Troupe aims to make emotions run high at Schoenberg
Dancemakers to perform personal images Feb. 16-17
By Jennifer Richmond
Daily Bruin Staff
It’s all about personal emotions.
That’s what artistic director Serge Bennathan believes is the
basis of Dancemakers.
Although Dancemakers, coming to UCLA’s Schoenberg Hall this
Friday and Saturday, was created 21 years ago, Bennathan has only
been with the company for five years. But that short amount of time
has been more than enough to make the leap from repertory dance
troupe to a non-rep company.
The leap constituted a change from a company that used a
different choreographer for every performance to one where
Bennathan makes the final decisions. He decides when and if they
should bring in a guest choreographer and who that person will
be.
"It’s a question of focus," Bennathan explains from his hotel in
Kansas. "It depends on what I want to do for the piece. Sometimes
I’ll invite choreographers who compliment my work." Even though
Bennathan brings these guests in every now and then, he’s really
the one who’s changed the focus of the group. Now Dancemakers is
more interested in the emotions that their pieces evoke.
"Dancemakers is a very humane company," Bennathan explains. So,
because the group is so devoted to feelings, the group dances very
differently from any other company.
"I encourage people to be themselves. I don’t really see the
dancers, I have a connection with them."
And Bennathan wants to pass that connection on to the audience.
By concentrating on personal experiences and feelings, Bennathan is
hoping the audience will make that connection.
"We’re sending our own personal images to them," he explains.
Those personal images will be relayed in two very different pieces.
Bennathan says the conception for the pieces came from "two totally
different worlds.
"In this way I challenge them, they challenge you and the
creativity we achieve is gained by that. So, the role of the
audience is to interpret the images we create and in the process,
deeply connect with the personal experiences. The emotional
connection should make the strings vibrate in (each audience
member)."
Bennathan achieves this personal feeling by composing the group
of older dancers. With the youngest member of the company being 27
and the oldest being 40, the artistic director feels he’s working
with a "mature" company.
"It’s quite important (to work with mature dancers) because I
like dancers who have already had experiences; people who view
dance for themselves," Bennathan says. And because most of the
company’s members are in their 30s, Bennathan doesn’t need to worry
about losing any of them for awhile. "I like to work with people
for a decent amount of time. And these people will be with me for
about 20 years."
Although those 20 years hold an infinite number of possibilities
for Dancemakers, Bennathan already knows what he wants to do for
the next few months. Once they’re finished at UCLA, the company
heads to Riverside and then Vancouver. They’ll present a new work
in April, perform in Europe during the month of May and finish up
in the Canadian Dance Festival in June.
Even with their next months booked, the company’s focus remains
a constant thanks to Bennathan. No matter where they are or what
they’re doing, the company’s interest in emotion will always come
first.
PERFORMANCE: "Dancemakers." Performs Feb. 16 and 17 at UCLA’s
Schoenberg Hall at 8 p.m. TIX: $29.50 or $9 with a valid I.D. For
more info, call: (310) 825-2101.
DANCEMAKERS PicACarolyn Woods of the nine-member Canadian dance
troupe Dancemakers will perform.Comments to
webmaster@db.asucla.ucla.edu