Be Here Now

A rare and incredible thing happened at LA Dance Project in the performance of Be Here Now, Los Angeles. As everyone took their seats and the lights dimmed, a lone figure looked as if he had shuffled onto the stage accidentally. The haunting sound of Dinah Washington & Max Richter’s This bitter earth - On the Nature of Daylight played and it dawned on those present that the casual figure was Benjamin Millepied, choreographer and founder of LA Dance Project.

His attitude, his street clothes (board shorts, tee shirt and cap) every single movement signaled that we were watching something deeply personal. His dance began. A body shifting from vulnerability to despair, warmth to anger, a body passing through the rich landscape of emotions as if he were dancing for himself alone and from the bottom of his soul. Our only clue was the low cool yearning voice of Dina Washington asking

What good am I? Heaven only knows.

This was an intensely private moment. Millepied had achieved his goal. The audience was present, one hundred percent connected and in awe of the dance. The intimacy of the space helped cement this bond. The audience sits at the edge of the stage. So close, that those on the front row could reach out and touch the dancers. The floor creaks under their weight. The dancers glisten with perspiration. The sharp inhalation of breath is a reminder of how hard they are working. All this just makes the experience even more intimate.

David Adrian Freeland Jr in *Be Here Now*. Photograph: LA Dance Project

Celebrating the LADP ten year anniversary, Millepied was inspired by the trailblazing composition from Andy Akiho’s album Seven Pillars perfomed by Sandbox Percussion. It’s an interesting choice of music and confirms the company’s direction as a risk taking, cutting edge force to be reckoned with on the international dance scene. The dancers take on the challenge of rising and falling to this unexpected soundtrack with gusto. They are in peak physical condition and seem to revel in the challenge of each piece.

The LA show was a peek behind the curtain before the world premiere of BE HERE NOW at the Theatre du Chatelet in Paris, with the added bonus of set and costumes by artist Diane Kruger. October 13 - October 16