Alone, Alone with KDH Dance

This is a late reaction, but it is only appropriate that I inaugurate this new blog with a post about the dance company that I've followed the longest and, really, has influenced me the most.

I drove up to Austin last month to see Alone, Alone, the latest evening-length show by the Kathy Dunn Hamrick Dance Company. I had listened to Kathy talk about it and it felt like it was going to be something . . . well, let me back up a bit. A little history.

I've been following KDH nearly as long as it's been in existence. When I first encountered the company, they did these large, evening length works, usually quite fun and quirky with just enough weight to keep them from being completely light fare. There were colorful costumes and big props (and lots of them). I particularly remember a cake that got passed around among the dancers that kept getting larger with each appearance. Great fun.

Then I went to Columbia College Chicago for a little grad school work. While I was there, I took in some dance and thought most of what I saw was on par with what I'd seen with KDH. So, toward the end of my Chicago life, I secured a space and worked to bring KDH up to Chicago for a show.

What I saw in that show was a revelation. They brought a piece of a recent work, Brief Histories in Three Acts. It was as athletic as always, but there was a new depth there. In the two years since I'd been around the KDH company regularly, they'd grown in their artistry. If I were to make broad, arguable statements, I'd say Brief Histories was the start of an intense period of creative growth. Another highlight from that period is a piece called Framed. Listening to Kathy talk about Alone, Alone, I started having the feeling that she was reaching into whatever place those works grew out of.

Of course, in between, Kathy has been making dances, and I've seen a good number of them and I'm always delighted to see what she's up to. But artists have growth spurts and then they have maintenance periods. I'd say the last five or so years have been maintaining her standards, but not particularly growing.

Alone, Alone changes that and ups the ante (no pressure Kathy!). I saw new movement vocabulary on the stage. After a long period of exploring partnering, I saw dancers separated by space and relating in different ways (expected, I suppose, given the title of the piece). Even the costuming was a little different; sleeker, with a more subdued color palate.

Having discussed the piece before hand with Kathy, I knew that this piece was coming from a personal place in her life. Her company had just celebrated 10 years of existence. She had just turned 50. Both of her kids are out of the house. Her grandmother (also inspiration for Framed) died. Her husband had a serious health scare. And she was exploring all the ways being alone is blessing and curse. How her grandmother lived alone in rural east Texas. How much she longs for some alone time now and then. How being alone with her husband, without kids, changed (and improved) their relationship. Did I see all this in the piece? Not specifically. Modern dance isn't pantomime or even storytelling in a traditional sense. But I think I could have guessed that Kathy was working with something very dear to her. The emotional content there.

I should say something about the music. Kathy worked with the ambient rock group, Hill Ma on this piece. Part of the emotional content could very well have come from Kathy working with her son, who is part of the group. Having them play live, behind the dancers, behind a scrim, added a layer. I'll just be that cranky old guy that says I'm not a big fan of ambient rock music and, well, those kids played too darn loud (I think if you're handing out ear plugs for a performance, one might consider simply turning down the volume of the amplifiers---but again, I'm being a cranky old guy). But it worked. It made sense. The music and the dance were of a piece.

Again, no pressure, Kathy, but I'm really anticipating the June show . . .