Oberon's Glade

Category: Dance

  • The Romantic Viola @ Chamber Music Society

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    Sunday April 14th, 2016 – No fewer than eight violas were in play on the Adrienne Arsht Stage at Alice Tully Hall this evening as Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center offered an exceptional program, curated and head-lined by Paul Neubauer (above), in which the viola was heard in music by seven different composers (plus one anonymous composition). The program ranged from mid-19th century works to a world premiere by Joan Tower, who was present and took a bow…and got a kiss from Mr. Neubauer.

    A Robert Schumann rarity and a fantasy-suite by August Klughardt were the first two works on the program; written about twenty years apart, the two pieces each call for violist, pianist, and a woodwind collaborator. It was our good fortune this evening to have clarinetist Romie de Guise-Langlois and oboist James Austin Smith joining Mr. Neubauer and pianist Alessio Bax. Both Mlle. de Guise-Langlois and the dapper Mr. Smith are elegant players, and both are blessed with astonishing breath control.

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    Above: Romie de Guise-Langlois

    The Schumann opens like a breath of Springtime. Clarinet and viola pass melodies back and forth, eventually honed down to a dialogue where they finish one another’s sentences. Underscored by Mr. Bax’s immaculate playing, Mlle. de-Guise-Langlois’ and Mr. Neubauer’s blend of timbres was most appealing. The second movement veers from march-like to moments of ironic deftness to a free flow of song, which the pianist takes up. Poignant and pensive, the third movement has a touch of mystery; here Mlle. de Guise-Langlois was able to sustain long lines with total control, tapering the tone into a sweet blend with the Neubauer viola. The animated fourth movement – which pauses midway thru for a gently-paced passage – was as pleasant to watch as to hear, as the eye-to-eye contact of Romie and Paul was keenly focused; Mr. Bax’s piano provided added joy.

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    Above: James Austin Smith

    The slender frame and expressive face of James Austin Smith might have graced the salons at Kellynch Hall or Pendersleigh Park: a youthful, romantic figure. His playing also has an Olde World geniality: dulcet of tone and (as with Mlle. de Guise-Langlois) blessed with an uncanny ability to spin out long lines. In August Klughardt’s Schilflieder, Mr. Smith established at once an ideal rapport with Paul Neubauer.

    The first of the five “fantasies” opens with solo piano, soon joined by the plaintive oboe and the soulful viola; the second brings the restless viola into harmonizing with the oboe. Mr. Bax’s dreamy playing leads off the third movement, with the viola and then the oboe singing sadly and tenderly; the pianist’s sense of delicacy was a lovely asset here. The fourth movement begins dramatically, with viola and oboe sounding forth over a rippling piano motif.

    Mr. Smith’s formidable breath control was much admired in the closing movement; the atmosphere is poetic and sustained, the viola wistful. A nicely-turned cadenza for oboe led to the end of the work with a very sustained joint oboe/viola note. 

    Both the Schumann and Klughardt were brand new to me, and both made me wonder why we don’t hear them played more often. Of course, the Gordon Jacob piece for eight violas will always be a rarity, simply because the logistics of getting eight first-rate violists together to rehearse and perform it would take some doing. Mr. Neubauer was able to call upon his viola-playing colleagues to assemble a classy octet – including Cynthia Phelps, the NY Phil’s principal violist. Ida Kavafian and Daniel Phillips, more usually seen with their violins, took up violas to join in the fun tonight. Along with Mr. Neubauer, Hsin-Yun Huang, Richard O’Neill, Lawrence Dutton, and Pierre Lapointe formed a very impressive ensemble.

    This Suite for Eight Violas, composed in 1976, created quite a buzz. It opens with a unison “Russian” theme, the eight voices blended in song. The second movement, Scherzo and Drone, is a sprightly romp: a folk-dance with a sly finish. Sweet sadness prevails in the Chorale: Lento. Richard O’Neill then kicked off the closing Tarantella with swirling rushes of notes alternating with gentler interludes. A broad melody sweeps us thru to the end. The audience, clearly relishing the combined talents of these eight artists, sent up an enthusiastic ovation. 

    Following the interval, Paul Neubauer appeared alone onstage. 

    I love Joan Tower’s music, and I really enjoyed hearing tonight the two solo works she wrote expressly for Mr. Neubauer, the second of which was having its world premiere. Simply Purple is deceptively simple; a slowly rising scale, with a deep sense of mystery pervading, must be delivered with consummate control and subtle dynamic variants. The premiere, Purple Rush, is a scurrying downward swirl; it goes low and dusky, with cascades of notes and shimmering, slippery slides. Mr. Neubauer’s mastery held the audience throughout; and it was so nice to see Ms. Tower there, sharing the applause with the violist.

