Vera's Body falls short of its goals

Last weekend's Troika Ranch performance of Vera's Body opened with a traditional chorus-type character explaining that he was asleep, then pointing out a pillow on the floor which he invited the audience members to use if they felt the need to catch up on sleep during the show. Everyone appreciated the self-aware theater humor, but halfway through the show some had begun to think seriously about taking him up on his offer.

Troika Ranch is a New York-based company devoted to the Slash Arts-that is, the integration of dance/music/theater/interactive technology. The premiere of their latest piece, Vera's Body, wrapped up their week-long Oberlin residency. The show, which ran over an hour, explored ideas dealing with the human body through the four above-mentioned elements, which often resulted in a jumbled, chaotic feel.

Some of the technological methods and aspects of the production were, indeed, quite impressive and worked well within the performance. One dancer, for example, held a tiny video camera that she aimed at herself as she moved. The live recorded image was projected onto the wall behind her while her shadow danced over the screen and the projection moved across her body. This powerful segment went beyond a simple performer/audience relationship, as the multi-layered image of the single dancer moved before not only the audience, but also before the dancer herself.

With a few less-notable exceptions, the rest of the show was at best disorganized and at many points simply nerve-wracking. Many of the ways the technological media were included seemed haphazardly arranged, even superfluous, in relation to the rest of the dance. There were long chunks of time when ear-piercing beeps and industrial sounds filled the room and the performers remained a bit too still to call what they were doing dancing. The video screen in the background, rather than enhancing the dancer's moves, was often very distracting, especially when it wasn't too clear what the projected image had to do with the story. If the goal is to integrate the four aspects of Slash Art, Vera's Body doesn't seem to live up to Troika Ranch's vision.

Another major problem with the production was that the dancing simply wasn't impressive. Sure, this was more than just a dance recital, but one would think that a self-proclaimed dance-theater piece would be more concerned with the quality of the actual dancing itself. Call it old fashioned, but abstract, existential theatrical proclamations, colorful video clips, and cool electronic sounds do not make up for a lack of good dance moves.

However, Troika Ranch should be appreciated for exploring a cutting edge art form that has not yet been fully established. The integration of electronics and technology in the performing arts will no doubt become standard in a matter of only a few years. If Troika Ranch is taken for what it is, a beginning stage of a new arts movement that will naturally improve over time, then proper respect should be paid to its originators.

Slash: NYC based Troika Ranch strive to integrate art and technology. (photo courtesy Theater and Dance)