The University of Wisconsin-Madison Dance department chair Dr. Jin-Wen Yu and his students presented “Back ▪ Up” at their yearly public concert Sept. 19. The show consists of two halves, the first, “The Realm of Collage,” revisits choreography shown at earlier concerts and the second, "Back ▪ Up,” is a brand new exploration of the unfamiliar.
Yu’s choreography in “The Realm of Collage” includes selections from “Non-Ordinary,” which looked into the impacts of the COVID pandemic on daily life, and “Page,” a surrealist piece with intricate partner work.
“Back ▪ Up” deals with the uncomfortable experiences we have when confronted with unfamiliarity, and how we rebuild after. While the dancing and music dealt the most with this topic, it is most jarringly addressed in the beginning of “Back ▪ Up” when the dancers blindside the audience by entering the performance space from concert seating.
Yu encouraged dancers to examine these subjects through strenuous floorwork, use of the whole space and pushing their bodies to new limits. From headstands on moving set pieces to running across the stage keeping a paper on their faces, these dancers were challenged to show their modern dance skills in addition to rigorous athletic activity.
The performers danced to fast-paced lyrics, classical instrumentals and sometimes no music at all. It was impossible to miss the coordination and artistry each dancer brought to the choreography.
“The thing that stood out to me the most was the partnerwork and the reliance on each other,” audience member Kendall Baker said. “You could tell how much practice went into it and how much trust they had in each other.”
Grace Stuckey and Evelyn Henriksen danced with Dr. Yu for years and both said they had close ties with the choreography, themes and each other.
“A lot of the themes in the show were connecting to the other dancers, and I really feel like we connected as a group and worked together and became closer through this production, so it was a really special experience,” Stuckey said.
“The Realm of Collage” exhibited segments of award-winning concerts from 2018-2021, and both Stuckey and Henriksen agreed that Yu’s style of choreography has changed since then. The two halves of the show’s styles exist in stark contrast to each other while still looking like Yu dances.
Henriksen said that she had noticed this shift, but appreciated the creative and personal journey Yu has been on since the pandemic, “[“Non-Ordinary” and “Page”] are both related to a kind of post-COVID time, so he’s thinking about those ideas and then bringing in his new elements so it reflects on his journey through post-COVID life,” Henriksen said.
