Like every other dance show on campus, this semester's eXpressions show comes tagged with a pretentious concept. And like every other dance show, you can forget about it. The show may be called "Mind, Body, Soul," like some expensive new facial cream from L'Oreal, but "body" is really the only thing going on here — bodies flipping, gyrating, spinning and twirling in perfect step with each other.
As you may well be aware, eXpressions is Princeton's only all-female dance group, composed this semester of six seniors, five juniors, six sophomores and five freshmen. While this inevitably means the group lacks the sweat-drenched, clothes-on-the-floor eroticism of diSiac or BodyHype, that's fine — that's not what they're aiming for anyway. No cross-dressing here, folks. From the beginning to the end of "Mind, Body, Soul," the girls make no secret of their gender, and the result is less borderline-pornography and much more innocent fun. As the final, jungle-themed number reminds viewers over and over again: "I am a woman, and I am an artist!"
Almost every single song used is by a female singer — if you include the high-pitched, effeminate chirps of Ne-Yo and Akon — and the choreographers constantly work the troupe's lopsided gender ratio to their advantage, twisting and contorting the dancers into positions that would never work between girls and boys without being horrendously awkward.
As ever, the set-list is composed of a plethora of recent chart-toppers. "I Can Feel Your Halo," choreographed by Jess Cabral ’11, matches the wracked melodrama of Beyonce's recent single to a suitably austere routine, with dancers moving serenely amidst the song's hulking percussive hits.
The delirious club dancing of "Beautiful," choreographed by Andrea Francis ’11 and Jessica Hsu '10, squeezes everyone from T.I. to Akon to Colby O'Donis into a single medley. (Hsu is also a staff photographer for the Daily Princetonian). The dancers execute a tightly choreographed routine that more than lives up to the effervescent pop songs, and they're joined for the only time in the show by a guy, which does spice things up considerably — yeah, excessive grinding!
The high-concept routine of "After Hours in Firestone," meanwhile, sees nerdy students rocking out to Lady Gaga's "Just Dance," leading to several moments of comedy gold. Best, hands down, is the simultaneous flipping open of chemistry books as Gaga trills, "Are you checking out my catalogue?"
Lightheartedness, after all, is one thing that "Mind, Body, Soul" isn't short on, though its poe-faced name might lead you to think otherwise. Where most dance shows on campus are quite hopelessly pretentious, aiming for high art when really they're an extended excuse for drunken catcalling, the girls in eXpressions never take themselves too seriously. The show is full of little winks and nods at the audience, and tongue is never far from cheek. Admittedly, this can lead to some rather odd routines, like the heart surgery-themed "Wait a Minute," replete with bloody chests and surgical masks (!).
Most of the time though, the cheery, down-to-earth approach pays off, from the endearingly silly clockwork dancing of "The Dancing Soul" to the hilarious "Mind Control," which earns a gold star for using two of the best songs of the year in one go: Common's "Universal Mind Control" and Ne-Yo's "Closer."
Of course, it's true that if you're looking for virtuoso dancing, this isn't the place to go. The choreography is assured and consistent but rarely dazzling, and the same goes for the caliber of the dancers. Most of the movements involve jerky, robotic arm movements and the occasional handclap — all perfectly well-executed — but rarely are viewers treated to the kind of ostentatious, eye-popping stunt-work that litters other campus dance shows. A couple of cartwheels, a few timid jumps in the air, and that's it, really.
In the end, though, it's this unpretentious, light-hearted approach that makes "Mind, Body, Soul" such a wonderfully good time. It's not trying to save your life or blow your mind away, and you'll have forgotten about its high-falutin' concept by the third number. And you know what? The show's all the better for it.
4 paws
Pros: Fun routines, tight choreography, good music picks (Bittersweet Symphony vs. Dirt Off Your Shoulder: Amazing)
Cons: A couple of numbers fall flat
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