HS2 on the rise

By: Vicki Crain

What used to be known as an apprentice company, a training ground for those wishing to get into Hubbard Street Dance Chicago (HSDC), has finally stepped out of the shadows and into the spotlight.  Hubbard Street 2 (HS2) is not only growing as a force in the Chicago dance community, but by showing their stuff alongside the main company in this week’s engagement at the Harris Theater along with the Chicago premiere of their new interactive children’s program Harold and the Purple Crayon:  A Dance Adventure, they prove that this second company is anything but second rate.  Under the impassioned direction of Taryn Kaschock Russell, former Joffrey Ballet and HSDC dancer, HS2 is growing high-caliber artists and engaging the community with inspiring and inventive educational outreach.

Along with Harold, this weekend brings HS2’s Chicago premiere of a work by Samar Haddad King, winner of HS2’s 2010 National Choreographic Competition.  Getting there, staying here is a true collaboration with the dancers.  Coming in with a few phrases of movement she created with her company in New York and some key words and ideas (dive, pointing, grabbing), King worked with the HS2 dancers to create a unique and emotional piece.  Enlisting writing and acting exercises to help focus the abstract narrative of her work, during her two-week initial visit in September, was definitely different.  “We created everything in the first week,” King recalls.  “Everyone was kind of shocked, but that’s how I work…get a shell out there, then work backwards, editing, editing, editing.”

Implementing acrobatic moves (“I’m really into dive rolls right now.”) and using phrases of imagery like ice skating to feel a sense of gliding and freedom or referencing the movie Avatar to get the dancers to really feel a connection, King brings an edge to the broader theme of people feeling resistance and being stuck, but coming together and trying to find a path out.  Russell says the company has really grown after working with King, and it shows.  HS2’s success and growth, along with hard work and trust, comes back to Russell and her nurturing enthusiasm for these dancers, their education and their careers.  “I’d say, hands down, that Taryn is one of the best directors and leaders of a dance company that I’ve come into contact with,” says King.  “She’s such a great person.  She’s nurturing and smart.  I could sing her praises for years.”  The bond she shares with her dancers goes on after they leave HS2.  She works hard to make sure they are prepared for whatever comes next and actively helps to find them homes in other companies if there aren’t any spots open at HSDC (and openings are extremely rare these days).  This mutual affection was on display last night at the Harris, when Russell ran up to former HS2 dancer Eduardo Zuniga (now dancing with Luna Negra) to give him a huge hug and excitedly chat with him during intermission.