A Sampler of the New Season Offers a Couple of Must-See-More-Ofs

The Base Camp programs in Dancenow/NYC's season-opening movement blitz showcased a total of 85 choreographers. Dusan Tynek stood out for his skill at implying feelings through movement. Astutely constructed and beautifully danced, The Pink Tree, his duet for women (Alexandra Berger and Elisa Osborne), explored the theme of coupledom. Each "half" made possible the equilibrium—presumably emotional as well as physical—and the adventurous space-explorations of the other partner. Yet the atmosphere that developed proved restrictive, suffocating even, because it thwarted the freedom of an individual alone. An excerpt from Gabrielle Lansner's Salt Chocolate, vividly incarnating the plight of the outrageously oppressed, was also terrific, thanks especially to the power of its witness-bearing dancers, Pat Hall and Baraka de Soleil. The balance of the program? Pretty much business as usual.