The LXD: Christopher Scott and Harry Shum Jr.

by: Audrey K.
In a Hulu web series, Christopher Scott and Harry Shum Jr., choreographers of the Legion of Extraordinary Dancers, have helped producer Jon Chu create a world of dance that is able to fuse together dance genres making each style accessible, engaging, and visually stimulating to dancers and non-dancers alike.

 

Christopher Scott is an Emmy Award nominated choreographer whose credits include the 82^nd Academy Awards, and several routines on So You Think You Can Dance (seasons 7 and 8). Additionally, he has appeared as a dancer and actor in the Step Up series and The Legion of Extraordinary Dancers. Here is a link to his 2 Emmy nominated dances.

HarryShum Jr. most notably known for his role as Mike Chang in Fox series Glee, has also appeared as a dancer in films such as Stomp the Yard, You Got Served and the last 2 Step Up films.

A short piece created in part by the pair of them:

The LXD: the webseries

The Legion of Extraordinary Dancers is a “unique fusion of dance and transmedia” web series broadcast on Hulu about 2 rival dance groups, The Legion of Extraordinary Dancers (the heroes) and The Alliance of the Dark (the villains) and the Legion of Extraordinary Dancers who discover they have superpowers. The characters who discover their powers must choose which side to take in this battle. Having shot 3 seasons since inception (the first two airing in 2010, and the third airing in Nov 2011), the series incorporates a wide variety of styles including hip-hop, krumping, contemporary, tricking, popping, b-boying, jazz, tap and ballet. As stated in a Los Angeles Times review, the LXD has been able to take dance and “recontextualize [it] for a contemporary audience”. Some of the styles represented are often disjointed when performed separately but through the film-like action score and a fluidity of choreography, a cohesive dance piece is created for every scene and piece. Each episode focuses on a different dancer and in this way is able to incorporate so many varying styles of dance. Some of the characters are developed based on the dancer; this allows the LXD to find the dancers first and structure the story around their specific dance talent.

The truly amazing part of the LXD is that it is shot on location without special effects, green screen, or the use of wires which makes the group transferable live.They’ve performed on the Glee! Live tour, So You Think You Can Dance (season 6), 82^nd Academy Awards. 

A piece that was performed on So You Think You Can Dance:




Additionally, Jon Chu spoke at TED 2010 where he described the LXD as a “living, breathing comic book”:

I think that the LXD could do live performances, however, I believe that they probably come across strongest and most effectively through the lens of a camera. Regardless, Jon Chu, Christopher Scott and Harry Shum Jr. have created a universe unlike any other and have pushed the boundaries in which dance has been consumed. Madd Chad, one of the dancers in the LXD stated in the TED talk, “When I dance, I want people to question the reality of what they’re seeing”. By watching just one episode of the LXD, this is goal is very clear.

The entire web series can be viewed on Hulu or on their website.

Awards:

-       November 2010 – Media Vanguard Award for “Best Original Web Series”

-       January 2011 – Digital Luminary Award in the “Original Web Content” category

-       February 2011 – (Jon Chu) Pioneer Award at the International Digital Emmy Awards

Bibliography:

Bloom, Julie. "It's a Bird! It's a Plane! No, It's a Superdancer!" The New York Times. The New York Times, 25 June 2010. Web. 23 Feb. 2013. <http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/25/arts/dance/25webdance.html?_r=0>.

"LXD." LXD. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Feb. 2013. <http://thelxd.com/>.

Pincus-Roth, Zachary. "'The Legion of Extraordinary Dancers' Is Ready to Battle with Flips, Spins and Dance Steps." Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles Times, 04 July 2010. Web. 23 Feb. 2013. <http://articles.latimes.com/2010/jul/04/entertainment/la-ca-extraordinarydancers-20100704/2>.

"The Legion of Extraordinary Dancers." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 20 Feb. 2013. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Legion_of_Extraordinary_Dancers>.

