Review: Danceworks 2025 presents "Signal::Transfer" at Northwestern University

On the heels of spring, Friday, March 14th, Danceworks’ 2025 “Signal::Transfer” kicked off a three-day run of performances at Northwestern University’s Wirtz Center for the Performing Arts, realized by Northwestern’s dance department students, professors and several guest choreographers. Envisioned by Artistic Director Thomas F. DeFrantz, through an organic embrace of various forms of technology and a full-bodied exploration of the myriad ways we find connections, the performances remind us that signal and transfer are not solely reserved for our conventional modes of communication, but rather it thrives in the nuances of our daily occurrences.

“Transfer Agents,” with Erin Soko and Mary Kate Tanselle; Photo by Justin Barbin

Dressed in muted mesh jumpsuits with hints of neon, Erin Soko and Mary Kate Tanselle opened the evening with “Transfer Agents,” a whimsical tap dance dialogue created in collaboration with DeFrantz. With a dynamic exchange of energy, they kept time individually and as a unit. Their rhythm was steady, yet their interaction kept us on our toes. As DeFrantz noted in an interview, “Interference is always present in signal transfer. If things were smooth, the way mechanization proposes, we would not recognize humanity inside of interaction or relationship.” With each layer of interference, their signal both literal and metaphorical intensified. This was most vividly illustrated in the futuristic lighting embedded in their jumpsuits, transferring its glow to projected visuals, suspended nets and ultimately to us thanks to the lighting designer, Chelsea Strebe, and costume designer, Jeff Hancock. The energy of Soko and Tanselle’s rhythms rippled outward, transforming into laughter, movement and an opening of our hearts. The duo reappeared constantly throughout the evening, and it became evident that they were the pulse of the performance, embodying connection, disruption and ultimately what DeFrantz envisioned for the evening, “a shared imagination.” 

The hour-length performance progressed with “La Ciudad de Otros" (The City of Others), initially created in 2010 in Medellin, Colombia, by choreographer and founder of Sankofa Danzafro dance company, Rafael Palacios. During a three-month residency with the Kaplan Institute for the Humanities, Palacios worked with three members Sankofa Danzafro—Piter Alexander Angulo Moreno, William Camilo Perlaza Micolta and Yndira Perea Cuesta—and Northwestern dance students to reimagine an excerpt of “La Ciudad de Otros.” From January through March, they explored the personal histories and social dynamics they collectively navigate to create opportunities and social equality for themselves and their communities within city environments.

Palacios told See Chicago Dance why he chose “La Ciudad de Otros” as the work to reimagine during his tenure at Northwestern in Chicago: “The city of Chicago has a deep history connecting with anti-racism movements, civil rights and racial justice thanks to the courage and the resistance of the black community and minorities in this country, which have constructed emancipatory strategies for themselves and for future generations. I thought that joining these histories of fighting and resistance between the global South and this part of North America would represent an invaluable opportunity to mutually reflect on each other through a human narrative that should be recognized entirely, without overshadowing the diversity that encompasses us.”

"La Ciudad de Otro," by Rafael Palacios; Photo by Justin Barbin

“La Ciudad de Otros” begins with a striking horizontal line of twelve souls seated in chairs from whom emanated a spectrum of untold stories. Wrapped with multiple dress ties, in business attire designed by Jeff Hancock, they gracefully awakened from their seats, which could have been a bus or train stop. Quiet notifications hinted that even their stillness, gentle sways of the wrists and upper body undulations communicated the most important code of all, an intersection of their diverse journeys. Solo dance sojourns became a striking element of “La Ciudad de Otros.”  In front of a large, multifunctional plywood board, sometimes slanted, sometimes upright, each dancer became a storyteller, translating a lineage of complex personal urban narratives through movement, each dancer’s unique expression within the movement cipher carried layers of liberation and oppression, balanced in a sweet spot of resilience. Moreno’s towering gentle energy commanded power and a quiet strength in his athletic leg swings and boundless suspensions. While Olabanke Oyinkansola Goriola, a 4th year Ph.D. Candidate in the Department of Performance Studies, expressed a grounded energy blending West African and elements of hip hop in her upper body. We were even graced by the Afro Colombian folkloric movement expressions of Dr. Melissa Blanco Borelli, who initiated the relationship between Palacios and Northwestern’s Dance Department after witnessing “La Ciudad de Otros” at the Joyce Theatre in 2018. It was a beautiful evolution of the horizontal line to a full circle moment and the physical embodiment of how a signal can spark a transfer that creates an entire community—Dance does this, time and time again.

