(noticia) Where Vibrant Movement and Mysterious Music Share the Stage

DANCE REVIEW | MARK MORRIS DANCE GROUP

By GIA KOURLAS

Julie Worden and David Leventhal in the New York premiere of Mark Morris's "Rock of Ages."

Mark Morris doesn't fight music, and for that deceptively simple approach to his art, he is equally adored and reviled. But his musical candor is usually delightful: Mr. Morris breathes life into complicated scores with an earthy movement palette and unaffected dancers, who are as individual onstage as they must be in life. For his annual season at Brooklyn Academy of Music, which opened on Tuesday night, he presents the New York premiere of "Rock of Ages," a rambunctious title for such an elegant triumph of a dance.

Set to Schubert's haunting Adagio in E flat, "Rock of Ages" is a subdued quartet that packs a wallop, in the same manner as Mr. Morris's wondrously minimal "Foursome" from 2002. Joe Bowie, Amber Darragh, David Leventhal and Julie Worden wore Katherine McDowell's uncomplicated short-sleeved tops and skirts or pants in shades of azure and green. (The cast will be different each night.) (...)

The program also includes "From Old Seville," a boisterous work set to Manuel Requiebros's "A Esa Mujer." Mr. Morris, both burly and lithe, joins Lauren Grant, a tiny, feisty performer, in a string of flamenco dances, full of castanets and sharp footwork. In between, they share a bottle of wine. Of course it's funny, but Mr. Morris's voluptuous attack and phrasing are astonishing; the more wine he soaks up, the more refined he becomes.

(leer +) [vía the new york times]