Originally published in Lake Champlain Weekly on July 30, 2014.
Norte Maar’s “Fête de Danse” marks its return to the North Country with a bold mix of contemporary ballet, modern dance, and performance art – at the newly renovated Strand.
Following a successful weekend showcasing visual artists at The Jay Invitational of Clay, the second half of Norte Maar’s big return to the North Country continues with performance art. Fête de Danse, much like The Invitational, assembles creative minds from in and outside the region all while incorporating different styles within the medium. This abrupt transition from one branch of the arts to another is nothing new for the group.
“As co-founders, Julia as a choreographer and I as a curator, we each brought our expertise to the organization,” said Jason Andrew in an interview with the Lake Champlain Weekly. “But already as friends, we had found so many places of overlap in our interests and passion.”
Formed a decade ago in Rouses Point, Norte Maar advocates and fosters collaborations between art worlds. Dance had always been a major part of their mission. In the summer of 2004, they held the first Fête de Danse, erecting a stage over top an ice rink at the Rouses Point Civic Center where it became an ever-growing event for five years. On August 1 and 2, the event returns, this time at the newly renovated Strand Theater.
Norte Maar has since moved to Bushwick, Brooklyn, and this year’s Fête reflects that move by bringing together a wide swath of talent from New York City’s dance scene. “We can’t wait for the audiences to experience Gleich Dances, which will offer contemporary ballet on pointe, the all-male dance troupe of MADboots, and the highly edgy Rachel Cohen with her quirky and always unexpected creations,” Andrew said.
Dance for Theater People and Theater for Dance People
While all of these groups are based in the city, Cohen’s dance company, Racoco Productions, has a special spot on the bill as she’s a Plattsburgh native.
Since 2006, Cohen has worked various objects and materials into her performances. “I always liked working with props. Then I started to get interested in textures and how they affected how we moved,” she explained. “Since then we’ve been looking for different ways to incorporate them.” The result is something she describes as theatrical storytelling.
She began in Plattsburgh as a ballerina, and while she feels she wasn’t very good at it, she loved the way ballet crafted a narrative for the audience. In college, she learned that she preferred creating her own movement rather than trying to replicate the patterns of others. By creating something abstract, she feels she’s engaging the audience in a different way than a rigidly structured story. “Theater people think we do dance, and dance people think we do theater. ‘Movement,’ in some ways, is a better descriptor.”
Racoco Productions will present “Paper Work” at the Strand, a collaboration between the dance company and artist Stephanie Beck. The giant paper rolls photographers use to create seamless blank backgrounds in photo shoots became the inspiration for the piece. “We like the idea of using a backdrop as the center of attention,” Cohen explained. The dancers engage with the scenery, altering and destroying the landscape throughout the performance.
Perhaps what makes Fête de Danse so special is the way in which it invites the abstract with the technical. “People in general seem to be afraid of dance more than the other art forms,” said Cohen. “With this program, it would be great if people saw that it encompasses many things.” The evening also includes contemporary ballet from Gleich Dances and the energetic, dynamic work of MADboots.
The latter creates powerful movement by prominently displaying the male form, emphasizing athleticism. “MADboots is definitely an exclusively male company. Our work deals with masculine identity, so staying in that format is integral,” said Austin Diaz, co-founder of the company. “Seeing the flesh and muscularity of the body is important to us.”
At the Strand, the company will perform “Blue,” a piece co-founder Jonathan Campbell describes as a “sarcastic, somber, wild, and sentimental dance.” The duo both came from conservatory training — Campbell graduated from Juilliard and Diaz from NYU Tisch — but branched out own their own to explore the intersection of physical expression and art. “It seems as if we both had an interest in highly physical movement and generating things that could elicit visceral responses,” said Campbell.
Being the entertainment
Fête de Danse is returning to the area during a time of renewal for the Strand. In May, the theater officially merged with the North Country Cultural Center for the Arts, creating what Executive Director Jessica Dulle describes as a “campus of the arts” on Brinkerhoff Street. By year’s end, the facility will have a weighted curtain installed — a two-and-a-half week process in itself — as well as a projector and surround sound stereo system, transforming the space into an operational movie theater once again. This will happen in time for the venue to host the Lake Champlain International Film Festival in November.
For now the Strand is delighted to fit shows in between its busy renovation schedule.
“We’re excited to be presenting an evening of contemporary dance as well as ballet and having the local connection with the North Country and an international dance group,” said Dulle. She adds that giving residents an exposé of dance that won’t require them to fly out of the area “is a great treat for Plattsburgh.”
But it’s possible that the greatest excitement is felt by those involved. “I grew up on Brinkerhoff Street, and I used to see movies at the Strand,” said Cohen. “It’s interesting being on the other side — to be the entertainment.”
Jason Andrew says he was an early advocate and supporter of the renovations on Brinkerhoff Street. “We believe that art should be available everywhere and to everyone. While we love programming performances in alternative spaces, The Strand holds so much appeal as a kind of celebration of our past relationships in the North Country.” Now that Norte Maar has returned to Upstate New York by way of their summer home in Jay, this could signal that more dance events will be coming to the area in the years ahead.
If anything, as Andrew points out, this year’s Fête de Danse “will certainly have better seats than the hockey rink!”
Seth Thomas 