The performance was a short but definitely successful venture; after the applause, the dancers of Pulse opened up the floor in the loft-style studio for comments, suggestions and questions. The response was overwhelmingly positive.
"I don't know what the narrative was, but it didn't matter," said one audience member. "You guys nailed it."
Pulse is defiantly eclectic and organic, as its name suggests. The company, founded by dancer and choreographer Stephanie Pia Wonchala, is currently made up of 10 dancers of various backgrounds, shapes and styles. Wonchala herself is a modern dance instructor for the Alaska Moving Arts Center, but most of the performers have day jobs of some sort. Pamela Marie Hatzis, a performer and the company's events coordinator, for instance, is also the owner of La Bodega Wine and Spirits in University Plaza.
This is part of what makes Pulse such a refreshing act in Anchorage; the dancers engage in their work out of sheer artistic desire, and so the performance feels as much theirs as it is intended for audience enjoyment.
"A lot of tonight's performance was improv," Wonchala stated after the piece. "There was a lot of sharing of experiences and insights based off of dancers' journals and experiences that went into this."
The company's style is, like its mission, definitively modern. The performance, danced in several movements to a diverse collection of musical pieces -- beginning with a hip-hop mash-up and journeying to a classical number -- was marked by high-energy bursts pitted between dramatic expressions. Dancers froze while others ghostly swooned between bodies, limbs sharply thrust into the air and then dissolving into relaxed positions.
It was a performance much in the style of ballets choreographed by William Forsythe or Christopher Wheeldon. There was much to look at any given moment. Yet to sit back and watch the performance as a whole was the ultimate goal, with all of the inflections of diverse motion contributing to one beautiful swell of movement and sound.
"Emotional," applauded one audience member following the piece.
"What kind of emotions?" asked associate artistic director and choreographer Walter Barillas.
"All of them."
The incorporation of more dramatic elements, such as corps member pants hissed in a beat-box rhythm or a scream interjected in time with the music during a classical pas de deux, was less successful and perhaps a little distracting. That was perhaps due to the confined space of the studio.
Even if this was the case, however, there was something charming in the shock of sound; it said, "We are not your typical dance company. We are here to tell a story."
In addition to creating and performing locally, Pulse intends to hold modern dance workshops for a variety of levels after its fall debut.
Note to readers
Check out the new community photo feature, called "RSVP/Social scene," on Pages 4 and 5 of today's Life section, or visit the full gallery of photos at adn.com/rsvp (under the Life section of adn.com). Local photographers and participants are capturing scenes from recent community events around town. This week there are photos from the Pulse performance and more. If you are attending local community events, post your photos on the gallery at adn.com, and we'll consider your photos for publication in the Sunday Daily News.
Important warning about e-mails purporting to be from the adn.com staff.