Jeremy Barker at The SunBreak posted an article this morning about 3Seasons that digs back into the piece and its approach to women. He pulls quotes from Donal Byrd’s blog that similarly address the performance.

The reviews for Olivier Wevers’ 3Seasons—the first full-length production by his company Whim W’him—last month were nearly all glowing and positive (including mine). A surrealist exploration of the consequences of consumer culture, executed with charming aplomb by Whim W’him’s crew of Spectrum and PNB dancers, it largely won over audiences and critics alike.

One of the few dissenting voices was The Stranger’s art (and sometimes dance) critic Jen Graves, who, in a Jan. 20 Slog post, criticized Wevers’ representation of women in the piece, saying he was like a “novelist who can’t quite write women, or who isn’t that interested in trying.” Aside from a guest post on the OtB blog by dancer/choreographer Catherine Cabeen, Graves was the only critic to tackle the piece from a feminist angle.

There’s a lot of commenting happening in response. Read the full article and see what people are saying.

[3Seasons image by La Vie Photography]

ETA – Jen Graves responds this morning in “When Do You Write About The Ex-Wife? Biography Rears Its Ugly Head”

The reviews for 3Seasons keep coming in:

Last weekend saw the first performance from Whim W’him, the HOTT new dance company formed in 2009 by PNB principle dancer Olivier Wevers. – Seattlest

“Whether Wevers matures as a choreographer of the caliber of such artists as William Forsythe, Jiri Kylian and Christopher Wheeldon, is up to risk taking producers like On The Boards who give him a chance.” – ArtDish

“It feels completely redundant to heap more praise on Olivier Wevers at this point, since nearly everyone else has been in a full-blown love-fest since his new company Whim W’Him’s sold-out debut this last weekend at On the Boards. But as much as I’d love to be the odd man out in this orgy of praise, I just can’t…” – The SunBreak

“I’m sorry, Olivier Wevers, but the truth is, I would still rather watch you dance someone else’s work than watch someone else dance yours.” – The Stranger

“…the hard lines between ballet and contemporary dance no longer have meaning.” – City Arts Magazine

The Financial Times in the UK has just posted a review of 3Seasons:

In September, when Olivier Wevers announced the details of his new company Whim W’Him, he lit a fuse of excitement that has burned steadily in the Seattle dance community ever since. Why the furore?

Read the full review.

Olivier Wevers work is not the kind of thing people subscribe to OtB to see.  This is exactly why it was a brilliant choice for Lane to present him.  As a subscriber, it was great to see so many new faces in the audience and speak to people who had never seen a contemporary dance performance before.  Wevers work creates a gentle bridge towards contemporary performance art for audiences who hold ballet aesthetics as the standard for good dance.  He is certainly developing a unique voice (the show features work from 06, 07, and 09, the most recent being the most exciting),  However, he has held onto many audience expectations such as pointe work for most of the women in his company, which left me thinking about Marshall McLuhan’s 1967, “The Medium is the Message”.  Pointe shoes are a very specific medium that say one thing well; women are to be light, frail and weightless.  Even direct, sharp movement is made piercing and fairy-like by these apparatus that for more than 300 years have allowed/forced female ballet dancers to embody an “idealized” version of the female form.  Ballerinas are to be slight and ephemeral next to the grounded power of the male dancer, who never wears pointe shoes, except in rare incidences of drag performance.  Certainly classical ballet technique requires incredible strength and the women in Wevers company performed with commitment and aplomb.  I am however a feminist scholar and can not help but to point out the unspoken assumptions that accompany ballet aesthetics which in part led to the creation of modern dance by women over 100 years ago.  I find it fascinating that the gendered hierarchy  that is inherent in ballet not only sells out houses and gets standing ovations, but is also so ingrained in our expectations of viewing ballet, that it is for many patrons, invisible.

What connects Wevers to contemporary dance however is his capacity for self-representation (the goal of the modern, negro, and leftist dance movements of the early 20th century).  The male dancers in his company were given stunning movement sequences that not only showed their technical virtuousity via grace and line, but also subverted expectations by juxtaposing strong movements with delicut ones.  Wevers understands personally the complextity of being a man in the ballet world, and that embodied understanding fueled the best choreography in the show.  He choreographs masculinity in a way that expresses its multi-faceted nature and portrays various relationships between men which presented them as refreshingly multi-dimensional characters.

Wevers also cuts a contemporary edge via his collaborators.  In 3Seasons, the newest work, Mike Cepress’ costumes and Byron Au Yong’s music beautifully merge with Wevers choreography as all three artists have a great eye for detail within a consistent aesthetic world.  In a particularly effective sequence three women wear wire skirts that make the shape of romantic tutus, these frames are stuffed with plastic bags around the top, mimiking the silloutet of classical tutus.  Three men enter wearing Cepress collars (brilliant pieces which effectivly accentuate the beauty of the male body), and pull the plastic bags from the women’s skirts.  After littering the stage with this plastic, which become familiar in the deconstruction of the costume, the bags are then stuffed into the women’s chests referenceing breast implants and plastic as a now common extention of the human body. The men then bury their face in the women’s enhanced breasts illustrating our culture’s desire for, and obsession with, disposable material and consumption.  The section effectively communicated the place of the body in this consumer ethos, as another material good to be upgraded by that which is man made.

