
Cedar Lake Finally Dances in New York
For a year and a half, Cedar Lake Contemporary Ballet has performed almost everywhere but New York City. But from May 15-27 they are back at the Joyce Theater with two programs. They’ll feature six pieces by six different choreographers, five NYC premieres, and one world premiere.
Ana-Maria Lucaciu, one of Cedar Lake’s sixteen dancers says, “Finally we can show the city what we have been working on.”
Program A shows “Violet Kid” by London-based Hofesh Schecter, “Annonciation” by French choreographer Angelin Preljocaj, and “Grace Engine” by Canadian Crystal Pite. “[Violet Kid] has a lot of sustained aggression. It is under this constant boiling lid and is never allowed to come out.” Lucaciu says. Schecter works with images of being scolded as a child and the feeling of repressed anger, and the dancers, who are on stage for the duration, must use restraint and power simultaneously in their movement.
- Cedar Lake Contemporary Ballet in “Violet Kid” | Photo by Juileta Cervantes
- Cedar Lake Contemporary Ballet in “Violet Kid” | Photo by Juileta Cervantes
- Cedar Lake Contemporary Ballet in “Violet Kid” | Photo Juileta Cervantes
“Hofesh doesn’t give you a chance to scream,” Lucaciu says, “but he manages the intense feeling by exhausting you. You either can say, ‘I’ve given up’ or ‘I’ve given it all.’”
In contrast, “Grace Engine” is quieter and more internally reflective. For Lucaciu, the piece is about the linear path of life: “Everybody has a line in their life. People come in and out, but you are still traveling. You meet someone, maybe you never speak again. You meet someone else, you continue with them and maybe you drop them off again. It’s a constant journey.”
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