Of all the dance forms, jazz is one of the most problematic to critique. It's a style that is deeply rooted in tradition, having a long history that is common with jazz music. However, unlike jazz music, there's not a wide breadth of critical dialogue about jazz dance. Frequently, the discipline is dismissed as entertainment, and contributions from jazz dance pioneers like Jack Cole and Bob Fosse are ignored.
Savage Jazz Dance Company is a Bay Area dance company that has been around for 14 years, and it's considered one of the best jazz companies on the West Coast. The company presented a weekend of mixed repertory at the ODC Theater that included two world premieres by artistic director Reginald Ray-Savage, and one by guest choreographer Alex Sanchez. It was a mostly successful program that raised some important questions about the genre and the future of jazz dance.
The program opened with "Sugar Rum Cherry" and "Preludes No. 2 in C-sharp minor," a trio and a duet for a man and woman, both choreographed by Savage. The two pieces demonstrated the strengths of dancers who are exquisitely trained, but neither broke any new choreographic ground. At points, the pieces felt like museum artifacts, cannily crafted using traditional vocabulary, but a little dusty.
It soon became apparent that Savage was saving the stronger material for the next two pieces. "Fleurette Africaine" (music by Duke Ellington) was a restrained rhythmic meditation using gesture and a minimum of larger movement to create a beautiful, unfolding sculpture that was haunting and timeless. The final piece in the first act was "M'Boom" (music by Max Roach), a group work that was an explosive series of solos and duets, lighting the ODC stage on fire, and illustrated how jazz dance can be both artistic and entertaining.
Stream of consciousness
Choreographically, Savage lost some steam in the second act. A suite of pieces inspired by the music of Miles Davis failed to capture Davis' improvisational genius and structural integrity. Savage's choreography seemed like an extended stream-of-consciousness that needed some significant editing. In the second act, the dancers appeared to be struggling technically, perhaps because much of the material was newly choreographed.
In the third act, Alex Sanchez presented "Mambo Mio," a Broadway-infused suite with music by Ray Santos, Perez Prado and Mario Bauza. Sanchez has an extensive background in Broadway jazz, having worked on Carousel and Fosse, and with Broadway legend Chita Rivera. Sanchez brought a completely new palette to the stage, widely juxtaposing Savage's austerity and discipline with playful choreography that made the dancers look like a completely different cast. Where Savage's choreography is impeccably designed, Sanchez brings a loose, rhythmic quality, using salsa and mambo to paint a humorous story about a man (Antoine Hunter) and his eternal hunt for the perfect woman. The cast was very funny, and they brought a joyful exuberance to the stage, finishing the evening on a kinesthetic high. Though "Mambo Mio" was less technically polished, the choreography more than made up for it. Jazz is a relentlessly rigorous technique and unapologetically cardio, and these dancers worked their asses off.
So where does that leave the state of jazz dance in the Bay Area? Savage is well known for training beautiful dancers in a vanishing technique, largely overshadowed by the influences of hip hop dance in the cultural landscape. If jazz choreographers want to be part of the critical debate, it's going to be crucial that the technique evolve, becoming more relevant. Like jazz music, jazz dance is one of the few art-forms that was created in America, and it plays an important role in the history of American dance.
Next weekend, the company will present the same program at the Malonga Casquelord Theater in Oakland (see below for details).
Savage Jazz Dance Company, Oct. 19-22 (Thurs.-Sun.) at 1428 Alice St., Oakland. Info: www.savagejazz.org. Reservations: (866) 558-4253.