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The
Martha's Vineyard Times is a weekly publication.
July 28 - August 3, 2005 Edition
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Dance:
George, Carly Wendy: Making dancers of Island locals July 28, 2005 By Joyce Wagner
Lisbeth Jones is a lawyer, working for Sheriff’s Meadow Foundation on land acquisitions. Thursday night, she’ll join Chris Fried, bending the boards at The Yard. Kanta Lipsky is a massage therapist and yoga teacher. Thursday will find her moving in a quite different way. Of course, at The Yard. Joan LeLacheur, jeweler, will dance in front of scores of audience members, toe-to-toe with highly professional dancers, in a gala world premiere — at The Yard. What brings these people with differing amateur levels of dance experience to appear on stage with the pros? The Island’s own Carly Simon and New York choreographer (and West Tisbury resident) Wendy Taucher. The event is the world premiere of their collaboration, “Created by Carly Simon: Dances at The Yard.” The project came about when two years ago, Carly contacted Wendy with a new song, “In Honor of You, George,” and asked if she thought it could be set to dance. Wendy agreed to give it a try, but immediately saw some heady challenges. “The piece is complex and needs to be put on its feet carefully,” she explains, “matching the complexity, but not taking away from the lyrics.” To address the issue, they created an expanded version of the work, using it as a kind of core for a longer performance piece. They bookended the “George” part with two pieces, “The Gershwin Variations” and “Molto Finito.” Both use Island talent extensively. Using additional music by Carly Simon, some music by George Gershwin, and selected text by Sartre, The Gershwin Variations stars Island native Christina Montoya as kind of a muse that holds together three- to five-minute vignettes. Twenty-five dancers, of all ages and with various levels of experience, take part in the Variations. A company of 35 dancers perform “Molto Finito,” the seven-minute finale. The middle piece, the origin of the suite, is “In Honor of You, George,” and is performed by five professional dancers. Included in the mix are two from the Island—Kelly Peters and Paola Styron. They join forces with Talin Kenar, Eva Carrozza, and Daniel Ponlicky to bring Carly’s vision to the stage. Wendy, who choreographed “Silk Meadow” on the Island in 1999, worked out some ideas with dancers in studios in New York, then put out feelers on the Island for local dancers. She spotted Christina Montoya in a “Built on Stilts” performance and approached her for the project. Joan LeLacheur danced in “Silk Meadow.” She was called. Chris Fried heard about it and showed up. Kanta Lipsky was an old friend and was drafted over dinner. Lisbeth Jones, another old pal, was also recruited. Others heard and showed up. There was less an audition than an exploration. Wendy just asked people to dance — not to see if they could, but how they could. Rather than find dancers that could perform the steps, she fit the dance to the dancer. “We’re putting much of the piece together ourselves,” explains Chris Fried. “Wendy gives us a lot of freedom, suggesting what would be most pleasant to view.” Wendy’s proficiency with non-dancers is the result of a long history of choreographing operas. Her credits as director and choreographer include more than 50 operas and musicals. She’s worked with opera companies all over the country and her work has been performed internationally. She received a Joseph Jefferson Award nomination in Chicago for choreography and won the Best Director award at the 15 International One-Act Play Festival in Arezzo, Italy. Wendy currently serves as president of the Board of Trustees for The Yard. Joan LeLacheur is especially grateful for the opportunity Wendy has given her. After dancing for a decade and a half with Vineyard Dance, she quit five years ago because of a knee injury. When Wendy asked, Joan was ready to begin again but didn’t realize it. “I said yes before I even knew it,” she recalls, eyes wide. “It surprised me!” Why did she jump to the task so easily after being away for so long? “Because I was ready to get involved,” she explains, “and it was Wendy.” Although Kanta Lipsky hasn’t a lot of experience on stage, she’s not, at this point, nervous. Being a teacher of Tai Chi Chih and Chi Kung, she’s used to performing movement in front of people. She’s also immersed, by association, in show business. Her husband, Jon Lipsky, is a playwright, her son Jonah is an actor, and her son Adam is a musician. “I think it’s going to be so much fun. Why should I be nervous?” she asks. Lisbeth Jones has extensive dance background. A native of Liverpool, England, she’s taken classes in Scottish Highland, African, ballroom, ballet, and yoga. But, she admits, she’s not performed in a regular enclosed theater space and she’s a bit anxious. “I ask myself, why did I agree to do this in front of people?” she exclaims. But then, in short order, she answers her own question. “You have to challenge yourself.” Other Island dancers involved include Avi Lev, Bill Russell, Wiet Bacheller, Daryl Owens, Abbey Bender, Sheryl Dagastino, Katie Federowicz, Laura Sargent Hall, Anna Luckey, Kristin Maloney, Anita McFarlane, Sarah Nevin, Molly Purves, and Carol Vega. Vineyard landscape artist Allen Whiting collaborated with Dean Taucher on the sets. As of this writing, the work is still in progress. On the brink of a week of heavy duty rehearsals, there’s still some improvisation going on which, Wendy explains “is the fun of this kind of project, if you have the time. “Right now, we’ve gone from trial and error to rehearsal schedules and setting and making the sound tape draft, and going into the studio. We’ve cast absolutely who’s in it and we’re doing it. But, the trial and error is really fun. Really collaborative.” Joyce Wagner, former associate editor of the Times Calendar section, lives and writes off-season in Orange, N.H. Her humor book, “Random Overthoughts,” will be released in April 2006, by Plaideswede Publishing. |
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