Drive On by Min Tanaka (review)

Wr . 6 t A -- oA 'A t* .- C 4 - -.- - .1 l A "M of' -pox 20FU . A A WI-. 4do n"oa $ Lt .tAA'.4 s.A 4 A P"M ~ A AAM46 Shor helplessness and inferiority, and given the justifications for his victimization. In Faggotsubway, written by Eric Gabriel, the sub .ect again is power, the power that lovers give to one another and how it shifts in balance at different times. Comprised of two poetic monologues, the work is extremely self-conscious in its use of a quasisexual rhythmic structure and finally breaks under the weight of romantic metaphor.S Hackneyed symbolism is also the downfall of Two Men Dancing. In their opening piece we are presented with a sinister version of the Catholic Mass, complete with masked clerics and lots of chalice passing. The whole procedure in its bastardized form seems pointless and interminable. Neither an occasional sloppy dance phrase, nor the 0, "I it & LP ~ $ ~iW Vol..0A ~ ~ h i ; 0' v #, 'r X. I ID 000- L I-S PCOL Lo airy lofts and galleries, naked except for brown body dye and a sheath over his penis, Tanaka entered slow motion trances to transform himself into a sieve of flesh, a funnel for the environment and our attention . Rigorously conceptual, starkly "existential ," Tanaka's minimalist performances offered powerful experiences of a body native to a particular time and place-their only limitation being their pure reductiveness. In Drive On, however-his recent improvisatory solo-he established himself as an extraordinary "mover," dignifying a raw animal nervousness and opening himself to a range of interpretations. The initial and continuing surprise was his mercurial grace; his unaffected powers of concentration were already familiar to me. He entered the P.S. 122 space in a sweat suit, appearance of an aimless hippie in shades, nor a final flash of adorned jock strap is enough to rescue it from tedium and give it the label of poor satire. Despite Men Together's qualified successes and obvious failures, it managed to identify a group of artists who have declared themselves heirs to the post-modernist tradition, convinced of the necessity to broaden the range of that tradition's sexual politics. Tony Whitfield Min Tanaka, Drive On. P.S. 122 (November). Almost everything that could be said about Min Tanaka's earlier New York appearances was said by the artist himself. Daring the cold in outdoor parking lots, z At 39 Tr__ tossing a bell into the air, checking out the "body weather" before entering busy, punctuated fits of movement. No sense of rehearsal or work-in-progress to this improvisation: dancing with his spine at a sixty degree angle to the floor, gesturing with insect precision, Tanaka's delicate, ecstatic control of weight had a primitive authenticity which was staggering . Moving to the rear of the space, he stripped down and crawled back towards us naked, on all fours, his head wiggling and bobbing, his arms reaching hesitantly under himself; Tanaka gave this familiar exercise a fresh interest. Rolling on his back into a fetal position, I had the illusion of watching someone in the process of being born. Later, as the lights darkened, the sweat glistening on his body seemed to turn it to a burnished gold. Tanaka is clearly a major solo improvisor, bearing comparison to another master of the form: Steve Paxton. The only problem was with flautist Robert Dick's accompaniment : copping phrases from Edgar Varese, honking breathily and nattering all over the keys, Dick ought to have paid more attention to his partner's cool precision. Tanaka will return from Tokyo next year; he is a presence not to be missed. Robert Coe Bruce Schwartz, The Rat of Huge Proportions and Other Works. DTW/Economy Tires Theatre (September /October). Robert Moran, Through Cloud and Eclipse . The Kitchen (October). Robert Anton, Sculptures and Designs from the Robert Anton Theatre. Bette Stoler Gallery (October). Ever since turn-of-the-century cabaret artists like the painters Henri Riviere and Caran d'Ache began experimenting with the possibilities of guignol, shadow figures and marionettes at experimental outposts like the "Chat Noir" in Paris, puppets have been a significant and stylized...