“It’s after the end of the world. Don’t we know yet?”
Choreographer Angie Pittman These words were uttered on stage Saturday, paraphrasing Afrofuturist jazz musician Sun Ra. Pittman was performing his solo “Black Life Chord Changes” at Brooklyn’s BAM Fisher Hillman Studio on a double bill with “Joan,” a Kyle Marshall Quartet inspired by Joan of Arc, in its New York premiere. The end of the world and a martyred elder may seem dark, but the program – part of the Pioneer East Collective’s Outfront! Festival – was instead a thrilling collection of different ways of resisting oppression through creativity.
Pittman’s partially composed work is divided into contrasting sections, “Day” and “Night.” The first part, viz Many of the choreographer’s first piecesfeels inwardly focused. In silence to begin with, Pittman is searching, moving with a thoughtless hesitation as they raise their arms to the sky or lift their heels and drop it with a thump. Gradually, bits of song and eclipse come out of their mouths, culminating in the soulful “I’ll Never Back Down.” Now when their heel drops, its slap is accompanied by an inexplicable metallic crash.
When the gospel harmonies start, it’s a recording of the group Ther’Up.Y, but Cody Jensen’s sound design is so clear that I turn to find the singers. For this music, Pittman travels back and forth along the purple neon strip at the front of the stage (an equally cool lighting design is by Tuce Yasak). Pitman rolls his hips and is still searching.
For “Night,” the choreographer dons a cape. (“Costumeming,” Pittman later says, “is crucial to the revolution.”) In this half, they speak—both quoting Audre Lorde. Dark, ancient places of possibility And telling us about his favorite vampire (Wesley Snipes in “Blade”).
Where “day” is somewhat ambiguous, “night” is as clear as day. Pittman explains the ideas in TED Talk style. As their tone shifts between their own hushed, husky voice and a broader black vernacular, the code-shifting gears grind a bit. They play it for comedy, though it doesn’t always get out of control. The mix of themes (vampires and black feminism) may seem a bit random, but eventually come together to hold everything together in an artful argument that sets the Tyrant’s heart at stake.
Most effective are the simple theatrical touches, such as Pittman moving in and out of the shadows. With a spray from an aerosol canister, they reveal planes of light that would otherwise be invisible. The incident with the falling heel in “Day” is an example of the labor that plays in the work song.I am very happy when the sun sets.” Pittman says he wants us to feel that voice in our bodies, and by the end of “Black Life Chord Changes,” we do.
Marshall’s “Joan” is also about the fight against oppression, but its sources are surprisingly old-fashioned. Set to a 1981 composition by Julius Eastman. “The Sacred Presence of Joan of Arc, a dense and intense work for 10 aricellos, is very much a dance. The four brilliant actors, Justin Daniels, Tyna Lyons, Kelly Smith and Sid Worthy, are in almost constant motion as they cross and re-cross the stage with exuberant runs and jumps. Daniel springs with such a high that he looks like he’s going to hit the ceiling.
Although inspired by the saint, the work is more about slavery and resistance to colonial rule. Costumes, hair and makeup by Edo Tastic give the dancers a tribal aesthetic, with white markings on their faces such as helmet chin straps. Able, as a form of John, is distinguished by a white circle around one eye. She guides through sign language, collects her sorrows, sometimes creeps the troops out with a raised fist.
“Joan” is part of a three-act set to Eastman’s compositions, with music by Reinstatement of interest in recent years. If “Joan” is representative, this is a promising project. While the solo’s succession of musically counter-choreographies can feel rote in spots, the overall effect is strong. When Worthy orders her troops off the stage, she does so with an authority that anyone would follow.