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| ABOUT TRaC |
MultiTRaC Fall 2004
Merian Soto's La Maquina del Tempo Here you are. Live instrumental music smoothly flows through your head. The dancers in front of you move to the beat, creating something extraordinary, defying gravity with every turn, throwing out their emotions on the small, talent-filled stage before your eyes. Your heart starts thumping faster and faster, until you are barely able to contain yourself in the seat. No, you are not dreaming this is Merian Soto's "The Time Machine." The performance takes the audience on a captivating ride through different time periods, mixing dancing styles and history in a unique, sensuality-packed show. "La Maquina del Tempo" challenges hesitations about improvised dance and overcomes them as well. The size of the theatre brings out the intimacy and the sincerity of the dance. The audience walks away with a relationship, linking dance and emotion together. Merian Soto uses her unmatchable creativity to enhance the quality of the performance. The mood is set from the minute the crowd pours into the theatre with drops of water dripping into the buckets below in a constant rhythm. The droplets, as if the ticking seconds of the time machine, wake the curiosity of the senses. The dance progresses and the performers use the beat of the water to move within its boundaries. Light and shadow also add heavy mystique to the air, clarifying the distinction between freedom and oppression, security and confidence, failure and triumph. Video clips serve the background purpose and make the performance livelier. The actual performers are difficult to describe. Aside from the enormous talent each of them possesses, their natural drive toward dancing and improvising stands out during the entire performance. The moves and the speed of the dancers make you feel as if this is the first time this performance is taking place, and you are lucky enough to view it in its beginning stage. Toward the middle of the time travel, however, the spectator starts to notice the defined perfection of each move. If the audience were just to watch the faces of the dancers, the story would slowly unfold by their expressions. Their every move uses the face as a canvas to paint matching intensity and individuality. Merian Soto's "The Time Machine" is not just an improvised dance, but a work of art. The bodies of the dancers tell stories through movements, through powerful thrusts of salsa and modern combinations. The live band leads the direction of emotions with heart-tugging melodies and sudden changes of mood. Experience oppression, strife, insecurity, balance, mystery and soak it in. Just make sure you don't embarrass yourself by jumping up and dancing in the aisle.
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