‘Dance Exists’ Proves Its Name in Innovative Concerts at Palomar

Dance is alive and well in North County, thank you. That was the simple message of last weekend’s three-performance run at Palomar College’s Educational Theatre, and the evidence cannot be denied.

Titled “Dance Exists in North County,” the collaborative concert featured dance makers Sue Gilson, Faith Jensen-Ismay, Mary Neuru and Jacquelyn Weiss--all members of the Palomar College faculty. Also contributing were Jean Isaacs, better known as artistic director of Three’s Company & Dancers, and former Martha Graham principal Ellen Segal.

With the San Diego Soviet Arts Festival on the horizon, Weiss created a new work called “The Return of the Outcasts.” The five-movement piece dealt with the plight of political dissidents in the Stalin era and their return to society in the glow of glasnost.

Dances with serious themes often tend to bog down in polemics, but Weiss came up with an entertaining study that told the story in dance terms--not with mimed movement. She also integrated Russian-style steps (such as the graceful gliding moves of Georgian dance) into her modern vocabulary.

The choreographer herself danced the lead, along with Peter Czerner, a Three’s Company intern who has made remarkable strides this summer. Weiss raced through the frenzied phrases without missing a beat, and Czerner danced an impassioned solo of oppression with absolute conviction.

The accompaniment featured 20th-Century Russian composers Sergei Rachmaninoff, Alexander Scriabin, and Sergei Prokofiev (some performed on tape by Russian-born pianist Vladimir Horowitz).

Weiss showed her funny side with Czerner after intermission in a delightful interpretation of “I Won’t Dance.” Taking her cues from a jazzy rendition of the old Jerome Kern song, Weiss gave her Fred Astaire/Ginger Rogers-style romp a new wave look by substituting punk attire for traditional evening wear. The switch worked; some of the moves were straight out of Hollywood, but the altered context gave them a new look.

Weiss went solo in Segal’s “The Spirit”--danced against the backdrop of the hand of God (as depicted by Michelangelo in the Sistine Chapel). The taxing solo made a splendid vehicle for her grace and well-honed technique.

Jensen-Ismay (a dancer with Three’s Company) reprised “Willie Make It,” a tongue-in-cheek solo she introduced in one of last month’s Lo-Tec concerts. With nothing but her own vocalized grunts and groans for sonics, Jensen-Ismay fought an imaginary opponent with moves and images borrowed from the martial arts. It was cute and comic without going too far overboard. And it was as popular with the North County audience as it was experimental.

Another Jensen-Ismay creation, “Movement Plus,” was not as novel, but it made good use of stop-action imagery and interesting shadow play as it ebbed and flowed along a thunderous score.

An original score by former North County composer I’Lana Cotton provided the impetus for Neuru’s “Reaching Into the Light,” an ensemble work that offered only a few moments of real choreographic revelation. The best of those were the solo opportunities for Jensen-Ismay, and this fine young dancer made the most of them.

The weekend concert, held at Palomar College’s Educational Theatre, closed with yet another incarnation of Isaacs’ signature piece, “New Age Ceremonial Stomp.” This version was smaller in size (just six dancers in the cast) and more laid-back than any of its predecessors.

The dancers were decked out in white casual wear and sneakers for this zany piece. There was less ritualized movement and more choreographed chaos in the dance this time, and the dancers seemed to love doing it--despite its relentless physical demands.

Many of the dancers in the ensemble are still students and need time to develop. But the choreography was solid, and the North County collective made a fine overall impression.