Luminario Ballet Artistic Director Judith FLEX Helle’s program of “Heroes, Sheroes, and Eros” took us on a trip into, what she calls, the “Weird” visions of her choreography and that of four other talented choreographer/performers.

The program deftly incorporated an exquisitely idiosyncratic combination of ballet, modern, gymnastic, and aerialist skills choreographed to a range of music genres with backdrop of visually immersive video projections.

Hard As A Rock; Photo by Rob Latour; Choreographed by Judith FLEX Helle; Film by Judith FLEX Helle; (L-R) Sadie Black, Raymond Ejiofor, Vanessa Nichole, Antonio Martinez, Stephanie Hall, Adrian Hoffman

Act 1, was unified with the theme of “history/herstory/ourstory” and felt as if we entered into a cosmic outer worldliness grounded by the inner expression of very human emotions. Helle’s “Hard as a Rock” choreographed to Vivaldi’s “Storm” and John Williams’ “Mombasa” pulled the dancers into the video images of thunder and lighting. Adian Hoffman’s “Tend” portrays the interaction of three male dancers as they compassionately leaned on and supported each other. Bianica Sapetto-Finck’s “Wryd Tango” honors her heritage by taking the movements of the tango from being grounded on to flying free above the dance floor. “Tosh Thoughts – Break on Through to the Other Side,” a work-in-progress choreographed by Jamal Story, features the reggae music of Peter Tosh, who is projected on the backdrop who chants the refrain “get up, stand up, stand up for your right,” complemented with the on stage spoken word recitation by Grasan Kingsberry. Included, but not listed in the program, was an impassioned solo by Jamal Story, ” The Problem With Homeless Veterans,”  to a voice-over monologue by Barak Obama. Dreya Weber’s “Hexenstucke,” who speaking as a crone, wrapped in and out of a hanging shroud between two seductresses, shares an ancestral narrative of the “witch.” What follows is Helle’s dance film “L’Invalide” that takes us on a psychedelic Alice in Wonderland journey featuring the music of Prince Fatty and Shniece’s “Black Rabbit and G.O.L’s “Angelica in Delerium.” Concluding Act 1 was a truncated version, due to the Covid diagnosis of a primary dancer, of Jamal Story’s “If the Walls Could Scream” that featured a delightful pas de deux to Nina Simone.

Tend; Photo by Rob Latour; Choreographed by Adrian Hoffman; (L-R) Adrian Hoffman, Raymond Ejiofor, Marlon Pelayo

Act 2 was a singular work in ten sections choreographed by Helle and Jamal Story titled “The Last Supper.” The impetus for creating the piece was Helle’s thought of “What if Jesus, Judas and Mary were just three fun Jewish kids who went to the Coachella Music Festival.” And so we go into an irreverent and erotically self-indulgent romp in the desert with barely clad performers. Starting off the parable was “Jesus Arrives on the Scene” to Right Said Fred’s “I’m Too Sexy” among women in “pussy hats” from the Women’s March. The following scenes featured music by Nirvana, Weezer, Radiohead, and The Taking Heads along with captivating video projections that kept up the energetic and festive pace for the performers’ prowess as they weaved the contemporary social and political issues into the narratives of relationship with Jesus and Mary, Judas’ betrayal, to the concluding “Take Me to the River.” With all the dancers demonstrating their skills with grace and strength, the story stands out as Jesus as he is bound by straps high above the stage dangling in contorted crucifixion.

The Last Supper – Coachella; Photo by Rob Latour; Choreographed by Judith FLEX Helle; Film by Kailee Gaylord; (L-R) Jamal Story, Precious Gilbert, Raymond Ejiofor, Adrian Hoffman, Vanessa Nichole, Sadie Black

In addition to the choreographers, performers include: Sadie Black, Emma DeStasio, Raymond Ejiofor, Will Geary, Precious Gilbert, Stephanie Hall, Antonio  Martinez,Vanessa Nicole, Marton Pelayo, Breya Weber.

For more about the Luminario Ballet –  https://luminarioballet.org/

For upcoming performances at The Wallis – https://thewallis.org/