Hundreds swamped around the pools of Discovery Green to view a series of water work dance installations Friday and Saturday. Both days, UH alumni and members of the Karen Stokes Dance Co. performed “Drench,” an ambivalent journey of sadness and joy through the water.
The eponymous director of the company and head of the UH Dance Program found the timing of the piece, which had already been commissioned before heavy storms barreled through Houston, appropriate.
“This past week, as I looked at the dancers walking in the water in rehearsals, I was reminded of the floods of last week,” Stokes said in a note published on her website. “The searching theme in the water seemed particularly relevant. The whale cries give a haunting sense to this section, which helps me remember that all the life on our planet depends on water.”
Families packed into the park hours before the dances began. | Trey Strange/The Cougar
Alumni Yahudi Castaneda, Jerrica Mark, Bryan Peck and Brittany Bass stretched before the performance. | Trey Strange/The Cougar
Stokes used umbrella to depict the falling of rain on the performance, which she said seemed appropriate. | Trey Strange/The Cougar
The dancers carried lanterns across the pool and set them beside the crowds. |Trey Strange/The Cougar
The four dancers advanced from one pool to another, pausing to dance for audience members along the way. | Trey Strange/The Cougar
As the sky darkened, the fountain’s glowing lights held the Karen Stokes Dane Co. members in the spotlight. | Trey Strange/The Cougar
“In the center splashing fountain section of Drench, I hoped to recall the joyfulness of water — how we use water for adventure and play (think of the children (who) play in this fountain daily),” Stokes said on her website. | Trey Strange/The Cougar
The city skyline rose behind the piece, creating an apt representation of the Bayou City’s geography. | Trey Strange/The Cougar
At the end of the dance, the UH alums carried the lanterns back to the original pool. | Trey Strange/The Cougar
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