Sam Norton
A&E Editor
Brittany Ballantyne
Social Media Director
They filed into place—marching at a steady pace. They stood in rows, marching for their will of survival rather than their downfall. They stood on stage in sequence with one another, all dressed in the same uniform, no distinction among them. These people–Jewish, homosexual, disabled, African-European–represent a spectrum of people different than the Aryan race. Their appearance, religion and beliefs are what fueled the hunt for their extinction during the Holocaust.
However, where there is tragedy there is hope, which is what helped one to survive. On Oct. 16, 2012, Donald Byrd’s Spectrum Dance, was performed in the Redfern Arts Center. Byrd, who choreographed the performance, paid homage to the imprisoned Jewish artists who used music and dance as a way to bring hope to their fellow inmates during the Holocaust. During a discussion held before the performance, Professor of Music, Elaine Ginsberg, said that the musical score created by Erwin Schulhoff was created by a musician who had so much to say.
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Junior Gabby Pacheco said, “They took such a historical concept and turned it into an art form,” she continued, “It’s a new perspective because we never see anything like that–choreographers forget about the historical things, they concentrate on being here in this moment rather than the historical aspect.” Pacheco said that this performance was able to take a significant part of history and translate it and apply it to current times by relating it to genocides that are present in society. “They started to talk about how many people were killed in more recent genocides and wars. During the dance class I have, we talk about what we thought about those. We need to change the way we define genocide because the way we define it is very specific,” Pacheco said.
Shannon Mayers, director of the Redfern Arts Center, said that the Spectrum Dance was created by many people and created in many lenses, during the discussion before the show.
In order to change the way people define the term genocide, the Spectrum Dance sought to bring a new meaning to the word. During World War II, these prisoners were forced to perform for the Nazi officers. While those who were held captive used music and dance as a way to make people smile, the Nazi officers used the one thing that could make them smile against them—as a way to torment them, a way to diminish any trace of happiness. Even though these prisoners were against their captors, they were united. The dancers of the Spectrum Dance moved in unified movements and motions, together. One by one, these dancers would announce a statistic or fact about the number of people murdered during World War II and the Holocaust. However, a single drop, one that represented more than the rise and fall of the Nazi regime, a drop that portrayed a life lost, interrupted this march. But there was no recognition of this loss, besides a split second. It all started with the end of someone’s life. Throughout the performance, the dancers would twist and contort their bodies, and smack the stage’s floor, representing how skewed and twisted the perspectives of the Nazis were. The Nazis would tear apart any relationship that existed among the victims. From families to love each relationship was broken up. The Spectrum Dance dancers showcased this notion, by always making sure to pick up their significant other whenever they fell—never letting them succumb to the brutality of the concentration camps. “You sing and dance for the devil because you will not let them kill you,” a dancer said during the performance, quoting one of the victims of the Holocaust.
This quest for survival is what anchored all of the victims of the Holocaust together. These victims of the Holocaust did not have a voice while they were held captive in the concentration camps, however, the Spectrum Dance sought to bring the lost voices to life through this performance. “It was very powerful when it went back to the beginning of repeating statistics and reminding people of who passed away. When the curtain came across the stage, it was only the shadows that the audience could see. That took away the personal effect and made it just about the numbers,” Pacheco said.
The performance ended the same way it started with dancers filing into place and marching at a steady pace. Standing in rows, marching for their will of survival rather than their downfall. They stood side-by-side, bringing statistics of the Holocaust and the victims’ voices to life. One by one, they said a fact, before shouting erupted—symbolizing that even though no one had a voice during the Holocaust, their voice has not gone unheard.
Sam Norton can be contacted at
snorton@keene-equinox.com
Brittany Ballantyne can be contacted at
bballantyne@keene-equinox.com