Lovely performance by the Liz Gerring Dance Company at the Joyce Theater this Friday.
Dance speaks to everyone in different ways. Lately, I’ve been wondering, asking, and paying extra attention to how people think of “movement versus music.”
Tonight’s post-show discussion was particuarly interesting, because Liz Gerring answered an audience question just as how I would have. It was astonishing, almost bewildering, listening to Liz articulate her experience, when her answer *exactly* matches how I personally experience dance.
“Which comes first? Choreography or music?”
Liz answers that she thinks of music as support. She enjoys how music sounds, and enjoys her 30-year working relationship with Michael Schumacher, the resident composer of her company. However, music should be an element to the visual picture without interfering. She enjoys creating her work without having to follow a certain beat.
Her philosophy definitely came through in tonight’s presentation of “Horizon” — in the distinct movement language that Liz has constructed, and in the physicality and boldness of the dancers’ movements.