Roberts doesn’t seem to be sentimental about this opaque piece that could be the interlude to the Turner Classic Movies “Noir Array.” It’s clearly cinematic, with a clear message that love is messy, and Roberts emphasizes in the program with a quote from James Baldwin. Love is a battle and love is a war. Love is growing. “
The “Sentimental Mood” felt a strange conflict with other works in the program that began with a brighter medley. A selection of four short pieces by battle. Wynton Marsalis was written in 4/4 hours.
Here, the battle is tightly wound as dancers Ashley Keirin Green, Patrick Coker, Kalia Campbell, and Miranda Quinn enter a world of constant movement until a projection of the American flag appears behind them. Reproduce the feeling of confinement and release. Stage and slide down, bleeding to the stage. The dancer raises the crossed fist: it quickly conducts current and is miserable.
An example of Battle’s early work is between the soap duet “Unfold” (2007), played in the style of Ashley Mayeux and James Gilmer, and the angular fit “Takademe” (1999). The “Takademe” -the score of the syncopated syllables from the Indian kathak set in “Speaking II” of Sheria Chandra-indicates the relationship with the “Forfour”.
Both are physical reactions to sound, full of gestures and courage. Like the quartet, “Hirookatakaide” choreographs battles in the Queen’s living room, highlighting the idea of freedom within constraints, as played by Kanji Segawa. In “Forfour”, we will challenge the area that is not so cute. He may have been joking when he said his 11th year as artistic director would be wild. But let’s hope it’s true — and hope he adds even more brave danger to his choreography.
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater
Until Sunday at David H. Koch Theater at alvinailey.org.