Taylor's presence felt as his troupe takes the stage

By Emma Cameron

JAKARTA (JP): Paul Taylor is a voyeur. He likes to watch people and steal their movements.

Paul Taylor is a patriot, and he is concerned he not be pegged as an elitist. When the manager of the Paul Taylor Dance Company called him a "benevolent dictator" he was probably more accurate than he realized.

Although he is not present for his Jakarta performance because he is currently preparing a new dance, Taylor's approach of an "iron fist in the velvet glove" is much evident, with constant references to him and even the casting for the weekend performances left to him.

The dance company, now in its 45th year of existence, has shared its artistry in over 400 cities in more than 60 nations, and has represented the United States at arts festivals around the globe. In recognition of its wide travels and many fans, the dance company has been designated a U.S. cultural ambassador by the White House Millennium Council Program.

Taylor himself has been described as one of the most important choreographers of the 20th century with a long list of accolades, including a MacArthur Foundation Fellowship, three Guggenheim Fellowships and six honorary Doctor of Fine Arts degrees.

In the waning days of the 20th century, Indonesia will host the company's stunning dances at Graha Bhakti Budaya at Taman Ismail Marzuki (TIM) arts center on Dec. 3 and Dec. 4.

The performances are being jointly organized by the United States Embassy in Jakarta, the Jakarta Arts Council, the Jakarta Arts Foundation and Taman Ismail Marzuki arts center to celebrate the 50th anniversary of bilateral Indonesian-American ties.

The company's debut performances here brings excitement.

One of the dancers, Francie Huber, who has a B.F.A from The Juillard School and has been with the Taylor Company since 1987, considered her visit to Jakarta as something that will expand experience as a dancer.

"We'll go out and eat and meet people. We're not just here as tourists. As much as we feel we're giving something, we're definitely gaining something," she told The Jakarta Post in an interview at The Regent on Tuesday evening.

Another dancer, Patrick Corbin, who has danced with the Joffrey Ballet and has been with the Taylor Company since 1989, has seen some Javanese dancing and wants to use his time in the country to gain more exposure to Indonesian dance. He expressed interest in knowing the type of audience and response the company would get in Jakarta.

"There may be a future Paul Taylor dancer in the audience," he said tongue in cheek.

There is an Indonesian connection; the dance company's rehearsal director, Bettie De Jong, was actually born in Sumatra. This will be her first time back in Indonesia since she left as a child.

What can people expect from the company's performances in Jakarta?

Corbin said the dance company was all about "athleticism, big movement, power, simplicity".

And the program was selected to give as big a picture of Paul Taylor as possible, with two different programs on the two nights.

In the first program of their Jakarta performances, the dance company will perform Cloven Kingdom, a piece choreographed by Paul Taylor. The piece will be presented by 12 dancers, including Lisa Viola, Heather Berest, Maureen Mansfield, Annmari Mazzini and Francie Huber.

They will also perform The Word, which was first performed in 1998 with music specially composed by David Israel, followed by Esplanade, first performed in 1975 with music by J.S. Bach and said to be the company's signature work, which features nine dancers.

In the second program, the dances are Arden Court, first staged in 1981 with music by William Boyce, Eventide, first performed in 1997 with music by Ralph Vaughan Williams and Piazzolla Caldera -- first performed in 1997 with music by Astor Piazzolla and Jerzy Peterburshsky.

Each program has been created to include later, more recent performances and different musical periods and styles so that the audience is left with no idea what to expect next.

The dances remain unchanged throughout the years with choreography, set and costumes, and lighting rarely altered. Differences come in the interpretation of the individual dancers.

Huber found the ability to interpret which is allowed in the Taylor Company its main drawing card.

"As a dancer, it (the company) is probably one of the most exciting. You can be an individual, be yourself... it could be maybe intimidating in other companies who are really striving to recreate a performance," she said.

Corbin was slightly more abstract, saying: "You can be as true to yourself as a person as you can be. You're not pasting on anything, you're suspending reality and bringing joy to the audience."

Troupe manager John Tomlinson called it "everyman dance". "You can see as much or as little as you want ... you don't have to figure it out, as Paul says 'dance is to the eyes as music is to the ears'."

A prime example of the simplicity of Paul Taylor's choreography is Esplanade where the dancing is based solely on the movements of running, walking and falling down. However, this simplicity of theme does not translate into a simplistic performance.

"We're trying to make it look easy but the effort is evident in the physicality. You could watch one dance and say 'that's easy' but by the end of the performance it would be 'how did they do that?'" Corbin said.

He believed themes were important for dance to have a focus but that messages were not necessary to affect an audience.

The idea of an interactive audience enamored both dancers, Corbin said, because "you will superimpose a story (onto a dance), you can't help it".

However, with the humanistic nature of Paul Taylor's work, the dancers believed the dances would make the transition to any culture, including Indonesia.

Tickets for the performances are available at TIM. Prices are Rp 20,000, Rp 75,000 or Rp 100,000.