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At 26, Avi, or Avichai Scher, is something of a phenomenon. A young and upcoming Israeli choreographer, he studied at the School of American Ballet and danced with a number of ballet companies before focusing more on choreography. In a world where originality is rare, and enchainments seem merely watered-down versions of the work of choreographers of renown, Scher stands out for his inventiveness and his keen understanding of how to blend steps and music so that they form a seamless whole, with one component complimenting the other.
His work garners him an association with some of the top dancers in the world and that, in and of itself, is no small feat. He has been choreographing commissioned works since he was 18, mainly for annual showcases at ballet schools and for companies like Sacramento Ballet, Washington Studio Ballet Company, and the dancers of the Pennsylvania Ballet.
It was clear from his company’s New York debut that Avi Scher has a gift for movement and for drawing out the special talents of the dancers he works with. That may be why they lend him their abilities with an enthusiasm that is palpable beyond the footlights. His mission is to “build a young audience for neo-classical and contemporary ballet by presenting top quality dancers and new works in small, affordable venues.” The evening was just that, and showed his range and that of the dancers.
In No Matter What, Scher gave his core group of dancers some nice jumps and lifts which seems to pick up on the cacophony of the frenetic bells and noises of the music. There was an interesting recall of Madonna-like movement with a kind of “vogue-ing,” a blending of contemporary and classical elements, as with a hitch kick into a tours en l’air. This first number set the tone for Scher’s style of drawing steps from different dance worlds, whether modern, the dance club or the classical stage.
Mystery in the Wind followed and proved to be the highlight of the evening. With the beautiful Veronika Part and the charismatic Marcelo Gomes, Scher’s choreography was given the full spectrum of emotion and technical perfection by these two wonderful dancers. What was interesting is that Scher seems to have an awareness of what steps look the most beautiful on a particular dancer (though it would be hard to find a step that would not look good on the goddess-like Part), and he gives them phrases that they enjoy, and one can see it in their dedication to the ballet.
The small stage, not much of a stage at all, with no curtain, and the audience so close that it felt quite salon-like, and reminiscent of an 18th century drawing room experience. It seemed not to affect the dancers at all, rather they seemed happy to be performing in such an intimate setting.
In this number, a delicate yet passionate pas de deux suggested lovers trying to find a balance, in coming together and in brief separations. It was imbued by the poignancy with which the dancers looked at each other and the lifts and successive poses, recalling MacMillan’s Onegin, and that is no exaggeration. There was a delicacy to the choreography and the unexpected changes in direction, and poses, such as when Part rested upon Gomes on the floor, her legs stretched out in front of her, body leaning against him in a kind of embrace that he returned. Scher is not afraid to use space at all levels, and to bridge these seemingly separate planes. Part’s lovely promenade in attitude which Gomes then gathered in to himself, gently lowering her to the floor in a pose, is one example of this. Whether with jumps in the air, a classical pas de deux, or using the floor itself with elegant tableau-like poses, Scher’s ideas daring and interesting. Gomes brought an urgency and passion to this role, and in truth it felt like an excerpt from a full length classical ballet that the two dancers had shared with the audience, like Manon or an Onegin pas de deux.
Four other ballets followed, the most compelling of which were Utopia, with Ashley Bouder and Marcelo, and Little Stories, in which Scher used the theme of boxing as a metaphor for couples and relationships. Wearing black hand-mitts, a “wife-beater” over black shorts, Savanah Lowery and Christian Tworzyanski in particular, used the sharp choreography and turns to show the dramatic intensity of the characters. Lowery’s sharp jetes cut through the air like a knife and seemed too big for the theater to contain them, but captured the “battling” theme of the pas de deux.
The evening was capped by a live performance by one of the dancers, Genevieve Labean, singing to accompany a three piece band, while the dancers performed in Inner Voice. On the whole, though I expected to be impressed as usual by the dancers themselves, it was Scher’s choreography which impressed as well.
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