One Night Only (running as long as we can)
About the show
Contemporary dance troupe Monica Bill Barnes & Company and WP Theater join forces for this world-premiere work, which celebrates the ephemeral nature of everything, including our own abilities. More…
Tonight the clock is running…and so are they! Longtime performing partners Monica Bill Barnes and Anna Bass make an audacious effort to accomplish one goal: to do everything they’ve ever learned how to do in just one night. Everyday movement is taken to monumental new heights as Barnes and Bass turn manic finger snapping, competitive clapping, nonstop treadmill running, and spinning until they throw up into a night of unexpected joy.
"Monica Bill Barnes and Anna Bass are the most fun choreographers ever...They are a profoundly conceptual, endlessly sensitive, and frighteningly interesting company as well...They’re not only dance athletes but dance geniuses...These are sophisticated contemporary dance ideas, and Barnes and Bass share them in the most fun, engaging, silly way. What an accomplishment!" Full Review
"Effort is the main event at 'One Night Only'—an element typically hidden in the world of art and yet glorified in the world of sports...In terms of content, there's not much beyond coordinated jogging, shadow boxing, and spinning. And yet, once all the strangely entertaining nonsense percolates, you're left with a stack of thought-provoking nuggets. After all, as Barnes and Bass blend theater into sport, sport in the traditional sense begins to look a lot like theater." Full Review
"A meditation on winning, sports, performance, aging, accomplishment and the exhilaration therein...There’s much to like about this piece...What can top record-breaking spinning and excessive snapping? Sporting events have an illogic to their logic–as does this piece...The dancers are a joy to behold–expressive with big and little movements. There’s a lot to think about in this rumination on accomplishment and mortality." Full Review
“Ms. Barnes and her stage partner, Anna Bass, have been collaborating for years and clearly share a near-telepathic bond. Then there is the rapport they establish with the audience — sometimes friendly and sometimes less so…Over the course of an hour, the two dancers, in black tailored pants and white tank tops, go through vignettes of aerobic intensity — leaps, extensions, spins, jogs — often flecked with flashes of mischievous humor.” Full Review
"The dancing itself is for the most part simple...but the intimacy of the McGinn-Cazale Theater and the emotional and physical precision that Barnes and Bass bring to their work make every little detail and movement count...It’s a little bit of a one-trick pony...Still, while it’s not a show with a lot of breadth, it has a surprising emotional impact; it’s rare to see a piece that conveys so much feeling with so few words." Full Review
"Brilliant, exasperating and good-natured...Barnes’ choreography is a delightful blend of ballet, modern dance and stylized movement. She and Bass are highly skilled and have a great chemistry together that recalls that of an accomplished comedy team with flashes of dramatic depth...Drawn-out performance art tangents lamentably distract from the entertaining musical numbers...Fitfully engaging, 'One Night Only (running as long as we can)' would benefit from more dance and less shtick." Full Review
“For the most part, the show operates by rules it establishes early: Songs with lyrics about hanging on or moving forward play while Bass and Barnes do athletically inspired choreography; De Viteri keeps up a stream of absurd commentary; the dancers, their faces clown-serious, try to get us to cheer for ridiculous goals...It can be keenly pleasurable, but it’s often repetitive. Although it’s great to see this team back on the field, their game moves slightly into overtime.” Full Review
"I found it forced and flat. The choreography, partly built around the hype of a boxing match, was repetitive and the humor on the level of a freshman high-school talent show...The performance didn’t get more entertaining and throughout both women seemed to be trying too hard...Both Barnes and Bass are fine dancers, lithe and energetic with excellent control, but watching them spin one hundred times—not once but twice– is twice too many times for me." Full Review
See it if YOU WANT TO BE KNOCKED OVER BY THESE TWO INCREDIBLE WOMEN.
Don't see it if NO. EVERYONE SHOULD SEE IT!
