Joyride

Company:  Scottsdale Community College Dance / Instinct Dancecorps

Choreographer:  Aaron McGloin

Company Director:  Angela Rosenkrans

Performers:  Valerie Blake, Chanel Craig, Jay Garcia, Edson Machin, Callista Mincks, Paige Wind; Understudies: Sheryl Powell, Caleb Tarrant

As much as I love story and try to construct a narrative in dance programs, it’s refreshing to see one that is adamantly, unapologetically abstract. It frees up some part of the brain and just lets you look. The first movement of Joyride really did that for me. I was pleasantly surprised by the dancers’ intentionally cool, expressionless faces. It immediately signaled that this piece was going to be about motion, not emotion and they hit it at pace. It was all angles and figures and configurations – a creative clockwork where you just got to sit back and appreciate the precision and the creative postures. This was especially effective when the gestures could be seen in clear profile – any variation in the synchronization would be immediately apparent, but this was a well-oiled machine and a pleasure to watch.

The second movement was less distinct for me. There was an abrupt change in energy and style. It was more liquid, more interactive with some quick floor work and brief pairings. I enjoyed it – the company was, as ever, very watchable, but I didn’t have any real context for it other than as a contrast to the first movement.

This was an enjoyable performance overall, but I have to admit to preferring the first, more abstract, movement. For me, it was more clearly defined. The dancers seemed to understand its intention and gave it integrity by subverting their personalities to become beautiful cogs in the machine.

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