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Everybody's Talking about Merce!
Still haven't had a chance to join us for our celebration of the Merce Cunningham Dance Company? There's still time! Here's what others have to say about these performances:
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| Fri, Nov 14, 8 pm |  | 
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| Sat, Nov 15, 8 pm | |
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"Friday night, lost in Merce Cunningham's sensuous Biped at UC Berkeley's Zellerbach Hall, I thought I'd start this review by rhapsodizing about Biped as the perfect portal for someone who's never seen a Cunningham dance. I thought I'd tell readers that if you're considering coming to the Merce Cunningham Dance Company's second weekend at Cal Performances — and you should — you should make certain to come on Friday, when Biped will be repeated. I'd go on about Biped's shimmering Gavin Bryars score, about how the 1999 dance feels more lush and human and generous than most of Cunningham's work, about how the ghostly motion-capture video projections, the disembodied lines moving like angelic forces of geometric beauty, warm up a spirituality that tends to feel coldly intellectualized.
...My own Cunningham conversion came very late, just two years ago. I was watching a typical Cunningham dance with its typical unsettling mix of precision and randomness, and suddenly it struck me. The key was to release myself from the paralyzing burden of trying to find my own meaning in every moment — to refrain from reprimanding myself for tuning out. I surrendered to watching Cunningham as a kind of meditation. And suddenly, the beauty of sheer form was everywhere."
— San Francisco Chronicle
(Read the full review)
(gathered via email immediately following the first weekend performances)
"Saturday was one of the best evenings of dance I've ever attended. The programs were balanced. The Cunningham dancers this season seem to be the best in many many years. The level of technique throughout the company is astounding. The John Cage piano piece for the first dance was as beautiful as anything by Cage I've ever heard. Of course the favorite moment had to be seeing Cunningham himnself out and looking so pleased.
It is a privilege to see such invention, perfection and skill and imagination and the brilliance of each dancer. Merce, himself, at almost ninety years of age is an inspiration to everyone, and that is all of us, who grows older. His devotion to work, his use of contemporary innovation and technology, and especially his theatrical wit should inspire us all to sustain our own creativity and keep young. The Company should be seen by everyone, every year."
Joanna G. Harris
Dance teacher
"The performance was fantastic. Seeing works that spanned from the 1970s through this decade gave me a sense of the development of Cunningham's innovation and mastery over time."
"On the November 8 performance: I particularly enjoyed the Split Sides performance in the Black and White costumes. The lighting, set design and solos were a real treat that demonstrated the great talent the Merce Cunningham Dance Company is known for. (I particularly loved the fabulous costumes...very cool)! The contemporary costume designs complemented the modern and abstract dance performance. It brought the evening to life with great vigor, excitement and class; all at the same time. We also enjoyed having the chance to see Merce at the end of the performance as he wheeled out on stage to take the final bow with the performers. Congratulations to a man of great talent, imagination and artistic expression. We loved the whole evening. "
Thank you,
Schuyler Morgan
"My favorite moment was when Split Sides began — the curtains opened and the dancers were warming up on one side of the stage while others rolled dice to see what would be performed next and how. It was completely surreal."
"Having been an avid reader of Cage's writings for decades, it was a delight to finally see a Cunningham performance. I was fascinated by the way dance event in its theatrical setting looked very modern, especially in costume, backdrop and lighting and in all, very lovely. This seemed a bit counter to the gritty chance operations that determined much of what took place, the dancer's own hard wrought agility, the quirky, ultimately inscrutable implications of the dancer's complex interactions, and perhaps most importantly, the hands-on, operational guise of the musicians, who I wish could have been more visible rather than hidden in the orchestra pit. I loved every moment but thought the event would have worked better in a non theatrical setting, like perhaps the Company's recent performances at Dia."
"It was wonderful to have the opportunity to view the work of a modern master who has had a powerful influence on contemporary dance. I especially enjoyed the amazing special effects of lighting and image projection and of course, the technical skill of the dancers. I was very touched by seeing Mr. Cunningham in his wheelchair. Thank you for bringing his work to Berkeley."
"I am very thankful for having Merce Cunningham's work touch my life. The live abstractions he creates are breathless and magical. They stimulate an experience of vibrancy, freedom, and creativity from deep within me that is beyond both words and imagination. I was first exposed to Merce's work through Cal Performances twenty-five years ago as a Berkeley undergraduate. I'm thrilled to see his company perform every year they are here. The art of Merce and his collaborators is unparalleled. I hope others will also be touched by him."
"This weekend Saturday evening performance was just magical. The last piece was even more beautiful than when we first saw it a couple of years ago. And seeing Mr. Cunningham at the end of the performance was the best of all."
"I attended the Saturday night performance at Zellerbach and the Sunday afternoon performance at Craneway. The dancers were extraordinary, the choreography complex and modern. I especially loved the site specific performance. The venue was fantastic and being able to see the dancers close up was a real treat."
"The dancers' movements were great to watch. The live music made a wonderful addition to the performance."
"I once took a two and a half hour train ride to see the Merce Cunningham company for a short free performance. I feel so fortunate to now be able to enjoy the wonderful arts at Berkeley."
"A wonderful concert-the dancers' mesmerizing concentration and flawless technique, interesting choreography, fascinating music. I enjoyed both pieces immensely and particularly enjoyed the solos which were interspersed in the group pieces- a showcase for the dancers and also a way to see Merce's style danced with sensitivity and great skill.
An inspiring evening."
"My husband and I saw the Sat. Nov. 8, 8pm performance. Neither of us is trained in the art of dance. Perhaps for this reason, the first act of the performance left us a little "cold"; it appeared to be a wonderful physical exercise for the dancers, but we did not find it interesting. The costumes in rainbow-colors were pretty, but we did not understand the goal or message of the dance. We tried to figure out why this dance company was so highly praised worldwide.
However, the second act instantly swept us off our feet. Normally, we find techno-style music quite annoying. But in this setting, along with the costumes and the background, the abstract elements (the music, the costumes, the dance patterns, the background) coalesced into a much greater whole and each gained a new meaning from this unity. In my everyday life I do not listen to such abstract "music" but here it completely turned off my mind from my usual problems. I enjoyed it. The visual and auditory stimuli literally allowed me to experience a different "reality". I have read a little about John Cage, how he liked to "trick" people into opening their minds for new ways of perception. I think this performance was very loyal to Cage's spirit. At the end, my husband and I agreed that this performance was our most entertaining and most relaxing theater experience of recent times (we attended about 30 shows on various stages in the last two years). We talked about!it for hours; what we liked, what we did not like, and how very different this experience was from experiences we had had before; it stirred us up.
Although I like classical ballet, I had not realized that I grew somewhat weary of its predictability and conventions. It is too cultural and too limited. In this performance, however, we liked the great variety of movements, some of them were unexpected and surprising; we liked how the group sometimes moved together but at times couples or individuals just danced their own patterns. It certainly did not appear rigid, as classical ballet does sometimes. It was refreshing.
On the other hand, one thing we missed very much. Because the manner of performing this music is so unusual and so interesting, and because the musicians were only few in numbers, I think they should have been seen by the audience! At the side of the stage, they would have further enhanced our understanding and appreciation of this unique art form.
Please accept our congratulations for the performance. We had a wonderful time."
The Bermans
"just spectacular! it was dynamic, fresh, innovative, unique..just merce"
"Biped is a masterwork that portrays an entire landscape of mood and emotion... And it did the heart good to see Merce back onstage at Zellerbach, soaking in the ovations and clearly happy to be back somewhere he should never have left. He's the best."
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calperfs.berkeley.edu