Wednesday, December 9, 1998

Conduit's Teresa Mathern transforms a small space into an open range for her latest two dance pieces

Catherine Thomas
Willamette Week


Conduit's performance space is intimate. At a maximum capacity, it can seat 50 people in folding chairs and on cushions. This is a bonus for anyone who arrives in time to get a seat: The immediacy of seeing dancer's muscles flex and hearing the effort of a difficult move in their breathing are treats you don't get from a balcony.

As director of Conduit and one of its core artists and teachers there, Teresa Mathern is well acquainted with the space. What is interesting about her most recent works, ReMember and Versus, is the impression of remoteness and abstraction she has achieved in such a small setting.

The conceptual framing of the two contemporary pieces is abstract; each is a study of patterning inspired by two-dimensional images. ReMember draws on designs from textiles and pottery around the world, while Versus is based on the rosette patterns of plant growth. Mathern designed complex movement sequences around these patterns and created two dances wit markedly distinct visual images.

ReMember's angular architecture contrasts Versus' continuous spiraling patterns. The pieces converge in the physical force of the movement and the technically excellent dancing. Rather than movement that is lyrical and pretty (although the patterns of movement are gorgeous), Mathern has chosen to highlight kinetic force and unusual images; the result is a vigorous three-dimensionality.

Drawing on the theory that lineage is communicated via the body, Mathern layered the abstract choreographic images for ReMember with a loose narrative based on text she wrote. Spoken and sung by Rita Marquez, the text creates images of geographical landmarks, people and body memories. Strains of world music, including pieces by the Throat Singers of Tuva and the Baka Forest People, overlie the piece.

Mathern dances in the piece with Jae Diego and Dawn Joella Jackson; all are technically gifted, able to sustain difficult and precise movement and accomplish complex changes with synchronicity and speed. The few sequences where the dancers physically support each other in dramatic jumps and backward leaps are satisfying because they are unusual and not overused.

Versus is a curving performance that suggests helical patterns present in plants and oceans. the piece is choreographed to washes of ambient sound with the dancers starting in a slow motion triangle that draws them in and releases them in sequences of ebbs and flows. For every action there is a counteraction; spirals twist inward with whip-like force then expand outward in free spins. The dancers weave together and intertwine, collapsing on each other in backward leaps and lifting each other in graceful successions of movement. Spins stop short in abrupt poses, building momentum for the next revolution.

Mathern's solo in the second piece is stunning; she has worked on these kinds of movements for years and now has incredible speed and practice using her body as a balanced fulcrum for moves that threaten to whip out of control. This solo in particular, as well as both pieces overall, exemplify the draw of Conduit's intimate space: It's raw and accessible.