Texture Contemporary Ballet

Being a victim of this arduous winter I have seen little dance, in fact I’ve seen little of anything being too cold to venture out into the arctic freeze. Yet, hearing that Alan Obuzor and his Texture Contemporary Ballet were performing at the Ailey Citigroup Theater I wrapped myself an a couple of coats, several scarves and thick gloves then venture forth into the frigid world.

I was very interested in both the choreography as well as the dancing of Alan Obuzor, the Artistic Director and Resident Choreographer for Texture Contemporary Ballet. He was named by Dance Magazine as one of the “Top 25 to Watch” in 2013, no small feat in itself.

Mr. Obuzor presented the premiere of his latest work Take… Taken… Taking…, a 25 minute contemporary ballet set to music by Philip Glass’ Violin Concerto, for five dancers, four women and one man. The work was fast paced, innovated, possessed a certain moodiness and a sense of personal introspection.

Texture Contemporary Ballet

Mr. Obuzor full utilized the music of Philip Glass, expounding on the fullness of the score. His choreography is not flashy but a dancer must be a technically gifted to do it justice. He melded his choreographic choices with the sense of anticipation found in Mr. Glass’s 1987 piece, allowing the ebb and flow of the melody to guide him. Tackling this score could have gone horrible wrong for a choreographer so young in his career but when youth is bolstered by talent only success can follow.

The choreographer stays true to his classical training for the piece, but because of his modernity of the movement used, the close attention to line and retention of the pointe shoe aesthetic, it could easily be considered more neo-classical than contemporary.

The second movement of the music was a solo for Mr. Obuzor. His dancing perfectly blended with the emotional tones found in the music. He expertly created a visual tapestry of movement by flowing with and through the melody of the music.

Mr. Obuzor is a superb dancer, faultless technician and has a natural lyricism that is mixed with the soul of someone who was born to dance. His long legs and powerful feet propel him about the floor in a manner that forces you to set-up in your seat and take notice. He executed a double pirouette, but before landing he extended his leg into second position then arcs his torso to the side while still turning, this created such a demanding image that it literally robbed me of breath.

In his choreography he closely adheres to the classical vocabulary while at the same time experimenting, stretching and exploring the movement, finding new ways to execute steps that are the fundamentals of classical ballet. This is where I find the work more Neo-classical than Contemporary, for he is unafraid to marry classicism with innovation much as Balanchine did.

In the third movement we find a trio of women moving in a manner that sustained a suspenseful energy, the piece as a whole exhibited virtuosity and daring, but not in a manner that is showy, it is just part of the choreographer’s vision.

Alan Obuzor from Texture Contemporary Ballet.

Texture Contemporary Ballet and especially Alan Obuzor gave strong evidence as to why he was named by Dance Magazine as one of the “Top 25 to Watch” in 2013. But I say that he should be in the top ten to watch for 2014. Bravo to all…

Originally from Pittsburgh, Mr. Obuzor trained primarily with the Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre School (PBTS), where in 1998 he was a recipient of the prestigious Princess Grace Foundation Dance Honorarium. He went on to dance seven years with the Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre and in 2011 Mr. Obuzor founded the Texture Contemporary Ballet.

Tom Gold Dance in Tom Gold’s “La Plage”. Photo: Eugene Gologursky

Without a doubt Tom Gold is a choreographer with a lot of promise. His choreography is intrinsically musical; it flows through and around the melody in ways that are unique to his vision. His command of the classical vocabulary was in strong evidence at the Gerald W. Lynch Theater during his New York season.

The program featured two world premieres. Urban Angels with music by Karl Jenkins and costumes by Janie Taylor, The Ladies Room, to the music by Claude Debussy,  a piece for three women that portray what happens when ladies meet in the lady’s room, as well as revival of La Plage, with music by John Zorn.

The press release stated that Urban Angels was inspired by the weeping angels from the Dr. Who television show where these angels might look beautiful but move with a velocity that will astound you. Well, I was never a fan of the Dr. Who series and so therefore I was unfamiliar with the show’s Weeping Angels.

Tom Gold Dance in Tom Gold’s “Urban Angel”. Photo: Eugene Gologursky

The work was in three movements, the first movement ranges somewhere between Classical and Neo-classical, but not really being either. Mr. Gold, a former soloist with the New York City Ballet utilizes some of the best dancers in NYC, Sterling Hyltin, principal dancer with New York City Ballet; Nicole Graniero and Luciana Paris, Corps de Ballet with ABT; Marika Anderson, Emily Kitka, Meaghan Dutton-Ohara, Likolani Brown, Daniel Applebaum and Andrew Scordato, Corps de New York City Ballet and Stephen Hanna; a former principal with New York City Ballet and star of Broadway’s Tony Award winning, Billy Elliott.

The first movement I found predictable, little in way of innovation or creativity in the choreography. But, it was in the second movement of Urban Angels that you witness Mr. Gold’s true talent as a choreographer. He shows restraint but at the same time displays a continual mix of passion and deep emotion. He steps away from a strict interpretation and implementation of the manner of classical movement; instead he utilized his knowledge of the idiom but did not become encumbered by it. He allowed his creativity to reign free. Classical dancing became the voice in which he spoke, eloquently and with emotion. He used it to form his vowels of movement, putting them in a structure that fit his vision.

Tom Gold Dance in Tom Gold’s “La Plage”. Photo: Eugene Gologursky

Mr. Gold’s talent also shined in the revival of La Plage, with music by John Zorn. When he let’s go and allows his creativity to shape the body in space as opposed to the politically correct strictures of classical dancing he shines.

Set in a tropical forest and within John Zorn you hear the call of exotic birds, nymphs found in nature frolic and play. You are captured in the very beginning of La Plage when three dancers, one behind the other, begin to move first arms then legs in a somewhat sensual manner that held deep mystery. I am again reminded of the Hindu Gods, Vishnu or Durga, each with multiple limbs for multiple purposes.

Sterling Hyltin shined in the work, with her crisp movements that allowed her emotionally softer undertones to blend with her musicality. Stephen Hanna’s muscular form seems to suggest a male god of nature; his every move was a stunning display of the male form in dance. His duets with Ms. Hyltin were a perfect blend of yin and yang. Together they created moments of tenderness and magic. A joy to watch, bravo to all…

Nicole Graniero, Sterling Hyltin & Luciana Paris in Tom Gold’s “The Ladies Room”. ”. Photo: Eugene Gologursky

Mr. Gold’s The Ladle’s Room, with music by Claude Debussy was a piece for three women, Nicole Graniero, Sterling Hyltin and Luciana Paris. There was no fault with the dancing, all three ladies performances were spot on.

But, though The Ladle’s Room was a pleasant enough piece it still lacked substance. Supposedly a tale of what happens when ladies gather in the Ladle’s Room to share the private moments of what is happening in their life. It read well in the press release, but it did not have the depth I had hoped for.

I was hoping for more detail, the solos for the women, though charming, lacked an inner dialogue, I did not see enough of a difference in the characterization. But this is things that more rehearsal time could have resolved.

Tom Gold Dance in Tom Gold’s “La Plage”. Photo: Eugene Gologursky

In hindsight, I remember the excitement I experienced with Mr. Gold’s 2013 work Fauré Fantasy, a classically contemporary work set to the music of Gabriel Fauré. Mr. Gold, though speaking with his own voice,  present were the influence of Mr. Gold’s New York City Ballet background, that of George Balanchine and Jerome Robbins. But he was speaking in a manner and style that is unique in tone of his generation. Nor, let us not forget Mr. Gold’s witty and somewhat tongue-in-cheek Gershwin Preludes that utilized the music of George Gershwin. He dazzled us with fast footwork and his natural lyricism.

Arnie Zane once truthfully said “Dance eats money…”  I think that if Tom Gold could maintain a group of dancers, say for 28-32 or 4o weeks, then he could really invest the time to shape and mold each of his works without the constraints of limited studio time and a looming performance date.

Then I think the world would witness an artist of wonder who creates Neo-classical and contemporary ballets that Petipa or Balanchine or Béjart would be proud to see born….

Les Ballets de Monte Carlo’s Anja Behrend in Christopher-Jean Maillot’s LAC (after Swan Lake). Photo: Alice Blanger

Re-working a classic story ballet such as Swan Lake is a risk, a great risk, but Christopher-Jean Maillot’s LAC (after Swan Lake) and Les Ballets de Monte Carlo have done just that. Mr. Maillot has created a fresh face for a centuries old ballet. One may ask, “Why do this?” and one may answer “Why not…”

After all, historically speaking this would not be the first time Swan Lake has been recreated. Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake, composed in 1875 as a commission by Vladimir Petrovich Begichev, the intendant of the Russian Imperial Theatres in Moscow was a bit of a flop. Much like Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker, that Swan Lake was unsuccessful after its first year of performance.

