Category: Ballet

Open House @ Jennifer Muller/The Works

Thursday September 24th, 2015 – Jennifer Muller/The Works kicked off their 2015-2016 season with an open house/studio event attended by friends and supporters of the Company. Ms. Muller, ever the cordial hostess, spoke of the Company’s work (both in terms of performing and outreach) before turning the floor over to her vibrant dancers who performed excerpts from the Muller repertory, dancing full-out in a compact space yet never brushing against the viewers – nor the ceiling, despite some high lifts.

Jennifer Muller welcoming her guests

The works presented this evening dated from as far back as 1991 (Gen Hashimoto in a solo from REGARDS set to a Tracy Chapman song) to a glimpse of the Company’s current work-in-progress, INTERVIEW: THE WARHOL PROJECT with music by Steve Reich. Also in the mix were excerpts from FLOWERS (2004), ALCHEMY (last season’s brilliant multi-media dancework), and WHEW! (a light-hearted, full-company work that premiered in 2014).

Jennifer’s dancers are hard to capture in still photos: they are always on the move. I took a few photos during the showing, more as souvenirs for myself:

Michael Tomlinson, Seiko Fujita

Caroline Kehoe

Sonja Chung

Michael Tomlinson eyeing the female ensemble

Jennifer Muller/The Works have always been a mullti-national, multi-cultural dance troupe. This season the young Frenchman, Alexandre Balmain (above) has joined the Company.

September 24, 2015
New Season @ New Chamber Ballet

Saturday September 12th, 2015 – After celebrating their tenth anniversary season in 2014-2015, Miro Magloire’s New Chamber Ballet have commenced their second decade of presenting intimate, on-pointe evenings of dance with live music: a formula which maintains NCB‘s unique place in the Gotham dance-sphere and keeps Miro’s loyal followers coming back for more.

This evening’s programme was all-Magloire in terms of choreography, and mostly ‘modern’ in terms of music: aside from the Mozart setting of the opening ballet, the oldest work played tonight dates from 1952 (Morton Feldman’s Extensions 3), and anything that’s younger than me counts as ‘modern’.

It is, in fact, Miro’s musical integrity that accounts for my unflagging interest in his work: I can go to his performances knowing I can depend on him to serve up music – whether olde or written last year – that will fascinate. His musicians – Melody Fader (piano) and Doori Na (violin) – seem capable of leaping over whatever technical obstacles might be set in their path – a virtue in itself, since contemporary composers often seem intent on pushing the boundaries of an instrument’s capabilities.

Likewise, Miro continues to expand the choreographic possibilities of what an all-female troupe of dancers can do. His most recent works – three of them seen tonight – take same-sex ballet partnering into uncharted territory.

Miro is comfortable with both narrative and abstract works. The evening’s opener – IN THE PARLOUR – is set to Mozart’s violin sonata in E-minor K. 304, which was handsomely played by Melody Fader and Doori Na. In this domestic drama, three women express shifts in friendships and matters of trust. A beautiful solo for Elizabeth Brown begins haltingly, in silence; soon she is wafting serenely about the space. She pauses to write upon the wall; in this she is thwarted by a destructive Sarah Atkins. Meanwhile, a third woman – Holly Curran – seems unsure of whose side she’s on. Holly’s crisis is resolved as she allies with sneaky Sarah. The three girls danced flawlessly and sustained the mysterious atmosphere of the ballet.

Tristan Murail’s score for LA MANDRAGORE veers from turbulence to high, shining motifs, and then to a misterioso atmosphere; Melody Fader at the piano showed a sure feel for the moods of the piece. The two lithe and wonderfully supple dancers – Traci Finch and Amber Neff – moved thru the enmeshed, intimate partnering passages with physical strength and a sense of mutual assurance that was truly impressive.

