Still Burning Joins Elegant Dance, Surreal Effects

by Ariel Whitworth
3/9/01
Five white curtains hide a man who desperately tries to break through them, only to realize he is a separate entity, outside of everyday society. Between the curtains, Jason Corff begins his senior dance project, entitled Still Burning. 
Corff conceived the idea in rough format two years ago, hoping to create a space in which combined concepts from both his English and dance majors. Corff said, “I came up with the titles first, then the music, and then the movement. The pieces formed and told the ending. For instance, the lead character kept running into failure and conflict, but I didn’t think that was realistic, so I reworked some ideas,” he said.
Still Burning’s pieces are each unique, combining styles that are both brisk and elegant, but manage to create textural unity. With each piece, Corff takes both choreography and emotion to a different level. At the beginning of the show, the central character seems excluded and overwhelmed in his surroundings. As the show progresses, the figure becomes more incorporated, until in the last piece he is even dressed as the other characters, though still retaining his identity. 

Corff dances as a free figure, constricted in isolation. His movement has a kind of loose beauty that draws the audience into the dance. He is graceful, and at the same time, his movements are calculated and precise. 
For the fifth scene, Corff’s dancing takes on a new form. He allows himself to become mutated, almost broken. Corff’s versatility gives this scene a lot of intense imagery, making it particularly impressive.
The dancing is modern, emotional and open to interpretation. One interesting aspect of the show is the light bulb that often hangs in the air over Corff’s head, or the one that he holds and drops at the end of the fourth scene. Possibly, the bulb is a hint for defining the show’s title. 
The technical effects enhance the picture the dancing creates. The scenery is minimalist, but the effect is surreal. One of the most intense images comes in the opening scene, with figures trapped behind luminous, white curtains. The music is often upbeat and soft. It helps to define the pieces. In one of the ending scenes, the music decays into harsh atonality that provides an interesting contrast to the choreography. 
The lighting is superb. It adds another dimension to the show. In the fourth scene, figures move unseen, posing gently as flashes of light fall upon them from above. Often they allow the feeling that the dancers are moving on water, as the images are reflected in the floor. The show progresses through different times throughout the day; the lights paint the background for this interpretation. 
The company is composed of 12 dancers, and is led by Corff. Dancers include senior Meredith Goldberg, sophomore Lisa Merriweather, first-year Kala Hildebrand, Galen Turner, junior Mary Moran, junior Juliana F. May, sophomore Laurie Pickard, sophomore Corena Gamble, senior Alexis MacNab, junior Claire R. Miller and junior Elizabeth Heard. 

“I tried to create a book with movement,” Corff said. “The story has 10 chapters, each one is a dance piece. It’s a journey of the individual versus the community.”