Tchaikovsky’s score was considered too complicated, dancing to it was difficult and the original choreography by Julius Reisinger, the German ballet master for the Ballet of Moscow Imperial Bolshoi Theatre was considered drab, nothing to write home about. No remaining records exist of that version of Swan Lake, just random mentions in surviving letters from that period.

Les Ballets de Monte Carlo’s Bruno Roque (left), Maude Sabourin & Asier Edesoby in Christopher-Jean Maillot’s LAC (after Swan Lake). Photo: Alice Blangero

It wasn’t until after Tchaikovsky’s death (1893) that Swan Lake was revived. Much of the Swan Lake we know of today is from that revision by the famous choreographers Petipa and Ivanov that was first performed in 1895.

Mr. Maillot, with the assistance of the award-winning French novelist Jean Rouaud acting as dramaturge, has created a hip and current retelling of the 1895 classic… infused with light battling dark, good versus evil.

The story begins with a grainy black and white film, a remembered time when the prince as a young boy is on a picnic with the King and Queen (who are masked…) to celebrate his birthday. They meet a very pretty girl, all in white, they also come in contact with a darkly attired woman and her little girl. The Prince becomes immediately infatuated with the young girl in white as she coyly gives him a kiss on the check. Pandemonium ensues as the white clad young girl is swept away by black clad winged creatures that are in league with the dark clad woman…

The film ends and the ballet beings in the midst of a Grand Ball, The Majesty of Night, (Maillot’s version of the evil sorcerer Von Rothbart), excellently portrayed by April Ball, appears in all her glory with her two male and very sexy Black Angels (Christian Tworzyanski and Ediz Eroguc). In tow is also the Black Swan (Noelani Pantastico), who has been transformed into a young girl. Tensions arise for the Majesty of Night is rumored to have had a romantic tryst with the King (Gabriele Corrado) and some even whisper that he may be the father to the Black Swan. Needless to say, the Queen (Mi Deng) is less than thrilled she has shown up.

Lucien Postlewaite was everything a romantic prince should be, handsome and heroic, his dancing superb especially during the touching duet with the White Swan, Anjafa Ballesteros. Ms. Ballesteros portrayed a creature that was noble but touched somewhat by sadness. You felt her plight and your emotions went out to her.

Ernest Pignon-Ernest’s impeccable sets must be mentioned for he has created a world of where dreams could come alive. He played on light and dark, gray was not a color but became a mood. The meeting place between the Prince and the White Swan seemed more a place of purgatory where purity struggled to exist.

Les Ballets de Monte Carlo’s Mimoza Koike & Alvaro Prieto in Christopher-Jean Maillot’s LAC (after Swan Lake). Photo: Doug Gifford

Philipe Guillotel’s costumes were the bow that completed the package. He was able to use the concept of classical costumes, tutus and tiaras without becoming lost in them. He updated them so they were current and on trend. For the swans their arms were transformed in to the suggestion of wings, where there would be fingers were now feathers. The Majesty of Night was costumed in a way that made her seem bigger than life, more menacing but still beautiful.

The Majesty of Night’s accomplices, the Black Angels were demonic and yet very sexy. If you were to encounter them outside the theater…for a confusing moment you may question…. should you flee for your life or perhaps ask them out for for a drink…talk about internal struggle.

Christopher-Jean Maillot’s LAC (after Swan Lake) has all the makings of a modern day classic. A Swan Lake that today’s generation can embrace. A world of intrigue, fashion, sex and daring…

$30 Master Class

$70 Three-class Series

10:15am – 12pm

Advanced & Professional Dancers 

Sunday April 6: Michele Wiles

Michele Wiles Artistic Director of BalletNext and former principal dancer with American Ballet Theatre.

Sunday May 4: Kaitlyn Gilliland 

Kaitlyn Gilliland BalletNext dancer, SAB faculty member, and former New York City Ballet dancer

Sunday June 1: Stephen Hanna

Stephen Hanna BalletNext Dancer, former New York City Ballet principal and original cast member of Billy Elliot

City Center • Studio 5

130 W56th St

New York

 Click Here To Pre-register

 or Pay at the Door

La Follia

Dancers: Michele Wiles & Drew Jacoby

Choreography: Mauro Bigonzetti

Music: Vivaldi.

Performance from the inaugural event presented by Ballet Next at The Joyce Theater

Nov. 2011, New York City

Michael Montgomery, Ricardo Zayas, Keelan Whitmore & Ashely Jackson in Alonzo King’s “Constellation”. Photo by Margo Moritz.

Alonzo King’s Constellation is a much different program than that offered during Alonzo King Lines Ballet’s 2012 NYC Season at the Joyce. Resin, which premiered in 2011, was a work of passion and physicality that incurred a deep emotional response. For the score, Mr. King explored Sephardic songs from Turkey, Morocco, Spain, and Yemen, including children’s songs and religious songs, with them you heard the pain and suffering of the Jewish Diaspora.

Where Resin was a work of emotion, Mr. King’s Constellation, which premiered in 2012, is work of the spiritual. It is danced in soft shoes and is shown in 19 sections in 75 minutes. Set Designer Jim Campbell and lighting designer Axel Morgenthaler created a backdrop of glowing orbs, small lights like the stars in the constellation amongst a sea of blackness. Israeli mezzo-soprano Maya Lahyani would enter and exist through the production, singing excerpts from Vivaldi, Strauss or Handel, her voice weaving a web of mysticism, lending a touch of magic.

Michael Montgomery in Alonzo King’s “Constellation”. Photo by Margo Moritz.

Filled with duets and solos, the dancers were allowed to shine. Mr. King’s choreography is hard to describe with words, his utilizes the classical vocabulary when needed and discards it when not. There is a freedom found in the constant movement in which the dancers sometimes move in unison but often times not. But even when dancers are not moving in unison, there is still a shared theme, movements that are repetitive within the phrasing but slightly different for each dancer.

If you have never seen Courtney Henry dance than you have done yourself a great injustice. Ms. Henry, who was a finalist in the prestigious Youth American Grand Prix “Stars of Tomorrow” program in New York City, is a dancer that was born to dance.  When I see her I am reminded of some on the great contemporary ballerina of our time, Sylvie Guillem or Wendy Whelan. Yes, she’s that good.

The duet between Micheal Montgomery and Babatunji was a thing to behold. Filled with turns that finished with elongated limbs, it was a display of competitive camaraderie. A sense of each dancer pushing the other to be stronger, better….

The pairing of Ms. Henry with Mr. Montgomery was a stroke of genius. Their movement qualities were perfectly matched. Their dancing created a moment when time was suspended, nothing else in the universe matter. Both lithe and long-limbed, they flowed organically with and around one another.

Keelan Whitmore in Alonzo King’s “Constellation”. Photo by Margo Moritz.

Original score composers Ben Juodvalkis and Leslie Stuck with Sound Designer Christopher Barnett create a colorful tapestry of sound. You could hear the wind, bells or birds calling while in flight, these are intermixed with romantic melodies by violin and cello.

Yujin Kim’s solo is another moment within Constellation in which time stops, the emotionality of her movements is undeniable. When a small ball is rolled on stage, she picks it up and it becomes a thing cherished that is then shared with another.

Yujin Kim & Zachary Tang in Alonzo King’s “Constellation”. Photo by Margo Moritz.

Mr. King is unafraid to allow the body to be seen in brief moments of awkwardness. Elbows hyper-extended and crossing one another or in the way two dancers may move in relationship to each other. The woman bent over and the man to the side picks her up and down in quick small lifts, she awkwardly hangs from his body as he turns and then he lifts her to chest level as she elongates her body into a beautiful line.

Alonzo King LINES Ballet is a celebrated contemporary ballet company that has been guided since 1982 by the unique artistic vision of Alonzo King. Collaborating with noted composers, musicians, and visual artists from around the world, Alonzo King creates works that draw on a diverse set of deeply rooted cultural traditions, imbuing classical ballet with new expressive potential. Alonzo King understands ballet as a science – founded on universal, geometric principles of energy and evolution – and continues to develop a new language of movement from its classical forms and techniques. Alonzo King’s visionary choreography, brought to life by the extraordinary LINES Ballet dancers, is renowned for connecting audiences to a profound sense of shared humanity.

Ballet NY’s Jessica Lawrence, Amy Saunder & Katie Gibson (left to right) in Margot Parson’s ‘Dreams’: Photo by Eduardo Patino

Ballet NY is the brainchild of two of the greatest dancers of their generation, Medhi Bahiri and Judith Fugate. During the company’s 2014 New York Season at Ailey Citigroup Theater the program consisted of three company premieres and all by women choreographers, plus Mr. Bahiri’s revisited In The Garden of Souls.