As Sarah Atkins (above, photo by Kokyat) strolls onto the stage wearing long white evening gloves and smoking a cigarette, a vision of Nijinska’s LES BICHES pops into mind; but Miro’s ballet GLOVE is in fact more intriguing than Nijinsk’a old Poulenc ballet. Melody Fader’s expert playing of Feldman’s Extensions 3 sets the scene for this small jewel of a work in which Holly Curran and Elizabeth Brown become increasingly desirous of obtaining Sarah’s gloves. There are comings and goings – the dancers periodically hide behind the piano, concocting their future moves – and the ballet ends with a mysterious seizure.

I had seen a rehearsal of parts of Miro’s newest creation GRAVITY; both at the rehearsal and at this evening’s performance, I was captivated by Doori Na’s masterful playing of the score for this ballet: numbers 3 and 5 from Friedrich Cerha’s Six Pieces for Solo Violin. In introducing this premiere tonight, Miro’s enthusiasm for Cerha’s music makes me quite certain we will see the remaining movements of the score being danced to in the near future.

Tonight’s enticing presentation of the work as it currently stands was delicious both musically and in the dancing: Elizabeth Brown, Traci Finch, and New Chamber Ballet debutante Cassidy Hall formed a strong sisterhood and smoothly wove their way thru the many demanding elements of Miro’s choreography. The work is sculptural, with partnering motifs that can be fluid one moment and angular the next. Among the many felicitous moments were…

…a rhapsodic wingspan gesture from Elizabeth Brown, supported by Traci…

…and a lovely slow attitude promenade by Traci and Cassidy, as seen in these rehearsal images.

GRAVITY has the feel of an impending Magloire masterpiece; let’s see where the Cerha takes the choreographer next.

Above: rehearsing FRICTION: Amber Neff and Holly Curran

Doori Na and his violin propelled the evening to a fine finish in Richard Carrick’s In Flow, as set by Miro for his ballet FRICTION. Doori took the music from its hesitant opening thru a rather boozy passage of seasick pitch and on to some skittering and stuttering motifs to a big, passionate rhythm. For the dancers, again the intimacy is palpable; Amber and Holly are in full flourish for the demanding partnering and the dance well-captures the textures of the music. Holly’s black tights and toe shoes were an added visual enticement.

After ten years of reporting on the Manhattan dance scene, there are times when I think I’ve seen all there is to see. Yet a handful of choreographers and companies continue to hold my attention, and Miro and his New Chamber Ballet are among their small number…as much for the music as for the dancing. And that’s exactly how it should be.

September 12, 2015
Table of Silence 2015

Above: Christina Ilisije

Friday September 11th, 2015 – Table of Silence, choreographer Jacqulyn Buglisi’s commemoration of the events of September 11th, 2001 – and her gift of peace to the world – was performed this morning at Lincoln Center.

This year the Table of Silence seemed particularly moving for some reason; I cannot quite put my finger on it. Perhaps is is simply that, as time goes by, life becomes more and more precious to us. It was a morning to think of great friendships, including some that have been cast asunder. It was also a day to celebrate those we hold most dear, among them the one I almost lost; his recovery was nothing less than a miracle.

So despite the memories of that awful event fourteen years ago, on this day what I was feeling was mostly gratitude: for the people, the music, the dance, the beauty of the natural world, and the simple pleasures that fill my life…all of which – I have come to realize – we cannot take for granted.

“Let us live each day to the fullest, and never miss a chance to let those dearest to us know of our love for them.”

The sky was overcast for today’s Table of Silence, but I took lots of photos. Here are a few, despite a lack of clarity:

Kenny Corrigan

Lloyd Knight

Abdiel Cedric Jacobsen

There’s a Facebook album of images from today’s performance here.

September 10, 2015
Paul Taylor – Creative Domain

Above: Paul Taylor takes a bow with dancers Amy Young and Eran Bugge after a 2011 performance of CLOVEN KINGDOM; photo by Kokyat

Paul Taylor – Creative Domain, a documentary film about the great American choreographer, will open at Film Society of Lincoln Center on September 11th, 2015, with showings thru September 17th. Thereafter, the film – which centers on the creation of Taylor’s 133rd dancework, Three Dubious Memories (2010) – will be seen in cities across the USA.

The Lincoln Center showtimes may be viewed here.