Congratulations and thanks to all the dancers and collaborators for their hard, effective work, and to Olivier for having the courage to stand on his own and offer his voice.

Catherine Cabeen

I suspect I might be in the minority on this one, judging by the almost complete standing ovation Friday night, but I left feeling thoroughly disappointed in the debut of Whim W’Him. I’ve seen almost everything at On the Boards over the last few years, and never has anything so completely failed to live up to its publicity photos as “3Seasons.” The sexy, dramatic images I’ve been seeing leading up to this performance never materialized in the pieces themselves.

The first half of the evening was structured more like a recital than a coordinated performance. Each of the first two pieces actually consisted of several brief segments, each of which was separated by what felt like a prolonged blackout and polite applause. The regular interruptions and the feeling that I spent half of the first act sitting in the dark made it very difficult for me to maintain an emotional connection to what was happening on stage, and the disjointed pace kept the dances from ever establishing much rhythm or continuity overall. I certainly enjoyed individual moments, particularly in “Fragments,” but each time I began to really appreciate something the lights went out again to come up on something different.

After intermission the pace stabilized and I was glad to finally see dance without the interruptions. I was more engaged than I had been in the first act, but the lighting, sound, and costumes all seemed a little bit unmotivated and lacking in drama. The moments of live music were interesting but I left uncertain how they related to the dance. It almost seems like the design elements were built on top of the dance rather than in collaboration with it. The dance itself has some vague ideas about consumerism played out through an assortment of props and, at one point, the image of a woman thrown face-first into a trash can. Those intentions never came to fruition in a way that was novel or provocative. I was reminded at several points of Jan Fabre’s “Orgy of Tolerance,” which was much bolder in its statements on consumption. Where “3Seasons” toys innocuously with plastic shopping bags, Fabre choreographed an elaborate shopping cart ballet. At one point in “3Seasons,” a dancer casually drops a handgun on the stage, and then nothing much else happens. Fabre used a rifle, and his performer shoved it–well, I’m sure you remember if you were there. And that essentially sums up my whole problem with the evening. While I didn’t love “Orgy of Tolerance” I certainly remember it. Fabre’s choices were far braver and much more effective at confronting consumerism and consumption. The message of “3Seasons” felt to me about as disposable as the culture it seeks to comment on. Because the piece and the company debuted at On the Boards, I expected work that pushed boundaries. “3Seasons” only got so far as to nudge up against them. I think there is great potential in this company to do bigger and better things, but tonight left me underwhelmed.

-Matthew Echert

There were many good things about last night’s performance by Whim W’Him. It was gratifying to see On the Boards profiting from the first of three sold-out shows and to know that some PNB audience members were becoming better acquainted with what OtB has to offer. It was a pleasure to watch five of PNB’s best dancers performing up close, something that ordinarily happens only at Friday previews. It was splendid to see so many talented members of the Spectrum company, especially Kelly Ann Barton and Vincent Lopez, getting additional exposure; let’s hope that many audience members will go to see them perform Donald Byrd’s choreography. Although dancer Jim Kent was given little to do, even a brief exposure to him may inspire some audience members to check out his work with Scott/Powell Performance and Zoe/ Juniper.

As to the works performed last night: I’ve now seen seven or eight pieces choreographed by Olivier Wevers, some multiple times. I’m sorry to say that, with one notable exception (not on last night’s program), I’ve found his work to be disappointing. His dancers are so magnificent that they inevitably create some moments of remarkable beauty; Lopez’ powerful solo, danced to Mozart, was a case in point. 

But Wevers’ choreography relies too heavily on exaggerated facial expressions, precious hand gestures, and gimmicky costumes and props. There is much broad humor in his work but little depth of feeling.  Even when the surface looks beautiful, the center feels hollow. As a dancer, Wevers is an artist of the highest caliber, and he is clearly able to attract outstanding collaborators. But, for me, the question remains: Does Wevers have anything genuinely interesting to say as a choreographer? Does he have a compelling artistic vision to share with us? Perhaps it is still too early to tell.

Anne Lawrence

Michael Upchurch on 3Seasons:

“I would say do anything you can — cash in your life insurance, pawn your children, whatever it takes — to grab a ticket to “3Seasons,” the first full-length evening of work by Olivier Wevers and his new dance company, Whim W’Him.”

Read the full review.

Did you see 3Seasons? Click on the Comments button to read the comments of others and post your own thoughts.

Are you coming to world premiere of 3Seasons this weekend? Want some material to help you prep for it? Here’s a small handful of new preview pieces for you to check out:

“The choreographic style he’s developed in the past few years is also virtuosic and quirky, a highly physical, musical, and detailed approach. Seeing him right now may be similar to what it was like to see Twyla Tharp or Jirí Kylián early in their careers.” – Seattle Weekly

“Nonprofit arts organizations are struggling in this tough economy. So it wouldn’t seem like a great time to start a new arts group. But the recession hasn’t daunted one local choreographer…” – KUOW

Also check out OtB’s interview with Olivier and the Seattle Times preview.

Did you know that KUOW has started a performance club? Hosted by Marcie Sillman, the club will host post-show discussions at local restaurants and bars following select performances around Seattle. On Sun, Jan 17, they’ll be launching the club at the Sitting Room following that evening’s performance of 3Seasons. Join them for conversation and guest appearances from Olivier Wevers and Lane Czaplinski.

Visit the Front Row Center site to learn more and read an article on seattlepi.com.