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    Stepping across the Plaza from The Met, where she has been appearing as Emilia in Verdi’s OTELLO, mezzo-soprano Jennifer Johnson Cano (above, in a Fay Fox photo) sang the two Brahms viola songs, the only music on the program that I was familiar with. A comely young woman with a voice to match, Ms. Cano’s warm, even tone and her natural feeling for the words – and for finding beautiful hues to express them – provided a most appealing rendering of these two familiar and beloved melodies. She formed an immediate rapport with Mr. Neubauer as they faced one another across their music stands; their blend of timbres was a pleasure to hear, and Mr. Bax, at the Steinway, continued to take a major role in the proceedings with his lustrous playing. May we have Ms. Cano back please – and soon! – perhaps for the Wesendonck Lieder?

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    Above: Alessio Bax, a superb pianist who played in six of the works on offer this evening

    A flash of Spanish light and colour is welcome on any concert program; tonight, Joaquín Turina’s Escena andaluza proved yet another notable discovery. An opening cascade from the piano becomes a caress. Ms. Kavafian and Mr. Phillips are back with their violins now, and together with Richard O’Neill (viola),  Paul Watkins (cello), and Mr. Bax at the piano they catch the music’s sensuous moodiness and underline Mr. Neubauer’s tonal affluence ideally. Outstanding playing from Romie de Guise-Langlois put the final flourish on this miniature Andalusian tone poem.

    A lilting and passionate violin solo (Ms. Kavafian) is answered by Mr. Watkins’ velvety cello; Mr. Bax’s keyboard shifts between the insinuating and the rhapsodic, and there’s a flurry of string instruments being plucked.

    Ms. Kavafian opens the second section of the Turina playing in the high range. The music glides from sly seduction to rising desire and on to a shimmering glow before the pianist – abetted by the clarinet – urges us to surrender to our passions.

    The same ensemble from the Turina remained onstage for Hermann Schulenberg’s Puszta-Märchen; they were already seated and raring to go. But where was Paul Neubauer? The ensemble struck up – a gypsy romance – and Mr. Neubauer stepped from the wings, already playing, and strolled down the steps and into the audience. He stopped next to me and my friend Claudia Schreier and – fixing me with an intense gaze – played a dusky, wine-drenched melody with great passion; I could actually feel the resonance of the music rising from the viola. He then locked eyes with Claudia and continued to play, totally by instinct. Momentarily he walked away, but then came back to us to continue his serenade. After a few moments he turned his attention to the usherette and played to her on intimate terms.

    Onstage, his colleagues were continuing to play while keeping one eye on the wandering minstrel. Suddenly they switched to a brilliant czardas; Mr. Neubauer returned to center-stage, playing on with virtuoso élan, and evoking swirling roulades from Romie’s clarinet. The music halted as all the players stomped their feet, and the audience burst into applause.

    Mr. Neubauer’s arrangement of Rumanian Canary, with its bird-song ‘cadenza’, was the concluding delight of the program. This led to a joyous standing ovation, and the players being called out twice.

    Being serenaded by Paul Neubauer is something I’ll always remember: an unexpected and charming episode in my life – a life that remains full of surprises. 

    The Repertory:

    The Participating Artists:

  • Sibelius & Mahler @ The NY Philharmonic

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    Above: baritone Thomas Hampson

    Friday April 22nd, 2016 matinee – A matinee performance by The New York Philharmonic pairing the Sibelius seventh symphony with Mahler’s Das Lied von der Erde. Alan Gilbert was on the podium, with soloists Stefan Vinke and Thomas Hampson singing the solo parts in the Mahler.

    The two works made an ideal pairing; the Sibelius 7th (first performed in 1925 under the title Fantasia Sinfonica) lasts only about 20 minutes and is written as a single-movement. From its opening rising scale which blooms into regal theme, the symphony compensates for its relative brevity with music of almost cinematic breadth. Abundant in melody, the piece has an Autumnal quality; though Sibelius would live until 1957, he wrote very little music after 1926. This last symphony is both serene and passionate; it leaves us wondering ‘what might have been’ if he had continued writing.

    The Sibelius was played with savourable richness by the Philharmonic artists today, and Maestro Alan Gilbert was very much in his element here; following the interval, players and conductor were joined by the two vocal soloists and a thrilling performance of Mahler’s Das Lied von der Erde commenced. 

    Still recovering from the sorrow of his daughter’s death, Mahler learned in 1907 that he was suffering from a heart condition that would, within four years, prove fatal. In The Song of the Earth, the composer’s awareness of the possibility of an approaching end prompted the composition of a great hymn to Nature and to the sheer ecstasy of living. Drawn from The Chinese Flute, a collection of ancient Chinese poems translated by Hans Bethge, the six ‘songs of the Earth’ speak of drunken defiance of impending death, of the solitary life, of the transience of youth and beauty, and of a friendship which endures beyond parting and into eternity.

