There’s no better home for Michael Estanich and Lucy Riner’s “Homeland” than the Old Town School of Folk Music. The creative partnership behind RE|Dance premiered their tender and touching, sentimental yet sincere slice of Americana at the Hamlin Park Fieldhouse back in January, and the black-box style theater at Hamlin Park provided a marvelous blank canvas for the imagination to paint scenes beautifully described in words by Daiva Bhandari and in now-abstract, now-literal movement by the whole ensemble. But the patina of the piece is steeped in the era preserved and celebrated by the Old Town School. Bhandari narrates scenes from a childhood in the country—clinging to her mother’s leg, tending the horses, taking a solitary walk across an untouched field of snow—and danced to a score of American roots songs. The choreography moves with remarkable fluidity between abstract and indicative, the language between storytelling and poetry, gorgeously stirring the tactile experience of memory. (Sharon Hoyer)
At the Old Town School of Folk Music, 4544 North Lincoln, (773)728-6000. Saturday, May 4 at 4pm and 8pm. $18.
Encouragement and Drive: A Preview of Dance for Life at the Auditorium Theatre “Dance for Life” is an annual concert that raises money for The Dancers’ Fund, which provides health care assistance for dancers and people who work in the dance field. But it also happens to be a beloved and joyful celebration of Chicago’s rich and abundant dance scene.