Mr. Bahiri won First Price at the Prix de Lausanne in 1974, later became a member of Maurice Béjart’s Twentieth Century Ballet, he was a Principal Dancer for the Boston Ballet and Ballet West. His partners have included Cynthia Gregor, Ann Marie DeAngelo and Valentina Kozlova. Known for his powerful, tour-de-force performances, he traveled the world as in International Guest Artist.

Ballet NY’s Taurean Green, Brent Whitney & Micheal Eaton in Antonia Franceschi’s “Kinderszenen (Childhood Scenes)”: Photo by Eduardo Patino

Ms. Fugate is a former Principal Dancer with New York City Ballet and has danced roles in virtually every ballet in the NYCB repertory, counting among her partners Peter Martins, Mikhail Baryshnikov and Helgi Tomasson. She danced the leads in many of Balanchine ballets, such as Concerto Barroco, Valse-Fantaisie and Symphony in C. It was Jerome Robbins who gave Ms. Fugate her first solo, the girl-in-pink in his Goldberg Variations. When she stepped on stage your eye was drawn to her intrinsic musicality and her lyricism of movement.

The evening opened with Antonia Franceschi’s Kinderszenen (Childhood Scenes) set to Allen Shawn’s Childhood Scenes and wonderfully performed by pianist Yoshiko Sato. Ms. Franchesch noted in the program that “Kinderszenen was made with the composer, the painter and George Balanchine in heart and mind.”

Ballet NY’s Miriam Ernest & Taurean Green in Antonia Franceschi’s” Kinderszenen (Childhood Scenes)”: Photo by Eduardo Patino

It is a neo-classic work that was light and melodic with a dash of humor for three couples. The choreography gave evidence of Balanchine’s influence on ballet, his use of line and blend shape and musical rhythm.  Miriam Ernest and Taurean Green must be mentioned for their heart-felt and stunning performance. Mr. Green’s strength blended with the kinetic energy of Ms. Ernest seamlessly. Bravo to both…

Margot Parsons’ Dreams is concerned with the inner propulsion of going forward against the force of time. Set to music by Ai Isshiki and Steve Milton, it is a work for three women, Katie Gibson, Jessica Lawrence and Amy Saunder. Preformed en pointe the work utilizes the classical vocabulary with pedestrian movements blended in.

Ballet NY in Ginger Thatcher’s ‘Urban Study– Excepts’: Photo by Eduardo Patino

Two women run on stage as if chasing the wind and are soon followed by a third woman who runs on and then back off. Ms. Parson’s choreography shifts constantly from angular shapes to lyric phrases of movement. The dancers often walking backwards, as if reality is reversed. It’s not going to become one of my all-time favorite works, but that’s just me and asking people as we departed the theater their thoughts about the work…well, they loved it. I was the only one grumbling…maybe I just needed a sandwich or something….

Premiered by the Oregon Ballet in 2001, Urban Study– Excepts, with music by Annie Gosfield, was choreographed by Ginger Thatcher, a former principal dancer of the Cleveland Ballet and former soloist of the Lar Lubovitch Dance Company. When the lights come up we see four women already moving wearing  trendy black tops and short skirts with black toe shoes. Of the works shown this is the only piece that utilized Ibrahim Perez who fairly exploded onto the stage. I hope to see more of Mr. Perez, he has an exuberance that is refreshing.

Ballet NY’s Miriam Ernest & Michael Eaton in Ginger Thatcher’s ‘Urban Study– Excepts’ Photo by Eduardo Patino

In the work Ms. Thatcher plays with motifs, poses that are backlit for dramatic effect. The movements seem at times awkward, the torso bowed, the legs bent with feet parallel. The work does have an urban grit to it, it reminded of riding the subway in NYC at 4 am and witnessing the odd behavior sometimes seen in the often un-acknowledged residents that live in their own private and gritty world.

Medhi Bahiri’s In the Garden of Souls – Revisited was the pièce de résistance of the evening, a work in progress that Mr. Bahiri wants to grow into a longer, fuller work. The music is a mix of Azam Ali’s extraordinary voice, Greg Ellis’s powerful percussions and a blend of Native American and the Far East blended with the ancient tradition of India. Veronika Rogoza created stunning costumes; both the men and the women are seen in red bodysuits with black piping, the midriff exposed by side cutouts with only a thin strip of fabric connecting the top and bottom.

Taurean Green (Left) & Brent Whitney in Ginger Thatcher’s ‘’Urban Study– Excepts’’ : Photo by Eduardo Patino

In the Garden of Souls – Revisited is a work that is emotional poignant in tone. The stage opened to billowy fog and the stage became a place where magic is alive, mysticism is real.A lone woman emerges from the back of the stage, her movements; the use of her hands has an eastern feel, as if a forgotten Hindu goddesses has come alive.

Lighting Designer Scott Borowka sustained this illusion perfectly and along with the haunting voice of Ms. Ali and Mr. Ellis’ percussion, you are transported to another  place, another time.

Ballet NY in Medhi Bahiri’s ‘In the Garden of Souls – Revisited ‘: Photo by Eduardo Patino

Ms. Ernest and Mr. Green performed a duet that possessed a refrained sensuality mixed with a feeling of regret. The choreography is intrinsic, nothing forced. Kinetic energy flows effortlessly through the dancer’s body with smooth transitions from shape to shape.

In the Garden of Souls – Revisited  has a mystery that draws you in for there is something hypnotic about the work. I look forward to Mr. Bahiri continuing work on this piece.

Ballet NY is the New York City-based ballet company, founded in 1997. It is a company of accomplished principal and soloist dancers. Foremost in Ballet NY’s mission is to offer emerging choreographers the opportunity to create new works on accomplished dancers. The Company is committed to keeping ticket prices affordable in an effort to attract, cultivate and educate new audiences for dance.

Fourth Annual Dance Against Cancer

An Evening to Benefit

the American Cancer Society

Monday, May 5, 2014 7pm

AXA Equitable Theater

787 Seventh Ave., NYC

Ballet Hispanico performing Nacho Duarte’s Jardi Tancat the 2013 Dance Against Cancer

World Premieres by Brian Reeder, Kirven Douthit-Boyd & Greg Graham

With a performance by Alessandra Ferri, New York City Ballet’s Jared Angle, Tyler Angle, Robert Fairchild, Chase Finlay, Lauren King, Maria Kowroski, Tiler Peck, Amar Ramasar, Taylor Stanley & Daniel Ulbricht, American Ballet Theatre Isabella Boylston, Herman Cornejo, Jared Mathews, Gillian Murphy & James Whiteside, Memphis Jookin’ sensation, Charles “Lil Buck Riley.”

Work by choreographers George Balanchine, Paul Taylor, Christopher Wheeldon, Justin Peck, Frederick Earl Mosley, Brian Reeder, Greg Graham & others will be featured.

6PM VIP Reception

7pm General Admission

*Reception to follow*

TICKETS

Christopher Wheeldon’s “This Bitter Earth” performed by New York City Ballet’s Wendy Whelan & Tyler Angle for the 2013 Dance Against Cancer. Photo by Christopher Duggan

Repertory to include:

In Memory Of (excerpt)

Music: “Feet Can’t Fail Me Fail Me Now” by Dirty Dozen Brass Band and “Emafini” by Lady Smith Black Mambozo

Choreography: Tracy Straus

Improv by Charles “Lil Buck” Riley

the students of Jacques D’Amboise’s National Dance Institute

Gala Presentation Conceived and Staged by Damian Woetzel

Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux

Music: Peter Ilyitch Tchaikovsky

Choreographer: George Balanchine

Misa Kuranaga (Boston Ballet Principal), James Whiteside (formerly of Boston Ballet, American Ballet Theatre Principal)

Pas de Deux from Chaconne

Music: Christoph Willibald Gluck

Choreographer: George Balanchine

Maria Kowroski & Tyler Angle (New York City Ballet)

Les Lutins (excerpt)

Music: Antonio Bazzini

Choreographer: Johann Kobborg

Dancers: Herman Cornejo (American Ballet Theatre), Daniel Ulbricht (New York City Ballet)

Don Quixote Pas de Deux

Music: Ludwig Minkus

Choreographer: Marius Petipa

Dancers: Gillian Murphy & Jared Matthews (American Ballet Theatre)

After the Rain

Music: Arvo Part

Choreographer: Christopher Wheeldon

Dancers: Alessandra Ferri & Craig Hall

 Dance Against Cancer

Co-producers and longtime friends Erin Fogarty and Daniel Ulbricht conceived Dance Against Cancer in 2010.  Both Ms. Fogarty and Mr. Ulbricht have close ties to the cause.  Ms. Fogarty lost her father in 2011 after a seven-year battle with colon cancer in and Mr. Ulbricht’s mother is currently battling uterine cancer.  With so many of their close friends and family sharing stories of their own relation to the disease, the desire to do something grew into what is now a gala benefit for the incredible work that the American Cancer Society does through research initiatives as well as patient and family service programs. The benefit brings together artists from leading dance companies from New York City and beyond for a night of beautiful performances, world premieres and great company. Since its inauguration, Dance Against Cancer has raised over $100,000 in support of the American Cancer Society.