    The tenor is allotted the more extroverted songs; the first, third, and fifth. Stefan Vinke’s formidable power and stamina proved equal to the fierce demands Mahler’s vocal writing places on the singer: high in tessitura and including exposed, sustained notes in the topmost range, the tenor’s muscular singing was just what’s needed. An occasional trace of pitchiness didn’t detract from Mr. Vinke’s generous singing. And I must note the lovely violin theme from Frank Huang in the fifth song, “The Drunkard in Spring“.

    (Note: it’s just been announced that Stefan Vinke will be replacing Johan Botha when James Levine and The Met Orchestra perform excerpts from Wagner’s RING Cycle at Carnegie Hall on May 26th. Christine Goerke is the soprano soloist.)

    Both mezzo-sopranos and baritones have performed the ‘other’ solo role in Das Lied von der Erde – the formidable Margarete Matzenauer sang it at the NY Philharmonic premiere in 1929. Today, it was baritone Thomas Hampson whose strikingly expressive singing moved me and my companion to a tearful state as the work came to an end.

    I have admired Thomas Hampson since his Met Auditions win in 1981; among his many Met roles that have particularly impressed me have been: Count Almaviva, Billy Budd, Posa in DON CARLO, Werther, Eugene Onegin, Wolfram in TANNHAUSER, Amfortas, Iago, and – most surprisingly and most recently – Wozzeck. He walked onstage today – tall, handsome, and elegant in a tux – with an amiable self-assurance that made me think we were in for something special; Hampson delivered an intensely satisfying performance. 

    Liang Wang’s oboe solo at the start of “The Solitary One in Autumn” signaled a turn of mood from the boisterous drinking song with which Mr. Vinke had launched the cycle. As Mr. Hampson began to sing of his loneliness and weariness of spirit, his marvelous gift for poetic expression as well as the inherent beauty of his vocal timbre drew me into the music; the external world faded, and the music became the reality.

    Midway thru the fourth song, “Of Beauty“, a big dance-like theme erupts, and the baritone seemed ready to dance himself. His singing was characterful and, as the music simmers down, he did some lovely heady effects as well an plunging into basso territory briefly.

    It was in the final song, “Farewell”, that Mr. Hampson’s performance put me over the edge. Liang Wang’s oboe and Robert Langevin’s flute establish a wistful mood. The baritone’s thoughtful and sustained singing is beautifully enmeshed in some wonderful playing from the winds; oboe and harp unite; horn, cello, bassoon, and bass clarinet add poignant colours to the canvas. “All longing has become a dream,” sings the poet.

    In a spine-tingling moment, Mr. Hampson’s tone adopts a ‘dead’ emptiness, matched by plaintive flute. “I wanted to bid my friend a last farewell!” – how many of us have sadly been deprived of just such an opportunity! Mandolin and celeste are heard, as if from out of a dream of past happiness. “Where are you going, and why must it be?” asks the forlorn friend as the parting draws nigh, and they share the stirrup cup. The song ends with an affirmation of faith in life’s renewal, but even here there’s an illusive feeling. Nature holds sway with the “…luminous blue of distant space…everywhere, forever… forever and ever….”

    Alan Gilbert’s baton was suspended in air as the music faded to silence. An ovation of particular warmth ensued, with the maestro, the singers, and the musicians basking in the joy of having shared in a magnificent collaboration.

  • Paul Taylor @ Lincoln Center 2016 – Part II

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    Above, one of the best of the best: Robert Kleinendorst of PTAMD

    Tuesday March 29th, 2016 – This evening’s performance by Paul Taylor’s American Modern Dance in the final week of their Lincoln Center season opened with a classic Taylor ‘white’ ballet, Equinox, set to music of Johannes Brahms which was performed (lovingly) live by a string quintet.

    Two principal couples – Laura Halzack with Robert Kleinendorst and Paris Khobdeh with Michael Apuzzo – perform some of Paul Taylor’s most inventive and pleasing partnering passages with a feeling of lyrical athleticism. A long solo by Ms. Halzack was enchanting to behold. A quartet of dancers – too stellar to be deemed “supporting” – moved with captivating urgency and grace: Michelle Fleet, Eran Bugge, Sean Mahoney, and James Samson. The white costumes evoke Summer, but the Brahms themes hint at the approach of Autumn. Heartfelt dancing and playing from everyone involved.

    The Weight of Smoke (a new Doug Elkins work) was a hot mess. The choreography is loaded with gimmicks and clichés while the fusion of Baroque (here, Handel) with contemporary club beats and noisy effects has been done before and has lost its cleverness. The dancers may have enjoyed the opportunity to cut loose, not having to think too much about technique or precision, but to me (and my choreographer-companion) the work seemed endlessly aimless and mildly embarrassing. Laced with gender-bending elements, with two women in a sustained kiss, and sashaying gay-boy stereotypes, the work ambled on with lots of energy being expended on retro-provocations. In the end, I was thinking: “You have sixteen of the best dancers on the planet to work with, and this is what you came up with?” 

