Lunch concerts at Four Seasons Centre - Dance Works

The Four Seasons Centre for Performing Arts at Queen St and University Ave holds free lunch time concerts in its Richard Bradshaw amphitheatre.  This is a unique space where the performance takes place on an open floorspace on the 3rd floor of the building. Stadium seating consisting of rows of wooden benches look down at the performance floor, with a breathtaking view of University Avenue to the left.  Overflow seating includes rows of chairs as well as standing room only viewing on the 4th floor.

From noon to 1pm on given afternoons, a performance from one of five possible concert series is presented - piano virtuosos, dance, jazz, chamber music or world music.  The concerts are getting more popular and fill up earlier and earlier.  For the first concert that I watched, we arrived around 11:45 and secured a bench seat, but now if you arrive after 11:30 it is standing room only  and by 11:45 they are turning people away.  So far this year, I've watched a duet of piano and cello as part of the chamber music series, a Caribbean bongo drum performance as part of the World music series, and most recently a dance performance.

I usually am not that fond of dance, but the modern dance performances by the duo of Robert Glumbek and Yvonne Ng really appealed to me.  Partly its because the big tall Caucasian male and petite Asian female dancers remind me of Rich and myself.  But mostly it is the style and coreography of their dances, full of acrobatic moves,  that I found unique and fascinating.

The first was an excerpt from a dance called "A Tale Begun" and is performed with Yvonne strapped to Robert's back as if he was carrying a small mischievous child.  Throughout the dance, he flings her in all directions as they twist and twirl, entwine and unentwine themselves, with motions sometimes graceful, sometimes frenetic, sometimes robotic, and all very innovative.

The second was an excerpt from a new dance called "Level on my Level".  This time they are not attached but the dance is still full of whimsy and acrobatics as she jumps into his arms, rolls on him, and walks over him while he is lying on the floor (Rich is thinking that I shouldn't get any ideas from this!).  I enjoyed this so much that I'm actually going to buy tickets to their full show, playing at Harbourfront Centre in late April.

Danceworks
Enwave Theatre, 231 Queen's Quay W, Harbourfront Centre
April 28-30, 8pm
www.danceworks.ca