"Tuu"...MOMIX

For more than twenty years, MOMIX has been giving us inventive new ways to think about bodies in space, using the anatomy as a structural building block for complex images and pictures.:


MUSICALITY: Some choreographers work "music first," taking their cues from the rhythm and melody, dictated by the musicians structure. While this is probably the most common way to create choreography, MOMIX has found many other, less typical ways to arrive at the final product. Moses Pendleton, the artistic director of MOMIX is a visually astute artist, and therefore the images take first priority. Once the images and sequence begin to gel, Moses begins to look for music that will compliment his vision. Then, working in tandem with his dancers, he starts to sew the choreography together with the music. In the end, both processes are capable of producing good choreography that is musical and organic. However, the advantage of the MOMIX approach, is completely unfettered creative movement, that is not limited by a pre-selected musical choice.

DANCER SYNC: Much of the MOMIX repertoire looks physically intense...and it is. However, with time and practice, Moses and his dancers have found highly efficient ways to manipulate the movement and positions, allowing for a multiple performance touring schedule. Make no mistake, the dancers are exhausted by the end of a MOMIX show. But potential for injury can be greatly decreased by finding the most economical and safe methods of execution.

AUDIENCE ENGAGEMENT: WIthin our contemporary, pop culture, mental iconography, we have images of hindu gods, with multiple limbs...science fiction creature from different planets...greek sculpture...and to see these ideas referenced and brought to life before our eyes is stunning and riveting. Also, repetition and variation of the "back spinning corpse" theme serves to anchor the piece within a framework that gives our brain a beginning, middle and end.

KUDOS to Moses Pendleton and the MOMIX crew for always looking beyond the box of the body's anatomy, to the shapes and pictures that lie outside.