Sara Wolf

White Lace and Health Insurance

Sara Wolf
Ain’t love grand? It makes the strong weak in the knees and the meek daring. It turns blasé survivors of the 1980s like my straight friend Susan into avid fans of Bravo’s Gay Weddings. Two years ago, love transformed 14 dyed-in-the-valentine-red-wool Canadian romantics into government-suing political activists after they were......
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Praying to the Beat

Sara Wolf
Photo courtesy UCLA Live The last time hip-hop choreographer Rennie Harris came to Los Angeles, the beat blew the lid right off UCLA’s Schoenberg Hall. The walls and floors vibrated with it. Harris’ Puremovement crew kicked and rapped to it. DJs spun, scratched and sampled; VJs mixed a psychedelic rush......

Sisters of Mercy

Sara Wolf
PERCHED ATOP THE NARROW LEDGE OF A MANHATTAN HOTEL-BALLROOM STAGE LAST month, a full head and a half shorter than the rest of her vocal ensemble, Meredith Monk surged and swayed, her whole body -- her entire being -- enveloped within the mesmerizing incantation she was coaxing from the crowd......
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Dance While You Can

Sara Wolf
Photo by Anne Fishbein 1. New Real Estate. The opening of the Kodak Theater this fall initiated the return of American Ballet Theater to an L.A. venue. After years of only sporadic visits from the troupe, let’s hope the relationship sticks — and that the Kodak broadens its scope to......
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Strange Attractor

Sara Wolf
Stephen Petronio has a knack for defining the edge of postmodern dance. While living in London during the late ’80s and early ‘90s, the young choreographer and dancer -- onstage with a shaved head and surrounded by other dancers sporting g-strings and women’s corsets -- galvanized the press with outrageous......

Bourne Free

Sara Wolf
Matthew Bourne doesn‘t look the way you’d expect. To judge from the critics, one would imagine the 41-year-old director-choreographer is a raffish and daring provocateur, boldly thrashing theatrical conventions. But in person, what‘s striking is his quaint English politeness, the understated, almost suburban appearance -- cropped sandy blond hair, collegiate......
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Outer Limits

Sara Wolf
Photo by Rolline Laporte I have to agree with onetime Village Voice dance critic Jill Johnston, who said of Twyla Tharp, “This girl is no drooping daisy.” Johnston made the comment back in the ’60s, shortly after Tharp quit dancing with Paul Taylor to found her own “downtown” postmodern company,......
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Body Heat

Sara Wolf
Back in the day, I used to bring this boy I was sexing to dance concerts with me, always curious to see what interested him or, conversely, put him to sleep. By chance, several years later we ended up together again at a dance concert. Maybe it was our seats......
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Hallelujah

Sara Wolf
Liz Lerman likes to ask questions. Over breakfast at Junior’s Restaurant last November, the choreographer and community activist pondered, “What is the role of the professional artist in the life of the community? Who gets to dance? Where do they dance? Who cares that they dance?” Philosophical ruminations such as......
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On the Move

Sara Wolf
From the sublime to the kick-ass, 2000 was a great year for dance. 1. White Oak Dance Project’s PASTForward. A reminder that the uninflected actions of our daily living can resonate with grace. 2. Rennie Harris Puremovement’s Rome & Jewels. Saturated in sound and energy, this hip-hop Gesamtkunstwerk pointed toward......