Sexy, vibrant and under 22. For a modern dance company, Tharp! dancers are young - very young. Choreographer Twyla Tharp has always selected her company members with a certain physical "look" in mind. Tharp!, her newest company, which presented her three most recent numbers at Power Center this weekend, is no exception.
A revolutionary of postmodern dance, Tharp, whether she intended to be or not, is now a superstar. She has set pieces not only for her own companies, but also for dancers from the likes of the Martha Graham Company or the Joffrey Ballet. More than 100 dances are manifestations of her creative genius for the past 30 years.
The work of any prolific artist evolves over the years, reflecting changes in motivation and intent. Tharp is no exception and nothing proves this more than Tharp!, whose look is flashy, sophisticated and hip. Tharp's early desires to make meaningful dances and experiment with movement have evolved into dances filled with glamour, theatrical spectacle and sex appeal. This continues with Tharp!, a dance company much more concerned with style than content.
With her 13 Tharp! dancers, she spices up and refreshes the look of dance. Unlike their balletic counterpoints, modern dance companies are often comprised of more mature dancers. Tharp, however, has abandoned this notion and found technically very strong, but still uncultivated dancers. The youngest dancer is a mere 16 years old.
"66," set to '50s bachelor pad music and comprised of different vignettes of travelers down the classic American highway, is neither angst-ridden nor particularly deep. A theatrical romp down memory lane - complete with two larger-than-life tires that interact with the dancers - the spirited and lively "66" induces laughter. (Sometimes, we forget that modern dance is allowed to amuse us). Tharp injects her quirks into the Broadway-esque choreography, making movement that has the potential to be flat and unoriginal more than just trite show-biz behavior. It's a musical with a modern twist. Some call this a sellout, an affront to theoretical principals of modern dance, but Tharp has never been one to follow rules. Why should she start now?
"Sweet Fields," which is set to American religious choral music, radiates simplicity. The profound mood is created by an empty, dark stage with dancers clad only in white performing richly textured, sinuous movements. The theme of community underlies the curvy, breathy choreography, often danced in lines reminiscent of folk dance formations. Within the tranquillity and modesty of "Sweet Fields," the dancers are sexy. White pants hug the men's shapely muscular legs. The women wear tight white shorts and tiny tops with sheer, flowing jackets nearly slipping off their shoulders as they curve their way through space.
This sex appeal is even more striking in the final piece, "Heroes." The dance is sexist in its sexuality. Three topless men, wearing only silver pants, which later become only black shorts, display their physiques in a reoccurring diagonal theme. They stand side by side, hands on hips, torsos thrust forward while a female, equally sexy and tightly dressed, continuously tries to penetrate their self-made wall by lunging her entire body at their chests. The women's choreography is all legs. They kick and leap, except for when they are buffeted about by men. The men engage in bouts of complicated partnering among themselves. The piece is busy, complicated and overtly sexual. The division between the sexes continues throughout, showing Tharp's affinity for choreographing for male dancers.
Not only a choreographer with an eye for partnering and manipulating large groups of dancers, Tharp is a business woman. Tharp! is out there and ready to be consumed by audiences lured in by the Tharp name and the Tharp look. It is dance entertainment at its flashiest. Give Tharp! a script and nothing would separate its concert from Broadway.
The Twyla Tharp dancers performed at Power Center this weekend.