Jennifer Muller's one act ballet "Couches," part of her complete work "Darkness and Light," is a very emotionally charged statement about the American family. Muller presents a dichotomy in her choreography and staging that represents the conflict between human nature and human expectation.

In a statement released for the program notes, Muller said that "Darkness and Light," specifically "Couches," was based on the idea of psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud's theory of the id and the super-ego. According to Freud's structural theory, the id and the super-ego are two of the three divisions of the psyche. The id embodies primitive desires like hunger, rage and sexual desire. The super-ego represents internalized norms, taboos and issues of morality.

Muller presents these two ideas in "Couches" by first creating a rigidly contrasting set on stage. The stage is divided exactly in half by two hanging canvases and a couch on each side. This visual backdrop provided by Muller lets the audience know that the dancers are dealing with two connected, yet extremely polarized situations.

The right side of the stage, characterized by bold colors, a plush couch and dancers dressed in loose-fitting clothes, represents the primitive desires of the id. Stage left, which symbolizes the super-ego, is very stark. The couch is stiff and white, and the backdrop and costumes are minimalistic. The differences on stage are visually immediate to the audience.

The couch, as a symbol, embodies many aspects of American life. Muller uses two couches to represent two kinds of families - two kinds of ideals. The comfortable, shaggy couch on stage right represents the loose expressions of id-driven individuals. The white couch on stage left represents the individuals in society who must always look good on the outside – the Joneses. For families driven by the super-ego, perfection alone is considered normal.

The music and monologue used in "Couches" creates a very literal and human atmosphere for the audience. The sounds on stage are similar to the "tick-tock" of a clock and remind the audience that the characters' lives are constantly moving forward.

On stage, two parallel stories begin to develop about one family. Each character in the story is played by two dancers, one on stage right and another dancer on stage left. A plot develops about a failed marriage, an affair and teenage rebellion.

The dancers who represent the super-ego on the left side of stage tend to hide their emotions by making subtle, passive movements. They are coy and quite, though driven by rage. The husband's character on stage left is seemingly wrapped up in his newspaper for the entire action, while the wife's movements are tenser, although still controlled. The daughter is very tentative in all her movements.

The dancers who are the idea of id on stage right are very expressive in violence, fatigue and anger. The husband shows his dissatisfaction by yelling and then falling asleep on the couch. The mother vividly expresses her loneliness by slithering on the floor. The daughter is rebellious by flinging her wild hair and moving violently.

Admittedly part autobiographical, Muller speaks personally about her family life in "Couches." She deals poignantly with a family's struggle to survive when it is hurting and broken.

If dance is a channel for emotion and expression, it must say something about the human heart. The movement in "Couches" is literally interpretive of the characters' feelings and driving emotions. The tension and resistance from the family on the left side of stage is so real that the audience feels as though they can cut right through it. The emotional rawness and tenderness on stage right is also very tangible and draws the audience completely into the story.

The philosopher Will Durant said, "The family is the nucleus of civilization." A family unit speaks so much about the society in which it exists. Muller's "Couches" is a very personal and affecting interpretation of such a family.