“Who’s in Charge,” choreographed by Joe Bowie, Visiting Assistant Professor of Instruction at Northwestern, gave us a peek behind the curtain of the world of ballet. Bowie, a former dancer for Paul Taylor Company and the Mark Morris Group, says about the work, “I hope the dancers and the audience experience “Who’s in Charge” as more of a commentary of ballet, ballet as language and ballet class environments. “Who’s in Charge” is also a provocation that allows ballet to laugh at itself (if possible).” Suspended from the ceiling were letters and word fragments, like “B,” “R,” “R,” “E” and “NICE.”  A trio of ballerinas appear, executing gentle port de bras and bourrées to classical piano music. “Smile,” “Hold your head up” and “Nice!” were some of the words echoing on the soundtrack as the trio proceeded to engage in a ballet technique class. The interference piqued my curiosity. Both the compliments and corrections, generally reserved for the privacy of class or rehearsal, were making a grand entrance center stage, and the audience couldn’t get enough. The interjections continued like a DJ scratching, progressing to snippets of house and juke music interlaced between melodic piano tones, and the ballerinas held it together as long as they could, but eventually they hit a little bop.

I really appreciated the lighthearted tone and humor of the piece, and how it juxtaposed the weight of negotiating the dancer’s loaded past experiences with ballet class environments. There have been many entertaining examples of ballet being beautifully celebrated with other dance forms but highlighting the nuances of ballet class culture paired with the commentary in a dancers’ head was something entirely fresh and uniting. “Who's in charge” was packed with signals that find humor and healing in ballet’s tucked away moments, familiar to those fluent in the art form yet accessible to those who are not. This sentiment was captured when Mariel Melendez emerged from the wings, seemingly for a bow. But instead, she struck a pose, hand on her hip boldly declaring who’s in charge.

"At the And," by by Al Evangelista; Photo by Justin Barbin

In “At the And,” choreographed by Al Evangelista, we observed three interpreters—Michael Landez, Laila Spencer and Sarah Mininsohn—as they multiplied on the back screen resembling a phone's camera. We chuckled at the familiarity of it all, as we witnessed their interaction with their iPads and cell phones extended on selfie sticks, striking interesting angles, finding their ideal light, reenacting positions we see ourselves in everyday but rarely on stage. It was a moment of acceptance, as they amplified the seemingly peripheral aspects of our lives, bringing them to the forefront. Phrases like “Archive this” scrolled across the back scrim as the trio danced the Electric Slide. The sporadic neon lighting pulsed like the life of the party, immersing us in the moment, allowing us to witness rather than imagine our relationship to our devices.

Evangelista discusses the ways that Augmented Reality help and harm performance. “AR can help audiences experience movement alongside invisible histories, texts, and objects that are not initially visible but are revealed through an AR interface,” says Evangelista. “However, we might also consider the harm in any way technology obscures performance." We saw this tension play out when the topic of consent appeared on the projector. Words like "Yes" and "No,” alongside phrases about surrendering intellectual property and identity, flickered on the screen. This shift was also reflected in the movement. The dancers, once expansive, now found themselves in seemingly compromising positions on the floor, their bodies contracting and negotiating how to participate in the party of life without risking it all.

”Signal::Transfer” was an evening ripe with exchange, humor, intimacy, connection and infectious dance. It exposed our inner dialogues, visions for our personal and collective freedoms, while encouraging us to share our point of view through the most ancient technology known to humankind—our beautifully complex moving bodies and all of the experiences they encompass.

"Signal::Transfer" is presented by Danceworks 2025 from March 14-16 at The Wirtz Center for the Performing Arts at Northwestern University, 30 Arts Circle Drive, Evanston. Showtimes are Fri & Sat @ 7:30pm; Sat & Sun at 2pm. For more information, please visit northwestern.edu/signaltranser.