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Jenny Peterson and Sara Jinks in Pat Graney's "Girl Gods" photo courtesy of the choreographer |
Over the years I’ve spent a fair
amount of time navigating the rich pathways of Pat Graney’s mind.
It’s always an amazing journey.
Graney has been making dances in
Seattle for more than two decades. Love them or hate them, they are always
fascinating.
I happen to love her work, even
when it’s not quite finished.
That’s the case with Graney's latest
ambitious project, “Girl Gods,” which premiered October 1-4 at On the Boards in
Seattle.
"Girl Gods" is billed as an
exploration of women’s rage. Graney explained in a post-show talk-back that she
initially planned to begin the piece with a tantrum. She decided that was too literal.
Instead, Sara Jinks
walks agonizingly slowly across the stage, carefully placing each foot
precisely in front of the other. With one hand, she guides herself along the uneven surface of what looks like a brick wall. In the other, Jinks balances a teacup and saucer.
The porcelain chatters with each tremulous step, an audio reminder of the precarious path every woman
weaves through her life, trying to balance her desires with other people’s
expectations.
“Girl Gods” is a series of
connected scenes that roll out in front of an elaborate wall made from what look like
stacked white blocks. As the performance gets underway, we see that many of
these “blocks” are actually cardboard storage boxes that contain everything
from raw poultry to a blood red dress.
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Jody Kuehner in Pat Graney's "Girl Gods" photo courtesy of the choreographer |
The scenes vary from tantrums--full body raging and writhing that Graney says exacts a physiological toll on
each performer--to darkly humorous vignettes. Recent Stranger Genius-award
winner Jody Kuehner (aka Cherdonna Shinatra) is particularly brilliant as she laboriously forces her body into a tiny pink tee shirt,
capris and hoodie. Kuehner’s antics provoke laughter, but the message is far
more serious: women must contort themselves, infantilize themselves, to fit the
mold society has set out for us.
Frequent Graney collaborator Amy Denio created an audio score laced with snippets of interviews
the dancers conducted with their own mothers. Like the movement on stage, it
feels like a sonic quilt: varied and elaborate.
Longtime Graney audience members
recognized some of the choreographer’s signature motifs and images: high
heels, hand gestures that conjure American Sign Language, slowly drifting sand. The motifs are familiar, but this performance is not a regurgitation or revisitation of Graney's body of work.
Instead, they remind us how this artist uses each creation to explore another facet of herself, and of what it means to be female in our culture. All of her performers touch
on those themes; “Girl Gods” puts them squarely front and center. It's another step in Graney's artistic growth and maturity.
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Sruti Desai and Cheryl Delostrinos in Pat Graney's "Girl Gods" photo courtesy of the choreographer |
Despite the high points it hit, “Girl Gods” felt unfinished,
like a sweater that still needs its final neckline ribbing. Graney told the talk-back audience she envisions it in final form as an installation as well as an
evening-length performance. She's touring the work, so no doubt it will evolve and fulfill her vision over time.
Despite that sense of incompletion, "Girl Gods" was thought provoking and intriguing;yet another confirmation of Pat Graney’s distinctive and unique artistic
voice.
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The cast of Pat Graney's "Girl Gods" photo courtesy of the choreographer |