    The evening ended on the highest of possible high notes with Paul Taylor’s Promethean Fire; the same sixteen dancers who slogged their way thru the tedious Elkins now appeared in Santo Loquasto’s incredible black costumes and treated us to a feast of impeccable dancing in this darkly dazzling ballet.

    Paul Taylor’s choreography here gives Mr B a run for his money in terms of musicality and structure…and it looks gorgeous on Mr. B’s own stage. The Leopold Stokowski orchestrations of music by J. S. Bach seem jarring at first but Mr. Taylor was right to choose them as they mesh well with the opulent energy of the dancing.

    The live music (Orchestra of Saint Luke’s under Donald York’s baton) was a wonderful enhancement to the onstage splendour; it’s a great piece for zeroing in on individual dancers as they move with such assurance and beauty of spirit thru choreography that must be a sheer delight to dance.

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    The central passage of Promethean Fire is a pas de deux which was danced tonight by Parisa Khobdeh and Michael Trusnovec (above). Their physical allure and their sense of the importance of the steps and port de bras made this such a richly rewarding experience, both visually and spiritually.

    Production photo © 2015 Paul Taylor’s American Modern Dance

  • Paul Taylor @ Lincoln Center 2016 – Part II

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    Above, one of the best of the best: Robert Kleinendorst of PTAMD

    Tuesday March 29th, 2016 – This evening’s performance by Paul Taylor’s American Modern Dance in the final week of their Lincoln Center season opened with a classic Taylor ‘white’ ballet, Equinox, set to music of Johannes Brahms which was performed (lovingly) live by a string quintet.

    Two principal couples – Laura Halzack with Robert Kleinendorst and Paris Khobdeh with Michael Apuzzo – perform some of Paul Taylor’s most inventive and pleasing partnering passages with a feeling of lyrical athleticism. A long solo by Ms. Halzack was enchanting to behold. A quartet of dancers – too stellar to be deemed “supporting” – moved with captivating urgency and grace: Michelle Fleet, Eran Bugge, Sean Mahoney, and James Samson. The white costumes evoke Summer, but the Brahms themes hint at the approach of Autumn. Heartfelt dancing and playing from everyone involved.

    The Weight of Smoke (a new Doug Elkins work) was a hot mess. The choreography is loaded with gimmicks and clichés while the fusion of Baroque (here, Handel) with contemporary club beats and noisy effects has been done before and has lost its cleverness. The dancers may have enjoyed the opportunity to cut loose, not having to think too much about technique or precision, but to me (and my choreographer-companion) the work seemed endlessly aimless and mildly embarrassing. Laced with gender-bending elements, with two women in a sustained kiss, and sashaying gay-boy stereotypes, the work ambled on with lots of energy being expended on retro-provocations. In the end, I was thinking: “You have sixteen of the best dancers on the planet to work with, and this is what you came up with?” 

    The evening ended on the highest of possible high notes with Paul Taylor’s Promethean Fire; the same sixteen dancers who slogged their way thru the tedious Elkins now appeared in Santo Loquasto’s incredible black costumes and treated us to a feast of impeccable dancing in this darkly dazzling ballet.

    Paul Taylor’s choreography here gives Mr B a run for his money in terms of musicality and structure…and it looks gorgeous on Mr. B’s own stage. The Leopold Stokowski orchestrations of music by J. S. Bach seem jarring at first but Mr. Taylor was right to choose them as they mesh well with the opulent energy of the dancing.

    The live music (Orchestra of Saint Luke’s under Donald York’s baton) was a wonderful enhancement to the onstage splendour; it’s a great piece for zeroing in on individual dancers as they move with such assurance and beauty of spirit thru choreography that must be a sheer delight to dance.

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    The central passage of Promethean Fire is a pas de deux which was danced tonight by Parisa Khobdeh and Michael Trusnovec (above). Their physical allure and their sense of the importance of the steps and port de bras made this such a richly rewarding experience, both visually and spiritually.

    Production photo © 2015 Paul Taylor’s American Modern Dance

  • Ballet Hispanico in Rehearsal

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    Above: Martina Calcagno rehearsing at Ballet Hispanico today; photo by Nir Arieli

    Monday March 28th, 2016 – In anticipation of Ballet Hispanico‘s upcoming season at The Joyce, photographer Nir Arieli and I stopped by the Company’s home space on West 89th Street to watch a rehearsal.

    The Hispanico dancers are among the most vivid in New York City’s vibrant community of dance. Watching them in the up-close-and-personal studio setting, their power, unstinting energy, and sheer sexiness are a testament to their generosity and commitment.

    For their impending Joyce performances, Ballet Hispanico will offer the New York premiere of Gustavo Ramírez Sansano’s Flabbergast. The Company have previously performed Mr. Sansano’s dramatic narrative ballet CARMEN.maquia and his charming El Beso.