August 28, 2015
Lydia Johnson Dance: Audition Notice

Above: from Lydia Johnson’s NIGHT OF THE FLYING HORSES; photo by Nir Arieli

Lydia Johnson Dance have announced auditions for male and female dancers, to be held in September (on Fridays…applicants will be notified of the specific date). Complete audition information here.

August 27, 2015
The Current Sessions Volume V, Issue II

Sunday August 23rd, 2015 – I like everything about the CURRENT SESSIONS: I like the idea, I like the venue, I like like the relaxed yet attentive audience…and I’ve liked just about every work and dancer I’ve ever seen there. Alexis Convento and Allison Jones continue to put together strong programs and to offer their audience a chance to experience the work of new and mid-career choreographers in an intimate setting, with first-class lighting and sound.

In their presentations, the CURRENT SESSIONS particularly like to welcome mixed-media danceworks, and he first half of tonight’s program featured three such pieces, if one includes the lighting effects of the Niall Jones work. After the interval, pure dance took over. It was an evening of contrasting moods, with some very impressive individual performances.

In the opening work, Ashley Robicheaux & Artists offered Spaces Part II: “We, two”. My fascination with this piece began even before the dancing started, as Kane Mathis appeared and began to play his 21-string Mandinka harp. Mr. Mathis was within arm’s reach of me as he played, producing other-worldly sounds. A film commences, showing closeups of the hands and eyes of the two dancers – Ashley Robicheaux and Holly Sass. The two women emerge from the shadows, wary and seeking. They perform a mirror-image duet which evolves into intense partnering. One lifts and twirls the other; an emotional spasm is quietened. They rush about; an eventual embrace leads to the renewal of intense struggle. Passions ebb and flow, and in the end one girl pulls the other offstage as the music fades.

Joe Monteleone//Monteleone Dance‘s MK Ultra Sound derives its inspiration from Project MK Ultra, a covert CIA project involving mind control using psychotropic drugs which ran from 1953 til 1973. In the dancework, Mr. Monteleone and Shelley White dance a stylized duet against visual projections, including a woman’s face upside down. The soundscape ranges from static with a heavy beat, thru spoken ‘instructions’, fragments of song, the story of the IIlluminati. Complacency settles on the dancers: in a trance, they seem lulled into security. The movement then becomes more agile and expressive, finally calming to the sound of breathing. At last the woman seems to break down. In flickering light and shadows, the couple watch the ultrasound images of a fetus. Fleeting tenderness, then a fade to black.

Dancer Noel Genet sets the stage for his solo Solitude and Excess Features, choreographed by guest artist Niall Jones. Wearing trousers and a lace shirt, Mr. Genet first performs a spastic solo in place to the sound of silence. In a mélange of movement, the dancer reclines, rises, collapses, is weighted down, dances in the dark, writhes on the floor, jogs in place, crawls and shimmies, dances with his shadow, and concludes with an oddly graceful solo. Mr. Genet, utterly self-absorbed, gave a compelling performance; his sense of deadly earnest was soon evoking laughter from the audience. This quirky piece seemed at times like improv, but clearly it had all been thoroughly mapped out. The low-key levity of Mr. Genet’s performance sent the audience forth for intermission drinks in a congenial mood.

A deep throbbing hum heralds the arrival of Jeff Docimo//Isodoc Dance Group for an excerpt from Mr. Docimo’s Cut Crawlers. Clad in black, the five dancers crawl furtively into the space, which they explore with wary curiosity. The piece seems wrapped in shadow, with ominous thunder underscoring the mystery of this lost tribe. Amara Barner’s solo is outstanding, as is Mr. Docimo’s – which has breakdance elements impressively woven in. These two later have a duet, showing off the choreographer’s athleticism. Throughout this work, a sense of structure was amply evident: both in movement and emotional resonance, Cut Crawlers was impressive.

