Catch “The Brain in Motion” this weekend, May 21 and 22
Synapse in the brain (Credit: UCLA/Public Domain)
Lineage dancers and actors are inspiring neuronal and communal connections with their updated performance of “The Brain in Motion.” To catch the action at Pasadena’s Lineage Performing Arts Center on Saturday and Sunday, May 21 and 22, or to catch future shows, see https://www.lineagepac.org/.
What connections are being made this weekend by choreographer and artistic director Hilary Thomas and her Lineage Dance Company? What reactions come from composer John Guth’s original score and Peter Alan Hoffman’s animation? What makes people laugh at David Hemphill’s script (updated from a 2007 script by Anjali Millan and Margee Magee)? How will actors Chet Dixon (right brain) and Max Venison (left brain) ever reconcile their differences?
Audience members’ answers vary, just as each brain, and each side of the brain, vary. However, here’s what a few of last week’s brains thought about this dancing journey through our hemispheres and lobes:
“The first time I saw the show, I appreciated it as a whole. Tonight, I picked up more of the subtle details. I like the pacing of the narration with the high-energy dances, the serious moments that tug at the heart, the laughter during the bit about sleep, and the way the dancers finish the piece with a high-intensity routine. The cool facts in the narration got me thinking. I like the concept of exploring the brain in a dance show; I wouldn’t have thought of that.”
“I like the strength, grace, and passion of the Lineage dancers, and I found the section about dancing with Parkinson’s disease very moving.”
The 2007 version of "The Brain in Motion” inspired Lineage’s creation of its Dance for Joy program. Thanks to this program and Lineage supporters, Lineage offers free dance classes for those struggling with Parkinson’s disease, Stroke Recovery, Alzheimers, Autism, and Down Syndrome.
Hilary Thomas and her colleagues realized that “people not only needed to appreciate watching dance, but to do dance themselves as a force of healing.”
Last weekend, Lineage board member Christopher Jacobs spoke about the Dance for Joy program and about the just-performed duet that grew from it. In the duet, Dance for Joy student Amy speaks about her condition while she performs gracefully with her teacher Ericalynn of Lineage Dance Company. Here’s what Christopher says:
“This is the thing I really like about Lineage. As a board member, I’ve observed the (Dance for Joy) classes and seen how family members and friends join in. This is not just art for art’s sake. It’s about making people’s lives better. There’s a communal kind of approach. Without this, there’s a danger that people with Parkinson’s and other conditions will curl up and withdraw, but I see a real community growing. There are some life lessons there.”
And here’s more audience feedback:
“The performances are amazing every time. In every instance, there’s going to be something that’s not the same.”
“The mix of comedy and seriousness provides a break from being too much of one thing.”
“I like the element of comedy.”
“There’s some heavy stuff, so humor provides a good balance.”
“I had a wonderful time. It’s a dance show, but it’s an education too. It’s a well-crafted script.” (spoken by a biased script writer)
“Through dance, I see ideas expressed in a whole different way.”
— audience members and H.P. Bhaskaran, May 2016