    Flabbergast is a complete joy to experience: lively, sexy, and playful, the choreography calls for non-stop action. And the dancers are even called upon to sing, which they do enthusiastically. Here are some of Nir’s images from today’s run-thru of this exciting dancework:

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    Eila Valls and Lyvan Verdecia

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    Mark (foreground) & Company

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    The Flabbergast ensemble

    As an ideal contrast to the extroverted Flabbergast, choreographer’s Ramón Oller’s darkly ritualistic Bury Me Standing will also be on the Joyce program. A section of this ballet, in which a cortege of mourners move slowly across the space while a male soloist performs an expressive dance of lamentation, was being rehearsed today with Hispanico’s charismatic Mario Ismael Espinoza in the featured role.

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    Above, and in the following images: Mario Ismael Espinoza

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    During this run-thru from Bury Me Standing, I had one of those unusual experiences that you can only get at a rehearsal: while Mario was performing the solo and Nir was capturing it, I was at the other end of the studio where Mario’s alternate, Christopher Hernandez, was also dancing the solo directly in front of me. Mario and Christopher have very different physiques and stage personalities; shifting my gaze between the two, I was able to experience their interpretations simultaneously; an exciting finale to our studio visit.

    I want to thank publicist Michelle Tabnick for arranging everything, Mr. Sansano for his cordial greeting and very appealing choreography, Hispanico’s Michelle Manzanales – ever the gracious hostess – and every single one of the Company’s incredible dancers.

    And I’m particularly grateful – as always – to photographer Nir Arieli.

    I want to draw your attention to Nir’s upcoming gallery show of Flocks at Daniel Cooney|Fine Art on West 26th Street, which will run from April 21st thru June 4th, 2016. Ballet Hispanico is among the companies featured in this series. More information below:

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  • Paul Taylor @ Lincoln Center 2016

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    Wednesday March 23rd, 2016 – “Taylor Does Graham” was my alternate headline for this article. Martha Graham’s Diversion of Angels has triumphantly entered the repertory of Paul Taylor’s American Modern Dance Company. I’ve always loved seeing the Graham dancers in this work, and now I also love seeing the Taylors: between these two companies, some of the greatest movers and shapers of our day are to be found. In the photo at top: Michael Trusnovec.

    Graham paragons Blakeley White-McGuire and Tadej Brdnik set Diversion on the Taylor company. The casting of the work’s three main couples seemed spot-on, with the elegant, patrician Laura Halzack in White paired with Michael Trusnovec; restless, passionate Parisa Khobdeh (in Red) dancing with Sean Mahoney; and the sun-filled joy of Eran Bugge’s Woman in Yellow handsomely partnered by Michael Novak. A women’s quartet consisting of Michelle Fleet, Jamie Rae Walker, Heather McGinley, and Christina Lynch Markham comprised a marvelously high-end “supporting” cast, and George Smallwood’s strong performance as the odd-man-in all made for a great deal of spacious, eye-catching dance.

    Several passages linger in the memory: the long frozen, stylized pose sustained by Ms. Halczak and Mr. Trusnovec early in the piece, and the lovely floated quality of Laura’s series of slow turns; Ms. Khobdeh’s agitated solo amidst the four women, her great sense of urgency as she rushes across the stage on some unknown quest, and Mr. Mahoney’s wonderful “catch” of her as she rushed to him; Ms. Bugge, who captivated me all evening, has a most congenial role; she brought Springtime freshness to her solo passages, and to her lyrically animated duet with Mr. Novak.

    A sustained deep note in the Norman Dello Joio score signals the “White” pas de deux; it almost goes without saying that the Halzack/Trusnovec duo were truly inspired and inspiring here.  

    Paul Taylor’s Three Dubious Memories is a gem of a ballet. When I first saw it a couple of years ago, it was mainly the witty elements that persuaded me of its stage-worthiness. Tonight somehow it seemed much deeper and more of a story-telling ritual than a mere series of relationship-vignettes. 

    In Three Dubious Memories, an incident from the evolving story of a romantic triangle is remembered differently by each of the three people involved. The competition between two men (Robert Kleinendorst and Sean Mahoney) for the affections of Eran Bugge brings the men to blows. But then, in a volte-face, the men are seen as a cozy pair and Ms. Bugge as the interloper. We’ll never know the real story, but Mr. Taylor has left us to ponder the way in which we each remember things.

    In addition to brilliant dancing and acting from the principal trio, Three Dubious Memories provides an intriguing role for James Samson: a silent narrator, a sort of master-of-ceremonies. James summons up each telling of the tale by the three protagonists; he also leads an ensemble of ‘choristers’ in stylized rituals. James did a beautiful job in this role which calls for both expressiveness and athleticism. In one memorable moment, Heather McGinley perches on James’s shoulders like a looming icon. The ballet was beautifully lit by Jennifer Tipton.

