Dance Center of Columbia College Presents REGGIE WILSON/ FIST AND HEEL PERFORMANCE GROUP |CITIZEN Review – How do I belong?

Not somebody…

Anybody….

EVERY body….

Black and White….
Solo and Ensemble movements….
Reggie Wilson’s CITIZEN allows its dancers of all cultural backgrounds to consider the following in such charged times: how do you bring your history into your body? In connection to otherness and oneness?

Dance Center of Columbia College Hosts Reggie Wilson/Fist and Heel Performance Group

The collective of dancers, all dressed in a mix match of black and white enter the stage one by one,as music from Rev. Olsie Cowan calls the dancers to begin. One male dancer runs backwards, then forwards towards us, contemplating whether to jump of the stage or fall back in line with the others. Another black male dancer confronts his own shadow again on drapes of white cloth—growing big then small, and then multiplying as he extends his leg and grinds his heels into the floor. Does he enjoy seeing himself? Does he fight the urge to look at his own shadow? Most times, he does—and with so many to contend with we’re not sure if he wins this battle.

Dance Center of Columbia College REGGIE WILSON
Reggie Wilson /Fist and Heel Performance Group's CITIZEN Photo courtesy of Reggie Wilson/Fist and Heel Performance Group

Projected videos guide you deeper into the mindset of each dancer as they clap, forcing our eyes to shift directions quickly. Watching the dancers have their choreography mirrored on screen behind them, as they undulate hips brings us in on the physical and emotional journey of their solos. As the music crescendos to the sounds of Baaba Maal, Aster Aweke, and even members of the Fist and Heel Performance Group, the performance hits its peak when all five dancers- three black male dancers, and two women, one white and another Asian woman, move in unison to show us how they both build community while never once touching one another.

Picking up influences of West African and Postmodern dance, the performance will not disappoint. Sweeping arms and minute-long poses test the endurance of every dancer that charges the stage.

Reggie Wilson/Fist and Heel Performance Group Asks Universal Question

CITIZEN offers a deep and moving portrait into how we can examine heritage; how we all run from the past and towards the future. CITIZEN encapsulates what it means to have history both repeat and deviate, and how our individuality also embodies a universal question- how do I belong?

When:

Thru October 14

Where:

The Dance Center of Columbia College Chicago
1306 South Michigan
Chicago

 

Tickets:

$30, Discounts for Seniors

For tickets call 312 369 8330 or visit The Dance Center at Columbia College webpage.

 

Photos courtesy of Reggie Wilson/Fist and Heel Performance Group

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