Thrashing at Sea, Aerial Dance Churns in a Stunning Struggle Mike Barber's latest aerial choreographic work, "Dancing on the Atlantic," promises to be one of the most pulse-raising performances seen on the Portland stage this season. Anyone with an acute phobia of water will likely see their nightmares realized, but "DOA" will be worth the trek to its slightly out-of-the-way venue, an industrial warehouse in Northwest Portland. Performed as a stream of vignettes with no blackouts or intermission, the work takes advantage of the cavernous space to invoke the throat-clutching vastness of the deep, and some of the images are downright chilling. Suspended by bungee cords from the 18-foot ceiling, dancers Anne Furfey, Margretta Hansen, and Cydney Wilkes pitch in a turbulent churn high above the stage, thrashing and cartwheeling in a futile struggle to escape drowning. Clad in sherbet chiffon cocktail dresses and desperately clutching suitcases, their labor is a risky, visceral evocation of a most violent battle with death. Dancer Tracy Broyles offers a more peaceful version of drowning at the rear of the stage, turning in slow, dreamy phrases until she's hovering upside down, her arms a soft wave of motion succumbing to a drowsy death. Jenn Gierada unveils her latest solo here, and it's a study in terror, equal parts robotic convulsions and full-body flings that make her appear tossed by an external force. It's a stunner; seen in rehearsal, Gierada has never looked quicker or more mutable. Barber loosely based "DOA" on stories of failed sea travels, drawing on images of Ireland's potato famine, the coffin ships and the doomed Titanic. "DOA" plays like a collection of short stories, the dancers recounting personal narratives of undertows, sneaker waves and ocean rescues as an overture to the action. Tom Lopez's rousing orchestral score delivers a resonant rush of adrenaline, and violist Caroline Buchalter will accompany the dancers onstage. Source: Oregon Live

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