’ hard work and pure emotions were pulsating off of the stage, and I found myself caught up in their brilliant performance. Another major kudos would be the lighting: each number had different lighting that highlighted and intensified the emotion. I’m sure anyone who saw Dancing Globally can attest that it was bursting with talent and passion.

*from the playbook of Dancing Globally, said by choreographer Sandra Torijano

Photos by Kirk Donaldson

REVIEW: Constellations

Neha Srinivasan Leave a comment

It is simply astounding that out of all the possible things that could happen, out of all the ways things could turn out, it is this one way that events align. How astronomically unlikely it is that two people would meet each other, at this time and at this place, and be suited enough to each other that they could form an attachment, remain woven into each other’s timeline; how much more possible that they never meet at all, never become the people they need to be to be suited to each other. In any romance, or even any story involving the meeting of people, or maybe even any accounting of an interaction between two objects, it is a given that the paths of those individuals did cross, and what matters is everything that follows. Constellations accounts for the possibility that nothing follows, that the spacetime continuum doesn’t allow for a story at all. In bringing to the foreground the laws of physics, it reminded me that everything that does happen is wondrous just because it happened, and not something else. Somehow Constellations maintains the inevitability of a single possible outcome and also confirms the existence of infinite potential outcomes.

Time is linear, and yet it must go in parallel lines because so many different end results occurred in the play. And it must be intuitive to understand this at some level because even with the same lines, and cuts forward and backward in time with no cue but lights and tone of voice, those vignettes assembled clearly into cohesive alternate timelines. There are so many ways to say the same words, all of which change the way the characters perceived their timelines if not the timelines themselves. Skillful is the least you need to be to switch from angry to loving, bouncy to pensive, in a split second, and these actors were worlds better than merely skillful. I didn’t expect each vignette to be so short—really just a few lines before it was repeated with a different interpretation—but those little snippets of story were enough to give the show the texture it needed.

It was very full-bodied for a show that was only an hour and ten minutes long. It felt much longer, not longer because it was boring but longer because it was mesmerizing enough that it felt as if there was too much story there to have unfolded in only an hour. I think several lifetimes happened over the course of the play, lifetimes that contained laughter, awkwardness, poignancy, anger, and love all at once.

I realize this isn’t a review so much as it is a reflection. Perhaps that defeats the purpose, but I mention this because any show that makes me think, the way Constellations did, is worth seeing. Had I been asked before tonight, I would have told you that if you had enough numbers, enough variables, and an equation, you could calculate the outcome of the universe. And perhaps I still would. But tonight, string theory seems closer and truer than it ever has before.

PREVIEW: Phantom Thread

Corrina Lee Leave a comment

Phantom Thread promises to be a fascinating film featuring the work of two masters. It is the second collaboration between Paul Thomas Anderson and Daniel Day-Lewis after their 2007 masterpiece, There Will Be Blood.  The film concerns Day-Lewis’ character, Reynolds Woodcock, a renowned dress maker. In 1950s London, Woodcock is massively successful, dressing celebrities, socialites, and heiresses alike. However, his carefully plotted life and career suddenly change course when he meets Alma (Vicky Krieps). Alma fascinates him. She even acts as a muse for his fashion efforts. It would be silly to expect a conventional love story from Paul Thomas Anderson, though. He does not make anything according to expectations. Although, it will be fascinating to watch the movie purely for the aesthetic appeal of the beautiful clothing, Anderson also does not make shallow movies. All in all, this film is assuredly an exciting new entry by an American master director.  Phantom Thread is currently showing at the Michigan Theater. Tickets can be bought online or at the box office ($8 with a student ID).

 

PREVIEW: Dancing Globally

Mary O'Byrne Leave a comment

This Saturday I’ll go to a theater that that holds more than a thousand people and watch some of the talented students from the Dance Department, who I’ve never seen perform before. Having never been exposed to modern dance, I know seeing Dancing Globally is a promising first modern dance program to attend because of my friend who is in it, who has been practicing tirelessly.
Dancing Globally, already shown Thursday February 1st and Friday February 2nd, will be shown Saturday February 3rd at 8PM and Sunday February 4th at 2PM at the Power Center for the Performing Arts. Tickets can be purchased for a variety of prices here.