Orchesis does Britney justice in Gimme Gimme mOrchesis

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Arts & Entertainment, Charlotte Murtishaw, Orchesis, Roone Arledge Auditorium

Lights. Music.

“It’s Britney, bitch.”

So kicks off Gimme Gimme mOrchesis, campus dance group Orchesis’ fall showcase, which will be staged Thursday and Friday at Roone Arledge Auditorium.

For naysayers out there that may question Spears’ currency: Britney Spears is ALWAYS in style, shut your mouth.

The prevailing theme of the evening is attitude, and the acts negotiate it well. It’s easy to be one-note with such an overt and easily simplified motif, but the pieces wisely move in and out of both high-energy and more restrained fare. Woven throughout are short interludes of vintage and new Britney, which anchor the connection without overdoing it.

Immediately following the Britney intro is the fantastic “Word Up,” choreographed by Kate Offerdahl, CC ’14, and set to the bluesy, moody song by Willis. Employing fluid, languorous lines, the dancers are mesmerizing, stretching and strutting assuredly across an azure backdrop.

Generally, the pieces that are similarly emotive are the most successful. One of the best, set to “Starstruck” by Santigold, presented an alternately sinuous and sharp performance.
The choreography by Kyley Knoezer, BC ’13, was intelligent, but more than that, the dancers were able to summon a dark sort of magic set off by careful lighting and good costume choices, the simple dark leotard except for a black tulle collar. They were able to melt into a unified mass, crawling across the stage together as a body only to jump into sharp relief as individuals moments later.

Seduction isn’t just a subtle art, though: In a (literally) showstopping denouement to Lady Gaga’s “Beautiful, Dirty, Rich,” by Jaclyn Hoffman, CC ’14, the boldness that has propelled Gaga through her career was palpable in the dancers’ confident moves—and their gold-glitter bras.

AWOLNATION’s Nokia-commercial-famous “Sail,” choreographed by Victoria Robson, CC ’14, featured a stunning female lead and another notably good lights display.

The dances weren’t over-reliant on Western tradition, bringing in a beautiful number by Hannah Zilka, BC ’13, tinged with an Indian influence, as well as a less successful Polynesian group piece. A tap number to fun. also mixed up the offerings and, yes, was fun, adding an exuberant physicality to the music.

Occasionally, the number of dancers onstage seemed miscalculated, with distractingly uneven formations that threw the dancers out of balance. Choreographer Laura Quintela, CC ’14, used all of the dancers probably most effectively of all the numbers in her “Girl I Like Your Face (Obla-De Obla-Da),” each serving a specific role in a playful enactment of the Beatles standard.

Clocking in at just under an hour, the choreographers managed to pack a ton of variety into the short timeframe. Now’s the time to make a cute joke along the lines of Gimme Gimme mOrchesis, but instead I’ll say this: no matter what, audiences certainly won’t be bOredchesis.

Gimme Gimme mOrchesis will be staged in Roone Arledge Auditorium Thursday at 10:30 p.m. and Friday at 8:30 p.m. Tickets are available at the TIC for $8.

arts@columbiaspectator.com