Director's Choice

Dallas Black Dance Theatre celebrates its 45th anniversary with internationally acclaimed works. LIKE WATER by award-winning choreographer, Darrell Grand Moultrie received standing ovations during its nine-performance world premiere at the international Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival on August 4, 2021, in Massachusetts. The Boston Globe described the new work as a “gift for us all,” as it ebbed from “waves of grief” to “bubbles with joy.” LIKE WATER was commissioned by Jacob’s Pillow as the inaugural recipient of the Joan B. Hunter New Work Commission.

It takes the mathematical magic of a math major and the wisdom of an international choreographer like Milton Myers to combine contrasting grounded African and airy Eurocentric movements into a masterpiece. This artistic equation enveloped with Asian-inspired melodies is what makes the creative kaleidoscope of Pacing a satisfying ride.

In the collaborative duet, Absolute Rule, choreographed by Elisa Monte and David Brown, they investigate the coming together and going apart of various emotions during the course of a relationship. Elisa Monte describes it as a look into the “push and pull of emotional forces that surround the interaction of two people.”

Photo by Amitava Sarkar