See it if You're a fan or have never seen Barnes & Co. and are up for a strange & wonderful meditation on life, pain, sacrifice & mortality, and joy.
Don't see it if You're not open to just giving in to having a theatrical experience, one that defies narrative or even genre, or don't like or "get"metaphor
Also In a fair world, this country would acknowledge art, its artists and t... Read more Read less
See it if you want an experience completely different from other theater. Pre-show is also entertaining, as was the announcer during the show.
Don't see it if you don't appreciate dance and movement, a small amount of audience participation and need a regular story line.
See it if A pair of dancers who interpret the determination, pain & ability every successful athlete must muster. Sit close & be entranced. Panders...
Don't see it if a bit, but same can be said about professional sports. Clever, but also poignant. Don't expect a strictly dancing event, this is theater.
See it if I could not believe the energy and the muscles of these two ladies . The show lasts 64 minutes which is a potpourri of entertainment
Don't see it if The bathrooms are gender neutral.. The men's room on 3 has a curtain in front of the urinal and 1 stall. On 4 it is for everybody - 2 stalls
See it if you enjoy a creative, fun way of using clowning and dance as a way to make theatre.
Don't see it if you are looking for a concrete storyline with a lot of dialogue.
See it if you like athletic-styled modern dance (particularly boxing) as a metaphor for the dancer's life, fan of Monica Bill Barnes, women power
Don't see it if you don't like modern dance used to tell a story, have an aversion to boxing, confused by mixed metaphors & performance art
See it if sports metaphors are meaningful to you. The dancers are in continual competition while a sports announcer describes their triumphs & defeats
Don't see it if you are expecting traditional dance performance or a play. There are only moments of dance & barely a suggestion of character or plot.
See it if You enjoy nontraditional dance/theater pieces and the two performers involved.
Don't see it if You need a clear narrative to follow in order to be satisfied. This isn't it. And if sports aren't your thing, you'll be lost as well.
See it if too late...saw the final perf, the effort was there
Don't see it if The show appeals to a special audience . Not quite a theater piece.
See it if You'd enjoy spending one hour seeing two incredibly athletic female dancers leaving their all on the stage as they depict pro-boxers.
Don't see it if Modern dance isn't your thing. You need theater with dialogue and a plot. You need a show that makes sense, delivered to you with a nice bow
See it if you are a fan of Monica Bill Barnes and Anna Bass. This evening is disappointing. Less shtick, more dance would enhance this show.
Don't see it if you are not a dance or sports fan.
See it if You are a fan of their work. You want an abstract investigation of aging as an artist (playing with the form of aging as an athlete)
Don't see it if You want substantial, narrative theatre. You dislike "art."
See it if you are adventurous and/or need to see every dance/movement production
Don't see it if you're easily distracted and/or need more resonance in live performance.
See it if want to see two very energized and synchronized performers entertain you in a brand new way with a fun mix of commentary throughout.
Don't see it if want to see traditional dance
Also This was a fun night - a completely new experience. Both dancers were ... Read more Read less
See it if Want to see a creative and loopy performance by 2 accomplished artists. MBB is always fun, and this show delights for most of its 65 mins,
Don't see it if Only like traditional dance, or expect a play. Have no cultural knowledge of sporting events & can't appreciate a play-by-play of events.
Also It might be helpful to read a little about Monica Bill Barnes and her ... Read more Read less
See it if If you enjoy wry humor, clowning, athletic spoofs, and Monica Bill Barnes.
Don't see it if You're not in the mood to lighten up or participate, or you take your sports very seriously.
Also Not a dance piece, not theater per se; more like sketch comedy meets p... Read more Read less
See it if Barnes & Bass' dance/theatre piece using championship wresting as a metaphor for modern dance works only sporadically despite valiant effort
Don't see it if Both women work hard & often engage but the piece feels like a sketch too long (65 minutes!) Sports announcer/choreographer often annoying
Cast & Creatives (10)
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