2012 Top Dance Lists

#1 on DFW.com: Year in Review: Top Dance Happenings of 2012 by Mark Lowry

Bruce Wood . . . has triumphantly returned to the scene . . .

 

#2 on TheaterJones.com: Year in Review: Dance

Dance Critic Margaret Putnam Picks the 10 Best Local Performances of 2012, with Some Extra Nod Thrown In

Grateful to see once again Bruce Wood®’s zany paean to all-things-Texas in Lovett!, we were even more grateful to see his newest, the poignant I’m My Brother’s Keeper.

 

#2 on The Dallas Morning News GuideLive: Dance Year in Review: TITAS Continues its Influence as Local Troupes Strengthen by Manny Mendoza

Local troupes are on the rise, led by the return of choreographer Bruce Wood.

 

Review: Bruce Wood Dance Project I Montgomery Arts Theater

Following Through

The Second Program of Bruce Wood Dance Project Beautifully Moves from Sunny to Solemn

Summer is on us and the days are sunny, or so Bruce Wood's Piano Concerto No. 3 would have you believe.

But life is not always full of bliss, and so the Bruce Wood Dance Project switches gears for Wood's solemn tribute to soldiers in Follow Me, and then again in his hauntingly beautiful requiem, The Day of Small Things. The are on the second program of this weekend's BWDP concerts at Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing Arts' Montgomery Arts Theater in the Dallas Arts District.

A slight wind ruffles the deep rose dress of the four women in Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 3, who form a line at the side of the stage. Behind them are four men in purple. Creating a rippling affect with curved arms, all eight fan out to embark on a series of endless flowing, billowing, expansive solos, duets and ensemble movements . . . Every turn curls and flows back on itself, and every time a man lifts a woman, she rises and falls as smoothly as a ribbon unfolding. The balletic grace is so deceptive that movement looks effortless and pure, and that is its magic.

Margaret Putnam I TheaterJones.com

June 23, 2012

FULL ARTICLE

 

 

Bruce Wood can do no wrong, and a small dance for a big thing showed again his gift for the understated. Like the solos Surrender and The Edge of My Life So Far, his new work, “a small dance,” took Jennifer Mabus through a minefield of emotions. Literally and figuratively she travels from worry and despair to graceful acceptance.

Margaret Putnam I TheaterJones.com

February 19, 2012

 

Emotion runs deep  . . . Follow Me speaks profoundly of young men thrown into combat, where loss and grief become part of everyday life.

Mark Lowry I DFW.com

June 22, 2012

 

Having [Wood] back at the helm of a local troupe (this time, he’s based in Dallas) is exciting—already, it’s another jewel in the city’s diadem of arts organizations.

Gregory Sullivan Isaacs I DallasVoice.com

June 14, 2012

 

One of Texas’ artistic treasures, choreographer Bruce Wood continues to amaze the dance world.

Gregory Sullivan Isaacs I DallasVoice.com

June 14, 2012

 

 

Review: Bruce Wood Dance Project I Montgomery Arts Theater

Power Through Subtlety

The First Program of the Bruce Wood Dance Project’s 2012 Concert Showcases a New Work by Wood and One By Joshua Peugh

Images so simple and telling last a long time, and further secure Mr. Wood’s place as a master choreographer. But it is also his emotional range that sets him apart. He can be witty or heart-wrenching, decadent or romantic . . . As with all of Wood’s deeper works, it [I’m My Brother’s Keeper] is understated, and therefore all the more powerful.

Margaret Putnam I TheaterJones.com

February 19, 2012

FULL ARTICLE

Sassy, sexy, funny, outrageous and ever so clever, it showed to best advantage how suited the dancers are to a work that allows individuality to shine through . . . Smoke was one long inhalation of pleasure.

Margaret Putnam I TheaterJones.com

Dallas Black Dance Theatre II

Ray’s dramatic flair, intensity, and glamour carried Wood’s solo, The Edge of My Life So Far. She kicked up some fine white powder on a desktop: Her past going up in smoke? The wistfulness of hope? Her sharp gestures and grounded body made her stunning to watch.

Wendy Perron I Dance Magazine

January 2012

 . . . Performances and new works do stimulate the local economy by providing a career for dancers, musicians, and others involved in production. However, the highest value is in how people are touched by dance, providing them with an authentic and memorable experience that stays with them for decades.

Danna Reubin I D Magazine FrontRow.com

January 12, 2012