From Deseret News archives:
Just another (glass) brick in the wall
Bricks' helps RDT kick off its 40th anniversary season
"I knew it had to be special," Smith told the Deseret Morning News. "I knew it had to be memorable. And I knew the people I could trust to make this a wonderful performance."
For the presentation, under the umbrella title "Touchstone," Smith enlisted New York choreographer Zvi Gotheiner to create a world-premiere work, "Bricks," with New York composer Scott Killian.
In addition, Laura Deans' "Skylight" will be among the works to be danced, and Smith has recruited RDT alum Todd Allen and young dancers from the Virginia Tanner Children's Dance Theatre.
Killian said that "Bricks" is the fourth work he and Gotheiner have brought to RDT. "This is the fifth work I'm doing for RDT, and this is the 12th collaborated work I've done with Zvi."
"With our history," Gotheiner said, "we work together well. We sometimes don't have to say any words. We can look at each other and know what each other is thinking."
The word "Bricks" brings out immediate images of red cement blocks used in home and business construction. But in Gotheiner's hands, the bricks will be thick glass blocks.
"They look better," said Gotheiner with a smile. "They are transparent but cloudy and catch the light."
Gotheiner said working with the dancers is like coming home. "This is like a second home to me. I'm very comfortable coming here and working with the dancers. This is the second time I've worked with this particular line-up in the company. So I have an idea of how they work and I know their personalities."
He said that although he's the choreographer, the creating process is a collaborative effort. "We work together. I ask them questions. They ask me questions. I set something one day and we talk about it. Then the next day I'll look at it again. If I don't like it, I'll change it. But if I do like it, we'll run through it again and add things to it.
"The dancers work well together. I have come to know their strengths and I know some of their weaknesses. When creating a work, you have to know what they are capable of doing. And that's what makes it work. It's like what happens with Scott and I work together. We know each other so well that we know what each other is looking for."
Killian's inspiration for the score came from talks with Gotheiner and sitting in on the rehearsals. "There is a lot going on during those rehearsals," said Killian. "Sometimes I come in and in the first couple of minutes, I'm overwhelmed. Other times I come in and immediately have sounds going through my head. I'm thinking of doing more percussion in this score. What does a brick sound like? What does a glass brick sound like?
"Those are the types of questions that run through my mind. And I come up with glassy sounds."
E-mail: scott@desnews.com
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Dancers Chien-Ying Wang, left, Nicholas Cendese, Chara Huckins and Paul Ocampo practice the anniversary piece, 'Bricks,' at Repertory Dance Theatre. Choreographer Zvi Gotheiner uses glass bricks for the production and says it is about the cycle of building, destruction and rebuilding.
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