Paul Taylor Dance Firm: Standing the take a look at of time

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David H. Koch Theater, New York, NY.
November 8, 2024.

Paul Taylor Dance Company performed its 2024 season at the David H. Koch Theater in Lincoln Center this November. The programming consisted of various bills and featured multiple Paul Taylor works and world premieres, as well as acclaimed works from prominent current modern choreographers. On the eve of my attendance, the company danced Aureole and Funny Papers (both by Taylor), Vive la Loïe by Jody Sperling and Recess by resident choreographer Lauren Lovette.

One privilege of writing about dance is the sheer volume of performances one consumes. As a whole, a metric of merit consistent across the board is whether a piece seems to stand the test of time. Watching both Taylor pieces in this show confirms that theory. Aureole (premiered with great success in 1962) and Funny Papers (1994) could easily been the world premiers of the season, with the exception being that the actual funny papers, or funnies, have all but disappeared from newspapers around the country. Taylor’s ability to create timeless dance works is but one facet of his genius as a choreographer.

Vive La Loie, an homage to Loie Fuller by Jody Sperling, opened with a dancer appearing to float in a sea of black, perched upon a black box. She was dressed in a long, full white dress with angel wings of fabric swirling out from the ends of the sticks she held in each hand. Fuller experimented with light design and fabrics to create otherworldly dances, and Sperling honored her style elegantly. At times, I felt like I was under water floating through a calming sea and other times hovering about the art of the desert when the winds create sculpture with sand. There was a deapth and richness to each aspect that clearly resonated with the audience, because during a long pause in the music, the house was dead silent.

Shifting gears, Recess by Lauren Lovette evoked play. As the title suggests, the work had a lighthearted tone and a sense of childhood joy that’s often lost as we get older. It was funny, cute and an almost nostalgic look back at those bygone parts of ourselves, but presented with a maturity of observation seen by adult eyes. At times, the dancers seemed to disappear into pixelation and their play disappear into the blue lights of a world dominated by technology.

The program was thoughtfully curated, and it’s always a pleasure to see new works. Sharing the bill with such a force of a choreographer as was Paul Taylor is big task, and these two pieces worked well with the more established repertory of the company. That said, the man was master for a reason and the difference between his work and the other choreographers shows. However, dance is nothing if not permeable and evolutionary. Watching newer artists grow is part of its charm.

By Emily Sarkissian of Dance Informa.

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