Hordes of hip-hoppers rely on playful chemistry

JULIA TIERNAN/YH Rhythmic Blue favors high energy over quiet intimacy.

There's a lot of Rhythmic Blue in "That's the Jam!" The group might not be any larger than it's been in previous years, but there are more people in more dances. The show has 12 substantial numbers, with even the smallest choreographed for four dancers. It's bigger, brasher, and more ambitious than any of their previous shows.

But certain things don't change: contagious energy; lots of good R&B, rap, and hip-hop; and a decisively co-ed mix of dancers who are unabashedly sexy in their performances. Faced with the size and depth of talent on Rhythmic Blue's roster, several of its choreographers have figured out new ways to employ many dancers in a single piece. Standard choices are pretty fixed: choreograph a solo, create a pas de deux, or put a group on stage to move in unison for four or five minutes. In "History Repeating," Leah Wolchok, ES '99, starts with a group of eight dancers, then breaks it down, combining smaller groups and mini-solos in seamless, fast-moving patterns that make the final all-together-now sequence more exhilarating. Elaine Kim, ES '01, sets herself a similar task in "Joints and Jams." Kim's aggressive choreography propels her dancers through an ever-changing series of patterns and combinations. In both these pieces, dancers leave and re-enter. It's a small detail, but an important one; things change, different people meet, different kinds of interaction become possible, and the dance suddenly seems more organic and vital.

Of course, the more traditional group dance still works just fine. A striking example is "Get Ready to Bounce," Sunny Gulati's, SY '01, super-slick quickie of a piece, in which seven dancers put over some freshly-conceived moves with an offhand precision that seems half skill, half attitude.

There are few intimate moments here, but Rhythmic Blue's choreographers, for the most part, aren't interested in the poignant or the personal--they are playing to their strengths. Those pieces that are built to set up intimate moments wind up seeming contrived, especially up against romps like Shika Pappoe's "Tha Pressure" and "U Don't Know Me." Amanda Kaplan's, ES '00, "Mambo," for instance, falls flat, partly because the technique isn't seamless enough to let us forget about the steps and watch what's going on among the couples. Terah Maher's, DC '99, "Bachelorettes" alternates between inexplicable but emphasized gestures and some sentimental movement clichés such as the outstretched hand and the slow fall.

Clichés crop up in other pieces, too, and several sequences prompt a "Didn't I just see this?" response. But those pieces that manage to avoid it--"Joints and Jams" or Maher's "I Think I'm Paranoid"--stick in the mind.

Ultimately, the troupe thwarts cliché with a large dose of personal style and attitude; the individual stamp of each dancer on even the most uniform of moves keeps the show spicy. Sometimes, (in Jill Catalonotti's, SY '00, "Girls!," for example) it seems the dancers are trying too hard: you want them to relax, be themselves, have fun. The most impressive part of Rhythmic Blue's personality is the sense of support and cooperation between the dancers. At its most magical, this unity has a serendipitous air: we're all here, we all can dance really well, and there's music playing, so let's put something together. No, you go first. It'll be fun.

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