Ana Cuellar Productions from Davenport Florida presented The Dress at the Orlando International Fringe Festival. In the halls of the Shakespeare Theater someone explained to me that Anna saw this particular dress in a window, and she felt she had to have it. She was bound to that dress by destiny. The dress was her muse for years.
The dress was worn by Ana at performances around the world. The choreography in this show expressed love, lose, longing and gratitude. I was familiar with the dancer Dion Leonhard DiDonna, so it was exciting to see her dance through the range of expressive emotions. Dancer Elaine Hoxie was the one who got to wear the dress itself. She spoke about the emotional bond between the ballerina and her dress.
Video was projected on the backstage screen which showed the dress being designed. When worn while dancing the dress came alive like an undersea creature surrounding and enveloping the dancer. Sorrow turned to pure joy. The dress maker, Ricardo Zuccolini was in the audience only a few seats away from me for this performance. Someone had pointed him out to me in the lobby.
As I was leaving the theater I noticed another choreographer who was in the audience was wiping tears from her eyes, because she was so moved by the performance. That was a true testament to how solidly the dance choreography landed. Dion in particular put everything she had into the performance which was at times super human. I loved that the dress was a major performer in the show.
There is magic in a dance performance being able to touch an audience so deeply. As an artist I hope someday to find a muse, animate or inanimate, that is as moving as the dress. The performance lay bare every artists daily struggle. The play was about the pure joy found in creation. Art isn’t easy, but well worth the effort when everything aligns, even if imperfectly.
The Dress won a Critic’s Choice Award as an Outstanding Dance Show.