Purely Pilobolus

By Wayne Harada
Advertiser Entertainment Writer

Pilobolus stages its intricate poses and athletic choreography in body-clinging costumes. PILOBOLUS Presented by Ballet Hawai'i 8 p.m. today, Saturday Hawai'i Theatre $25-$45; discounts for students, seniors, military www.hawaiitheatre.com, 528-0506. FIVE BREEZY PIECES Pilobolus will present five pieces in its weekend concerts. The quotes are from artistic director Robby Barnett: "Brass Ring," inspired by the Winter Olympics at Salt Lake City. "It's sports plus art, a good example of Pilobolus' athletic side, with complex partnering, about grabbing for that brass ring on the merry-go-round." "Femme Noir," a solo for a woman. "A short psychological portrait." "Walklyndon," the oldest piece in the repertoire, dating back to 1971. "It's been done as a duet, a trio, a sextet, dogs and people. P.D.Q. Bach once streaked in, in a performance." "Symbiosis," a relatively new duet. "It's two years old — good, classic Pilobolus. Great example ... (of) our approach of partnering, with a narrative emerging from movement." "Megawatt," a brand-new number with pop music. "It's Pilobolus without 300 pounds on its back; much less partnering, high energy as anyone can be; great opportunity for Pilobolus to reveal its essential athleticism; theatrically, quite amazing, and an instant hit among audiences." Company dancers are Mark Fucik, Andrew Herro, Renee Jaworski, Cleotha McJunkins III, Jenny Mendez and Manelich Minniefee. — Wayne Harada

"There's no getting around that; sex is part of the wonder of dancing," said Barnett in a phone interview from the company's Connecticut base. "Graceful people move beautifully; sexuality is part of dance."

Pilobolus is known for cutting-edge, innovative choreography that is part athleticism, part acrobatics, and part modern dance. Its performers are lean and trim and customarily attired in eye-filling, body-clinging costumes that ultimately look like painted skin. Its choreography often takes on sculptural stances. The visual impact is provocative, seductive, erotic.

Undeniably, there's often a sexual connotation.

Pilobolus, named after a sun-loving fungus that thrives in barnyards and pastures, has been pushing the envelope of creativity since 1971, when it emerged as a nontraditional (read: inventive) dance organization formed by Dartmouth College students.

Its philosophy, said Barnett, is rooted in the strength and endurance of jocks. Company members must be athletes first, capable of enduring the rigors and fluidity of dance.

"The fundamental thing we do, when we seek out dancers, is run the filter of good athletes," said Barnett. "Our audition tactics are widely known. We ask people to run and jump, and that takes care of 90 percent of the people we see. Sure, we've had jocks trying out, but being a dancer is not about playing tennis or football. No one can dance without fundamental athletic strengths. So if you can jump and run around and sustain — it takes about four days of auditions to find out who can — you can be hired. It's an interesting process, now codified. We also spend time doing a lot of improvisation, allowing ideas to flow and emerge."

While ballet and modern dance companies may solicit seasoned pas-de-deux couples or folks geared to street-dancing or jazz pyrotechnics, Pilobolus — a troupe of four men and two women — essentially stands alone in its storied past.

"We started out as classmates at Dartmouth, an all-men's college," said Barnett. "It was first a men's quartet, but a woman who taught at Dartmouth joined us, along with the wife of a visiting art professor. We've always found that six were enough to mine our eccentricities; over the years, we've done a variety of work, sometimes with four dancers, sometimes with one, and our growth was an unplanned evolution. There's always been something fundamental about our lack of symmetry; the odd male couple, for instance, or the avoidance of the theatrical three-boys-three-girls."

Barnett said Pilobolus' underlying code is to explore innermost thoughts and feelings about life and living, and transfer this to the performing stage. Frequently, the product has kaleidoscopic formations and color; the performers connect and bond like pliant pretzels.

"We're fundamentally a modern dance company with a core value of looking at our soul, to see who we are," he said. "With our dancers, we strive to stress the sense of values in life, with the fundamental intent of entertaining the people — which is what drives our art. For the artistic directors, it's more about exploring our psyche and the responsibilities around us — using our bodies as part of that expression."

Pilobolus often emerges as the square peg for the round hole.

"We rely on dancers who bring their own physicality and psychology to the company. We expect a lot from our dancers," Barnett said. "We set our goals on producing three major works a year and now have between 90 to 100 dances in the repertoire. We work extremely hard to make this a nice place to work. And the work is very challenging, physically and emotionally; we're on the road half the year, so some people find this stressful, living out of a suitcase, particularly if they have a family.

"Thus, we've had dancers who've been with us for 10 years, or we may lose someone after two years. The average is somewhere in between. We're in a tiny, simple town (Washington Depot) in Connecticut, surrounded by cows and palaces, and now covered in a foot of snow."

The arc for the company includes a major month's residency in New York, generally in June, where new works are launched, where presenters can check out the artistry firsthand.

Pilobolus now is a four-pronged operation, each led by one of the four artistic directors: the Pilobolus Dance Theatre, which is the formal handle for the six-member company; the Pilobolus Institute, an umbrella for the organization's educational programming; Pilobolus TOO, a duet company that tours independently and in coordination with Pilobolus Institute programming; and Pilobolus Creative Services, an administrative division that coordinates creative activity with commercial and artistic organizations outside the company.

Reach Wayne Harada at wharada@honoluluadvertiser.com, 525-8067 or fax 525-8055.