 About The American Cancer Society

The American Cancer Society combines an unyielding passion with nearly a century of experience to save lives and end suffering from cancer.  As a global grassroots force of more than three million volunteers, we fight for every birthday threatened by every cancer in every community.  We save lives by helping people stay well by preventing cancer or detecting it early; helping people get well by being there for them during and after a cancer diagnosis; by finding cures through investment in groundbreaking discovery; and by fighting back by rallying lawmakers to pass laws to defeat cancer and by rallying communities worldwide to join the fight.  As the nation’s largest non-governmental investor in cancer research, contributing more than $3.4 billion, we turn what we know about cancer into what we do.  As a result, more than 11 million people in America who have had cancer and countless more who have avoided it will be celebrating birthdays this year.  To learn more about us or to get help, call us any time, day or night at 1.800.227.2345 or visit cancer.org

2014 YAGP Grand Prix winner Cesar Corrales, age 17, in Variation from Don Quixote. Photo by Siggul/VAM.

Every year some of the most world’s most gifted dancers converge upon New York City in order to take part in the Youth America Grand Prix “Stars of Today Meet the Star of Tomorrow Gala.” These internationally recognized dancers, many of whom are YAGP alumni, are from the ranks of such renown companies as the Bolshoi Ballet, the San Francisco Ballet, Stuttgart Ballet and of course NYCB and ABT. They come to perform side by side with the YAGP award winners, young dancers that can range in ages from 9 to 19 years of age. They have been handpicked, some of the brightest talent of their generation, future stars of the dance world at the very start of their careers. Clive Barnes hailed it is as the “highlight of the New York ballet season.”

The evening began with Elizabeth Aoki; part of YAGP’s “Music Protégé Series”, she performed the most amazing Paganiniana. Ms. Aoki, who is a student at Juilliard, performed the piece with such precision that when she finished I found myself just staring at her with mouth agape. She could not have been older than 10 or 11…she was so tiny I was surprised she could hold the violin much less pay it so masterful.

James Sierra’s Legion won the Silver Medal for YAGP’s Ensemble Competition, performed by the of Escuela Superior de Music y Danza de Monterrey, Mexico. Photo: Photo by Siggul/VAM.

James Sierra’s Legion won the Silver Medal for YAGP’s Ensemble Competition. It was a testosterone fueled work for 23 men that ranged in age from 13 to 23, all from the Escuela Superior de Music y Danza de Monterrey, Mexico. It was a very daring work with men running on stage and throwing themselves through the air with abandon. It gave me chills and I would love to see it again.

Harou Niyama, 17, won the Gold Medal for the Men’s Senior Division and performed a Variation from Le Bayadere. Mr. Niyama exhibited great elevation with brilliant double cabrioles. He’s someone to watch…

Harou Niyama, 17, won the YAGP Gold Medal for the Men’s Senior Division and performed a Variation from Le Bayadere. Photo: SiggulVisual Arts Masters

Cesar Corrales, 17, won the Grand Prix which is awarded to the best over all of an age division. Mr. Corrales performed a Variation from Don Quixote and at only 17; it was impressive to say the least. He finished his variation by doing eight double tour en l’air with a double pirouette between each and then finished with another double tour en l’air but to the knee. Luscious is the only way I can describe it!

Sara Mearns and Tyler Angle performed Jerome Robbins In G Major. The performance was impeccable and Ms. Mearns gave a master class in artistry for all the young budding ballerinas. She would surrender to Mr. Angle’s embrace only to pull away moments later. There was an emotional intimacy that ran through piece an electric undercurrent, pulsing and alive.

Mathias Heymann from the Paris Opera Ballet performed a solo from Rudolph Nureyev’s Manfred, a ballet Nureyev choreographed in 1979 about Lord Byron’s life and poetry, set to Tchaikovsky’s ”Manfred Symphony.” Mr. Heymann was poetry in motion himself, he possessed the right amount of emotion and sense of drama the role requires. His dancing was so smooth and lyrical I could not take my eyes off him for a moment.

Derek Hough’s World Premiere of his Ameska was a resounding success. A quartet for Misty Copeland, who danced en pointe and three male Ballroom Guest Artists, Paul Barris, Alexander Demkin and Roman Kutsky. Ms. Copeland is sent sliding on her point shoes from one man to the next while the men proceeded with hips swiveling and a thrust or two. The men handled Ms. Copeland expertly, lifting and exchanging, carry her all together are one at a time. A brilliant performance of a brilliant work and my only regret was that Mr. Hough did not dance…

Matthias Heymann (Paris Opera Ballet) in Solo from Manfred. Choreography by Rudolph Nureyev. Photo by Siggul/VAM.

Lucia Lacarra and Marlon Dino from the Bavarian State Ballet performed one of the best White Swan Pas de Deux from Swan Lake I have ever seen. It ranked up there with Natalia Makarova’s performance of the duet with Ivan Nagy. Ms. Lacarra made an exquisite swan, she was ethereal, a creature of myth and dreams.

This audience truly appreciates a great balletic performance and they let the couple know it. Everyone was on their feet and gave the couple several curtain calls. I am richer for having experienced it, thank you…

Nicole Loizides and Steven Ezra from Momix performed Moses Pendleton’s Millenium Skiva. This was my first introduction to both Momix and the work of Mr. Pendleton but I certainly hope not my last. The lights come up with two figures in shiny silver bodysuits and when they start to move and unfold their bodies you discover they are on skis. It was perplexing, intriguing and wonderful…

The Youth America Grand Prix is the world’s largest student ballet scholarship competition that awards over $250,000 annually in scholarships to leading dance schools worldwide. The competition is held annually around the world and in New York City, and is open to dance students of all nationalities 9-19 years old.

Launched in 1999 by two former dancers of the world-renowned Bolshoi Ballet, Larissa and Gennadi Saveliev, YAGP is also a 501(C)(3) non-profit organization created with a mission to provide extraordinary educational and professional opportunities to young dancers, acting as a stepping stone to a professional dance career.

There has been a radical shift in ballet, a change of attitude, where nothing is sacrosanct. Gone are the days when the great White Ballets…Swan Lake, Giselle, Sleeping Beauty… were just that…ballets with the ballerina in white tutus and the men standing behind them as the handsome and charming prince.

Today, those great White Ballets have been envisioned, reinterpreted, updated for an era where free time is spent either in front of the television, or on-line searching the web, or as is the case at my house, usually both…

Matt Ek created his essentially non-romantic vision of Giselle, perhaps the most romantic of the romantic ballets, Christopher-Jean Maillot’s LAC (after Swan Lake) is a highly stylized Swan Lake full of intrigue, fashion and rewriting of several of the key characters…

Ballet Preljocaj in Angelin Preljocaj’s “Blanche Neige” (Snow White). Photo: Jean-Claude Carbonne

Even the tales of Lewis Carroll and the Brothers Grimm have been dusted off and made current, such as Christopher Wheeldon’s tongue-in-cheek and brilliantly humorous Alice in Wonderland and Liam Scarlett’s dark, adult-take on Hansel and Gretel.

Now, Angelin Preljocaj (pronounced prel-zho-kahj) has joined this merry band of minstrels with his Snow White. He also brought along Jean-Paul Gaultier for costumes and Thierry Leproust for the sets, along with the 24 dancers of his Ballet Preljocaj at the David H. Koch Theater, April 23-27, 2014.

Mr. Preljocaj’s Snow White is complete with wicked step-mother, a mirror, mirror on the wall, poison apple, dwarfs and a handsome prince. In the program notes Mr. Preljocaj refers to the ballet as an Oedipus in reverse and the story unfolds though the use of different Mahler scores that are mixed with electronic music by 79D.

Snow White’s mother is seen pregnant, then we see an infant Snow White, then adolescent and finally as a young woman wearing a rather scandalous costume of white fabric that is gathered at the neck and waist but leaves the sides of her body exposed, very Martha Graham in her Greek period. Some have said the color white is to suggest Snow White’s purity, her virginity, her innocence…perhaps so, but I mean, she’s Snow White…what was Gaultier supposed to dress her in, an Orange is New Black jumper…..

Nagisa Shirai portrayed Snow White as a young woman who is venerable but also more than willing to seduce The Prince, Sergio Diaz…not really a surprise for it seem they had been making moon-eyes at each other since childhood

Anna Tatarova, clothed in a floor length black coat, deliciously lined in red and complete with thigh-high boots with a stiletto heel, how else would a  ruthless step-mother – slash – Queen dress…she would convincingly portray the caring mother figure, all worry and concern for her dear little step-daughter, then vile and evil to Snow White when everyone’s back was turned…

Ballet Preljocaj in Angelin Preljocaj’s “Blanche Neige” (Snow White). Photo: Jean-Claude Carbonne

Poor Snow White was not feed a poison apple but a poison apple was rammed/shoved/stuffed down her throat by Ms. Tatarova. Ms. Tatarova was not taking any chances.