    In the evening’s concluding work, Spindrift, dates from 1993 and is set to Arnold Schoenberg’s String Quartet Concerto (after Handel), played live by the Orchestra of St Luke’s. To the sound of wind and waves, Michael Trusnovec emerges from the midst of a communal group moving in stylized slowness. Michael’s character displays the shifting nature of a romantic spirit with an affinity for the natural world; he’s an outsider, cast upon a mystic shore among a rather suspicious tribe.

    Certain movement motifs recall Nijinsky’s Faun, and in fact the costuming also makes us think of the Debussy ballet. The Handel/Schoenberg music seems at once old and new as Mr. Trusnovec pursues Mr. Halzack and is occasionally distracted by the quirky presence of Ms. Bugge.

    In the ballet’s second movement, an adagio solo for Mr. Trusnovec is the heart of Spindrift; in subtle twists of his torso, the power and beauty of this magnificent dancer’s physique given full rein, as is his indelible artistry: so compelling to behold. The movement becomes livelier and more off-kilter for a spell, then slows and – as Mr. Trusnovec melts into a reverential kneeling back-bend, the ballet seems about to end. But there’s another movement, laced with solos and duets for all the participants.

    As is all the great Taylor works, there are moments of seeming simplicity that make an unexpected impact; one such in Spindrift was a passage where four woman crossed on a diagonal, walking slowly. Other impressive passages were a duet for Ms. Bugge and Mr. Trusnovec and another one in which Michael was paired with Robert Kleinendost; Robert was on peak form all evening.

    In fact, the entire Taylor company’s looking pretty extraordinary these days. I was hoping to see more of Michelle Fleet (she only danced in the opening work, with Ms. Bugge replacing her in Spindrift); Francisco Graciano and Michael Apuzzo also appeared all-too-briefly, yet – as always – they each made their mark. Madelyn Ho, the newest dancer on the roster, appeared in the ensemble in Spindrift.

    I had great seats (thank you, Lisa Labrado!) and was delighted to spend the evening with my ballet-loving friend Susan, who I rarely see these days. And it’s always so nice to run into Janet Eilber, Blakeley White-McGuire, Take Ueyama and his wife Ana, and Richard Chen-See.

    Onward now to more Taylor…and then, in April, Graham!

  • Kavakos Plays Sibelius @ The NY Phil

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    Above: violinist Leonidas Kavakos

    Saturday March 19th, 2016 – Feeling under the weather today, I was nevertheless determined to hear Leonidas Kavakos play the Sibelius violin concerto with The New York Philharmonic. I’d looked forward to this red-letter evening since the season was announced, and even though I feel strongly that people who are sick are better off staying home, I was determined to go.

    In an unusual programming move, the concerto was the opening work tonight.

    Mr. Kavakos, very tall and with the air of a mythic sorcerer, launched his inspired rendering of the concerto with a magical glow: the spine-tingling opening passage – coolly sensual – immediately drew us in. Maestro Alan Gilbert and Mr. Kavakos have formed a rich rapport over time, and the conductor and his players were at their shining best as the violinist shaped the opening movement with alternating currents of broad-toned lyricism and spiky bravura. Few violinists today can match Kavakos for power – both sonic and emotional – and his playing as the concerto unfolded continually sent chills up and down my spine.

    In the central Adagio, with its heart-fillingly gorgeous main theme, violinist and orchestra were in a particular state of grace. One of the most winning aspects of Mr. Kavakos’ playing is his marvelously sustained phrasing; Maestro Gilbert and the orchestra provided the soloist with perfect support as passage after passage fell gratifyingly in the ear, everything lovingly dove-tailed and with an acute awareness of dynamic nuance. This performance of the Adagio was a high point in a season that has been rich in musical magic. 

    Mr. Kavakos then dug into the opening dance of the concluding Allegro with gusto, and the orchestra sounded simply magnificent in the big tutti passages. Give and take between soloist and ensemble produced some dazzling effects, and the lovely ‘wandering’ passage for violin when the music briefly slows down was particularly appealing. Following an energetic rush to the finish, Mr. Kavakos enjoyed a prolonged ovation, filled with shouts of joy from his listeners. The Philharmonic players seem clearly to revel in performing with this violin-magician, and his warm greeting of concert-master Frank Huang and a lovely embrace for Sheryl Staples indicated a deeper personal connection with his colleagues than we sometimes see between soloist and orchestra. 

    After several bows, Mr. Kavakos granted us a rather long solo encore which showed a more intimate side of his artistry. And now, here’s some excellent news: Mr. Kavakos will be with us more frequently next season as he has been designated the Philharmonic’s 2016-2017 Mary and James G Wallach Artist-in-Residence. In addition to programs featuring him as soloist, he will make his NY Phil conducting debut. Find out more about this residency here. 

    Much as I wanted to hear the Shostakovich’s The Age of Gold Suite, I knew it was time to go home, take Advil, and rest. I now have some rare downtime: an opportunity to re-charge before this busy season continues. I have lots of wonderful music to listen to, including Mr. Kavakos’s Sony double-disc of Mendelssohn’s concerto and the piano trios, which I highly recommend; find it here.

