Headlong Dance prepares to enliven Barnes’ Laurencin exhibit

On a recent December afternoon at the Barnes Foundation, a trio of dancers—animal masks perched atop their heads—moved fluidly in and out of grouped arrangements, pausing from time to time to lean comfortably on each other. The grays, blues, and pinks of their clothing resembled the pastel palette employed by the painter Marie Laurencin, whose paintings are on exhibit at the Barnes’ Roberts Gallery through January 21st. Although in the midst of a crowd of onlookers, the three dancers were focused entirely on each other, in a private world of their own. Their captivating costumes, designed by Maiko Matsushima, were all different from each other—unique blends of fabric, hats, feathers, and animal faces. One wore a glamorous white gown and gauzy blue veil: another a deconstructed tuxedo jacket with embroidered accents; and another was draped in layers of contrasting, pastel fabrics.

The reason for their appearance that afternoon was an open rehearsal for Horse Woman: Making a World of One’s Own, a dance developed by Headlong Dance Theater and inspired by the exhibit. The final performance will take place on January 18, 2024. Headlong’s immersive dance exploration brings many of the images and concepts from Laurencin’s work to life—offering a visceral experience of the exhibit. Visitors can follow the dancers—Courtney Henry, Saturn Freeman, and Jungwoong Kim—as they traipse through the museum, stopping to perform individually and as a trio. (At the open rehearsal, Megan Bridge filled in for Kim). Some sections take place in silence, while others are accompanied by an eclectic sound score designed by Jordan McCree.

The Headlong group was using the open rehearsal to fine-tune the flow of the dances throughout the Barnes building, traveling from the downstairs lobby to the Annenberg Court on the main floor, then outside in the garden, and finally into the Laurencin exhibit itself. The walls inside are hung with many self-portraits, including The Woman Horse (1918), which Laurencin created (as the exhibit labels explain) to explore her artistic persona. Moving through the gallery, Henry paused sometimes to look at a painting and other times seemed to embody the image on the canvas. It was difficult to see her, however, as the crowd pursued her through the small rooms of the exhibit. Perhaps the Headlong creative team will find a way to improve the situation for the final performance.

The Barnes’ exhibit, Marie Laurencin: Sapphic Paris, examines Laurencin’s subtle vision of “a modern world of women among women.” She often painted acrobats and dancers, as seen in works such as Spanish Dancers (1920) and The Circus (1920). Frequently, she intertwined women and animals—an expression of her unique vision of an alternate way of being. Headlong’s stated aim for Horse Woman: Making a World of One’s Own is to “channel the female-animal landscape of Marie Laurencin’s aesthetic world to explore contemporary notions of fluidity, queerness and gender.” The choreography for the production, which takes a subtle approach, was created by the group’s directors, Norma Porter and David Brick in collaboration with the dancers.

Another aspect of the Laurencin exhibit of particular interest to dance enthusiasts is the documentation of Laurenecin’s involvement with the 1924 Ballet Russes production of Les Biches. The troupe’s director, Serge Diaghilev, commissioned Laurencin to design the sets, curtain, and costumes for the ballet, which featured music by Francis Poulenc and choreography by Bronislava Nijinska. Laurencins’s ideas greatly influenced the concept for the dance, which daringly presented scenes of same-sex desire, androgyny, and cross-dressing. The Barnes exhibit includes drawings of her designs, as well as photos from the original production, reconstructions of the costumes (by Cathy Coho), and video excerpts from a 2009 production of Les Biches by the Rome Opera Ballet.

The final performance of Horse Woman: Making a World of One’s Own will take place on Thursday, January 18, from 6-9 pm.

Information and tickets:
https://www.barnesfoundation.org/whats-on/performance/headlong-dance-horse-woman