Glass Pieces at New York City Ballet
February 17, 2009
This week, New York City Ballet will perform Jerome Robbins’ Glass Pieces on its “Founding Choreographers II” program. Named after the work’s composer (Philip Glass), Glass Pieces is memorable for its pulsating rhythms and urban streetscape created by a large corps of dancers. Georgina Pazcoguin and Adrian Danchig-Waring, a newly promoted soloist, discuss the three sections of the work in the above video. Last June I singled out Danchig-Waring in my review of the piece, which was performed as part of the Jerome Robbins Celebration, saying, “Percussive rhythms of Akhnaten were the focal point of the third section. My eyes were continually drawn to Adrian Danchig-Waring, the clear leader of the cluster of men who moved as a pack, stomping and making distinct changes in direction.”
NYCB’s Founding Choreographers II program will be performed on February 18, 21, and 22. Tickets can be ordered online or by calling 212.870.5570.
New York City Ballet’s Balanchine Program
January 11, 2009
NYCB in "The Four Temperaments", photo by Paul Kolnik
The three ballets on New York City Ballet’s all-Balanchine program, which opened their winter season, display strikingly different moods and atmospheres. The scores for each work are crucial here, from Paul Hindemith’s wonderfully moody score (commissioned by Balanchine in 1940) for The Four Temperaments to Richard Strauss’s elegant music for the final, lavishing waltz in Vienna Waltzes. The dancers, too, must convey certain emotions through movement in order to transport the audience to a specific realm. On Saturday evening, they succeeded in The Four Temperaments, but the performances of Chaconne and Vienna Waltzes never carried me away from my seat in the David H. Koch Theater.
Chaconne, set to Christoph von Gluck’s music for the opera Orphée et Euridice, takes place in two disparate settings: the first in a heavenly land where the corps of women, all with their hair down, move slowly and delicately through several formations; and the second in a sparkling court that presents a series of formal dances. I could have watched more of the former and less of the latter, which is so similar to regal court scenes from other Balanchine ballets. Maria Kowroski took advantage of the luxuriant music in the first section to show off her flowing arabesques, but her partnership with Sébastien Marcovici was shaky (and mismatched – she towers over him when standing on pointe). They did not seem at ease together and never reached the otherworldly atmosphere that the music conveys in the first section. In the court scene, however, they were both gracious and acknowledged the audience in their solos.
Although The Four Temperaments was the most abstract ballet on the program – one of Balanchine’s black and white “leotard ballets” – it was interestingly the most transformative, and emotional. Rather than using theatrics, the dancers conveyed the four medieval temperaments through Balanchine’s neoclassical choreography. The simple yet striking opening to Hindemith’s brooding Theme with Four Variations for String Orchestra and Piano showed Faye Arthurs and Adrian Danchig-Waring (two of the finest dancers in the corps) crisscrossing their extended legs and pointed feet, then flexing them. Their movement was calm and poised while still appearing urgent. In the Melancholic variation, Sean Suozzi used his expressive arms and musical sensitivity to give a memorable performance, maintaining stamina even while conveying exhaustion and misery. Jared Angle and Savannah Lowery approached the Sanguinic variation with attack, and Lowery suspended her jumps and off-balance extensions just a moment longer than thought possible. Ask La Cour and the quartet of women in Phlegmatic were mesmerizing as they stared into the audience and rhythmically shifted their weight. In Choleric, Ellen Bar was strong and graceful while remaining intriguingly reserved.
New York City Ballet in Vienna Waltzes, photo by Paul Kolnik
With the exception of the elegant Tyler Angle and Sara Mearns, who both always succeed at portraying a particular mood, the leads in Vienna Waltzes were rather bland. Yvonne Borree needed to be sprightlier and more confident to keep up with Benjamin Millepied in the spring waltz. Jenifer Ringer lacked mysteriousness in the Gold and Silver Waltz, which is set in an Art Deco café, and Nilas Martins didn’t appear to be stunned by her presence. The Rosenkavalier Waltz is certainly an exquisite finale, with the men swirling women in white gowns, and mirrors reflecting the entire scene. But the dancers must imbue their movement – even waltzing – with feeling. Without this, Vienna Waltzes failed to transport me to another place and time.
Morphoses Multimedia
October 8, 2008
Rubinald Pronk, Maria Kowroski, and Edwaard Liang rehearsing Monotones II, photograph by Yaniv Schulman
Morphoses/The Wheeldon Company concluded its second season at City Center on Sunday afternoon. I wrote about both programs here and here, but decided to post some more rehearsal photos from Monotones II and two surprisingly good videos of Annabelle Lopez Ochoa’s One and Lightfoot León’s Shutters Shut. Lighting and costumes are essential components of the otherworldly atmosphere in Monotones II, so it’s refreshing to see photos of the dancers in practice clothes, clearly working together in the studio to figure out the intricate partnering in this ballet. The videos will give you a sense of the rhythmic quirkiness in Shutters Shut and fluid movement in One, but as I always say, dance videos are no substitute for live performances.
