KCRW presents Bill T. Jones and Arnie Zane dance company
The Bill T. Jones Arnie Zane Dance Company performed at the Santa Monica Broad Stage this past Friday. Jones, along with his partner and artistic collaborator Arnie Zane, founded a multicultural contemporary dance company in 1982. The new dance company transformed and modified the duet form in dance and focused on issues that helped change American dance.
The Company comprised of ten members has performed worldwide in over 200 cities and 30 countries on every major continent. It enforces the art of dance while educating the public and the communities in which they work.
‘Between Us', a collection of dance pieces that were first created in the ‘80s, focuses on the relationship between people, especially in duet form.
Four works were performed each with unique styles and situations involving relationships. Two dances were accompanied by music, while one was silent, and the other included brief dialogue between the two partners performing. The set was decorated with simple mood changing lights that were modified to enforce what the performer was feeling.
Only one solo was performed, ‘Le Spectre de la Rose,' which was accompanied with an operatic melody and a solid black uniform with sequins detailed on the legs worn by the dancer.
Ashley Han, 17, has been dancing for five years and was excited to see rare works by Jones. "The show was spectacular. His style is really abstract and really different. I like how he adds humor in his pieces," said Han.
Jones, along with Zane, choreographed all the works. He won a Tony award for his choreography in "Fela!" in 2010 and for "Spring Awakening" in 2007.
The company's most recent project came in 2010 when they decided to collaborate with the Dance Theater Workshop. The new organization called New York Live Arts is a new type of arts organization with the goal of creating alternative ways to express creation, presentation, education, and community engagement.
For more information on Jones and Zane visit www.newyorklivearts.org