Symphony Space, New York, NY.
June 26, 2025.
AVID (Artistic Ventures In Dance) performed its second season, Boundless, at Symphony Space in late June 2025. The relatively new company is based in both NYC and Denver, CO, born of the idea that dancers and choreographers needed space and freedom to take risks, and finding opportunities to do was insufficient. The mixed repertory show included six pieces with one short intermission.
The show opened with a classical piece, Confetti, by Gerald Arpino. The piece premiered in 1970 and is for three couples. It is a joyful ode to clean technique, as the tone is light and fanciful, but the skill required is significant. A pleasure to watch, even at 55 years old. From there, we take a stark choreographic departure with Untamed Women (Except) by Ursula Verduzco. Having seen a longer version at a studio showing last year, this except felt more succinct, poignant and clear. Human (world premiere) by Cherice Barton and original score by Anne-Marie Keane (who also scored Untamed Woman) mixed hip hop/commercial styles with contemporary ballet in pointe shoes. The crisp dancing and mixed styles lent themselves well to the ideas of resistance, grief, trust, acceptance and surrender – all of which universally apply to humans everywhere.
Following intermission, we return to Persona, by Daniel Ojeda. The plotless ballet took us on a thoughtful journey exploring identity, and what occurs when one’s sole purpose (in this case, being a performer onstage) is stripped away. Lovely ocean waves of light acted as the buoyancy to keep these heavy ideas afloat. Young, Wild, & Free, (Danielle Diniz), was just that – a trio for men expressing those words via powerful and explosive movements and each dancer uses the energy of the others to elevate their own expression. Finally, we have Impluse, by Quinn Wharton. The work is an exploration of pairing pointe shoes with electronic music. The result is an engaging dance whose sum was certainly greater than its parts, and delivered low-fi vibes, ending the night in a chill and cool way.
AVID brought many wonderful artists together via music, choreography and dance. Compiling such artistry for a newer company is an undertaking, to say the least. From the audience, it does indeed seem Boundless.
By Emily Sarkissian of Dance Informa.
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