Not many of us would discover rich metaphorical potential in the speeches from a global conference of life insurance salesmen; or feel they fit into a theatrical construct that incorporates stories of Japanese rural life in the 1930s. But in Big Dance Theater’s latest work, The Other Here, these and additional elements intermingle and weave together in a manner both poignant and sly to explore and illuminate a world where “cultures exist in global free-fall.”
Co-directors Paul Lazar and Annie-B Parson acknowledged, during a recent advance peek at The Other Here as part of the Guggenheim’s Works and Process series, the “far-flung elements” that went into their latest opus. “We create a chaos of material. At The start of the piece, you see many threads of people and events; by the end, they’re woven together,” said Parson, who also contributed the choreography. She studied and drew on traditional Okinawan dance, which she worked into contemporary structures. “I wasn’t trying to be authentic but to bounce off it and see how our cultures collide,” she explained.
Two stories by the celebrated Japanese writer Masuji Ibuse were an initial impetus for the work, and Okinawan popular music from the 1970s and ’80s (some of it performed live) also plays a significant role. Parson said they were drawn to “the contemplation of death and mortality in Ibuse’s stories,” and then, when looking for inspirational speeches to add to the work’s delicate yet rich mix, discovered the verbatim transcripts from the life insurance conference. Layering together such diffuse yet potent elements is a Big Dance Theater specialty, as is the inclusion of delicately refined visual elements—including lighting design by the great Jennifer Tipton. Their body of work has established their unique flair for layering and juxtaposing a seemingly unlikely mix of materials, blending and transforming them with a sureness of vision and an astute sense of both dance and theater.
Feb 7-10, Japan Society, 333 E. 47 St. (betw. 1st & 2nd Aves.), 212-715-1258; Wed.-Fri. 7:30; Sat. 3 & 7:30, $35.
