Lucky Star (0.3) – Judson Memorial Church, New York City

Writers: Daniel Diaz, Gian Marco Riccardo Lo Forte, Agosto Machado, Philip Treviño

Director: Lo Forte

Filmmakers: Shaina Baira, Bryan Baira

Choreographers: Shaina Baira, Bryan Baira, Bree Breeden, Ori Flomin, Joey Kipp

Reviewer: Adrienne Sowers

As New York City reopens, so do the doors of some of its most revered performance spaces. At the legendary Judson Memorial Church, a celebration of queer avant-garde art, both past and present, fills the long-empty second floor space with the pulsating energy of the downtown art scene that has been so direly missed over the past seventeen months.

Pioneers Go East Collective welcomes audiences back to live performance with their brilliantly stirring Lucky Star (0.3), a dance and video installation journey through identity, creativity, and the commercialization of passion. A dynamic ensemble cast and creative team, who devised the show during the pandemic, welcome audiences back to the theatre with open arms, stunning choreography, and an understanding that we are nothing without that which came before us.

Utilizing the impressive space on the second floor of Judson, Lucky Star (0.3) fills the space with jubilance and introspection. With powerful choreography and compelling video design, the audience’s attention span is pushed and prodded. Should we watch the live dancer/s onstage? The video over the altar? The projection along the stage left wall? Every moment is a choice for performer and viewer, an exploration of the contract of live performance. As each performer welcomes us into their personal journey of identity, we too choose which parts of that journey with which to engage.

Part history lesson, part investigation of our present moment, and part rumination on what the future may be, Lucky Star (0.3) is the perfect re-entry to downtown live performance. With depth, charm, joy, and impeccable execution, it is an event that must be experienced. One could easily watch Bree Breeden, Daniel Diaz, Joey Kipp, and Agosto Machado (yes, the Agosto Machado) onstage all night, but will be plenty fulfilled by the phenomenal seventy-five minutes spent with these talented performers. An evening like this does not come along often, and one for which admission is free is even more rare. Go to Judson, see this show, and remember the joy that comes from making and experiencing art.

Runs Through 30 July 2021 | Photo Credit: ZANNI Productions