  • Ian Spencer Bell: Poet and Dancer

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    Friday March 18th, 2016 – There are only a handful of true originals on the Gotham dance scene these days, and Ian Spencer Bell is one of them. In the past, his very sophisticated choreography of small ensemble pieces has always intrigued me; more recently, Ian has been exploring his two passions – dance and poetry – simultaneously in unique solo presentations. 

    Tonight at the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center on 13th Street, Ian performed his newest work, MARROW, in the intimate yet airy space of the recently-renovated Room 210. It was in the same setting, last June, that Ian’s double bill of GEOGRAPHY SOLOS and HOLLER made such a distinctive impression.

    An attentive and wonderfully silent audience seemed mesmerized this evening by Ian’s every word and move. Lithe and beautiful to behold, Ian dances with a rather gentle physicality; but the choreography can also take on a sharper aspect when the narrative gets more intense. 

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    His poem tonight drew on his experiences as a Southern boy, a youth who was different from everyone else. How many times has this story been told??…and yet, rarely with the same poignancy as in Ian’s words and dancing.

    Waiting for the performance to start, we were listening to Ode to Billie Joe; thus was the setting for what we were about to witness already evoked. Beginning with a story about swarms of bees which attacked his home (“I’m allergic, and alone.”), Ian went on to describe a dream of men climbing out of manholes. (Yes, physical laborers have always created fantasies for gay boys…) As Ian spoke, his body spoke also – in rapid turns, or simple walking, with expansive port de bras; the sweeping motion of a foot; plunges to the floor where he cowered or lazed.

    Confidences and local gossip become part of the story, as does an incident of Ian’s mother falling into a hole on their property while tending horses. This left her with a permanent injury. Meanwhile, his siblings and step-father play out their expected roles: “Boys don’t act like that!” his step-dad yelled, uncomprehendingly. “I wanted my step-father to die,” was young Ian’s thought in response.

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    From repose to restlessness, the dancing moves on: a harrowing episode where his step-father attempts to strangle him is the work’s most dramatic moment; but even the more mundane aspects of daily life – as of waiting in the checkout line at a local store to buy supplies for “making a funeral wreath” – take on an unusual resonance in Ian’s words.

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    In the end, our stories of growing up gay are mostly all the same – a theme-and-variations setting of what it’s like to be different. What’s sad is that, apparently, so little progress was made in the years separating my experience from Ian’s.

    Waiting in the Center’s lobby for the performance to begin, I watched the hordes of young people coming and going. They have found a community and a haven here: such lovely kids, unbounded diversity. And while I am certain they are dealing with many of the same problems that have beset us all, they have resources now that we did not have…and they have each other.

    I had no one to turn to, and nothing to reassure me; I was alone, thinking – as I so often did in those first harrowing years of self-discovery – that I was the only one.

    Thus it is deeply moving to have Ian telling our story, and in such an imaginative and compelling way. 

    (Note: this article is now updated with new photos by Kyle Froman)

  • New Ravel @ New Chamber Ballet

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    Saturday February 27th, 2016 – Miro Magloire’s New Chamber Ballet presenting five Magloire ballets, including a premiere, at City Center Studios. Exceptional music, played live, is always on offer at NCB; then there’s the bevy of ballerinas: five distinctive dancers who bring Miro’s classically-based but sometimes quirky – and always demanding – choreography to life.

    Tonight, the house was packed; extra chairs had to be set out, and some people were standing. The program was one of Miro’s finest to date – and he’s had an awful lot of fine evenings. Two classic French violin sonatas – Debussy’s and (part of) Ravel’s – were in the mix, along with some Schoenberg (the more Schoenberg I hear, the more I like), and works by Beat Furrer and Friedrich Cerha (who just celebrated his 90th birthday). 

    The opening (premiere) work, RAVEL’D, is still “in-progress”; tonight we saw the first movement, with Miro promising the rest of it for his April performances. Doori Na and Melody Fader played beautifully, and Sarah Thea’s fringed tunics added an unusual flair to the movement. Stylized motifs – eating, praying, biting – are woven into the dance. One girl’s toe-shoed foot rests upon another girl’s head: this is one of several unexpected balancing devices. A space-filling unison trio stands out, and the closing section finds Sarah Atkins in a reverential pose as Amber Neff and Shoshana Rosenfield ‘converse’ in a series of mutually dependent balances. 

    The space was again well-utilized in GRAVITY; we were seeing the finished version of this work that Miro had started on last year. Doori Na’s expert playing of the Cerha score was something to marvel at: great subtlety and control are called for, and Doori delivered. The three dancers – Elizabeth Brown, Traci Finch, and Amber Neff – are engaged in extended paragraphs of the partnering vocabulary Miro has been exploring of late. Extremely challenging and movingly intimate, the intense physicality of these passages push the boundaries of what we expect from women dancing together. Miro’s dancers have taken to these new demands with great commitment: watching some of their improbable feats of balance and elastic strength gives us a fresh awareness of possibility. Adding yet another dimension to the work: when not actively dancing, each ballerina curls up on the floor to sleep. 

