Glover's rhythms can't drown his sound of silence

Savion Glover reveals tap dance is more than a sound in "The Last HooFeR STaNDinNG."

​I must admit, I’ve never been a huge fan of jazz tap or Savion Glover. I know that his talent is massive, but his rambling rhythm shows with his interacting with the musicians more than the audience has always annoyed more than entertained.
 
Thus, it was with some trepidation that I returned to his performance on Saturday night at the Egg. I’m so glad I did because this time Glover didn’t hide behind or play to the other musicians – he was it.
 
As expected, the rhythms of his versatile and musical feet astounded. But this was a new Glover, one that dropped his shield to reveal a human struggling with issues of loss and mental health. His dancing, once just simply impressive, is now a stereo system on high volume, blasting out the message to listen to the patter as if it were a healing balm. And he convinced us that this is so.
 
“The Last HooFeR STaNDinNG, an 80-minute work, is a reminder that his slender frame is heir to a long line of dancers who pioneered and perfected the art. Through their feet, the artists at the Hoofers Club in Harlem, was a language that not all in today’s social media-obsessed world can bother to be cued into.
 
As that time period’s sole survivor, Glover has a lot to share. But knowing audiences don’t always understand the language, he accompanied his dancing on a center-stage platform with an interpreter who spoke the words his feet were conveying.
 
But I’m getting ahead of myself. The evening opened with a plaintive alto saxophone, played by Jalin Shiver, beckoning audiences to come close. Glover, on the drums, (yes he plays drums too) accentuated his call by hitting an occasional note until the saxophone faded and Glover’s urgent drumming consumed all.
 
After about 10 minutes, the music stopped, he laced up his shoes, the drum set was hauled away and Glover took centerstage. With the exception of one sip of water, he danced for an entrancing hour uninterrupted. With just a heartbeat and a church bell tolling as his soundscape, his feet, and his interpreter (Tatum Thompson or Dr. Voice 4 Now) shared the lessons and his devotion to the sound that was offered by his mentors – mainly Jimmy Slyde. More importantly, he seemed to note that the lessons of the heart and mental health were the most crucial to learn.
 
Cast in a red light, Glover looked to be on fire – as if to say this is an emergency. Dr. Voice 4 Now tries to “talk him down” as he expertly mimics the steps of the legendary members of the Hoofers Club – including Lon Chaney, Sandman Sims, Buster Brown, Chuck Green and Gregory Hines.
 
The program left me knowing that the Tap Dance Kid has grown up. As the last hoofer standing, he honors his predecessors and that in itself is healing for heart, mind and soul.
 
As the scrim came down on his dancing, the show’s narrator Divad Sanders or D.tHa’ScHiZ stepped forward to ask for no applause. Silence is a sound too. As the last hoofer standing, Glover knows all too well.