"Wild Thing" (Pictured: Matthew Prescott and Kristina Bethel, Photography: Julieta Cervantes)
Knighted by Vanity Fair as the “punk ballerina,” Karole Armitage rocks out with her high-voltage program entitled “Think Punk!” at the Kitchen. Karole is presenting a program of three landmark dances from the ’80s: Drastic Classicism, The Watteau Duets, and Wild Thing, as well as the premiere of Mashup. For Karole to embark on reviving her dances, for the first time, is to embrace the spirit of her interesting and successful past. Moreover, in her new work Mashup, she continues to push and play with classical vocabulary and explores a new era of contemporary dance: “We did not strive to make museum pieces for the Think Punk! season but aimed to have work that is alive as a part of the world of today while also being of the past,”* expresses Karole.
Company veteran of 5 years, William Isaac shares his perspective on the company, “My experience for this season has been one of rejuvenation and more as a mentor. We have experienced a sudden explosion of new talent, all seasoned artists. But working with Karole, [we all know that] there is more than one way to accomplish the work we are creating everyday in the studio.”
The AG!D dancers, a group of highly trained contemporary dancers, have enjoyed a reflective and inspiring journey [with and] into Karole’s past. She says, “…I took into account that this group of dancers comes from a very different world than that of the counterculture era, during which I came of age. I work as creatively as possible with each individual dancer whenever I choreograph. This personal touch colors all new work and the revivals are influenced by it as well.”*
In reviving The Watteau Duets, one of Karole’s signature pieces which contains six movements, she mentored dancers Megumi Eda, Luke Manley, Giorgia Bovo, and Matthew Prescott to explore the different levels of a relationship. As interviewed by Gia Kourlas in Time Out New York Magazine, Karole describes, “I think of the first duet as, Oh, this is the guy you’ve always wanted to go out with. In the second, you’ve gotten to know each other and you’re having fun. And the third is getting ready to sleep together—it’s a little more introspective and almost geishalike in places.” Having been part of the rehearsal process as an understudy in this particular piece, I enjoyed the background and inspiration she gave us. Karole encouraged her dancers to add their own personality and experiences to successfully portray the different stages of a pas de duex in dance… and in life.
In Wild Thing, dancers Kristina Bethel, Matthew Prescott, Dana Ingraham, and Leonides Arpon (two casts) get to rock out on stage with music by Jimi Hendrix and set by Jeff Koons. Dancers Abbey Roesner, Masayo Yamaguchi and the rest of company also get to express their punk rock personas in Drastic Classicism, an energetic piece filled with wildness and spontaneity, yet keeping the discipline of dance. Music by Rhys Chatam. The new work Mashup, music by Mozart mashed with X-Ray Spex’s “Oh Bondage, Up Yours!”… Karole’s favorite pop band of 1976… is a piece full of the celebratory joy of life.”
Rehearsal director, Brian Carey Chung expresses, “Working with Karole has been inspiring because she really takes the crafting of dances seriously. No slapping together of pieces to display to a naive public here! As a budding poet and choreographer I find that there’s much to learn from her attention to detail, her humbling respect and knowledge of the music which must accompany the dance, and her indefatigable pursuit of the best way to say a thing. She does not settle for less than perfection, as elusive as that idea may be. As her rehearsal director, I feel blessed to be allowed to offer my opinion as an artist in all aspects of production should it be necessary, and I feel that when it comes to the dance itself she listens very closely if silently to her dancers. This makes the process a love affair.”
"Watteau Duets" (Pictured: Megumi Eda and Bennyroyce Royon, Photography: Julieta Caerantes)
What is Punk, really? The punk subculture is based around punk rock. It emerged from the larger rock music scene in the mid-to-late-1970s in the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, Australia, and Japan. The punk movement has spread around the globe and developed into a number of different forms. Punk culture encompasses distinct styles of music, ideologies, fashion, visual art, dance, literature, and film; a certain lifestyle and community. The punk movement has had a tumultuous relationship with popular culture, and struggles to resist commercialization and appropriation. (Thanks Wikipedia!)
Karole notes, “The punk rebellion was a cry for authenticity, a desire to express life and to be who you are with great intensity and little care for reputation or big budgets. That kind of thinking is as relevant today as it was in 1978.”*
So… Think Punk?… Yes, Think Punk!
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Stay tuned for my interview with Karole Armitage [An Interview: Karole Armitage] which will be posted exclusively here on The Winger! Do you have questions that you want to ask her? If so, please send your questions by commenting on this post below or sending me an e-mail at bennyroyce@gmail.com.
Armitage Gone! Dance: Think Punk! season runs through March 14th at The Kitchen, 512 West 19th Street (bet. 10th & 11th aves), 8PM. Tickets are $15.00 and are selling out fast! The music in this program is not for the faint of heart… or ears for that matter! So bring your own earplugs if you must (although we already provide them)! A “Think Punk!” performance is an experience not to be missed!
www.armitagegonedance.org | www.thekitchen.org
*Foot note: Quotes by Karole Armitage are taken from the “Note from the choreographer” in the season program at The Kitchen.
Photography by Julieta Caerantes
