Momix's Opus Cactus: A Well-Crafted Spectacle Revisited
After its premiere in 2001, Moses Pendelton’s Opus Cactus is enjoying a welcomed revival at The Joyce Theater. For a company who has been criticized for the overzealous use of tricks, Momix’s performance displayed a level of artistry and sophistication that did not rely on tacky spectacle.
On the evening of July 6th the audience was treated to the sublime realm of the American Southwest through a series of eighteen dancing vignettes; one more inventive and alluring than the next.
It all began with a series of glow in the dark tumbleweeds gliding, shifting, opening and closing across the marley and into the air with the most satisfying of clicking noises. It was a simple series of well-choreographed movements and props that immediately captured the attention and curiosity of the audience.
The evening continued with greater triumphs including “Pole Dance,” a mesmerizing trio of men vaulting, playing, and dancing with incredible ease and finesse. “Tracking the earth” had the distinct feeling of a National Geographic special on lizards with dancers interacting on their bellies, zooming across the stage on gym class scooters and completely embracing their reptilian characters. As with many of Momix’s vignettes “Sundance” utilized props to their fullest expression; in this case a group of sunshine yellow fans creating the buzzing and undulating illusion of sun in the Sonoran Desert.
Momix’s Opus Cactus was collaborative in the strongest sense of the word. The powerful technique of the dancers, the intriguing use of music, the meticulously crafted lighting design, costumes, and use of props fashioned an interdependent, living and breathing landscape. The intricate blending of lines between humans, animals and nature was clearly the result of many years, meticulous reworking and adjusting an existing idea.
Will we have to wait to wait another ten years for Momix to produce something that achieves a satisfying balance between virtuosity and showmanship?
Momix will be performing Opus Cactus through Sunday, July 16th at The Joyce Theatre.
CLICK HERE for tickets.