Category: Dance

Pivotal Works at Joyce SoHo

Above: Fanny Ara

Friday November 16, 2012 – The Vilcek Prize for Creative Promise this year honors foreign-born dance professionals working in the USA. The current winner is Michel Kouakou from the Ivory Coast; he will have his own evening at Joyce SoHo on November 17th, which unfortunately I cannot attend. Tonight the four “runners-up” presented their work at the Mercer Street venue.

Any day that we fall in love is a good day; it doesn’t matter whether the object of our adoration is a boy from far away whose face we saw on a website or a dancer or singer who moves and touches us with their beauty and talent. My newest love is Fanny Ara, a gorgeous Flamenco artist who opened the evening with a pair of resplendant solos that literally made my heart race. Her first solo Romance was a slow and very personal contemporary ‘echo’ of the Flamenco style: I immediately fell under her spell – so alluring, so poised and self-confident, even in the dance’s most reflective nuances. Then a vivid pure Flamenco solo, Soler, in which the captivating expressive qualities of Fanny’s upper body, arms and hands – even her neck – mesmerized us while her footwork dazzled both the eye and the ear. Guitarist Jason MacGuire provided fabulously colorful playing in both works, joined in Soler by the vocalist Jose Cortes, whose slightly raspy quality had its own sexual edge. In the course of her 15-minute performance, Fanny Ara soared into the upper-most echelon of dance artists I have witnessed over the years.

My friend Tom and I enthused over Fanny’s dancing while the stagehands took up the special flooring. Tom was just as thrilled by what we’d seen as I was.

Two works by the Vietnamese-born choreographer Thang Dao followed: a large ensemble piece called S.O.S. is danced to a dynamic pop/rock song (Life Is A Pigsty by Morrissey) and a more refined, narrative work LENORE inspired by Edgar Allen Poe. In both pieces, Thang Dao showed fine craftsmanship and musicality. In S.O.S. there was a restless energy and much fast-paced partnering, with solo passages woven in. The dancers – and I am always happy to find dancers I know on any stage (Chris Bloom, Aaron Atkins and Virgina Horne were among Thang Dao’s ensemble) – kept the eye darting about the space, trying to take it all in. In the more aptly poetic LENORE, a mirage-like tracery of Bartok underpinned Basil Rathbone’s reading of The Raven, the poet in his white nightshirt is haunted by a trio of ravens and the endless intoning of ‘the word that was spoken’: Nevermore.

From Scandanavia, the cool beauty of Pontus Lidberg (above, Nir Arieli photo) seemed the external masque of a man with a secret passion. From his WITHIN (Laybrinth Within) Pontus danced the opening solo which we’d just seen a few days ago when MORPHOSES premiered the dance/film masterpiece at the bigger Joyce. This visual poem evolves into a filmed passage of Pontus in a forest or standing on a lonely beach. The solo works well as a free-standing evocation of the longer work. And it’s a tremendous pleasure to watch Pontus Lidberg dance.

Of the evening’s final work, a deadly dull and painfully protracted food fight, I’m not naming names. It simply reminded me of a conversation that Woody Allen has with his wife in the film CRIMES AND MISDEMEANORS. Urged to abandon his pathetic aspirations as a documentary film-maker, Woody reminds his wife: “Hey, I won Honorable Mention at that film competition last year!” to which she coolly replies: “Everyone who entered won Honorable Mention!”

November 16, 2012
Lar Lubovitch Dance Company @ Florence Gould Hall

Above: Les Saltimbanques, the painting by Picasso that inspred Lar Lubovitch’s newest creation, TRANSPARENT THINGS.

Thursday November 15, 2012 – Three recent works by Lar Lubovitch comprised the programme tonight at Florence Gould Hall where Lar’s superb troupe of dancers held the stage to fine effect, abetted in the final work by excellent playing of the Debussy G-minor quartet by the Bryant Park Quartet.

Opening with the ravishingly dark and lyrical LEGEND OF TEN, set to the Brahms F-minor quintet, the Lubovitch dancers showed from the first moment both their collective technical expertise and their individuality as poets of movement. In this dance of swirling and evocative patterns, the heartfelt music buoys the dancers throughout; from time to time a dancer will step forward and briefly pay reverence to the audience before melding back into the flow of the dance. The gorgeous and distinctive Lubovitch women – Nicole Corea, Laura Rutledge and Kate Skarpetowska – are partnered in ever-shifting match-ups by the beautiful men of the Company: Attila Joey Csiki, Reed Luplau, Brian McGinns, George Smallwood and Anthony Bocconi. A central pair – Elisa Clark and Clifton Brown – weave their ongoing pas de deux into the ensemble; tall and radiant, the couple bring an unusual sense of dignity to what might otherwise simply be a romantic duet. Clifton’s imperial wingspan and the hypnotic styling of his arms and hands are a blessing to behold, and Elisa matches him in expressive nuance. Compelling dance from all, and the work is surely one of Lar’s greatest masterpieces.

Darkness of a more jagged and comtemporary feel marks CRISIS VARIATIONS, in which a smaller ensemble of dancers – Nicole Corea, Laura Rutledge, Attila Joey Csiki, Reed Luplau and Anthony Bocconi – writhe and struggle against unseen demons whilst yet another of Lar’s imaginative duets – danced by the enigmatic Kate Skarpetowska and the dynamic Brian McGinnis – ebbs and flows among the struggling community. Kokyat’s image of Kate and Brian, above, captures one of the pas de deux’s most spine-tingling moments.