Mirenka Cechova

"I believe that the obligation of the artist is to answer the burning questions of something here and now.  I always want to create an answer but  in work that does not go far away from myself. It is very important to me to explore a new physical language of theatre and to bring an experience of authenticity to a given subject."

-Mirenka Cechova

Biography

Mirenka Cechova is a 30-year old native of the Czech Republic. From the ages of 10 through 20, she studied ballet, acting, and mime at The Conservatory in Prague. Her work focuses on integrating these three elements. She has two MA degrees, one in Nonverbal Theater and one in Alternative Theater, both from the Academy of the Performing Arts in Prague. She recently completed a PhD, and is now a Fulbright Scholar. She began a teaching and residence position at American University in September of 2012. She is a founding member of Festival International Zero Point, and is a leading personality of The Spitfire Company and Tantehorse Physical Mime Theater in The Czech Republic. She has worked with Synetic Theater in the United States. 

On her work, Cechova believes that using many different types of movement in order to effectively interpret her story for the audience is of the utmost importance. She does not hold herself to any single medium, and is more focused on movement: "I am indeed interested in many theatre movement forms and dance, anything that can serve as a means of expression. I am interested in serving as a channel between the actor and the audience and to find the right physical language to communicate what is at the heart of a work."

The resulting work is visceral and affecting - Cechova has a masterful control of her body, and is able to seamlessly integrate many different elements to create one beautiful, unique whole. Often political, and always groundbreaking, Cechova's work is just now being presented to audiences in the United States. I believe that she will have a dramatic effect on the landscape of modern dance and movement. 

Work

The Voice of Anne Frank (2007) - In this work, self-described as a piece of "multi-expressional theatre" Cechova plays Anne Frank, interpreting her experience through dance movement, and recitation of passages from her famous diary.

Trials 10/48/7830 (2010) - This work, performed with Spitfire Theater company, is about the murder of the female political prisoner Milada Horakova by the communist government. It earned the group an award at BAM's 2010 Next Wave Festival.

King Lear (2011) - Cechova was nominated for a Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress for her role as The Fool in this Synetic Theater Company. The entire cast won the award for Outstanding Ensemble.

S/He is NancyJoe (2012) - In this, her most recent work with The Tantehorse Theater Company, Cechova tells the story of her trans-gender brother. This work had only one performance in the United States, and has served as a sort of critical debut for her choreography in the United States. The Washington Post called this work "The Best of Modern Dance" for 2012, and critic Sarah Kaufman writes, "But most impressive of all is simply Čechová's body, which she turns into a battleground of self-identity and societal censure.  Amid all the imaginatively used technology of this show, that body is an element of surpassing wonder."

Sources:

"About Us : Tantehorse." About Us : Tantehorse. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Feb. 2013. <http://www.tantehorse.cz/en/about.html?language=en>.

Galbraith, Susan. "Acclaimed Czech Performer Opens New Piece on Gender Identity Nov 8." DC Theatre Scene RSS. N.p., 18 Oct. 2012. Web. 15 Feb. 2013. <http://dctheatrescene.com/2012/10/18/acclaimed-czech-performer-opens-new-piece-on-gender-identity-nov-8/>.

Kaufman, Sarah. "Dancer Mirenka Cechova Explores Transgender Life in ‘S/He Is Nancy Joe’." Washington Post. The Washington Post, 10 Nov. 2012. Web. 15 Feb. 2013. <http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/dancer-mirenka-cechova-explores-transgender-life-in-she-is-nancy-joe/2012/11/09/dbbee006-2ab6-11e2-96b6-8e6a7524553f_story.html>.

"Mirenka Cechova ABOUT." Mirenka Cechova. N.p., n.d. Web. <http://www.mirenkacechova.com/#!about/c161y>.

"Mission & History | Synetic TheaterSynetic Theater." Synetic Theater. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Feb. 2013. <http://www.synetictheater.org/history-mission/>.