The best scene in the whole production is when the dwarves …how can you have Snow White without dwarves….. Thierry Leproust had brilliantly transformed the back wall into a mountainside complete with caves…the dwarves timidly stuck their heads out, there are anywhere from 6 to 12 feet from the stage floor and then begin to climb down the wall with the use of a clever suspension cabling device. The dwarves, all men of small stature who were the perfect size for dwarves, walked down the side of the wall then back up it, they would jump and spin. Some going up, some going down, then running back up the wall, turn around and run back down. I must say it, it was sheer genuis.

Angelin Preljocaj’s Snow White, performed by Ballet Preljocaj was perhaps one of the best performances I have seen this year….I think the Joyce Foundation for having the foresight to bring such a brave and innovated work to New York City…

Cincinnati Ballet in Val Caniparoli’s “Caprice”. Photo: Amy Harris

After a 35-year absence, Cincinnati Ballet, led by Artistic Director Victoria Morgan, made its Joyce Theater debut featuring three New York premieres, May 6-11, 2014.  The program included Hummingbird in a Box, set to seven new songs by Grammy Award-winning Peter Frampton, Chasing Squirrel, a daring and eccentric work by Trey McIntyre, and Caprice, a new ballet by Val Caniparoli.

Now, it must be stated from the onset that the dancers of the Cincinnati Ballet are not good….they are very good, they are strong, polished and flow across the stage like butter on a toasted bagel…….smooth……..

Cincinnati Ballet in Adam Hougland’s “Hummingbird in a Box”. Photo: Amy Harris

Hummingbird in a Box is a work for eight dancers which feature seven new compositions by Grammy Award-winning Peter Frampton and Grammy Award-winning producer/songwriter Gordon Kennedy. Choreographed by Cincinnati Ballet’s resident choreographer, Adam Hougland, Hummingbird in a Box was given its World Premiere last year in Cincinnati.

The piece started with the full cast in The Promenade’s Retreat, the choreography for this section was smooth and lyrical, Mr. Frampton’s score and the movement well married. For One for 901, a trio for James Cunningham, Liang Fu and James Gilmer the choreography was more aggressive, the men bare-chested and wearing tight-fitting white jeans. Friendly Fire began with a solo by Patric Palkens who attacked it with challenging leaps and turns. He received enthusiastic applauds when he finished.

I have read the less than enthusiastic comments by the established press (insert air quotes here…)  in regards to Mr. Hougland’s choreography for Hummingbird in a Box…The established press ( again please insert air quotes here…) referred to the piece as a bafflingly vapid work…which is odd…That’s exactly what I thought while I was reading that write-up, bafflingly & vapid …did they see the same piece I did??? Oh, well…. per usual they mutter, complain & gripe…never liking anything…and they wonder why dance has a problem getting an audience…for the record, I disagree with everything that write-up (and again insert air quotes here…) said, for I thought Hummingbird in a Box delightful from beginning to end, I thoroughly enjoyed the work and recommend any who can to see it. You will not be disappointed…A special shout out needs to be given to Lighting Designer Trad A. Burns… for it was the lighting that put the bow on the box…thank you Mr. Burns…

Val Caniparoli’s Caprice is set to selections from Paganini’s Caprices for Solo Violin. The work is shown in nine sections, for each section a violinist, either Haoli Lin and Yabing Tang, would come on stage and play while the dancers performed. The work is a collection of duets, trios and book-ended by sections that included the full cast.

Cincinnati Ballet in Val Caniparoli’s “Caprice”. Photo: Amy Harris

It’s a neo-classical work that employs a contemporary voice reliant on the classical vocabulary. Watching it I was reminded of Balanchine’s Leotard Ballets, plotless, focus is on the sculptural aspects of the body and its transitions from movement to movement. It was a fun work and beautifully danced.

When Trey McIntyre’s Chasing Squirrel began I did not know what to think. At first the music, selections from Kronos Quartet’s Nuevo, was so irritating I hated everything about it, but as the work progressed the novelty of both the piece and the music wins you over.

The Men of the Cincinnati Ballet in Val Caniparoli’s “Caprice”. Photo: Amy Harris

Chasing Squirrel is just fun, near naked guys, well one is naked except for a hat strategically placed, are both fascinated and intimated by the women who, from the Mexican inspired music, seem employed in some low rent brothel down south of the border…way south.

The women were tantalizingly in all black almost see-through tube tops and low hip-hugging miniskirts, their hair teased out into something resembling a well-cared for rat’s nest. The men first seen only in very white briefs then in red (almost but not really) Zoot suits and throughout the work run on and off the stage in varying states of being dressed and undressed.

Cincinnati Ballet in Trey McIntyre’s “Chasing Squirrel”. Photo: Amy Harris

The women proudly own the night and the stage, the men try for their attention like a peacock pruning, slicking back their hair, straightening their shirts and jackets, each wants to out do the other while not being obvious about it. One man pants another man as he is chatting up one of the girls. The pants man runs off stage in embarrassment.

The women are flung, swung and dragged but you always get the sense that the women are the ones in control. The choreography is highly musical, very flirtatious and pure energy that never seems to stop once it starts. I so hope I get to see this piece again…

Now, I have several major complaints, first is the fact that it took 35 years for the Cincinnati Ballet to once again perform in NYC. Let’s hope it’s not another 35 years before we see them again. I also hate the fact that Cincinnati is not closer to NYC, if it were I would be front and center every time the company performed.

Cincinnati Ballet in Trey McIntyre’s “Chasing Squirrel”. Photo: Amy Harris

But what really bummed me out is that I did not get to see Cervilio Miguel Amador perform, not once, not one pirouette, one jeté or one hair toss. Mr. Amador only performed four times in one piece, Chasing Squirrel, during the Joyce engagement and not on the night I attended. I was surprised for Mr. Amador is featured prominently in the videos and press photos for the Cincinnati Ballet that I had received. Well, here’s hoping he is well and uninjured and comes back to NYC soon.

Cincinnati Ballet is visiting New York City as part of CINCY in NYC, a seven-day showcase of the best of the “Queen of the West’s” performing arts, including Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music’s (CCM) jazz alumni performing at Lincoln Center, Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, The Ariel Quartet, and other performing arts related events to be presented around Manhattan.  Visit www.cincyinnyc.com for more information.

Clifton Brown in Fredrick Earl Mosley’s ‘Dedications (Except)’ for the 4th Annual Dance Against Cancer. Photo: Christopher Duggan

For the last four years 150 dancers from 20 companies have been seen in sixty pieces and raised over $550,000 for the fight against Cancer. Produced by Erin Fogarty and Daniel Ulbricht who have partnered with the American Cancer Society, this year Dance Against Cancer bought together dancers from the New York City Ballet, American Ballet Theater, Miami City Ballet, Boston Ballet, Lar Lubovitch, Paul Taylor and a special performance by the legendary ballerina Alessandra Ferri.

The evening started with a moving audio collage of the dancers saying who they were, their company affiliation and how Cancer has affected their lifes. Mr. Ulbricht ‘s mother is currently battling uterine cancer, both the fathers of Ms. Fogarty and Christopher Wheeldon’s were taken all to soon because of cancer (and I, myself lost my Aunt Elaine from Breast Cancer)…it was a moving tribute to those who have survived or fighting their own private battles with cancer…

Works by Balanchine, Justin Peck, Christopher Wheeldon, Paul Taylor and John Kobborg we performed as well world premieres given of works by Brian Reeder, Greg Graham and Gregory Porter.

Charles “Lil Buck” Riley, the Memphis Junkin’ sensation opened the evening with the help of the National Dance Institute that was founded by Jacques d’Amboise. The National Dance Institute gives the New York City public school children access to dance through weekly classes, short-term residencies, and public performances at no cost.

The National Dance Institute for the 4th Annual Dance Against Cancer. Photo: Christopher Duggan

The piece, In Memory of (Excerpt) was conceived and staged by Damien Woetzel and it was a very lively opening with eighteen kids running down both aisles of the AXA Equitable Theater and then jumping on stage. Charles “Lil Buck” Riley soon joins them and improvs around and through the kids. But, It is one little mite of a girl wearing a yellow tee-shirt that stole the show….she danced with such verge and vigor, total commitment…she’s a natural dancer…I see a star in the making….

The evening was filled with stellar performances of unbelievable magnitude. Misa Kuranaga from the Boston Ballet and James Whiteside from ABT performed Balanchine’s Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux. The pas is a beautiful and grand piece that allowed Ms. Kurana’s lyricism and musicality to shine.

