SOC great, but not worth the wait

In addition to the hype and pride it produces routinely here at Tufts, the Spirit of Color (SOC) Tenth Anniversary show was a celebration of a decade of diversity in dance performers. Director John DeMicoli wrote in the program that his first experience seeing Spirit of Color made him "more proud of Tufts than I ever had or have [been] since."

The show featured various dance routines and started with a film introducing the choreographers. Celebrating the diversity of its inspirations, the performances integrated ballet, jazz, Broadway, hip-hop and pop. Innovative lighting, and -- as always -- a vocal Tufts audience full of supportive friends and family, bolstered the dancers in Cohen Auditorium. The routines absorbed and reciprocated with their immense energy and rather sexual moves.

The costumes for the show were equally sundry and added their own dimension to the excitement of the performances. "The Influence," arranged by Taylor Anderson and John DeMicoli, featured a large group of modern dancers -- half of whom were dressed in yellow and half in blue.

The by-far most sexual dance, "Drrrrrrty," choreographed by Khalima A. Bolden, featured about a dozen couples whose moves simulated a very agile and excruciatingly close build-up to sex. By the end, all the women had taken off their lace over-shirts and were wearing nothing but bras. I commend the immense strength it takes to suspend oneself over another body in mid-air, especially when that body belongs to a male of such evolutionarily-favorable build.

"Rrrroxane!," choreographed by Ewan McGregor, Jose Feliciano and Jacek Koman, was another seductive piece that incorporated tango and ballet styles elegantly into one routine. The corsets were a magnificent touch; the dances were phenomenal, but it was also stunning to see how swiftly the stage went from Broadway stage to night club to Spanish ballroom depending on the costumes, lighting and music.

In the face of all these racy routines, "The Score," choreographed by Taylor Anderson, was a breath of modesty. Anderson drew from the disciplined rhythm of the Fugees song (whatever happened to integrative hip-hop after they broke up?) with a perfectly synchronized group of dancers dressed in baggy shirts and backwards hats. Impressively, the dance managed to maintain the dynamic of the overall show, even though the music was more mellow and the dancers were fully clothed.

In case the switch from tango to hip-hop was not enough to keep the crowd on its toes, Jocelyn Hall choreographed an Ani DiFranco song called "Shameless" that featured only seven women. The piece had a very individual, spiritual feel to it, as does the song, and though there was no touching or overt sexuality inherent in the routine, the costumes and the movements exhaled feminine mystique in a way other dances could not.

My one complaint about these dances was the length of time between them. Directors John DeMicoli and Henry Myint filled the spaces with jokes, shout-outs, and even a pre-recorded skit, but really, the more solid dancing I saw, the less I wanted to hear people talking.

Many of the dancers were involved in more than one dance, and it seems the order of dances did not accommodate this. There were also dancers to be seen waiting in the wings, unsure of when to come out. With all the creativity so obviously pouring from SOC's veins like steamy sweat, I think a little more organization would not have been hard to come by. Still, the show was an experience and did the proud history of SOC complete and utter justice.