For her solo Bonjour Tristesse, Marissa Brown//Lone King turns with compelling rightness to the poignant music of Frédéric Chopin. Ms. Brown is seated in a folding chair, her eyes gazing intently at an unoccupied antique armchair across the diagonal from her. As the comely Ms. Brown rises from her reverie, her dancing is contemplatively physical, making excellent use of the space as movement and stillness alternate. At last, overcome by the music, she returns to her seat and to her obsession with the armchair: who had sat there? Where has that person gone? What has the dancer lost in losing that person? A beautiful and resonant work, expressively danced.

LoudHoundMovement (guest artist) closed the program with Brendan Duggan’s trio A Rib Where Her Voice Had Been, performed by Matthew Ortner, Holly Sass, and Shelby Terrell. First one woman and then the other vocalize softly. One woman dances a solo whilst the second dances a slow, almost imperceptible waltz with the man. The stage brightens, and to the sound of a big heartbeat motif, the dancers engage in a brisk trio, grasping and eluding one another and sometime lapsing into stand-still plastique. There’s a passage of 2-female partnering, with lifts and carryings; then they speak to each other in sign language as the man reclines. After he awakens, with a breakish solo, the women revert to their soft singing and then all evaporates into silence.

August 23, 2015
Graham Deconstructed: EMBATTLED GARDEN

Above: Isamu Noguchi at Versailles in the 1950s

Wednesday August 19th, 2015 – Martha Graham’s Embattled Garden (1958) is the choreographer’s re-telling of events in the Garden of Eden. The ballet is performed to a score by Carlos Surinach, with a set designed by Isamu Noguchi and costumes by Ms. Graham herself.

This evening, as part of the Martha Graham Dance Company‘s series Graham Deconstructed, a full performance of the work was given in the intimate setting of the Graham Studios at Westbeth on Bethune Street. The heat in the theatre-space seemed stifling at first, but once the dancing started such earthly concerns were forgotten.

As audience members arrived, a film of the original cast of EMBATTLED GARDEN was being shown. In her opening remarks, Janet Eilber, ever the gracious danceworld-hostess, told us that the film had been shot between a matinee and an evening performance: a time when the dancers are normally resting, eating, and gathering their strength for the second show. Thus some of the dancing is sketched in rather than full-out. Still, it’s quite a document.

Ms. Eilber spoke of the exotic characteristics of this ballet: the tropical colours of the Noguchi set, the subtle ‘Spanish’ effects of the Carlos Surinach score (to which Graham’s choreography at one point responds with a flamenco motif), and the costuming details which evoke Iberia: the two men wear toreador-style trousers and Lilith’s tortoise-shell comb looks like a peineta (the supportive part of a classic mantilla). Although Biblical references to Eden are avoided in EMBATTLED GARDEN, Lilith’s rich-red fan has always symbolized The Apple for me.

Once the capacity audience had settled in, Ms. Eilber asked the four dancers to demonstrate some of the signature passages that define their respective roles. There was then a brief pause, and the ballet was shown in its full, sensual glory.

Of the cast, only Mariya Dashkina Maddux as Eve had previously danced her role. Masha, as she is affectionately known, has recently become a mother and she returns to performing with that indefinable added glow which new-motherhood often imparts. One of the Company’s most lyrical movers, Masha as Eve found a perfect balance of pride and vulnerability.

The three dancers debuting in this ballet are Lloyd Mayor (Adam), Lauren Newman (Lilith), and Lorenzo Pagano (The Stranger); each made a vivid individual impression, and they are already putting their personal stamps on these iconic Graham roles

Lauren Newman and Lorenzo Pagano make a wonderfully conspiratorial couple: it’s all in the eyes – they seemed to be in constant visual contact no matter where they were on the stage at a given moment. Ms. Newman was seductive and self-assured, whilst Mr. Pagano looked dazzling in the athletic choreography; his Renaissance handsomeness could shift from angelic to demonic in the twinkling of an eye.

Lloyd Mayor is probably getting tired of being referred to as ‘boyishly handsome’ but…there it is. As he takes on new Graham roles, his expressiveness finds new depths. His performance as Adam was passionate, physically alluring, and lushly resonant.

