They say every moment of their dance is spiritual. Every essence of their step, twirl, leap and jump has a story to tell. The Paul Taylor Dance Company, one of the names to reckon with in the world of contemporary dance, was in
Mumbai recently to enthral enthusiastic audiences.
Paul Taylor, a contemporary dancer whose rise to fame in the early 1950s could almost be considered meteoric, is one of America’s most celebrated choreographers. He was particularly known for breaking away from the traditions and customs of classical dance, along with the other renowned modern dancers of that era, including Martha Graham.
Taylor 2, a smaller dance wing comprising seven dancers of the 16-member Paul Taylor Dance Company, performed three of Paul’s most distinguished dance pieces at the Kala Ghoda festival in Mumbai. Paul has always been known for throwing off and puzzling his audiences with his mysterious and mystical movements. Known to be an inexplicable man, Paul always left the interpretation to his each and every dance open to the mind of his audiences.
Ruth Andrien, director of Taylor 2, says that Paul is generally a quiet man. “He is a man of very few words. He expects his audience to comprehend where he is coming from. He leaves it to them to interpret and understand his dances. He has never been known to elaborate too much and is subtle, yet strong in his portrayals,” says Ruth. As dancers who have performed with Paul, Justin Kahan and Hank Hamberger believe that they could not have asked for more freedom in thinking and executing their thoughts. “Paul doesn’t ask us to express. He doesn’t teach us to emote or dance in any particular fashion. We are given that space and time to explore ourselves and eventually, understand ourselves,” says Hank.
For them, a standard day in their lives consists of rehearsals and basic dance practices, says Justin. “We come to dance class and practise for an hour. After that, the whole day is spent in rehearsing for shows,” says Justin. Doesn’t it get monotonous practising and leading the same kind of lives everyday? “No way,” Justin
denies vehemently, and adds, “We enjoy our work. And then, just as it is in any other field, it is hardly any work once you actually enjoy what you are doing. Every single day starts on a new note, or a new thought process.”
Paul’s students reflect the kind of passion that he exhibited in his choreography. With every piece of choreography being quite different from the other, Paul showed that dance went beyond
just expressions and movements.
“Paul looked and pondered deeply on the spiritual movement of the dance. He incorporated so many different elements of the universe into his dance choreographies, which is why his pieces were mysterious and often ahead of his time,” says Ruth.
Justin considers the Paul Taylor Dance Company as one of the foremost dance companies in the world. He says that there are no rules to learn dancing, and people without any dancing experience or background, and even newcomers with absolutely no knowledge of dance, are welcomed into the company.
“Paul just needs to see that passion on your face and be convinced that you do indeed want to dance with all your heart. That is enough for him,” says Madelyn Ho, another dancer of the Paul Taylor Dance Company.
Just like the contemporary classical divide in India, Justin says that they too face a similar situation back home.
“Modern dance is currently on the rise, and is slowly finding its feet.
Having said that, a lot of dance shows are promoting various styles of dance,” says Justin. He does feel that it is financially
very viable to lead a life of a professional dancer in a country like the United States.
“We are happy with what we do, and all our needs are taken care of. We enjoy our work a lot and don’t really have reasons to complain on the financial front,” says Alana Allende, another dancer.
“Dance is spiritual and we simply look for constant innovation in movements and our dance. As dancers, our basic needs are taken care of and the rest is only about the required
passion to dance,” says Justin.