WHAT EXACTLY IS THE INTENT BEHIND PROJECTILE MILK? ONE CAN ONLY GUESS.
Highways Performance Space is a venue that is both historic and very intimate. For the past 24 years, it has served as a Los Angeles cultural center in Santa Monica where artists of all genres come to create and perform. It also prides itself on 
providing a space that allows for the exploration of artistic boundaries, making it the perfect place for the premiere of director Kevin Williamson’s dance piece, Lost Boys.
Prior to the show, the audience espied eight full jars of milk lining the edge of the stage. A music artist named Jeepneys took her place, the lights faded to black and four male dancers (Williamson, Kevin Le, Raymond Ejiofor, Julio Ulises Medina) dressed all in white took their positions in the four corners of the floor. What followed was an hour of highly technical movement, vocal projections, loogie-spitting, and milk-chugging.
To audience members looking to be entertained with lively music, pirouettes, and high extensions, it’s best to see Williamson’s work with a completely different perspective. His choreography requires patience and sensitivity because it is nonsensical. He takes you through several experiences that wouldn’t necessarily connect until you understand that his work relates directly to homosexuality and queer life. It is evident in this piece that Williamson demonstrates issues with male sexual orientation but he never truly resolves it. And moments that do transpire make you feel confused and twisted. For instance, you see each dancer execute modern technique with incredible precision, and then transition to sitting down at the edge of the stage, grotesquely chugging the milk from the jars, and spitting at each other. The audible laughs, gasps, and grunts from the audience at these points actually heightened the viewing experience. The true meaning of his work did not come to a clear resolution this time around, and it is safe to say that the overall performance left me feeling lost indeed.
photos by Ryan Patterson
The Lost Boys
Highways Performance Space in Santa Monica
played November 8-10, 2013
for more info, visit www.kevinwilliamsondance.com
for future shows at Highways, visit http://highwaysperformance.org/
