Contemporary company brings world tour to Canada
Shaping Sound, an LA-based dance company founded in 2012 by Teddy Forance, Kyle Robinson, and So You Think You Can Dance (SYTYCD) alums Travis Wall and Nick Lazzarini, debuted their first solo tour in the fall of 2014.
The scripted show, featuring the company’s 14 members in various group numbers, duets, and features, is a scripted show whose storyline unfolds entirely in movement.
“One thing I hate to hear people say about any dance show is ‘I didn’t get it’, said Wall to Tulsa World. “We want our show to appeal to people who are maybe coming to a dance show, or the theatre itself, for the first time.”
Exposure, a sultry, seductive number set to instrumental music, showcases the true talent…
The 90-minute show follows a young woman, portrayed by fellow SYTYCD alum Jaimie Goodwin, stuck in an unhealthy relationship. In a dream and nightmare sequence bookended by hopeful group numbers, the woman learns the nature of true love and the truth about her current love.
The show features several high points. Dancers Chelsea Thedinga and Daniel Gaymon are breathtaking in “My Dear Love,” a duet set to a chillingly beautiful Nina Simone track. Perfecting the concept of “ebb and flow,” Gaymon and Thedinga portray a sense of interconnectedness and support as Goodwin watches in the background, providing stark contrast to the scenes featuring her less-than-happy love. “Exposure,” a sultry, seductive number set to instrumental music, showcases the true talent of Kate Harpootlian, who captures the full attention of the audience in the mere act of putting on her stockings, and Ben Susak, another SYTYCD alum. “Rouge Lounge,” a rousing full company number set to 1920s big band music, is fun and sexy, with the dancers letting loose and exploring a contemporary spin on traditional social dance styles.
The second act opens with a bang, featuring two routines from the company’s men and women, respectively. “Escape From Reality,” featuring the male dancers, is set to Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody.” Though it remains unclear how the dance ties in to the show’s main story line, the dancers’ incredible technique is showcased perfectly by expertly crafted and executed lighting. The routine is matched equally by “Found,” a slow, controlled, and powerful piece featuring the female dancers, set to “Together” by The xx.
Acting as the brackets that contain the show’s powerful narrative, the opening “Broken in Chaos” and closing “Waking Life” similarly feature full company movement in street clothes. What separates these two numbers is Goodwin, who is lost and isolated in the opening, held back by a frumpy cardigan and windswept hair. By the finale, Goodwin has shed bad relationship and the cardigan, joining her fellow dancers in cheerful movement and new beginnings.
The show, which has been in the works since Wall, Forance, Robinson, and Lazzarini worked together on the Oxygen reality series All The Right Moves, is nothing short of incredible. Though Shaping Sound’s tour is currently in its final week, there is sure to be more amazing work to come from this promising young company.