It's Rhythmic, raunchy and raining men

By Siobhan Peiffer

Rhythmic Blue has a groove all its own. They're the standard-bearers for R&B at Yale, the paragon for all those aspiring to glory on a college dance floor. They're unabashed, self-confident, hip-hop, jazz, and Latinate moving and shaking--over and over again. True, the groove can seem a rut at times: it's a lot of hip rotations for a single evening. But Rhythmic Blue knows its strong points (hip rotation is one) and consistently showcases them in what, for the most part, remains an enjoyable and original evening of dance.

Attitude helps. Their newest program, "Get Up Offa That Thang!," consists of more than a dozen short pieces, all executed with gutsy enthusiasm, and finished off before they wear out their welcome. The title dance is a good example: seven girls in tight red t-shirts strut through some bouncy James Brown music, pausing to strike voguish poses and pout at the audience. "On & On" is the same stuff, just slowed down with a languid weight. "Love Fool" makes that horribly ubiquitous Cardigans song almost bearable.

And many dances benefit from a healthy dose of irony. "It's Raining Men" is overtly sexy, but the three dancers who stroll through it (with some great umbrellas) seem less vamps than choir girls. Choir girls set free in brightly colored tights, maybe, but still flirtatiously innocent. Other pieces seem a bit too serious for a hip-hop show performed in front of a decommissioned Berkeley salad bar.

"New Jack Hustler," choreographed by Nena Chavira, DC '97, is the dance that best rejects this strategy. There's nothing coy about it; it's all right angles of hands, limbs and bodies, with some wonderful wrist movements. Uncompromising and aggressive, it's the best piece of the show.

There is some genuine variety in the evening: "Children" mirrors its Robert Miles music with more lyrical arm movements. Yet "Direction," a tap duet, seems more like a random exception than a diversity point--though it does show off the tapping genius of Andrew Kuklewicz, SY '97, and his partner, Katie Daly, BR '99, who almost keeps up with him.

Rhythmic Blue owes its diversity more to its dancers, who make an eye-catching melange out of their varied movement styles. Kathleen Tunderman, SY '00, seems to know instinctively how to seduce an audience; her 180 degree split jumps don't hurt either. Risa David, DC '99, has an energetic ferocity that dares the audience to look anywhere else. Larra Pleasant, DC '00, and Mark Reyes, PC '98, have more chemistry in their half-dozen bars of duet than most long-term couples. And Leah Wolchock, ES '99, seems to embody the word sensual; her over-the-shoulder parting glance in "You're Not the One" makes the piece.

But the real story of "Get Up Offa That Thang!" is the men. Somehow, Rhythmic Blue figured out where all the male dancers at Yale were hiding and got there before the other dance groups. Kuklewicz, Carlos Hailey, BK '98 (so flexible that he appears jointless), J.P. Higgins, TC '97 (who drapes his tall form over intricate steps), Steve Kan, SM '99 (who is especially precise in timing and execution)--these dancers add a punch of excitement, especially for a group that relies so heavily on sex appeal. "Pope," for instance, choreographed by Kan and Cindy Huang, SM '99, puts Higgins, Kuklewicz and Kan through some energetic paces, and they come through with skill. Hailey, especially, performs steps with a suave ease that seems to forbid applause--that would imply that his dancing takes effort.

The big secret, of course, is that this type of dancing takes incredible effort; at times, sitting in the audience at Rhythmic Blue feels like standing in the middle of an energy field. This hyperactivity is contagious. The two girls sitting next to me spent intermission talking about how much they wanted to go clubbing; after taking in so much inspiration from Rhythmic Blue, they just had to make some time in the next few days. This is a show with the power to make you change your weekend plans.

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