THE HANGOVER REPORT – Ohad Naharin at the top of his game: VENEZUELA is obsessive and sexy

Batsheva Dance Company performs Ohad Naharin's "Venezuela" at the BAM Howard Gilman Opera House.

Batsheva Dance Company performs Ohad Naharin’s “Venezuela” at the BAM Howard Gilman Opera House.

This weekend, I caught Ohad Naharin’s latest creation, a two-part, evening-length dance piece entitled Venezuela. The work, which was performed by Batsheva Dance Company (the choreographer’s acclaimed dance company), had its New York premiere at the BAM Howard Gilman Opera House, where it just concluded its brief run.

I’ve long been a fan of Mr. Naharin, one of the most influential dance-makers in the world of contemporary dance. Venezuela finds the sought-after Israeli choreographer and his dance company in superb shape and at the top of their games. The Batsheva dancers are powerful, confident movers, and each of them are distinct performers who bring a strong sense of themselves to anything they dance. In my mind, they’re arguably the sexiest dance company in the world.

Mr. Naharin’s choreography continues to excite me with its rigorous obsessiveness and raw vigor. He’s also unafraid to utilize kitsch and unfiltered playfulness to mine deeper, visceral truths of our shared humanity. In Venezuela, he audaciously rinses and repeats the same set of steps – with some slight variations and set to a vastly different soundtracks – shockingly resulting in two distinct dances. Now just what does that say about us and the world we live in?

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VENEZUELA
Dance
Batsheva Dance Company at the BAM Howard Gilman Opera House
1 hour, 20 minutes (without an intermission)
Closed

Categories: Dance

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