The show was great, but the name….

Tonight marks the second and final show for dance group Orchesis’s semester performance, 1, 2, 3, Fourchesis. Bwog sent staff writer Connie Blumenthal to dress rehearsal to check out the dancers’ smooth moves in Roone Arledge Auditorium. The final performance will start at 10 PM, with tickets for $6 with CUID at TIC/online, with cash accepted at the door after 9:30.

Despite my best intentions to audition, I’ve always missed the semesterly auditions for Orchesis, so I’ve never had the chance to perform with the group. As such, I was excited to have the chance to sit in on dress rehearsal to see exactly what I missed. Orchesis has the reputation of being one of the largest dance groups on campus, but I was still surprised when I walked into Roone Arledge Auditorium by just how many dancers there were. I felt like I was back in my ballet days with dancers running around half dressed, figuring out last minute details, fixing costume glitches, and working on homework. The energy and excitement from the dancers was almost tangible, and I was equally excited as I took a seat to watch the final rehearsal.

Orchesis is one of many dance groups on campus, but it stands out as one of the largest groups that performs strictly student choreographed pieces. Additionally, everything from costumes to lighting are student designed, making it a truly massive undertaking. What makes Orchesis different from other dance groups like New York Live Arts, Columbia University Ballet Ensemble (CUBE), Columbia Ballet Collaborative (CBC), and Raw Elementz is the variety of dance styles that are showcased in Orchesis. Styles of dance included everything from lyrical to modern, contemporary ballet to hip hop, and jazz to tap, and some performances featured a elements of all the above. The show comprised thirteen pieces in total, mixed with short interludes, and opened with a jazzy number choreographed by Coya Pruden and set to Michael Bublé’s “Feeling Good.”  For me, this opener was the best possible way to lead into the show; the performance was upbeat and fun, definitely a piece that would endear the performers to the audience.

From my ballet background, I can say with certainty that choreographing a one-minute dance piece is a difficult task. That said, I can’t even imagine how hard these choreographers worked to put together such dense and intricate material for pieces that were upwards of four and five minutes. Most of the more difficult pieces included fast footwork and a lot of floor work, including backward somersaults. Being able to move one’s body from the floor and into a split jump in less than 4 counts is hard, yet I was blown away at how twenty or so dancers managed to make it look effortless (while still landing silently)! The footwork in the jazz pieces paired with the enthusiasm and devotion of the dancers, especially in “Fission/Fusion” by JP Viernes, made my jaw drop. All that said, despite the execution of the more difficult choreography, I did take issue with a few of the less difficult dances. For a few pieces, there were points where the lines were sloppy and where dancers fell off beat and completely out of sync. This was made very apparent because of the number of dancers in such pieces, something that Bwog has noted for previous Orchesis performances. However, the two numbers like this were anomalies to the show as a whole, and dancers generally recovered when they fell out of step.

My favorite piece was “Intimate,” choreographed by Katie Morris. Like the opener, this piece was especially jazzy, and was the perfect way to close the performance. The dancers’ lines were flawless, while their emotional portrayal and energy were captivating. The music was very rhythmic and energetic, making me want to join in and dance. The group as a whole hit each count perfectly together, forming an organic whole that moved together through space. The fierceness of their expressions made them both intimidating and breathtaking as they jumped, ran, and spun their way through the music.

One of the more lyrical pieces “So Cold,” choreographed by Melody Tai, was especially beautiful and captivating. For this piece, twelve dancers filled the stage with emotional movements in time with a fairly downbeat song. The performance was evocative of experiencing a bad break up, but the dancing was particularly impressive because of the pure pouring out of emotion. The pace of this piece was slower than most of the others, and provided a nice change of pace from some of the more fast paced and energetic pieces of the show.

While the dancing and choreography overall was impressive, I was surprised by how sexual and intimate most of the pieces were. For the first half of the performance, I felt like I was at more of a strip club than a dance performance. Don’t get me wrong: the dancing was well-executed and choreography was impressive and creative, but the emphasis on provocative movement felt like it took away from the artistry of dance itself and made it more like a display of the dancers’ bodies for objective viewing. This isn’t to say that the whole performance was ruined because of this, only that it was a surprising element in most of the show.

As a member of Barnard’s dance community, I am aware of just how many talented, accomplished, and engaged dancers there are at Columbia and Barnard, but the Orchesis performance still managed to surprise and impress me a great deal. Many of these dancers juggle multiple dance groups with rehearsals often going late into the night. However, their passion, energy, and ability to engage the audience made the final execution of the show look effortless. Overall, I left the performance truly astounded and proud to be part of such a talented dance community, and I’m looking forward to what Orchesis can put together in the future.

Photo via Orchesis’s Facebook