Created by the ensemble
Sprung Movement Theatre at Chopin Theatre, 1543 W. Division
Phone: ( 773 ) 456-5687; $15
Through May 21
BY SCOTT C. MORGAN
Sprung Movement Theatre's latest piece, Abound, lasts less than an hour. With such a speedy running time, you might ask, 'Is that all?'
It's a valid question, especially for those of us familiar with the relationship scenario of boy and girl fall in love/fight/then break up. Abound cuts off the ugly separation and focuses on the boy-and-girl-meet-and-celebrate-their-togetherness aspect.
Thankfully, Abound also comes with a heaping dose of urban alienation that precludes the happy couple's bonding and bounding about the stage. If you also take into account that Abound is a prequel to Sprung's previous pieces Capsize and seep ( which respectively explored a couple's breakup and its ramifications on others ) , everything isn't all formulaic Hollywood-ending happenstance.
Conceived and directed by Sprung co-founder Jon Sherman, Abound continues in the four-year-old company's tradition of movement-based theater sans spoken dialogue set to snatches of classical, jazz and international musical interludes. It's not as esoteric or physically demanding as most modern dance, but it has enough abstracted and symbolic movements to make Abound go beyond simplistic pantomiming.
Sprung's middle-ground performance style of stoic facial expressions with fluid ( if not too challenging ) body movements probably won't please diehard modern dance fans wanting more athleticism. And even with obvious situations like waiting on an elevated train platform or visiting an art museum, the typical theatergoer used to dialogue-based drama might want things to be spelled out more.
Yet the Sprung ensemble is able to speak volumes with just the simplest body gestures and longing looks. Sherman and his company of Dalia Cidzikaite, Anthony Courser, Meridith Crosley, Alex Miles, Alden Moore and Rachel Wilson collaborate to create instantly recognizable situations and scenarios for young and love seeking urban dwellers. And they do it all just with a constant reconfiguration of four red tables, about a half dozen blue chairs and Dan Preble's atmospheric lighting design.
Most of us will identify with Cidzikaite as she mulls about a singles bar, enviously eyeing the seated group of grasping friends who flaunt their friendship. There's a bit of bed-hopping ( some of it same-sex with the women ) as the young people seem to be trying to figure out who they are and how they want to relate to others.
The bleak loneliness that Abound depicts is palpable, which is why Cidzikaite and Sherman seem to latch onto each other so joyously and desperately when they finally meet up. One easily shares in their many moods, whether its wonder at exploring the city together or trepidation at meeting each other's friends and folks.
The only thing missing is … more. Abound's mercifully quick running time rushes by so quickly that you're left in a lurch about what happens next. Perhaps Sprung Movement Theatre won't be so stingy with its helpings next time and provide Capsize or seep as a logical companion piece to Abound. That way you won't leave hungry.