Something in the nature of a spring fling will comprise Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company's concluding program of the season, "Pizazz and Percussion," at the Capitol Theatre on Friday and Saturday, April 20 and 21, at 8 p.m.
The program has an upbeat theme, though thoughtful works alternate with those of lighter appeal. To an evening of premieres, Shirley Ririe and Joan Woodbury each contribute two new dances.The company will be assisted in its lighthearted mission by Salt Lake's own zany Saliva Sisters and the University of Utah Percussion Ensemble, conducted by Douglas J. Wolf. Indeed, this program serves as a showcase for many of Salt Lake's talented production people - musicians, costumers and set designers, even an actress - who enjoy the stimulation of working with the ever-creative Ririe and Woodbury. Be prepared for lots of exciting visuals; this program is lavishly costumed, and inventively lit by Nicholas Cavallaro.
Ririe's "Madame X" and "Banners of Freedom" are both world premieres; Woodbury's "Ladies, Ladies, Ladies!" is also brand new, and her "Refusal to Dance" appears on the company roster for the first time, having developed as a work in progress at the University of Utah last fall.
Filling out the program will be "In Our Own Image" by Jerry Pearson (1985), in its first Capitol Theater appearance. An overture, "The Bells" by William Byrd, will feature the University of Utah Percussion Ensemble.
"Ladies" uses the three company women (Janice Haws, Caren Carino and Karin Ramos) in coordination with the Saliva Sisters who, far more than just singing in this piece, have found themselves increasingly drawn into the movement.
Their non-stop singing will include "Airhead," music by Vince Frates with their own lyrics; "Oh Daddy Blues," anonymous; "Late Late Show" (made famous by Dakota Staton) and the Washington Post March by Sousa, with original words.
"We destroy other people's music," said Kristen Merrill quite cheerfully. "I got the idea for these words when I looked in the Thesaurus and saw pages of synonyms for women, few of them flattering. It seemed like a good thing to comment upon."
Furnishing instrumental music is the trio's own Lymph Notes, plus the Westminster College Faculty Quintet. "It's not really a feminist piece, but it does have some elements," said Woodbury. "Let's say it's a spoof on women and their many facets, and the burden they carry around."
Costumes are by David C. Paulin, new this year at the Pioneer Theatre, who has devised fantastic, brightly colored creations that suggest a campy version of clothes from the big musical extravaganzas.
Woodbury's "Refusal to Dance" is based on Gayle Sternefeld's book of the same name. An actress (Lynne Van Dam) and a guitarist (Todd Woodbury) comment on the creative process, with company dancers portraying the words and ideas, which sometimes have a life of their own. The score is by Jon Scoville, costumes by Jacqueline Cintura.
"Refusal to Dance' has changed since last fall, with fewer dancers and some of the talk cut, providing more holes for the imagination to slip through," said Woodbury. "I guess I've sort of `deconstructed' the piece, which I like very much. I know about the creative process, and the writer is just a metaphor for all of us and the exercises we go through when we create."
"Madame X' took its inspiration from the famous portrait by John Singer Sargent," said Shirley Ririe. "Two women, Janice Haws and Karen Ramos, dance regally in sweeping skirts in this Victorian fantasy. One of them is repressed and formal, the other seems to be seeking ways in which she may get out of her shell. And Keith Johnson is a fanciful, faun-like creature who starts her thinking about the other side of herself, the more sensual, natural side, the things she can't show in public."
Costumes for "Madame X" are by David Heuvel, now based in Portland, and the score is "Celebration and Chorale" by Neil DePonte, performed by the University of Utah Percussion Ensemble.
The program concludes with "Banners of Freedom" by Ririe, inspired by the assertion of democracy in eastern Europe.
"Ririe-Woodbury was touring in East Berlin and East Germany last fall, just a month before the Berlin Wall fell," said Ririe. "It was an intensely exciting time, you could feel the forces of freedom in the air.
"Our dancers represent six countries that have experienced the exhilaration of knowing they could be free: Rumania, Bulgaria, East Germany, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, and to an extent, China. Costumes and banners are in white, designed by Marina Harris, and the dance is an abstract tribute from the people, a very aerobic dance, with leaping and waving of flags. It has a slightly militaristic feeling, but even more, it embodies the more universal belief that people are now free to speak out."
"In Our Own Image" is by Jerry Pearson, formerly a dancer with Alwin Nikolais and Murray Louis Companies, who now has his own New York company. Pearson choreographs widely, often with assistance from grants and awards from the National Endowment for the Arts, New York State, and other agencies.
"This piece, which quite beautifully employs big plastic balls of the sort used in Swedish exercise, has been seen on television's `Mister Rogers' Neighborhood'," said Ririe. "It's a dance that's been very popular for us on tour."
Tickets for "Pizazz and Percussion" are $12-$25 (students and senior citizens half-price), are now available at the Capitol Theater box office. A backstage, post-performance party will be held on Friday night, with food, fun and autograph signing; tickets are $15, and may be purchased along with concert tickets, or at the door on Friday.