Before the house lights even dimmed, the dark theater erupted in singing, drumming, stomping, and clapping. Music From The Sole emerged from back the theater, up the aisles, onto the stage, joy spilling from the drum and dance grooves. The audience was already on its feet and the night had just begun.
The company, which seamlessly blends tap dance and live music, brought their 2022 work I Didn’t Come to Stay to the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art (MASS MoCA), as part of a co-presentation with Jacob’s Pillow. Originally conceived during the height of the pandemic, the work was a commission from Works & Process at the Guggenheim and was created with the support of an April 2021 Pillow Lab residency at Jacob’s Pillow, alongside other residencies in New York and New England. The work originally premiered at the Guggenheim and was also performed in 2022 at Jacob’s Pillow on the Henry J. Leir Outdoor Stage.
Now a newer iteration, the evening at MASS MoCA featured a group of thirteen dancers and musicians, all of whom switch their roles throughout the show, trading from musician to dancer and back again. Led by Leonardo Sandoval (Artistic Director & Choreographer, Dancer) and Gregory Richardson (Artistic & Musical Director, Band), the company celebrates tap’s Afro-diasporic roots, with a particular focus on Afro-Brazilian dance and music. In the talkback after the show, Sandoval shared that four of the company members are Brazilian, and the show is a “Carnival fever dream” built from their own spirit of celebration together.
Percussion became movement as the dance morphed between moments of unison, smaller groups, and improvisatory solos. The tension between precision and play kept the audience engaged, alongside a vibrant costume design by Dede Ayite, with splashes of orange, green, and white.
Throughout the show, the musicians and dancers layered sound and rhythm. Whenever the band dropped out, the dancers filled the space with body percussion and the sound of tap dance. When the accompanying music returned, the transition was seamless and symphonic.
The solos by each of the dancers punctuated the show with moments of concentrated intricacy. It was in these moments that the communal spirit of the company was most palpable. Each soloist seemed to leave behind a challenge to the next dancer, almost as if to say “there will always be more.”
Sandoval, who just received a 2024 Princess Grace Award for Choreography, elaborated on a particularly poignant duet in the talkback. He and Gisele Silva created an offering to honor Afro-Brazilian religious deities by combining traditional steps with their own choreography. Though it began in silence, the duet was joined by the only non-original song in the work. Sandoval shared his reverence for the spiritual element of this piece, which has emerged after the 2022 version.
This vulnerability marked the whole evening, echoed in the way Richardson spoke openly about how willing all the collaborators have been to try new things (dancers picking up new musical instruments, musicians learning body percussion and movement). He called the work “a leap of faith on everyone’s part.”
The melody sung in the opening parade, written by Sandoval, threaded throughout the score. When the company came together at the end in unison, they returned with a phrase that combined the motifs of the work, simultaneously expanding them into the fullest iteration. They leave from where they came – out the back doors of the theater – in a procession of song and dance (this time with colorful streamers). The whole crowd danced with them.
What’s next for Music For The Sole? Sandoval and Richardson shared they received National Dance Award to create a new work. This time, they want to intersperse musicians and dancers on the stage, allowing the musicians to come and go rather than fading into the background. Sandoval promised more theatrical elements and audience interaction. However it may develop, it’s certainly not to be missed.
