‘Manvantara’ Takes Focus Away From Theatredanse’s Strength

Do air and water live? Have they a spirit? And . . . more important, can man survive without TV? These burning questions are posed in Bethune Theatredanse’s “Manvantara,” subtitled “A Time Tunnel of Shamanism From Antiquity to the Future,” presented at LACE Friday night.

“Manvantara,” Sanskrit for “breath of life,” would have fared better without Michael Masucci’s uninspired video art: Mountain vistas, war crimes and futuristic domes, interspersed with occasional texts displayed on several monitors, served only to detract from the dancers, who were strong, flashy and eminently better than their material.

Directed and conceived by Theatredanse founder Zina Bethune, “Manvantara” suffers from the notion that more is more. In this case, more is moribund--the program’s lofty premise injected undue prominence into what was essentially a sextet of dancers attempting a history of the world in three short acts--the Ancients, the Modernists and Citizens of the Future.

Choreographed by Carlos Jones in styles ranging from Bob Fosse to disco to Twyla Tharp, the work featured primeval rituals with baskets as well as the clicking of TV remotes. Lanz Fuller, as regal shaman, oversaw the action, and despite relentlessly banal tape tracks from Brent Lewis, Jeff Mayor and Zeljko Marasovich, the troupe approached poetry on its own terms.

Emanuel Treeson’s lighting did little for Mary Ann Bardin’s costumes, which included feathers, faux fur and cheesy “Plan 9 From Outer Space” futuristic tunics.

This future, according to Bethune, where financial enlightenment spiels abound, is a credit card existence. In the case of “Manvantara,” Bethune appears to be maxed out.