    Pianist Melody Fader evoked an air of mystery with her superb playing of Arnold Schoenberg’s Six Little Piano Pieces for the ballet QUARTET. Here Mlles. Atkins, Brown, Finch, and Neff appear in elegant, backless black gowns. They take seats at the four corners of the playing area, facing outward. With her hair down, a waif-like Shoshana Rosenfield dances in the center with a feeling of halting insecurity; her character seems dazed, perhaps drugged. Periodically, the four seated women move their chairs towards the center, slowing encroaching on Shoshana’s space. The four become aware of the lone ballerina as a potential victim: they turn and observe her intently. In the end, the four women have Shoshana trapped; as she sinks down in surrender, they caress her and run their fingers thru her hair. Eerie, and leaving us full of questions, QUARTET is as intriguing to watch as to hear.

    In VOICELESSNESS, Beat Furrer’s mystical score was performed by Melody Fader; her playing had a fine air of somber quietude. Dancers Amber Neff and Shoshana Rosenfield, in Sarah Thea’s sleek body tights, become fervently entwined and mutually dependent in a duet that develops further elements of Miro’s intense and engrossing partnering technique.

    For a revival of TWO FRIENDS, Doori Na and Melody Fader had the lovely experience of playing Claude Debussy’s violin sonata, the composer’s last completed work. Wearing black gauzy tunics and black toe shoes, Elizabeth Brown and Sarah Atkins are the eponymous duo; they partner lyrically, and all seems right with the world. Then Traci Finch appears out of nowhere and the ballet’s dynamic shifts and splinters, with fleeting pair-ups as alliances form and vanish in a trice. The subtexts of attraction and jealousy are very subtly threaded into the movement; an in-sync duet for Elizabeth and Traci is one outstanding moment, and the sonata’s final movement calls for large-scale virtuosic dancing from all three. But then Sarah impetuously rushes off. 

    True to life, TWO FRIENDS often finds multiple narratives developing at the same time, and over-lapping. There is so much to watch and to savor: I especially relished a brief passage where Elizabeth Brown, suddenly finding herself standing alone, quietly runs her hands up and down her arms in a caressive gesture. Elizabeth, a dancer who always lures the eye with her confident technique and personal mystique, turned this fleeting moment into something of deeper resonance.  

    Having followed Miro’s New Chamber Ballet for several seasons now, what I’ve come to appreciate most about him is his musical integrity. His tastes are eclectic, but always sophisticated, and he’s able to win us over to some very unusual and not always ‘easy’ music thru his own personal enthusiasm for the works he presents. The benefits of having the music played live are numerous, and greatly enhance the atmosphere at NCB‘s performances. And Miro’s excellent dancers take up each new musical and choreographic challenge that he sets for them with a wonderful mixture of strength, musicality, willingness, and grace.

    The dancers tonight were Sarah Atkins, Elizabeth Brown, Traci Finch, Amber Neff, and Shoshana Rosenfield, with the music played by Doori Na (violin) and Melody Fader (piano) and costuming by Sarah Thea. Kudos to all, and to Miro for yet another fascinating evening of dance.

    During the intermission, I really enjoyed re-connecting with Melissa Barak, the former New York City Ballet ballerina who now runs her own Los Angeles-based company Barak Ballet. Melissa is currently here in New York City as the inaugural Virginia B. Toulmin Fellow for Women Choreographers at the Center for Ballet and the Arts at NYU. We shared an awful lots of news and ideas in our 15-minute chat. I love her energy!  

  • New Chamber Ballet ~ Gallery

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    Above: dancers Sarah Atkins and Amber Neff in Miro Magloire’s RAVEL’D

    Photographs from New Chamber Ballet‘s February 2016 performances at New York City Center Studios. Read about the program here, and about a rehearsal I attended here.

    All the choreography depicted is by Miro Magloire, and all the images are courtesy of New Chamber Ballet:

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    Amber Neff and Traci Finch in GRAVITY

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    Amber Neff, Elizabeth Brown, and Traci Finch in GRAVITY

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    Shoshana Rosenfield in QUARTET

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    Shoshana Rosenfield in QUARTET

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    Shoshana Rosenfield with Sarah Atkins and Traci Finch in QUARTET

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    Elizabeth Brown, Amber Neff, Traci Finch and Sarah Atkins surround Shoshana Rosenfield in QUARTET

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    Amber Neff and Shoshana Rosenfield in VOICELESSNESS

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    Shoshana Rosenfield and Amber Neff in VOICELESSNESS

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    Shoshana Rosenfield and Amber Neff in VOICELESSNESS