This international cast – American, Italian, Ukrainian, and Swiss – were given a most enthusiastic salute of applause and cheers at the close of their performance. They had danced under sultry conditions which – as Ms. Eilber pointed out – were very suitable to the ballet’s steamy content.

I felt that many in the crowd were seeing EMBATTLED GARDEN for the first time. And some may even have been having their first-ever Graham experience: I have no doubt they will be back for more.

August 19, 2015
Claudia Schreier & Company @ Ailey Citigroup

Above: Amber Neff and Drew Grant dancing with Claudia Schreier & Company at Ailey Citigroup Theatre; photo by Nir Arieli

Saturday August 8th, 2015 – Exactly one year ago tonight, Claudia Schreier won the Breaking Glass Project’s competition for female choreographers with her brilliant ballet, HARMONIC. Her prize was to present a full evening of her own work at Ailey Citigroup Theatre, and that prize was claimed tonight as five of Claudia’s works were performed by an array dancers drawn together specially for the occasion.

The evening was an unalloyed triumph for all concerned, including two contemporary composers whose works were choreographed by Claudia (Jeff Beal and Douwe Eisenga – both of them were present and took a bow at the end); the choral group Tapestry who performed live for the ballet VIGIL; a chamber quartet playing Jeff Beal’s score for ALMOST MORNING live, and – of course – the superb ensemble of dancers.

Above: the chamber musicians, with dancers Amber Neff and Drew Grant, in ALMOST MORNING

When we first started watching House of Cards, my partner and I were very much taken with Jeff Beal’s score: “…this music would make a great ballet!” And now it’s come to pass: ALMOST MORNING is set to an original score composed for Ms. Schreier by the multi-Emmy Award-winning Mr.Beal. Six dancers appear in a series of overlapping duets interspersed among ensemble passages. The music pulses and percolates, but can also turn moody or melodious along the way. The musicians – Kieran Ledwidge (violin), Tia Allen (viola), Kirin McElwain (cello) and Ta-Wei Yu (piano) – delivered the score with propulsive assurance.

The choreographer responds to this music with movement that has a broad overall sweep but also features countless felicitous and original touches. Amber Neff is thrice tossed into the air, spiraling before being caught by her partner Drew Grant; the blondes – Kaitlyn Gilliland and Elizabeth Claire Walker – dance in tandem; and a sustained duo for Ms. Walker and Mr. Grant is particularly striking. A pas de trois for Ms. Neff, Francis Lawrence, and Da’Von Doane progresses to a pensive solo danced by the incomparable Kaitlyn Gilliland. There are stretches of visual polyphony; the dancers form a circle before sweeping into a triple pas de deux set to the score’s most lyrical theme. Then the dancers rush off in the end, leaving the stage to the musicians.

The conclusion of the ballet triggered the first of the evening’s enthusiastic ovations: having observed ALMOST MORNING in a keen state of silence, the audience demonstrated their approval for both the music and the dancing in no uncertain terms. And this was only the beginning.

The evening continued on its soaring trajectory with HARMONIC, the ballet to Douwe Eisenga’s stimulating score which clinched the prize for Claudia Schreier at last year’s Breaking Glass competition. HARMONIC was originally created by Ms. Schreier in 2013 for the Columbia Ballet Collaborative, and was subsequently re-staged for Craig Salstein’s Intermezzo Dance Company, who performed it at Vassar College in March 2014. Inspired by Mr. Eisenga’s magical score, HARMONIC is a contemporary ballet that seems built to last.

Tonight HARMONIC received a mesmerizing performance, with ABT’s entrancing Stephanie Williams displaying marvelous technique and a particularly attractive presence. Earlier this month, Stephanie danced – splendidly – for Joshua Beamish at The Joyce. The principal male role here was taken by Dance Theatre of Harlem’s intrepid Da’Von Doane; Da’Von danced in four ballets tonight and, after a long day of tech/dress/performance, he seemed totally fresh at the end of the evening and looked ready to repeat the whole programme. Strength and stamina are essential, but when you add Da’Von’s stunning physique, impeccable partnering, generosity of spirit, and his intangible gift for making everything seem right with the world, you have a paragon.

