In “Pouvwa,” Jean Appolon Expressions uses folkloric dance from his native Haiti to examine power and its role in a world on fire – a metaphor made literal with visual installations that form a backdrop for sometime violent movement, rhythm and syncopation. “I’ve seen power become very destructive,” said Appolon, the troupe’s founder and namesake. “I wanted to talk about how despite that, we as the community can take our power back and be able to fix the future for our kids.”
While some of Appolon’s choreography stems from modern dance, “Pouvwa” – it means “power” – is rooted in Haitian traditional dance. Its six dancers are accompanied by live drumming and the Afro-electronica of Grammy-winning Val Jeanty to convey the power struggles seen in society.
“While 95 percent of my dancers are not from Haiti, I really wanted them to embody Haitian roots and energy so they can share with the audience how there is an understanding that we can discuss and process social and political issues without putting Haiti in a box,” Appolon said.
Appolon immigrated to Cambridge at 16. After graduating from high school he moved to New York to study with the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater; noticing a lack of Haitian dance classes in the Boston area, he began commuting in 1996 to teach at The Dance Complex. He founded his dance company in 2013 and this year opened his own dance studio in Roxbury’s Nubian Square. Now, for the world premier of a show that Appolon said has been in the works for five years, JAE becomes one of the first companies to perform at The Platform in Kendall Square after its grand opening this weekend.
Pouvwa, at 8 p.m. Nov. 13-14, Takeda Theatre at The Platform, 315 Kendall St., Kendall Square, Cambridge
