I bought my tickets last-minute to be at the performance of Layla and Majnun, which meant I’d be all the way at the top of the balcony at the Power Center. Granted, the view wasn’t the greatest — especially when the dancers were active on house left. However, I was still able to fully receive the emotions conveyed through music and movements on stage even when I was practically the farthest from stage. Colors, poems, and artists skillfully created a space where a tragic love story can be told. It may be an understatement to say I was impressed.
The first time I saw the Silk Road Ensemble perform was four years ago. I was curious about how the so-called Western and non-Western instruments can come together and form a cohesive ensemble. They proved me at that performance that it’s totally doable, and music can, indeed, transcend borders. The ensemble reinforced that again at this performance, where a group of string players — violin, viola, cello, bass, Persian kamanche, and Chinese pipa — supported the two Azerbaijani singers and the entire dance crew as a true ensemble. I was also moved by Mr. Evan Ziporyn for his skill on clarinet to be able to be mellow and flexible enough to adapt to the Azerbaijani musical tradition on an instrument made for Euro-American settings. I also appreciated the production team for making the music just loud enough, but not overpowering. With the music so sensitive, all it needed was a slight amplification to reach an audience afar (like me!) — which I thought was executed very well.
I had never heard of Mark Morris Dance Group, but the fact that Mr. Yo-Yo Ma has referred to the group as “the preeminent modern dance organization of our time” made me look forward to seeing them. Their movements on stage were very convincing, even to my non-dancer eyes. I was most impressed in the last act, titled “The Lovers’ Demise”, where the dancers fall down one-by-one to the ground after what seems to be a despairing moment but none of them fall exactly the same way. Their control over their own bodies and connections with other dancers and musicians are incredible and memorable.
Going to this performance was a great way to wrap up my busy week and start off my fall break. I was also happy to see many other students in the audience experiencing the same beauty, in an art form that I’m sure most of us were not very familiar with. Ann Arbor offers so many different performances that are new to me, and they never seem to disappoint.
