DiSiac's 'XV' celebrates fifteenth anniversary

When I reviewed diSiac’s Ablaze last spring I had only one qualm: Their noncommittal adherence to their theme. This fall, diSiac chose to celebrate its 15-year anniversary with the theme and title: XV. Because “XV” is not really a theme at all, and that means that the choreographers and dancers are free of thematic constraints, it seems I no longer have anything left to nitpick.

diSiac was fantastic.

True to diSiac’s diverse skill set, the show is a compilation of hip-hop and contemporary pieces, interspersed with three cinematically-challenged, but rather hilarious fillers. The show is well costumed and beautifully lit (though I do question the strobe lights), but of course everything is secondary to the dancing.

The first piece, #tbt by Nshira Turkson ’15, Adin Walker ’16, David Wang ’14 and Maechi Uzoske ’17 is a hip-hop number that immediately reaches out into the audience, grabs hold of their expectations and hurls them even higher. From the first beat, the first commanding spotlight and the first hard-hitting step, the dancers remind the audience that they’re here to dance and to dance well. #tbt is a hip-hop sampling, with a number of different songs and sections. The choreography and interaction between exiting and entering dancers make the varying sections seamless and natural — an excellent beginning to the show and perhaps the best hip-hop number of the night.

The second hip-hop piece, Dive by Kristi Yeung ’14 and Kalin Stovall ’15, showed off the gritty, masculine side of nine of diSiac’s female dancers. Its story was as cohesive as the previous hip-hop number was eclectic, and Angie Chiraz ’16 and choreographer Stovall particularly stood out. Dive showed that female hip-hoppers don’t have to be overtly sexy to put on an excellent performance, which is a lesson that could have been applied to a hip-hop number in Act 2, Blind Date, which was overly sexy. Some of the other hip-hop routines were less consistent in their synchronization and energy levels, especially in comparison to the opening two numbers. The stories in Who’s My Dean Anyway? and West Side Story were slightly vague, and the four female dancers in Blind Date seemed hesitant to dance to their fullest when they were actually blindfolded (understandably so).

These minor complaints have no traction when it comes to the contemporary dances. As always, the pieces are well-choreographed, well-rehearsed and stunningly performed. Stand By Me, choreographed by Allison Metts ’15 and Jessica Berry ’15, was flawless, as well as my favorite dance of the night. The choreographers played with staging, speed and partnering. They demanded a high degree of polish and synchronization and their dancers delivered.

Another stunning piece, the Act 1 Finale, In This Shirt by Colby Hyland ’16, was surprisingly genuine — the dance inspired by the exhilaration of becoming a fully-fledged diSiac member. The choreography beautifully showcased a number of individual dancers, always in the service of the piece as a whole.

The same can be said of many of the other contemporary pieces. Escape It Allby Maria Katarina Rafael ’15 was notable among them. The choreography in this routine was particularly complex and layered, but even the sometimes chaotic moments seemed perfectly controlled by the dancers.This and many of diSiac’s dances were also wonderfully set, taking advantage of the Berlind’s big stage with large group numbers in virtually every piece. This is a greater complement to the theater than to the dancers, but they did certainly make optimal use of the spacious venue they had.

The opening contemporary piece, Heart of Stone, was choreographed by two new members of diSiac and had the simplest choreography of the bunch, but regardless it featured a number of stunning moments of partnering and staging. For two first-time choreographers, Kristen Johnson ’17 and Alex Quetell ’17 created a nice piece, and we can look forward to more choreography from this pair in the future.

Every dance group on campus and every dance company in the world has its own reputation and legacy. DiSiac is no different, and in the 15 years since it was founded, the company's reputation has climbed to stellar heights. Their theme honors this growth, both in dances directly inspired by members’ experiences in diSiac and in fillers featuring alums and snippets of past performances. Because of this, in this one scenario it seems fit to place diSiac’s production in a wider context, and celebrate not only their successful show, but fifteen years of successful shows.

DiSiac is made up of an eclectic bunch of dancers with a range in style but a uniform technique. The dancers inspire the choreographers to push the limits of pace, staging and general complexity. The choreographers inspire the dancers to maximize their dedication, ability and performance. Perhaps the most commendable characteristic of diSiac’s dancers is that they are always performing for themselves. Yes, they have an audience and they certainly command that audience’s attention, but their energy and their enthusiasm are internally grounded. This personal and collective motivation is at the heart of all of diSiac’s performances that I have seen, and seems to be the product of a fifteen-year legacy. As the Roman numerals of their title suggest, diSiac has become a classic presence on campus.

4.5 out of 5 paws.Pros: Brilliant choreography, amazing technique, entertaining performanceCons: some synchronization issues, some underwhelming routines