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Sylvie Guillem and Akram Khan


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I saw Guillem and Russell Maliphant in their 'Push' program last October (here in NYC) and what a marvelous stage personality she is---still! :dry: I hope you get to see her.

I saw this too at City Center and would agree that Guillem still has a tremendous magnetism that lights up the stage.

But I thought the material was very thin . Maybe Sacred Monters will have more substance than PUSH.

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I went and saw Sacred Monsters last Wednesday in Los Angeles. I was actually more impressed with Akram Khan than Sylvie herself. I particularly did not care for her solo...not her, but the choreography itself...why do modern choreographers tend to make modern dance thrashing and emoting? As someone who has done choreography like this, it tends to feel all the same and it ends up being the dancer who really has to make it something. I thought she did a fantastic job, and you really could'nt see any "bunhead," except when she and Khan were executing choreography together. All in all, I thought it was beautiful, and would love to see it again and again.

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I actually saw this at UCLA on May 3rd. I can never get myself to start anything so I just waited until now to reply. How do you guys write a review and such a long and thorough one, at that? To me it's tedious to begin...

Well now that it's been so long, how much of it can I remember? Of course it was wonderful - it's Sylvie! The live music was real cool: just a few musicians on stage including this mystical kind of vocal. Everything was sort of spiritual and I'm sure Sylvie and Akram felt it, too. Costumes were simple: a tight fitted shirt with long and loose pants.

There was commentary in between every couple dances; Akram would tell a story and then Sylvie would speak. (I can't remember exactly what they were saying nor could I really understand Khan's heavy British accent.)

The whole thing was like a switch-a-roo. Khan would do a solo, then Sylvie, then they'd melt together in a duet. That process repeated a few times but never did it get boring. After each solo, one would sit up/down stage corner and take a sip of water, towel down their face, fix their hair, stretch, etc. It was real informal but it actually made the setting more relaxed and down-to-earth.

The way Khan moved was amazing. His body moves so seemingly natural and each pose/position carries movement. It's beautiful. And Guillem, of course, having so much discipline in ballet moves so precisely in lyricism. And when they come together it's like a true bond. Not of love - but of oneness and power. Such strength emanates from the two of them that they truly become like monsters: when they dance alone, their zenith is accented; when they dance together, their talents showcase one another's and frames each others' body and movement. This is beauty at your eyes.

This 'fresh blend of influences' is definitely considered 'fusion.' Mixing Khan's modern choreography and movement with Guillem's balletic body allowed a process of fluidity to occur, thus, highlighting each other's strengths.

I didn't want it to end.

It's only when the two begin to dance together that Sacred Monsters comes alive.

The Times of London

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