PRESS

“Nora Stephens’ disturbing solo, endingTendencies, was the most compelling and intricate work of the evening, one that served to augment the genre of dances about cathartic alcoholism……Stephens made her impact through a willingness to look unglamorous, an admirable quality in such a young dancer. Dressed in a cheap orange housecoat, she began by crawling across the floor with a wine goblet in each hand while Nick Kraska’s trance and musique concrète score pulsed away in the background. After sloppily drizzling wine over her face, Stephens moved into a series of well-made and clearly articulated sequences that paraphrased classical ballet gesture. With sudden changes in speed and direction and the occasional static pose, her style most closely resembled that of Karole Armitage (minus the toe shoes). The dance succeeded on two different levels: it managed to present fascinating formal patterns while remaining true to its dance theater aesthetic.”

- Theodore Bale, Bay Windows, March 2001

“‘New Steps’, a dance series for emerging choreographers (Mulberry Street Theater, April) celebrated its 15th year with six works as eclectic and vibrant as its Chinatown neighborhood. …..In Nora Stephens’ First and You, Liza Domnitz and Kate Martel, in white satin cocktail dresses, stared at the audience with vacant eyes as they progressed through awkward crablike movement, subtle rocking and arabesques.”

- Sarah Donnelly, The Village Voice, June 2003

“In five new works culled from 35 entries, the December edition [of Mulberry Street Theater’s Newsteps series] celebrates a new generation of talented women. ….Liza Domnitz, in Nora Stephens’ Six Love Song Weeks, leads a rock show to the wail of the Screw. Kate Martel and Meghan McCoy back her kicks and extensions with a series of off-kilter lifts, then approach each other with high, aggressive kicks like dueling guitar heroes. The song finishes ambiguously with the pair ripping tape off each other’s T-shirt and jeans.”

- Jim Dowling, Dance Magazine, December 2004