The TM Sisters have always occupied a precarious perch somewhere among video-game culture, fashion, nightlife, pop, performance art and nightlife, and the recent launch of WHIRL CRASH GO! at the alternative gallery Locust Projects in the Design District accordingly had all the earmarks of a profoundly groovy club opening, an only-in-Miami cross between storming the Bastille and, well, Day of the Locust.

For the first of three live performances that evening -- two were spontaneously added by the TM Sisters to accommodate the overflow crowd -- gallery goers were asked to sign a waiver (the show entails speeding roller-skaters on a makeshift rink and an above-ground pool for a synchronized-swimming display -- and given wristbands for gallery access.

Naturally, given the clash of life, art and showbiz elements, things ran late, and the crowd began to resemble milling culture cattle: the young and edgy, sporting such stylistic manifestos as 45 rpm records in their hair, contently struck artful poses outside; the middle-aged and cranky, once again, contemplated the sad reality that they were way too old for this.

Then, again, true fun demands a little friction, and this was one splendid night of entertainment. The performance began with the collaborative team and real-life sisters, Tasha and Monica Lopez De Victoria -- home girls who studied art at, respectively, New World School of the Arts and Florida International University -- sporting young-and-living-the-life costumes designed by Karelle Levy of Krelwear and performing an interpretive dance on the rink.

ATHLETE SISTERS

Tasha, 26, is a former competitive speed skater who dabbled for a time in the roller-derby world and still skates at Super Wheels in West Kendall. Monica, 28, is a synchronized swimmer who once made the trials for the national team and works professionally with the Dolphinettes, a synchronized troupe that has done everything from South Beach club openings to MTV shoots and parties at Missy Elliot's house.

The sisters, who live together in North Miami, embody the heady rush of Miami -- the smart accompanying electronic music of composer Otto Von Schirach incorporates the influences of Miami Bass music, as well as transmogrified recorded sounds that include the warning barks made by skaters at Super Wheels. And they are part of the great Miami melting pot, of Puerto Rican, German, and Swedish descent, a madly mixed cocktail of background circumstances shared by their fellow performers.

WHIRL CRASH GO! comments on the energy of the multi-ethnic tensions in Miami, and the performance begins with a mock fight and reconciliation. Tasha and her crew of skaters feverishly circle the track, doing free-style moves in the corners: video projections of abstract imagery on the gallery walls pump up the spectacle's volume. Then, a white drape dividing the room is pulled back, revealing a male and female dancer -- the ``Booty Angels'' -- in white go-go outfits, gyrating madly on dueling platforms. Monica and her gang, made up of the Dolphinettes and other professional swimmers, take center stage. Above the pool are triangular mirrored panels, meant to suggest bolts of electricity.

To Monica, WHIRL CRASH GO! plays with the Esther Williams cliches of synchronized swimming and takes the sport to a different level.

``It's much more experimental and avant garde in this piece, and more playful, too, with all of us dancing in the pool at one point,'' she says.

Join the discussion

The Miami Herald is pleased to provide this opportunity to share information, experiences and observations about what's in the news. Some of the comments may be reprinted elsewhere in the site or in the newspaper. We encourage lively, open debate on the issues of the day, and ask that you refrain from profanity, hate speech, personal comments and remarks that are off point. In order to post comments, you must be a registered user of MiamiHerald.com. Your username will show along with the comments you post. Thank you for taking the time to offer your thoughts.

     Showing: Oldest first Newest first Most-recommended first Least-recommended first

@Nyx.AuthorDisplayName@ wrote on @Nyx.PostedAtTime@:

@Nyx.repliedToText@

@Nyx.replyAnswerText@

Reply to this Comment @Nyx.Recommender@ @Nyx.AbuseReporter@