Adrian Danchig-Waring, Wendy Whelan, and Tyler Angle rehearsing Monotones II
Edwaard Liang, Maria Kowroski, and Rubinald Pronk
Tyler Angle, Wendy Whelan, and Adrian Danchig-Waring
Maria Kowroski
All photos courtesy of Yaniv Schulman
Morphoses at City Center: Program 2
October 7, 2008
Adrian Danchig-Waring, Wendy Whelan, and Tyler Angle rehearsing Monotones II
photo by Yaniv Schulman
The second Morphoses program was not only more varied than the first, but more complete as a whole. Three short pieces were bookended by Wheeldon works, with the new Commedia opening the program and Fools’ Paradise closing it.
I wrote at length about Commedia in my review of the gala performance, but I appreciated the piece much more upon a second viewing. The duet for Leann Benjamin and Beatriz Stix-Brunell looked sophisticated, and in spite of the dancers’ age difference (Benjamin is 44, Stix-Brunell is 15), both danced with refreshing energy and youthfulness. The rest of the cast seemed more vibrant than in the first performance, too. Although the piece still lacked coherency as it wandered from one duet or solo to the next, there were intriguing moments of choreography, and I think there’s still more to be discovered.
Drew Jacoby and Rubinald Pronk in One, photo by Amitava Sarkar
Due to an injured dancer, Frederick Ashton’s pas de deux from The Dream was replaced with Annabelle Lopez Ochoa’s One, performed by and created specifically for Drew Jacoby and Rubinald Pronk. The electronic score by Jacob Ter Vedhuis is filled with French phrases – rapidly recited by a woman – that are repeated and echoed throughout the piece. Wearing sheer black leotards, the dancers’ sinewy bodies moved seamlessly through off-balance poses and push-pull tensions while maintaining a gripping connection to one another. Dramatically harsh lighting, shifting between black and white, contributed to the intensity of this brief duet, which could have been a bit shorter. Lopez Ochoa’s choreography grew repetitive to the extent that the piece became less effective near its end. Nevertheless, Jacoby and Pronk are incredible artists, and One would certainly be less intriguing if performed by dancers lacking the remarkable chemistry that they possess.
Spoken word was also used in Shutters Shut, a wonderfully weird duet created by Lightfoot León (a pseudonym for Paul Lightfoot and Sol León). Christine Thomassen and Andreas Heise performed a series of sharp, quirky gestures to the rhythmic recitation of a poem by Gertrude Stein, which can be read in its entirety here. Lightfoot Leon’s choreography, executed by the dancers with immaculate precision and whim, reflected the absurdity of Stein’s poem. The four-minute piece exemplified how spoken word can serve as effective, melodious accompaniment for movement.
Lynn Wallis rehearsing Monotones II with Adrian Danchig-Waring, Wendy Whelan, and Tyler Angle, photo by Yaniv Schulman
The second cast of Ashton’s Monotones II was stronger than the first, and the dated look of the ballet contrasted nicely with One and Shutters Shut. Wendy Whelan, Adrian Danchig-Waring, and Tyler Angle were comfortable and at ease with the choreography, luxuriating in every slow, developing extension. Whelan emphasized the serene otherworldliness of Erik Satie’s score, while Angle and Danchig-Waring partnered her with poise and elegance. As a trio, they conveyed a cool dreamscape of movement.
Fools’ Paradise, which had its US premiere at City Center last fall, closed the program. Eerie golden lighting, falling glittery paper, and hauntingly beautiful music by Joby Talbot combined to create a mysterious atmosphere. The dancers’ bodies often formed sculptures that were held just long enough for the audience to absorb their profundity. Interestingly, the most striking image in the piece was exactly what I noticed in 2007: Craig Hall spread his arms while balancing Wendy Whelan horizontally across his shoulders, with her legs bent at different angles and back arched as Hall spun in slow circles. This image along with many others evoked the varying moods of Talbot’s score – meditative, hopeful, and elegiac. But the memorable images still didn’t fully capture the emotional depth or fragility of the music. Perhaps with more flow of movement and less posing, this could have been attained. Nevertheless, the cast of nine was superb as they delicately interlaced their bodies to create Wheeldon’s unthinkable shapes and sculptures.
Dancers in Fools’ Paradise, photo by Erin Baiano
Morphoses is still young and its future uncertain. But this well-rounded program, performed by a brilliant ensemble of dancers, leads me to believe that Wheeldon is on the right path to furthering his artistic goals for the company and making an enduring contribution to contemporary ballet.
New York City Ballet: Gala at SPAC
July 21, 2008
Saturday’s Gala at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center had a relaxed, laid-back feel that matched the hot, humid evening, but the outdoor setting and sticky weather didn’t stop the crowds from dressing up for the occasion. Nor was the event lacking in star power: Rita Moreno, who played “Anita” in the film version of West Side Story, was the honorary chairperson. Ballet Master in Chief Peter Martins gave her a warm welcome, and then she happily shared an anecdote from her WSS audition: apparently, she nailed the acting and singing parts, but was quite rusty on the dancing.
