Another Sunday calls for another Macaulay Honors Seminar trip, and this time, I was able to experience a dance performance. Just like the other seminar trips I had experienced, this was something brand new to me, and it was definitely worth spending 20 minutes searching for parking (I should have taken the train but whatever). I will not lie, though I had never been to a dance performance or a ballet, I had many expectations. I fully believed it was going to be lots of dancers and other complexities. Although most of the performances only featured two or three performers at a time, it definitely blew my mind and exceeded my expectations.The commute to the Joyce Theatre was great (Thank to Mrs. French :)). When we were waiting outside the Joyce Theatre, I was imagining what the dances would be like. I imagined lots of pirouettes and spins, or whatever they are called. When we finally got inside the theatre and sat right in front of the stage, I was amazed by the huge curtain that was hung right in front of us. Once the show began, I was already amazed by how the curtains lifted, so I knew this was going to be an amazing experience.
The first performance was absolutely incredible. I loved the synchronization and the movements and choreography. Everything had complimented each other very well. The performance, titled Confetti, was definitely in my top three of the whole experience, especially since the movements with the tambourines were so satisfying and the couples were so talented!
The next performance was Valentine, which was very humorous and quirky, which I was not expecting. It almost felt wrong for laughing but it was very funny. This performance saw two performers in a setting of a boxing match, but it was very confusing to see if they had hated each other or if they had some attraction for the other. The solo bassist was also very funny, as they were making the whole experience so much funnier with their expressions and noises. Although it was really funny, I didn’t really find it as pleasing as the other ones, so it had to be considered my least favorite.
During the intermission, I felt like I had experienced a couple different lifetimes at once. There were so much conversations happening around that me that I managed to converse in every single one of them, and the conversations have had to be some of the funniest ones I have had so far with my friends. After watching those two performances, I definitely didn’t know what to expect with the final two performances, as the first two were so contradicting and different from each other.
As the curtain lifted for the third performance, Sea Shadow, I already knew this was going to become my favorite one. The lightening and the stage design was stunning. The two dancers, which had performed a romantic scene, seemed to have lots of chemistry, which really added to the atmosphere. Reading the playbill, it was interesting to learn that it was a performance representing a man on the beach becoming attracted to a shadow, which he saw as a beautiful woman. This was my favorite performance, as the stage design to the small details in the choreography were 10/10.
Lastly, the final performance of the experience, was Light Rainwhich was a very beautiful piece, which I had taken it to be a beautiful representation of human anatomy and human nature. I loved the opening sequence, with all the dancers raising their arms, making such a beautiful and powerful design and pattern. All of the performers had so much energy and emotion in this dance, which added onto the experience. Another part of the dance that I loved were the noises that, in a way, added onto the movements and made them stronger. I really enjoyed this one, however some parts did feel repetitive. I remember telling Mrs. French that I enjoyed this specific performance because “there was so much to look at,” which really fueled my brain.
Overall, this experience was very fun! Although the commute back was a little bit wet and windy, the whole experience was something I could look back on and appreciate, since all the performances were beautiful in their very own ways!
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