Robert Kleinendorst, Micheal Tusonevec, James Samson & Sean Mahoney in the ‘Men’s Quartet’ from Paul Taylor’s ‘Cloven Kingdom’ for the 4th Annual Dance Against Cancer. Photo: Christopher Duggan

Clifton Brown from the Lar Lubovitch Dance Company gave an inspired and emotionally charged performance of an excerpt from Fredrick Earl Mosley’s Dedications. It was absolutely the best performance I have seen from Mr. Brown. Bravo Mr. Brown…

Paul Taylor dancers, Michael Tusonevec, Robert Kleinendorst, James Samson and Sean Mahoney performed the Men’s Quartet from Mr. Taylor’s Cloven Kingdom. Four men in tux and tails perform with such athleticism and bravura, this mixed with Paul Taylor’s unique brand of sardonic humor…how could one go wrong…

Violinist Karl Nikkanen with Daniel Ulbricht in Johan Kobborg’s ‘Les Lutin’ for the 4th Annual Dance Against Cancer. Photo: Christopher Duggan

Mr. Ulbricht and ABT’s Hernan Cornejo (two of my favorite male dancers in the world…) brought the house done performing Johan Kobborg’s Les Lutins. Mr. Ulbricht struts on stage wearing a shirt and tie with pants and suspenders, he seems very assured of himself. The work is set to Wieniawski’s Caprice and Bazzini’s Ronde des lutins and performed on stage by Michael Scales on piano and Kurt Nikkanen playing violin.

As the musicians begin to play Mr. Ulbricht responds to the rapidity of the music with a succession of petit allégro and quick double tours.  There is playful one-up-manship between the musicians and Mr. Ulbricht, each seems to be challenging the other to be bolder, to be better.

Hernan Cornejo & Daniel Ulbricht with violinist Karl Nikkanen in Johan Kobborg’s ‘Les Lutin’ for the 4th Annual Dance Against Cancer. Photo: Christopher Duggan

Mr. Cornejo appears from the wings and Mr. Ulbricht surrenders the stage to him as if to say, “hey, think you can do better, give it a try”. Mr. Cornejo proceeds with quick pique turns, several double tours then the same petit allégro sequence as done by Mr. Ulbricht earlier, he then stops, looks at Mr. Ulbricht as if to say…”see, no big deal”…then comes a throw-down between the two of virtuosity and athleticism. Johan Kobborg’s Les Lutins is a well revered work…you have to be not good, but exceptional to do the work justice and Mr. Ulbricht and Mr. Cornejo did that then some…

American Ballet Theater’s Gillian Murphy and Jared Angle’s performance of the Don Quixote Pas de Deux was stellar. Mr. Murphy executed perhaps the most impressive set of fouettés I have yet  to see, with a Spanish fan a-flutter each fouetté was a double where it’s usually a single turn with a double thrown in for every other turn….brought the house down…….

The evening closed with a poignant performance of Christopher Wheeldon’s After the Rain, performed by the legendary Italian ballerina Alessandra Ferri and NYCB’s Craig Hall. Seeing Ms. Ferri in performance was a dream come true. Her artistry is such that I can only say that her performance was something I will remember for a lifetime

Leonard Ajkun’s ‘Revolution’ & the Akjun Ballet at MMAC. Photo: Rachel Neville

I am a big science-fiction buff…well, geek really…I practically live for the stuff…diligently watch TV’s Continuum and I am anxiously awaiting the return of the Syfy channel’s Deviance …I’ve read all the Dune books, devoured all of Jack Campbell’s The Lost Fleet Series…and the list goes on…What can I say, I am just waiting for Scotty to beam me up…So when I heard that the Ajkun Ballet was premiering Leonard Ajkun’s newest, science-fiction contemporary ballet Revolution at the Manhattan Movement and Arts Center, well I had to be there.

The Ajkun Ballet has been on my list of companies to see for a while. The company was founded in New York City in 2000 to support the creative vision of Artistic Directors Leonard and Chiara Ajkun, Ajkun Ballet Theatre presents classic and contemporary ballets with a roster of 35 Artists, and an average of five new programs each year.

Leonard Ajkun’s ‘Revolution’ & the Akjun Ballet at MMAC. Photo: Rachel Neville

Mr. Ajkun’s choreography gives strong evidence of Russian influences, both from the Vaganova Methodology and the Bolshoi’s, his early tutelage was under Bolshoi Ballet teachers. It lies in his approach to story-telling and in his application of balletic steps, in his manner of movement combinations and in the use of the body in space.

Revolution began in darkness, the sound of thunder heard, dancers run on and off the stage in torn and ragged costumes holding pieces of plastic or cardboard over their heads. The choreography is clever and athletic, dancers hoping across the stage like insects.

Brittany Larrimer dances in a manner that enables you to find her when she is on stage, strong, confident and assured. Ms. Larrimer strength and confidence when paired with Morgan C. Stinnett natural lyricism made for a very interesting combination. Each feed of the other’s energies…both gave delightful performances.

Ramon Thielen commands your attention whenever he is on stage, he portrayed the Spirit Guide. He was mysterious, intense and kind of scary. He appears in a hooded cloak with a long pole that he places before him majestically, he wears a gold chain from his ear to his nose. His solo was a subdued form of Kathak, a Classical Indian dance form created for story-telling in ancient northern India, his foot carefully placed, his arms extended palms first.

Morgan C Stinnett & Brittany Larrimer in Leonard Ajkun’s ‘Revolution’ at MMAC. Photo: Rachel Neville

Momoko Sasada and Marcello Bernard performed a superb duet. Mr. Bernard comes on stage with a small white music box, a revered treasure from another age. When he opens it, the ballerina, Ms. Sasada begins to dance, first stiff and toy-like then with grace and lyricism. She is such a beautiful dancer, emotional and at times so fragile while at others impish and playful. Mr. Bernard dazzled us with his extraordinary leaps and his strong masculine presence, the perfect yin to Ms. Sasada’s feminine yang. Bravo to both…

Luca Rimolo has to be mentioned, he is mite of a fellow, slight, thin and long limbed…I worried a strong wind would sweep him off stage…but that opinion changed quickly when he performed an all too brief solo. First, Mr. Rimolo has an exquisite line, plus he is a natural dancer, movement flows through him with great fluidity. Secondly, he is fearless with a natural presence that makes you sit up and take notice of him when he begins to dance. Bravo Mr. Rimolo…

Marcello Bernard & Momoko Sasada in Leonard Ajkun’s ‘Revolution’ at MMAC. Photo: Rachel Neville

Leonard Ajkun’s Revolution is an interesting work, is it perfect, no…but what new work is. His idea is interesting as is the way he presents his visuals, but something was lacking, it needing more. Perhaps a dramaturge would help; his story-line needed developing, given a depth that was absent. The storyline was also convoluted and at times hard to follow. I did not understand how some sections of the dance related to others, I realized that the Music Box duet was a remembrance of happier times before chaos befell mankind. Yet, at the same time I could not grasp how a woman appearing in a red dress or a section where a photographer seemed be shooting a fashion spread tied in with the whole. Nor did I grasp, though I enjoyed it, how Mr. Thielen moving in a Kathak manner related to the whole…

The work needs more of an ambience of devastation, of ensued chaos….I wanted to see a back drop or projections of catastrophic end-of-the-world imagery.  I said I was a science fiction geek; I wanted the destruction and mayhem that was seen during Planet of the Apes, both the original and the Mark Wahlberg remake, the destroyed cities, the Statue of Liberty lying broken on its side.

I hope Mr. Ajkun continues to sharpen his vision of an apocalyptic world that has been ravaged by mankind’s own greed and arrogance. The story ballets are on a huge upswing and Revolution deserves a place of pride in that genre…but with some polishing….

MONA LISA

Choreography: Itzik Galili

Musical concept & composition: Thomas Höfs with Itzik Galili

Costumes: Natasja Lansen

World premiere: February 22, 2003, Stuttgart Ballet

Dancers: Alicia Amatriain & Jason Reilly

Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo

Choreography: Leart Duraku

Dancers:

Beatriz Uhalte Cisneros, Anjara Ballesteros,George Oliveira, Christian Tworzyanski, Alexis Oliveira, Daniele Delvecchio & Ediz Erguc.

The piece was created for “Les Imprévu”,  The Young Choreographers’ showcase and are collaborations made with the Scenography students from the city of Monaco’s Pavilion Bosio Art School.

Boston Ballet’s Whitney Jensen & Jeffrey Cirio Alexander Ekman’s “Cacti” Photo: ©Rosalie O’Connor

When the curtain opens for the Alexander Ekman’s “Cacti”, part of Program 2 of the Boston Ballet’s 50th-Anniversary Season at the David H. Koch Theater in Lincoln Center…well, at first you may not be sure what to think…I know I didn’t! Two dancers, a man and a woman are moving very slowly with their backs to the audience. An audio collage (taped text by Spenser Theberge that seems to be deliberately pretentious) is playing, you hear a conversation that the dancers are not speaking but perhaps thinking…”Hi Anna’,  “hey Lenny”…”how are you”…”good”…they then began to discuss how to proceed with the duet….he says “Um, put your feet here” then she says “ no you come over here”…this flows into some unusual assortment of body arrangements while they continue to discuss the value and merits of these various moves and how to transition into and out of them…You find yourself being pulled in, you’re not sure why or even how….but just like that you are totally vested….

