Linda Austin is “a head of time” in new, ongoing work. Don’t think too much. About the past, or what the bundles of colorful extension cords on the floor mean, or how flexible you’ll be at age 62. Don’t ask if you’ll even make it to 62. At “A head of time” you’ll be transported into another’s …
Tag Archives: Performance Works NW
Snakes Talk as Ghosts Walk
Allie Hankins curates a night of provocative humor in double bill: Ghosts and Snake Talk. Last Friday night at Performance Works Northwest, artists from Berlin, Ireland, and Oakland coalesced into a cohesive unit, despite having little to do with each other. Although their work was developed independently, it was as if specific guidelines were offered …
Chamber of Secrets
it’s really hard :: Alembic Artists Showcase It’s the same damp walk every time to Performance Works NW. I’ve only attended three performances here and yet somehow it rained each time. Maybe it’s just Portland. I underestimated the conjugated reputation this town has with dreary weather — it’s not all gossip, but it’s lighter than that. The …
Beneath All of the Layers, More Layers
Dear Armen is a theatre of selves told through dance It is obscure and difficult researching the life and work of Armen Ohanian, an Armenian performer, and of Sophia Pirboudaghian (Armen’s birth name). From doing so, I realized what an opportunity I missed after hastily leaving the venue last Friday. What was I rushing off for? …
We Are All Going to Die
Robert Tyree transforms the dance studio room into a circus-like kids’ classroom or gym, navigating the obstacle course of a fitness routine. This is what it appears like at first. He is dressed the part, in short blue gym shorts and a red tank-top. His blond hair is combed neatly to one side. He is tall …
Reflections from an Eternally Open-Ended Art Piece
Linda K. Johnson + Matthew Shyka unearthed a memory from the catacombs of my consciousness. Around the age of eight or nine, I was fortunate enough to witness a professional dance performance in an ultra-luxurious Manhattan venue. It should have been quite the dazzling experience for those of us lucky enough to be there. But at that …
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Cat’s Cradle: Movement and Connection
Last Wednesday, I was privileged to witness an informal performance titled “Cuerpo Migrante” (Migrant Body) by La Barbacoa Danza Contemporanea, a modest dance troupe hailing from Morelia, Mexico. We met at Performance Works NW, a speakeasy of a dance studio, located in the quaint residential area of Southeast Portland’s Foster-Powell neighborhood. Here we became a …