Da’Von’s dancing with Ms. Williams (above) was electrifying to behold, for they are well-matched in terms of both daring and allure.

One could say there are no supporting roles in Claudia Schreier’s ballets: she puts demands on everyone involved in a given work and then rewards them with opportunities to shine. Thus tonight in HARMONIC, Amber Neff and Elinor Hitt were utterly essential; they danced their hearts out, and basked beautifully in those passages of being partnered by Da’Von. Again, the audience response was thunderous.

More images from HARMONIC:

Elinor Hitt

Stephanie Williams

A new production of Ms. Schreier’s 2009 ballet ANOMIE is imbued with a striking atmosphere of lyricism and poetry. Set to the heartfelt beauty of César Franck’s Prelude, Fugue and Variation…

…ANOMIE opens (above) with New York City Ballet’s distinctive Lydia Wellington posed in Daniel Applebaum’s arms in a pool of light; Lydia slowly unfolds and the ballet begins its beautiful flight. In addition to the abounding artistry of this wonderfully simpatico City Ballet duo, we could also savor the ever-vivid clarity of Amber Neff’s dancing, the aristocratic face and silken line of Elizabeth Claire Walker, and the handsomely assured presence of Drew Grant.

Elizabeth Claire Walker (above) with Drew Grant…

Elizabeth Claire Walker and Daniel Applebaum

All five dancers appear in a diagonal, with a canonic dramatic port de bras motif, before Lydia Wellington and Daniel Applebaum meet again to end the ballet as in a fading dream.

I can’t resist sharing more of Nir Arieli’s images from ANOMIE:

Daniel Applebaum and Elizabeth Claire Walker

Lydia Wellington, aloft

Daniel Appebaum and Elizabeth Claire Walker: a most congenial partnership

Daniel Applebaum and Lydia Wellington

Lydia Wellington and Daniel Applebaum

Following the interval, the atmosphere became spiritual as Vigil, a pas de deux danced by Elinor Hitt and Da’Von Doane to sacred choral music by Tomás Luis de Victoria and Sergei Rachmaninoff which was performed live onstage by the 20-member choir Tapestry. The singers, clad in black, arranged themselves in a semi-circle around the dance-space; they are a wonderful, physically diverse group of musicians and they harmonized with a kind of gentle intensity that created an atmosphere of both reverence and hope.

Above from VIGIL, danced by Elinor Hitt and Da’Von Doane

Ms. Hitt was one of the revelations of the evening; her jazzy dancing in HARMONIC made us think of her as an extroverted allegro dancer, yet in VIGIL she displayed a poignantly expressive adagio style that put me in mind of Sara Mearns’ elegiac luminosity. It almost goes without saying that Da’Von Doane achieved another miracle of control, strength, and grace here; the partnership had a gorgeous flow and resonance, so finely attuned to the music. The dancers seemed angel-like in their white costumes, and their shaping of Ms. Schreier’s port de bras and the heavenly quality of the duet’s numerous lifts really cast a spell. The performance moved me to tears.

More of Nir Arieli’s images from VIGIL:

PULSE, a driving full-company work, is set to Dutch composer Douwe Eisenga‘s marvelous Piano Concerto: I. With her customary flair for visualizing the music, Claudia Schreier molded the Eisenga score into another fascinating dancework: as exciting as HARMONIC, but bigger and splashier. In its dynamic thrust, PULSE reminded me at times of Robbins’s GLASS PIECES.

Claudia’s full contingent of dancers took the stage for this impressively-structured ballet, and there were some dancers in the cast we hadn’t seen earlier in the evening, including New York City Ballet soloist Lauren King (above); always a welcome sight onstage, Lauren danced with her trademark mixture of lyricism and edge: a combination that always makes her so exciting to watch. Also appearing in PULSE were Nayara Lopes and Craig Wasserman, vivid dancers who I wish we could have seen more of over the course of the evening.

Da’Von Doane’s opening solo in PULSE showed yet another facet of this dancer…a dancer to whom the word “amazing” can most truly be applied. The solo becomes an echo-duet for Da’Von and Craig Wasserman…

…with motifs later taken up by the male ensemble (above): Da’Von, Craig, Daniel,and Francis.

