Phoenix Dance 2006
Distributed by Fanlight Productions, 32 Court St., 21st Floor, Brooklyn, NY 11201; 800-876-1710
Produced by Karina Epperlein
Directed by Karina Epperlein
DVD, color, 22 and 16 min. versions
Jr. High - Adult
Disability Studies, Dance, Occupational Therapy, Physical Therapy, Health Sciences
Date Entered: 01/22/2008
Reviewed by Lori Widzinski, Health Sciences Library, University at Buffalo, State University of New YorkThe one word that kept resonating with me as I watched this film was “remarkable.” What makes it so is its primary subject, dancer Homer Avila. After losing his right leg and hip to cancer, Homer convinces choreographer Alonzo King to allow him to attend the dance workshop that results in the focus of the film – a pas de deux with biped dancer Andrea Flores. Her strength and power juxtaposed with Homer’s tender yet muscular fluidity on one leg, evoke beauty and depth. Alonzo King intertwines the meaning and creative process of the dance with Homer’s disability, blending it so seamlessly that it simultaneously is part of the message and yet disappears from conscious viewing.
Phoenix Dance looks the physical challenges of disability surrounded by a positive energy that informs on several levels. The concentrated focus on developing a dance becomes not only the physical manifestation of a ballet and the choreographic process, but the allegorical representation of the dance as life, and living life as gracefully and intensely as possible with a physical disability.
The production values are good, and the DVD includes both 22 and 16 minute versions, which are ideal for classroom viewing. A recommended purchase for college level occupational therapy, physical therapy and dance classes.