Review Fix chats with Gus Solomons, Jr. who discusses his role as choreographer in Janet Bentley’s Roly Poly Prods.
About the Production:
ROLY POLY PRODS. RIDES INTO PLANET CONNECTIONS THIS SUMMER WITH HORSE, RUNNING JUNE 17 @ 9:15 PM; JUNE 18 @ 8:15 PM; JUNE 23 @ 5:00 PM; JUNE 25 @ 6:30 PM; JULY 1 @ 1:45 PM; AND JULY 3 @ 7:30 PM AS PART OF THE 2017 PLANET CONNECTION THEATRE FESTIVITY (JUNE 12 – JULY 9) AT THE CLEMENTE, 107 SUFFOLK STREET, NYC. FOR TICKETS, GO TO PLANETCONNECTIONS.ORG.
ROLY POLY PRODUCTIONS takes us on a wild ride in HORSE, written and directed by Janet Bentley with choreography by Gus Solomons, Jr.
Skin care products work on your skin … what about a “life care product?†In HORSE, a new client brings more to the table than just a unique skin care formula. The stage is set for a product testing experiment that morphs into a hallucinogenic journey redefining reality and identity.
Review Fix: What’s your creative process like?
Solomons: For my career to date (60 years) I have been a dance maker, usually working from movement first, and adding sound/music somewhere along the way. Like the work of John Cage and Merce Cunningham (in whose company I danced), for me the music and the movement are merely simultaneous events, which the audience will relate to each other in their own minds. Thus, most of my dances have been abstract, non-objective. More recently, I have been training myself as an actor and incorporating more of the principles of dramatic tension into what I make.
Review Fix: What makes this different or special?
Solomons: Making movement for a play with actors, not dancers, refocuses my possibilities; the movement must be based in characters’ objectives and not require the technical skill of trained dancers. I’m interested in the process of modifying and adapting my movement vision to the alternative movement skills of the actors and the available rehearsal time.
Review Fix: What did you learn about yourself through this process?
Solomons: Although I no longer have a burning need to make dances, movement is ingrained in me, both as a performer and a creator. I’m enjoying the process of working with these terrific actors, who are so willing and appreciative of what I am giving them.
Review Fix: How does it feel to be a part of something like this?
Solomons: It’s always desirable to expand the possibilities of what I do and learn new ways of deploying my kinetic experience in new ways.
Review Fix: What are your ultimate goals for this production and for the future?
Solomons: My goal for “Horse†is to create a movement palette that enhances the expression of the play and makes it visually and kinetically more dynamic.
Review Fix: What do you think your audiences will enjoy the most?
Solomons: I generally try to create something that’s true to the material, making it resonate with watchers. I never try to predict what the audiences’ responses will be, since they’re made up of individuals who will bring their own experiences to the piece and interpret through that lens — those lenses.
Review Fix: What’s next?
Solomons: In July/August, I will be dancing in a major work by Richard Siegal in Germany; in September, I’ll be dancing a new, short solo in the DanceNow Festival at Joe’s Pub; and in December, I’ll reprise my performance as the Grandfather in Isaac Mizrahi’s production of Prokofiev’s “Peter and the Wolf†for the fifth year at Guggenheim Museum’s Works & Process.
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