PULSE plunges forward, Claudia Schreier’s choreography ever-attentive to the nuances of the Eisenga score. At one moment, an air of mystery pervades only to surrender to the inevitable forward impetus of the music. There’s a buildup as waves of dancers enter…

…and then suddenly we are lured into a solo passage for Kaitlyn Gilliland (above), dancing with goddess-like authority. Lines of dancers along a right-angle converge…

…and then Lauren King and Da’Von Doane (above) meet up for a duet, followed by other fleeting episodes. The women dance as a group, and then the men, and then everyone, as PULSE sprints to the finish line: a perfect finale for a grand evening of dance.

Amber Neff and Da’Von Doane in PULSE: “We could have danced all night…in fact, we did!” To the dancers, one and all, heaps of roses and buckets of iced champagne.

The performance ended with a colossal standing ovation and a din of cheers; the enthusiasm poured out into the lobby where the audience seemed reluctant to take leave after such an extraordinary evening. Although I have been following Claudia Schreier’s work for a few seasons, I must say that experiencing a full programme of her choreography surpassed my expectations, which were very high indeed. In addition to her enviable ability to choose just the right music and fill it with meaningful movement, her work is blessedly free of gimmicks or self-indulgence. Claudia knows the value of not over-extending her ideas, so that after each piece we are left wanting more.

All photo by Nir Arieli, with my sincere thanks for his patience and his artistry.

August 9, 2015
Upcoming: Joshua Beamish/MOVE: the company

Above: Joshua Beamish, photo by David Cooper

Joshua Beamish/Move: the company will be at The Joyce August 4th and 5th, 2015; the performances are part of The Joyce’s Ballet Festival 2015.

Joshua, who recently appeared as one of Wendy Whelan’s choreographer/partners for her RESTLESS CREATURE project, brings a diverse program to The Joyce. Featured works are the U.S. premiere of burrow, a duet for Royal Ballet dancers Matthew Ball and Nicol Edmonds, and the world premiere of Surface Properties, an ensemble work performed by ten dancers from American Ballet Theatre to a score by Mark Mellits and Michael Gordon. Also on the program are excerpts from Pierced, Beamish’s 2013 piece exploring the darker side of love.

On July 30th, Joshua invited me down to the Martha Graham studios on Bethune Street where he showed me a run-thru of Surface Properties. This was only the second time that the dancers went thru the entire piece; it’s a big-scale and very active ballet, and the Mellits/Gordon score is propulsive and wonderfully danceable. Alternating full-ensemble passages with a series of fleeting solos and pas de deux, trois, et quatre, the work sustains our interest in its complex and sometimes whimsical partnering, unexpected match-ups of dancers, stylized port de bras elements, and unabashed physicality.

The dancers, who rarely have a chance to do anything like this at ABT, leapt enthusiastically into this fresh experience, embracing the non-stop movement with technical brilliance and affording an opportunity to savor both their dancing and their personalities at close range. They are a super bunch: Zhongjing Fang, Isadora Loyola, Luciana Paris, Lauren Post, Cassandra Trenary, Stephanie Williams, Sterling Baca, Grayson Davis, Jose Sebastian, and Roman Zhurbin.

I look forward to seeing Surface Properties, costumed and lit, on The Joyce stage.

July 30, 2015
Lydia Johnson’s WHAT COUNTS on Vimeo

Above: Blake Hennessy-York and Sarah Pon of Lydia Johnson Dance rehearsing WHAT COUNTS

A hit at its New York City premiere performances in June, 2015, choreographer Lydia Johnson’s WHAT COUNTS is now available for watching on Vimeo. Tune in here.

The jazzy score comes to us from The Bad Plus, and the ballet is performed by a quintet of Lydia Johnson Dance’s distinctive dancers: Sarah Pon, Blake Hennessy-York, Laura DiOrio, Katie Martin-Lohiya, and Chazz Fenner-McBride.

July 30, 2015