A Work In Progress JULIE WIENER Jewish Telegraphic Agency T n•an airy, clapboard building in a inspired by the Holocaust, with sets by Maurice Sendak, author and illustrator of Where the Wild Things Are. A Selection includes nudity and adult situations and will not be included in the 2 p.m. Saturday family performance, which features a family-friend- ly repertoire. In preparing for Davenen, creators met with rabbis and teachers and read texts of reli- gious interpretation. One strong influence was I.B. Singer's uncharacteristic por- trayal of shtetl life in his novel Satan in Gong. Another was the ecstatic prayer described in the Kabbalah. Jonathan Wolken, Pilobolus co-founder and artistic direc- tor, is the only Jewish member of his company and describes the troupe's first religious work as "reverential and referential of Jewish things." The costum- ing, quite different from the leotard-like outfits usually worn by the group, is reminis- cent of Jewish life of the past. "The piece stands by itself, as any choreography must," says Wolken, who founded the troupe 30 years ago. "It stimu- lates the eye and the mind. If you didn't know what it was about and simply walked into the theater and saw the pro- gram, I think you would be able to accept it as a piece of interesting movement. "I think all audiences — Jewish and non-Jewish — will find things that are evocative, memorable, visually arresting, stimulating, quizzical and unusual. We don't think there is particular meaning to the piece, but rather there is a wide range of possible inter- pretations, which allow for taking the piece and personal- izing it." Wolken says the idea of designing choreography to klezmer music gave the project KINETIC KLEZMER on page 73 rustic Connecticut town, a bare- chested man — his unruly brown hair shaking as he moves — is praying. But while his body sways fervently at first, it turns more limp as he grows increasingly distracted by the man curled in a ball on the other side of a black rubber mat. The first man approaches cautiously; then begins to poke and prod until the once-dormant man gracefully wrestles hint to the floor. After a struggle, the two slow- ly, and then with intensity, pray together. A cross-legged man seated on the wooden floor adjacent to the mat breaks the silence. "It seems more and more that this shackling and davening business is going to be common to all the sections," he muses, using the Yiddish words for the repeated bowing motions traditional Jews make while praying. This man, who has been scribbling notes in a bound book for the past few minutes, is Jonathan Wolken, co-founder and artistic director of the Pilobolus Dance Theatre. The piece his troupe has been working on is titled Davenen. While the troupe is seen in its very early approach to the commission from the National Foundation for Jewish Culture and presenters around the coun- try, the development of the work has proceeded in ways that are similar to the progression of other Pilobolus pieces. "No matter what it means to us, it's purposely constructed to be ambigu- ous," says Wolken. Robby Barnett, co-director, explains dance development as "sort of a kinetic, automatic writing" akin to putting tarot c2rds together to determine a fortune. Unlike some troupes that use dance to tell a story or to interpret a piece of music, the Pilobolus directors and six dancers spend eight-hour days at their studio thinking about a particular theme, trying things out, talking, then refining. The process is a combination of trial and error with the directors confi- dent that if they have Jewish issues on their mind while working on it, the Jewish influence will be apparent but not overwrought. For the most part, the dancers say they're enjoying the interaction with Jewish culture. Josie Coyoc, 32, who was raised Catholic, hopes the experience of preparing and performing the piece will make her learn more. about "what's spe- cific to" Jewish culture. ❑ Julie Wiener visited Pilobolus as the troupe created "Davenen," to be performed this weekend in Ann Arbor. SpeCiAl AllieriCAll & jApAliese 131.1 All YOL1 Caw EAt Over 150 Items Daily including: Seafood, Mussels, Fish, Shrimp Cocktail, Dim Sum, Steak, BBQ Ribs, Lobster (on weekends), Japanese Sushi, Mongolian Bar, Salad Bar, Desserts & Much Much More... Lunch Buffet 55.99 Dinner Buffet 59.99 Dinner Buffet 510.99 Monday to Saturday Monday to Thursday . 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