Cleo Parker Robinson and "Rivers of Hope" Embrace Communities and History

The Cleo Parker Robinson Dance Ensemble is opening its 2009/2010 season this weekend (September 18 -20, 2009) with "Rivers of Hope," at the University of Denver's Newman Center Gates Concert Hall. The concert presents Donald McKayle's "Blood Memories" - a work inspired by the Nile and Mississippi Rivers and surrounding cultures - Victoria Dale's "Continuum," and Parker Robinson's own "Wisdom Of The Baobab Tree." All three works include compelling choreography, are wonderfully staged, and Cleo Parker Robinson's dancers embody the choreography beautifully.

McKayle's choreography is now "legendary" in its crafting and how it reads. In that vein "Blood Memories" does not disappoint, taking viewers through a long journey lead by "Soul of the River" - danced by Christina Taylor - who with her own dance and that of Ensemble members creates a long journey through the history and cultures of both the Nile and Mississippi Rivers. That journey ends in a blend of both. Well crafted and well performed solos, duets, quartets, and ensembles tell the story amidst Vanessa Vanhoudnos' adaptation of Keith Rice's original lighting designs, in Joey Santos' adaptations of Lee Vivante's costume designs, and Tiffany Smith's head dresses - all performed before abstract projections of maps of river systems and the continents/countries where they are found. Taylor's embodiment of McKayle's phrasing is stunning, as is that of Shanna Woods, Kamilah Turner, Cedric Hall, Henry Graham, Kate Jenkins, Chris Page, and, in fact, the entire Ensemble. Special note goes to a quartet of women that includes Jenkins, Woods, Katie Swenson, and Melissa Tyler with delightful canons in heads and bodies.

Victoria Dale's "Continuum" is best described as marvelous. Set to music by James Asher, that is so compelling it could dominate all the movement choices, and in a lighting design by Peter Jakubowski (also adapted by Vanhoudnos) that is just as dominant and complex, Dale does not let either capture her dance. Instead she makes choices about what parts of the music she will agree with, when, and with which dancers. She uses stillness in delightful counterpoint to explosive movement, and never employs the stunning lighting to compensate. The result is two relatively short sections that leave viewers breathless.

"Wisdom of the Baobob Tree" is a grand example of Cleo Parker Robinson's love for, and ability to capture the very roots of her African culture. Phrasing she has set on Shanna Woods as an "Ancestral Spirit" cum Griot, is riveting to watch, and Woods uses it to 'control' her village and how they use the tree. That village includes much of the Cleo Parker Robinson Dance Ensemble, which has the capabilities to embrace the ambitious phrasing within the dance. Much of the work is driven by the Griot and a voice over, which sounds suspiciously like Cleo Parker Robinson herself.

Donald K. Atwood MFA. Ph.D,

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