Rita Moreno in the film version of West Side Story, photographer unknown
The program featured three of Robbins’ most unique ballets, and with contrasting themes, music, and choreography, they captured the diversity of his repertoire. Regal and classic best describe the opening of Brahms/Handel, which Robbins co-choreographed with Twyla Tharp in 1984 to Brahms’ “Variations and Fugue on a Theme by Handel”, but it quickly shifts gears and becomes distinctly Tharpish. In fact, Tharp’s contributions to the piece are more noticeable than Robbins’, even though they supposedly split up the work, with Robbins choreographing for the dancers in blue and Tharp choreographing for the green team (the blue and green dancers really do become competitive teams as the ballet progresses). Perhaps the piece is more strikingly Tharpish because she took more risks with the dancers – for example, women carried overhead or upside down across the stage, or tossed from one group of men to another – while Robbins was working in a more classical framework, with the opening of the ballet showing his blue dancers in a symmetrical arrangement, all in fifth position. So why would such a Tharp-dominated ballet be included in the all-Robbins Gala? I think Brahms/Handel indicates Robbins’ willingness to collaborate and open himself up to fresh choreographic ideas, particularly since he and Tharp worked on this piece the year after George Balanchine died. And although the blue and green teams are distinctly separate at first, they eventually meld together, indicating a unification of Tharp and Robbins’ ideas.
Sara Mearns and Jared Angle, the principals in green, performed a pas de deux that was initially dramatic but became playful and flirtatious later on. The most memorable moment occurred as Mr. Angle sliced his arm across Ms. Mearns’ neck as she leaned backwards, as if he were chopping off her head. It was one of those bizarre Tharp moments that I won’t even attempt to put into context, since moments later the two looked joyful and clapped their hands overhead. The dancers shined in their roles, with Ms. Mearns looking particularly radiant. Ashley Bouder as the principal in blue showed off her pure technique and sustained balances, and later was more flirtatious as she flew through lightning-quick footwork. Adrian Danchig-Waring, Tiler Peck, and David Prottas stood out among the soloists for the vibrancy they lent to their performances.
Wendy Whelan in costume for Opus 19/The Dreamer, Dance Magazine 2003, by Josef Astor
Just before the second piece on the program started, I spotted some lightning in the distance, and the air had reached an almost unbearable stillness that comes with summer heat waves. I was prepared for a thunderstorm, which probably would have enhanced the haunted qualities of Opus 19/The Dreamer, but the theater remained silent throughout the piece. Gonzalo Garcia, as the dreamer, appeared meditative and detached from the corps of twelve dancers in dark blue. He repeatedly spun around with his head tilted to one side and his eyes closed, conveying his desperate search for something beyond his community. He was mesmerized by Wendy Whelan as she mysteriously emerged from a cluster of dancers, and in their pas de deux, there were contrasting moments of calm and chaos that reflected changes in Prokofiev’s mysterious “Violin Concerto No. 1 in D Major”. Garcia and Whelan moved seamlessly from sharp, wild movement to airy, flowing delicateness. In the past, I always believed that the dreamer follows the woman into her world, but this time, there were instances where Garcia seemed to sweep Whelan into his own world, literally spinning her into his arms. This speaks to the range and depth of their performances. Both dancers were utterly captivating and other-worldly. I never tire of watching Opus 19/The Dreamer, especially when it is performed by such gifted dancers.
NYCB dancers in West Side Story Suite, photo by Paul Kolnik
During the second intermission, the woman sitting in front of me remarked that she didn’t know anything about the choreography for West Side Story Suite, the final piece on the program, but she was happy to at least know the story line and some of Leonard Bernstein’s melodies and Stephen Sondheim’s lyrics. This was probably the case for many audience members. Presenting a more dance-centered version of Robbins’ 1957 musical was an appropriate way to end the performance, providing the audience with top-quality dancing to accompany the familiar story. Although there are individual roles in this piece for “Anita”, “Riff”, “Bernardo”, “Tony”, and “Maria” (whose role is the least memorable), it is the ensemble dancing that stands out and best captures Robbins’ talent for choreographing on large groups. There is nothing quite like the sheer energy and competition between the Jets and Sharks when they dance the mambo in “Dance at the Gym”. The brightly colored costumes – yellows and blues for the Jets, and deep reds and purples for the Sharks – designed by Irene Sharaff contribute to the distinctions between the two gangs. Benjamin Millepied danced energetically as “Tony”, but he needed to convey more hopelessness and frustration over his doomed love. Georgina Pazcoguin was unstoppable as “Anita”, but she overdid the singing in America and the result was strained. In fact, even the singing from the professionals, who stand on the side of the stage, was flat. However, Andrew Veyette, who played “Riff”, sounded impressive in Cool, which features some of the most rhythmically interesting choreography for the Jets. Adrian Danchig-Waring and Austin Laurent were particularly eye-catching. After an entire season of continually being wowed by their performances, I wonder why these two dancers are still in the corps.
The Gala ended with a colorful display of fireworks and dancing on the lawn. The large amphitheater wasn’t completely sold out, but I was happy to see that it was mostly filled. Hopefully such a superb and thoroughly enjoyable performance of some of Robbins’ best ballets convinced the audience to continue supporting NYCB’s summer residency at SPAC.
A view of the SPAC amphitheater from the lawn, photo by Evan
