whirlpools and TWO

Scotiabank Dance Centre, May 20 & 21, 2005


"...Whirlpools, made up of three solos, provided a truly captivating, thought-provoking experience ... Natasha Lutz's interpretation of the free-flowing, energy-burning Reckless Cascade was as full of the voluptuous present as it had been when Dunbar first danced it. Volatile Spectrum, now danced by Dunbar, featured the same complex, thoughtful relationship with direction and motivation it had when Bright performed it ... truly exciting."

- Kaija Pepper, Dance International, Fall - 2005


"Choreographer Judith Garay was inspired by photographs of two people doing things that define the way we live -- playing sports, laughing together, or lounging on the couch watching television -- and wove those images into this experimental piece. Loosely translated, TWO means us. Garay, the artistic director of Dancers Dancing and a former principal dance with Martha Graham's company, constructed the work out of twosomes, often with four dancers on-stage rotating partners and performing complementary duets ... the result is rich and complete."

- Kelsey Dundon, The Georgia Straight, May 26 - 2005

  4 winds, the winter project

Scotiabank Dance Centre, April 15 - 17, 2004


"As 4 Winds displayed, the company does what it does with superbly honed technique ... Desirée Dunbar's Ice Queen was the standout ... the choreographer found clever ways for her star performer to manipulate the dark hooded cape she wore over a snow-white gown: sometimes she wrapped the fabric up over her head and spun like a towering spectre. The piece verged on the arch, but Dunbar was electric: she froze her mouth into a grotesque screech, scalloped the air fiercely with her pale arms, and threw F. W. Murnau shadows across the back wall. Patrick Pennefather's electronically altered vocals added to the eeriness.

... in Waiting, which came in waves of frenzied struggle and repose. The five dancers, illuminated by stark white light, burst into warp-speed motion, slicing the air with straight arms and legs, then collapsing. The performers, particularly the fiery Natasha Lutz, had the precision to pull it off."

- Janet Smith, The Georgia Straight, April 22 - 2004

  elegance and chaos

Norman Rothstein Theatre, November 28 - 30, 2002


"Garay offered fresh ideas in the world premiere of Quicksilver ... The dynamic movement is perfectly suited to its fantastically rich music by Patrick Pennefather. As the resonant score shifts from futuristic-sounding clangs to African percussion, the performers undulate their bodies in soft, meditative patterns one moment then blast out fiery, primal gestures the next ... the group is solid in Garay's lush universe."

- Gail Johnson, The Georgia Straight, December 5 - 2002


Norman Rothstein Theatre, June 21 - 24, 2001


"Vancouver's newest company, Dancers Dancing, launched its second season with a sampler of pieces chosen to highlight dancers more than choreographers. This kind of repertory company is all but extinct in an era where most modern dance troupes serve as vehicles for the choreographers who run them.

But Artistic Director Judith Garay made her mark as a dancer -- she spent much of her 25-year career with the Martha Graham Company -- and she wanted a company that would give other dancers a chance to stretch themselves by performing a range of works.

... Far more interesting was Garay's premiere piece, Place of Dreams, in which she played with the happy images made by a trio of red-clad dancers performing with red umbrellas. When they plié while holding the umbrellas above their heads, they look like oddly shaped mushrooms. When they swing the umbrellas back and forth, turning them inside out in time to the music, the piece captures a feeling of joyful recklessness.

- Shannon Rupp, The Globe and Mail, June 23 - 2001