On a piece of papyrus dating back to the late second or early third century AD is a fragment written by ancient Greek poet Sappho. One line from that fragment – fragment 88 – lends itself to the title of ISHIDA Dance Company’s winter program, as long as there is in me, which will be performed this weekend at the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts.
Brett Ishida, founder and artistic director of ISHIDA, admits that she likes to pull from Sappho’s lyric poetry when it comes time to title her work. And this phrase, Ishida says, is particularly interesting.
“Usually, it’s like, ‘as long as you do this’ or ‘as long as there is this.’ It’s really outside of the self. But this is turning it back right onto oneself, and that’s what we do at Ishida,” says Ishida. “What we’re doing on stage is a reflection of our audiences, and it’s meant to be personal. I want people to be able to see themselves in the work or have it trigger a memory or a strong feeling within them.”
When the company takes to the stage on Friday and Saturday, it will present Ishida’s latest world premiere, soul-writer, alongside two more premieres from two different choreographers: Drew Jacoby and Mauro Astolfi.
Astolfi is the artistic director of the critically acclaimed, Rome-based Spellbound Contemporary Ballet, which he founded in 1994. Though the company tours all over the world, they are rarely seen in the U.S., which, Ishida says, makes this commission – more than five years in the making – all the more special.
“He’s a genius,” says Ishida. “I’ve been looking up to this gentleman’s work for decades and following him. I think he’s heavily influenced the field of contemporary ballet in Europe. And I think it’s important to see what he’s doing and how he continues to be relevant and be this person pushing the boundaries of what ballet and contemporary dance can be.”
The narrative thread running through Astolfi’s contribution to the evening, titled It’s Happening Now, is Astolfi’s contemplation of the media and the dissemination of information in our lives – specifically, Ishida says, “how it can be oppressive and bombard the senses.”
“He’s questioning is that truly knowledge,” adds Ishida.
Though it’s been logistically challenging to find an opportunity to work with Astolfi, Ishida says she always knew he’d fit well within her company’s programming. “His style is articulate. He uses speed, and he creates these patterns with the dancers that are alluring to watch, visually stunning. And his work, it’s also emotional.”
Ishida describes the Boise, Idaho-born Jacoby as an “emerging, younger choreographer” who has already had an extensive dancing career working with companies like Alonzo King LINES Ballet, Complexions, and Nederlands Dans Theater.
“Her work has a sense of wit and sensuality, I’d say, and it’s a bit quirky,” says Ishida.
The program will also feature the U.S. premiere of Jacoby’s Waltz, a male duet. Ishida says she’s excited for the two men set to dance the piece. “They are extraordinary dancers and artists. They have a rigorous technicality and virtuosity in their dancing, and they are incredible movers and mature artists.”
Ishida’s own premiere, soul-writer, originated from asking people if they had ever dreamt of a loved one who had passed away and hearing about their experiences. She further researched different case studies, interested in learning if there was a general feeling those who had such dreams were left with.
“Interestingly, everyone said they were reassured, or they felt still connected or closer to the person even though they were no longer here. There were these nostalgic, positive feelings that the dreamers were left,” says Ishida.
soul-writer will start in a dreamscape, with a woman inhabiting the past lives of a wife, a sister, and a mother. The staging, which includes a dining room table and chairs, is reminiscent of a home, adding a sense of familiarity to the piece.
“There are familiar things that you recognize in a dream, but then there’s something off about it. And there often is a bit of anxiety. There’s some tension. There’s something you don’t know,” explains Ishida.
Ishida says the music of Bertrand Bonello, which will open the piece, will further feed into this intention. “[Bonello] does a lot of film composition, and his work is eerie. It has tension, and that sets the tone…for putting us all in this strange place that also feels familiar.”
The musical landscape will shift to the work of Philip Glass. Ishida will utilize a piece from his operatic retelling of the Orpheus myth, Orphée, for a section of soul-writer with a man and wife.
“There’s beautiful repetition to his work,” says Ishida. “I’ve loved this music for years, and it does evoke this strong connection between an intimate partnership.”
For a section featuring sisters, audience members will hear Claude Debussy’s “Clair de Lune,” which Ishida describes as “innocent and tender.”
“I’ve always envisioned women dancing to this, so I think it’ll complement the feeling of reuniting with one’s sisters very well,” says Ishida. “I think the music tied with the lighting and the costumes and the dancers will all come together to help portray this very lucid dream.”
Like all works that ISHIDA presents, the aim of soul-writer is to connect to the audience on an emotional level and be relevant. Ishida says it’s also meant to be investigative and perhaps even healing, and an opportunity to learn about oneself and others.
“I wanted this work to be deeply personal. It is to me, and I hope it will be to everyone in the audience because everyone in the audience has a mother. Everyone has a mother. Many of the audience members have a sister or are married. So, I think it’s a very intimate scenario that’s going to be depicted that will deeply touch everyone in the theater.”
as long as there is in me will be presented at 7 p.m. on Friday, January 10, and Saturday, January 11, at the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts, 800 Bagby. For more information, visit ishidadance.org. $30-$75.
VIP tickets, including premium seating and access to an on-stage, post-performance champagne reception with the dancers and choreographers, are also available for $120.