Somehow, I’m still unsure how but remember being delighted, the duet and its clever dialogue has transitioned to 16 dancers kneeling on large white Scrabble tiles while a string quartet is evenly spaced behind them. The dancers are kneeling in a quasi-samurai position, sitting back on their heels, bodies upright and knees spread apart. Using their hands the dancers start pounding out rhythms on the tiles that grow with complexity, you hear the occasionally voiced “HEY!”….The musicians that were playing behind them are now moving amongst them, all the while the kinetic energy and the saccadic rhythms continue to build in intensity.

Boston Ballet in Alexander Ekman’s “Cacti” Photo: ©Rosalie O’Connor

This is Alexander Ekman, the young and much in demand Swedish choreography, he is known for his fast paced timing, witty humor, clever transitions and intentional sarcasm. His works are not so much dance pieces but rather dance-theater experiences; you will experience a visceral reaction, before you will be a visible merger of intellect and emotion, but, well, let’s just say with a little tongue-in-cheek thrown in. It is obvious the Mr. Ekman does not take himself too seriously, that is the brilliance of his work.

His deconstructed choreography is entirely his and reflects how he sees the use of the body in space. You will perhaps note the influences for Forsythe and Kylián or even a hint of Leon Lightfoot. But in today’s world of dance and art how can they not be reflected, it would be like denying the influence of Mozart or Haydn in classical music. He has danced with Royal Swedish Ballet, the Cullberg Ballet and the Leon Lightfoot I just mentioned can only be from his tenure as a dancer and choreographer with NDT II.

Rhythms are as important to his work as is the dancing itself, the breath that lends life, sound and syncopation are woven though his work like thread in a tapestry. Did I mention sarcasm, well there is that, a good dose…after the close of Alexander Ekman’s Cacti, when I was exiting the theatre I realized the this work, for all of its subtle, open-handed, sly and outright commentary was probably the most entertaining diatribe on existentialism ever…well, ok…perhaps not a diatribe…for the sake of getting along I’ll call it a primer on existentialism….

Alexander Ekman in his years as a choreographer has proved to be an artistic multitalented. He often makes film productions. Though usually integrated in his choreographies, these productions also create more and more interest on their own. In 2009 Ekman created the dance film 40 Meters Under for and with Cullberg Ballet, which was broadcasted on National Swedish television. That autumn he collaborated with the Swedish renowned choreographer Mats Ek on video projections for Ek’s play Håll Plats. Ekman also created an installation for the Modern Museum in Stockholm with dancers of Cullberg Ballet.

Boston Ballet in Alexander Ekman’s “Cacti” Photo: ©Rosalie O’Connor

Alexander Ekman was born in Stockholm in 1984. He trained at the Operans Balettelevskola 1994-2001. From 2001-2002 he danced at the Royal Opera House in Stockholm. He then joined Netherlands Dans Theater II 2002-2005. During his dance career he worked with choreographers such as Jiří Kylián, Hans van Manen, Nacho Duato, Johan Inger and Mats Ek.

Between 2005-2006 Alexander joined Cullberg Ballet where he had his first breakthrough receiving a prize at the international choreographic competition in Hannover for his piece The Swingle Sisters, for which he also claimed the critics’ prize. In the same year he was chosen as one of the dancers to create a work; Unknown art? for Cullberg Växtverk  project, which was performed in Stockholm and Malmö in April 2006. During autumn of the same year Alexander created choreography, set and music to Flock Work for NDT II, which premiered in November 2006 and became his international breakthrough as a choreographer.

Boston Ballet’s John Lam in Forsythe’s The Second Detail. Photo: Gene Schiavone

The Boston Ballet, led by its Artistic Director Mikko Nissinen pulled out all the stops for the 50^th Anniversary Season at the David H. Koch in New York City’s Lincoln Center. Mr Nissinen presented a company rich with tradition, talent and vision. The company’s 50^th Anniversary Season offered two exciting programs and as an added treat, live music was provided by the Boston Symphony Orchestra.  

Altan Dugurra gave an honest and intriguing performance as the faun in Vaslav Nijinsky’s Afternoon of a Faun. As the curtain rose you witnessed the beauty of Russian painter Leon Bakst’s original costumes and sets. That moment when the oboe is heard at the beginning of Claude Debussy’s Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune, the Boston Symphony Orchestra captivated us all.

Seeing Vaslav Nijinsky’s original choreography you recognize just how revolutionary was the work. With the body always in profile, feet turned in, Nijinsky’s staging was intentionally to the imagery found on ancient Greek vase paintings. All though the company also has Jerome Robbins’ version in its repertory I am glad that this was the one selected to be shown.

During Finnish choreographer Jorma Elo’s Plan to B you eyed followed Whitney Jensen whenever she was on stage. She dances with such crisp technique combined with an inner fire that watching her you knew you were in the presence of an artist at the height of her powers.

Boston Ballet’s in Vaslav Nijinsky’s Afternoon of a Faun. Photo: Rosalie O’Connor

Mr. Elo has been Boston Ballet’s resident choreographer since 2005 and his choreography tends to be fast paced and highly athletic. Plan to B, set to the Baroque music of Heinrich von Biber is an extreme abstract work in regards to the use of the body in space. The choreography is ripe with classical movement interspersed with contemporary elements, limbs fold at sharp angles and unique movement phrases highlight the work. It is intensely musical, the body and the score seem to meld into a singular vision.

In William Forsythe’s The Second Detail stillness is a vital as motion, abstract, dramatic and challenging, it is work of great daring and intelligence. The saccadic rhythm of Thorn Willems score drives the dancers through every move, every step.

Mr. Forsythe’s 1991 work begins with 13 dancers wearing light blue leotards and tights. Hips jut to the side followed by a running slide and then a leg kicked incredible high, on the floor downstage center is a sign with the word “THE.”

The movement vocabulary is without a doubt classical, tendu’s and port du bras are everywhere, but it is studded with repetitive off-kilter moves, the body tilting and/or the torso used in a sometimes awkward rubbery manner.

The dancers settle on benches that line the back of the stage, two will sit and stare straight head while four others move in unison slightly off to their left. Again stillness is as important as movement in the piece where a dancer or dancers will momentarily stop, breath, and then begins to move once more.

The work is composed of group pieces, duets, trios and sudden solos.  On one side of the stage three may be moving in unison while on the other side an intricate solo is being performed. This solo may stop, the dancer choosing to move to the back to sit down or it may evolve into a duet or trio with other dancers joining the first.

Walking on, off and about the stage gives a pedestrian feel, a feel that makes it seem current and of the moment. A dancer may dazzle us with an intricate solo of leaps and turns only to suddenly stop and simple walk nonchalantly away.

The work ends when one dancer kicks over the sign labeled “THE”. The fact that you must be a skilled technician to even attempt Forsythe’s choreography is an understatement. The fact that the dancers of the Boston Ballet can tackle it and other choreographers whose work is just as complex and intricate is a statement to their talent and training.

Anna Nikulina & Artem Ovcharenko in the Bolshoi Ballet’s “Swan Lake” presented by Lincoln Center Festival 2014. Photo: Stephanie Berger

I was like a kid let loss in a candy store when I took my seat for the Bolshoi Ballet’s production of Swan Lake at the David H. Koch Theater, part of the Lincoln Center Festival 2014. (Bolshoi is pronounced “bolshoy” and literally translates as “great ballet.”)  As a person obsessed with dance history the sheer magnitude of what I was witnessing was not lost on me.

No matter how many times it is performed, who may or may not have alter/added/modified Petipa-Ivanov’s original choreography…the simple fact is that, like or not, Swan Lake is as Russian as Kvass and Beef Stroganoff. No matter who staged it, no matter who is dancing Odette/Odile or where it is being performed, whether the Paris Opera, the Royal or American Ballet Theater…Swan Lake is as Russian as it gets. Now was Yuri Grigorovich’s libretto and his added choreography a help or a hindrance….well, we’ll get to that later.

Artem Ovcharenko as Prince Siegfried in the Bolshoi Ballet’s “Swan Lake”, presented by Lincoln Center Festival 2014. Photo: Stephanie Berger

When the curtain rises you cannot but be impressed with the Bolshoi’s scenography. A backdrop highlighted with in shades of brown and gold allows the blues and reds capes of the attendees of a ball to stand out. The creative vision behind the set and costumes is Simon Virsaladze (1908-1989).

