Works & Process

Works and Process put forth two shows at the Peter B. Lewis Theater: "Going Dark" and" AlgoRhythm". "Going Dark" blended music across Jazz, Brazilian, Soul and Funk. The numbers were based off of street life and the direction went towards just that; at times the actors were chatting one another on stage , at other times the talented musicians entertained the audience with cool, breakthrough tunes.

The music was blended with Tap dance; the Tap not only enhanced the show, it brought the music to the forefront. The dance to the music was well choreographed bringing the "Street" fun to the music; after all, what is "Street" without good music and dance?

Like "Algo", "The Sole's House" had several stories inside the music. In "Sole's House" the story was based as a theme on Jazz clubs as well as music that is played in the cities across the country. From Washington Heights to various areas in the Bronx, Brooklyn and Queens, New York, the "Street" scene has been big since the 1980's. People dance and play/ listen to music in groups and enjoy the different dance to the many genre's of music. This has created many singers and dancers throughout the 80's and 90's, even today.

"Sole's House" gives the audience what creativity can bring when music flows freely. The band is able to improvise and adapt to the different sounds and melodies that they play. A keen eye can pick that up with the ever changing lighting as a backdrop... the lights change the mood as the music changes.

The nexus of this first act is that the band covers many years within forty minutes... the band when it is full on Jazz hits the New Orleans scene, the West Village landscape. As a time period, it could be the 50's or even today. The Brazilian flavor could be the Islands as well as "The Heights". The Funk and Soul is entrenched in the 70's, however, it still resonates today like it did then.

"Sole's House" is an excellent creation and re-creation of what a new sound can bring and out of it, creating new talent that brings forth that sound. The theater group gives us forty minutes of this flavor and mood of these select sounds.

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AlgoRhythm .Kwikstep and Rockafella.

This side of the performance was based on was based on "Boggie" which was a takeoff on "What's Popping" or "Popping", a California creation. Under "Popping", a dance movement that was made popular by Michael Jackson. Many of the dance genre is robotic. The dance contort their bodies to an individual sound. Jackson was a master of this dance; from his famous "Moon Walk" to his sharp robotic movements, Jackson's dance style was as famous as his songs.

The thirty minute performance had different scenes against the backdrop of dance. We get a subway scene that was famous in the 80's and 90's. Many dances entertained the people waiting for a train. With "boom boxes" loud, the dancers would dance to the music in the hopes of tips. As new dances became popular, the street dancers would pick them up and that form of entertainment lasted for a good twenty years. Many of the dancers dressed like Michael Jackson as his popularity soared.

One of the scenes was particularly powerful: the fluid dance started with two dancers in a classroom learning science only to put that science theory into dance. The two bantered about the stage to a hard beat that had the audience moving to the music.

While the two different performances are somewhat works in progress, the two different shows were very engaging with subtle meaning. The second show were actors from the Bronx where the "Boggie" began, hence the "Boggie Down Bronx" meaning. The evening at the Guggenheim was fun and enlightening and worth seeing!

Michael Jackson, The Guggenheim, New York City, California, California Fires, Gavin Newsome, LA County, Los Angeles.