REVIEWS ABOUT TRISTIAN’S WORKS
THE UNEXPECTED, 2024. That approach is in no way unprecedented in contemporary dance. Yet in this post-postmodern age, when a wholesale rejection of technical virtuosity can seem…passé, perhaps this kind of performance is “unexpected.” Whether or not, I didn’t quite expect it. I was left provoked in mind and stirred in soul. It’s said that what we really remember is how we’re left feeling…and in that respect, this work will remain quite memorable indeed.
We can also break down walls on the level of art and artmaking – allowing fluidity and cross-pollination of genre, discipline, and approach to craft. What can result can be truly profound. Thank you to Tristian Griffin Dance Company for holding a mirror up to these important truths.
—Kathryn Boland, Dance Informa
ASHES, 2023. Griffin’s curvilinear vocabulary in this piece felt a bit more classical and less abstract than that in prior works of his I’ve seen (such as The Missing Peace, 2022) – yet no less intentional and no less satisfying.
—Kathryn Boland, Dance Informa
THE UNEXPECTED, 2024. Q: Tell us more about the research you did during the writing process and how this is reflected in the piece.
A: I did a lot of research on James Baldwin and Guillermo Gómez-Peña, and relied on their texts on injustice in Brown and Black communities. I also considered Kansas City’s history of redlining, racial inequality, and systemic racism. For an audience member watching this, they’re going to see a lot more raw, visceral movement than usual, as well as familiar movement. A lot of pedestrian motifs will be represented.
I saw I Am Not Your Negro and read the book (by James Baldwin). It was a really poignant memoir that got me thinking about how my work could make a difference in the community, in myself, and in my collaborators. I started on this tangent of how my work can be valued as social justice work and artwork. From that, I’ve grown so much personally.
—Kathryn Boland, Dance Informa
Controlled Chaos, 2022. “Tristian creates a very articulated, isolated, sequential movement,” Malashock says appreciatively. “He comes from strong training in ballet and modern dance. I find his style an interesting balance to mine.”
—John Malashock, Malashock Dance
ASHES, 2023. the world premiere of Tristian Griffin’s Ashes, a work both clear and full of mystery, daring but also welcoming.
—Kathryn Boland, Dance Informa
The Missing Peace, 2022. The large, vibrant ensemble found unity through Griffin’s unique movement vocabulary – which offered strikingly athletic, inventive re-molding of classical form. Some talented dancemakers manage to find wholly original shapes and movement pathways, when it sometimes feels like it’s all been done before – and, to me, Griffin is one of those dancemakers.
—Kathryn Boland, Dance Informa