The dancing was spectacular, impeccable trained dancers whose crisp, clear technique shined. Most of the Principal Dancers of the Bolshoi Ballet graduated from the Moscow State Academy of Choreography, commonly known as the Bolshoi Ballet Academy, the affiliate school of the Bolshoi Ballet. Founded as an orphanage by order of Catherine II in 1763, it wasn’t until 1773 that the first dance classes were taught at the home.

With its 235 year history, the academy has produced some of the most accomplished dancers of the 20th century, including Maya Plisetskaya, Vladimir Vasiliev, Galina Ulanov, to the stars of the current generation, including Nina Ananiashvili, Vladimir Malakhov, Natalia Osipova, Alexei Ratmansky, Polina Semionova, and Nikolay Tsiskaridze, the Academy and its graduates continue to earn the highest honors and acclaims in the international dance world.

Anna Nikulina interpretation as Odette/Odile was nothing short of brilliant. Ms. Nikulina’s Odette gave a figure that was both hopeful yet possessed a sense of impending tragedy. You felt her want/need to trust Artem Ovcharenko’s Prince Siegfried. During the Grand Pas de deux in Act II, you can feel her hesitance, her fear, her emotional response to the Prince when he takes her arms to assist her from the floor. You see the beauty of her training and her exquisite line as she extends her leg in preparation for a whip turn, the prince holding her waist while turning, assisting her as the turn ends in an elongated penché.

Anna Nikulina & Artem Ovcharenko in the Bolshoi Ballet’s “Swan Lake”, presented by Lincoln Center Festival 2014. Photo: Stephanie Berger

Ms. Nikulina is Odette, the Swan Queen who informs the young prince that she and the other girls were turned into swans and that the lake was formed by the tears of their parents’ weeping. She tells him that the only way the spell could be broken is if a man, pure in heart, pledges his love to her. Hence her need to trust…

The Prince, about to confess his love for her, is quickly interrupted by the Evil Genius, portrayed by Denis Rodkin. (In the original Swan Lake, the sorcerer von Rothbart was responsible for the spell that turned Odette and the other girls into swans. The sorcerer in the Bolshoi’s version is instead an Evil Genius who, like an evil shadow, lurks behind the Prince at every opportunity.)Mr. Rodkin pulls Odette from Prince Siegfried’s embrace and commands all of the swan maidens into the lake so that he prince cannot chase them. Prince Siegfried is left all alone on the lake’s shore….

The Fool, Denis Medvedev portrayed with an impish, boyish charm and was unafraid to antagonize and ridicule the Mr. Rodkin as the Evil Genius . He exited and entered with a silly grin on his face, his leaps gave impressive height and his turns were always on point. He was one of my favorite dancers during the whole production.

The Cygnets’ Dance, the pas de quatre also from the Second Act is, besides the Grand Pas from Act II, one of the most recognized pieces in ballet today. Its music automatically brings to mind four women as the bourrée across the stage with hands locked across each other waist. It is here, also in the Grand Pas from the Second Act, that are both fairly true to Petipa- Ivanov’s choreography. This is where you see the differences in Swan Lake’s choreography by Petipa-Ivanov and that by Yuri Grigorovich, the company’s artistic director from 1964 to 1995 now as the Bolshoi’s ballet master.

Denis Rodkin & Artem Ovcharenko in the Bolshoi Ballet’s “Swan Lake”, presented by Lincoln Center Festival 2014. Photo: Stephanie Berger

Where Petipa has a natural musicality, a free-flowing use of limbs that accentuate the melody, Mr. Grigorovich’s choreography was choppy and seemed forced while also lacking any natural musicality. Did it allow for impressive tricks and athletic feats of dance, yes, but at what cost….

Another point of contention was the ending. Once Odette discovers that she has been betrayed and the Prince who has been tricked by the Evil Genius and she finds that he has confessed undying love to Odile (the Black Swan who has been made to look like Odette via magic) she flees back to the lake. The Prince follows after he uncovers the plot to trick him runs to the lake only as Odette is dying. The Prince is left alone by the lake. It was  so anticlimactic and lacked any of the drama the ballet deserved.

One of the great treats of the evening was the Bolshoi Orchestra, led by Conductor Pavel Sorokin. The musicians filled the theater with rich sounds and subtle harmonies. It was indeed was real treat.

Born in Kansas City, Missouri and raised in San Pedro, California, Misty Copeland began her ballet studies at the age of 13 at the San Pedro Dance Center. At the age of fifteen she won first place in the Music Center Spotlight Awards. She then began her studies at the Lauridsen Ballet Center. Copeland has studied at the San Francisco Ballet School and American Ballet Theatre’s Summer Intensive on full scholarship and was declared ABT’s National Coca-Cola Scholar in 2000. She has danced Kitri in Don Quixote and the Sugar Plum Fairy and Clara in The Nutcracker.

Copeland joined ABT’s Studio Company in September 2000 and then joined American Ballet Theatre as a member of the corps de ballet in April 2001 and was appointed a Soloist in August 2007. 

Four Programs in Two Week

With Live Orchestra

The Mikhailovsky Ballet’s Natalia Osipova & Ivan Vasiliev in Don Quixote. Photo: Stas Levshin

Ardani Artist presents for the first time in the United States The Mikhailovsky Ballet of St. Petersburg, Russia for a special two week engagement November 11 – 23, 2014 at the David H. Koch Theatre (Lincoln Center) NYC.  There will be four programs for this premiere engagement performed with a live orchestra. The Mikhailovsky Ballet USA engagement is supported by the Russian Ministry of Culture.

The Mikhailovsky Ballet’s Angelina Vorontsova in Giselle, ou Les Wilis. Photo: Nikolay Krusser

GISELLE, OU LES WILIS

Fantasy Ballet in Two Acts

Music: Aldophe Adam

Choreography: Jean Coralli, Jules Perrot & Marius Petipa

Nov. 11, 7:30 pm: Natalia Osipova, Leonid Sarafanov

Nov. 12, 2:00 pm: Kristina Shapran, Victor Lebedev

Nov. 12, 7:30 pm:Angelina Vorontsova, Ivan Vasiliev

Nov. 13, 7:30 pm: Natalia Osipova, Leonid Sarafanov

The Mikhailovsky Ballet in The Flames of Paris. Photo: Stas Levshin

THE FLAMES OF PARIS

Ballet in Three Acts

Music: Boris Asafiev

Choreography: Vasily Vaynonen revised by Mikhail Messerer.

Nov. 14, 7:30 pm: Oksana Bondareva, Ivan Vasiliev

Nov. 15, 2:00 pm: Angelina Vorontsova, Ivan Zaytsev

Nov. 15, 7:30 pm: Oksana Bondareva, Ivan Vasiliev

Nov. 16, 2:00 pm: Angelina Vorontsova, Ivan Vasiliev

Premiere: 1932, Kirov Theatre, St. Petersburg with Natalia Dudinskaya as Mireille de Poitiers

The Mikhailovsky Ballet in Nacho Duato’s Prelude. Photo: Nikolay Krusser

Three Centuries of Russian Ballet

Three Ballets in One Act

LE HALTE DE CAVALERIE    THE LADY AND THE HOOLIGAN    PRELUDE

Nov. 18 &19, 7:30 pm  Natalia Osipova & Ivan Vasiliev

The Mikhailovsky Ballet’s Oksana Bondareva & Leonid Sarafanov in Don Quixote. Photo: Stas Levshin

DON QUIXOTE

Ballet in Three Acts & a Prologue

Music: Ludwig Minkus

Choreography: Marius Petipa & Alexander Gorsky

Nov. 20, 7:30 pm  Natalia Osipova, Ivan Vasiliev

Nov. 21, 7:30 pm  Angelina Vorontsova, Victor Lebedev

Nov. 22, 2:00 pm  Oksana Bondareva, Leonid Sarafanov

Nov. 22, 8:00 pm  Angelina Vorontsova, Ivan Vasiliev

Nov. 23, 7:30 pm  Natalia Osipova, Ivan Vasiliev

Premiere: 1869 by the Imperial Bolshoi Theatre Ballet

The Mikhailovsky Ballet in Marius Petipa’s Le Halte de cavalerie (Premiered at the Mariinsky Theatre in 1896). Photo by Sveta Tarlova

Tickets

Orchestra & 1st Ring $29, $55, $89, $129 & $149

2nd & 3rd Ring $29, $55, $89 $129

4th Ring $55, $89, & $129.

Available are 25 Premium ticket packages for each performance

(Best in the Orchestra, Souvenir Program, a Glass of Champagne, Meet Company Members)

Buy 2 programs get a 10% discount; 3 programs with a 20% discount.

Tickets can be purchased at the box office

Or by Phone (212) 496-0600

by Fax at (212) 580-2545 and on the web.

http://davidhkochtheater.com/

*Casting Subject to Change