What gives CRISIS VARIATIONS its unique flavour in the Yevgeniy Sharlat score; in this turbulent and entrancingly crafted music, individual instruments – harpsichord, saxophone, organ – lend a nightmarish gleam to the tapestry of movement. The ballet, though steeped in deep despair, is not without subtle hints of tongue-in-cheek self-pity.

The newest of Lar’s works, entitled TRANSPARENT THINGS, is a pure joy. Reid Bartelme’s costumes translate from the Picasso painting with remarkable faithfulness, and the dancers take to the mirthful and sometimes self-mocking characters of this vagabond troupe of entertainers with flair.

Attila Joey Csiki (above, Steven Schreiber photo) is perfect as the mercurial Harlequin, his solo dancing marked by the pure grace of his pliant style. Kate Skarpetowska and Laura Rutledge seem literally to have stepped out of the painting; Brian McGinnis is a tower of strength in his billowy red suit and Clifton Brown in simply marvelous to watch. Boysihly beautiful Reed Luplau brings a touch of innocence and a creamy, chiseled chest to his velvet-clad Blue Boy.

Playing from memory, the musicans of the Bryant Park Quartet give a rendering of the Debussy score which ranges from sentimental to ebullient. Violinist Anna Elashvili seemed ready to spring from her chair and join the dance. At the close of the ballet’s third section, the dancers invade the musician’s space and are momentarily stilled; Attila lovingly rests his head against the cello. In this charming moment the marriage of music and dance are quietly celebrated. Brilliant!

November 15, 2012
Columbia Ballet Collaborative: Rehearsals

Above: choreographer Lisa de Ribere works on a pas de deux to be danced by Rebecca Azenberg and John Poppe at the upcoming performances by Columbia Ballet Collaborative.

Friday October 27th, 2012 – I stopped by at Barnard College where two of the five choreographers involved in the upcoming performances by the Columbia Ballet Collaborative were rehearsing. Lisa de Ribere is creating an ensemble work, while Emery LeCrone is reviving a solo piece originally made on Drew Jacoby, and now to be danced by Kaitlyn Gilliland.

Lisa’s studio was my first stop; several dancers I know were there and she was sorting out a fast-paced section of her two-part ballet which uses music by John Pizzarelli (Traffic Jam) and Norman Dello Joio – an interesting pairing to be sure.

At the start of the pas de deux (above) in which Rebecca and John slowly and warily investigate one another before moving on to a more intimate quality.

Rebecca Azenberg & John Poppe

Click on each image to enlarge.

I then moved to the Streng Studio where choreographer Emery LeCrone (above) was working with one of Gotham’s most gorgeous dancers, Kaitlyn Gilliland, on a solo entitled ARIA.

Kaitlyn Gilliland

Set to music by the Balanescu Quartet, ARIA is a space-filling solo which suits Kaitlyn long limbs and her innate spiritual quality to perfection. Emery and Kaitlyn have an easy rapport and mutual appreciation, so the rehearsal was a particularly pleasant experience.

Kaitlyn!

The Columbia Ballet Collaborative‘s Autumn 2012 performances will take place at Manhattan Movement and Arts Center on November 16th and 17th. Details here. In addition to the works by Lisa and Emery, ballets by John Poppe, Nick Kepley and Daniel Mantei will be performed. I’m hoping to get to rehearsals of the three gentlemen’s creation in the next few days.

October 29, 2012
Ives 4th + Mahler 8th @ Carnegie Hall
Above: Gustav Mahler

Friday October 26, 2012 – The Collegiate Chorale and the American Symphony Orchestra teamed up at Carnegie Hall tonight for a symphonic double-bill, with a delightful ‘prelude’ in the form of Leopold Stokowski’s arrangement of The Star-Spangled Banner. I rarely have the opportunity to work symphonic concerts into my calendar of dance and operatic events (and I continue to suffer from a lack of chamber music in my diet). So I am grateful to the Collegiate Chorale and publicist Michelle Brandon Tabnick for this evening’s invitation.

The evening marked the 50th anniversary of the American Symphony Orchestra and in celebration, tickets were sold at 1962 prices, with a $7.00 top. There was a nice atmosphere in the house and a warm reception for all the musicians involved.

Maestro Leon Botstein swept his forces thru the ‘Stokowski’ Star-Spangled Banner with its wonderful deeper sonorities near the end. Players and audience alike stood for the anthem, and I personally felt a pang of sadness at the state of our country today. But we won’t go into that here.

The players then settled in and the Ives began. This is a fabulous score and I found myself smiling and even chuckling softly to myself as the work progressed: it takes itself so seriously, yet to me it abounds with wit and irony. It seemed clear that some in the audience had not previously encountered Ives’ work: they didn’t know what to make of it. But for me, this was 30-minutes of pure sonic pleasure.

Above: Charles Ives

The wondrous layering of sound, the floating cacophonies wafting over the dense militaristic undercurrents, the dazzling individual instrumental voices shining forth: the ear is constantly titillated. In a stunning volte face, Ives gives us straightforward melody in the 3rd movement which must have felt like a sonic oasis to the uninitiated. Throughout, the piano (expert playing from Blair McMillen) gives the symphony the unexpected feel of a concerto trying to make itself heard thru the waves of sound. A terrific performances, and the players have my admiration for what must be a nightmare of counting.

After intermission, the vast tapestry of the Mahler 8th unfurled itself in the venerable hall. Relentless in its cresting waves of vocal sound flooding over the massive orchestral forces, this is a work like no other. The two choruses simply pour it on all evening, whilst an octet of principal voices – the sopranos often kept in the upper reaches of their range – trade off solo passages of melodic intensity.

Of the vocal soloists, three stood out: baritone Tyler Duncan (above, in a Colin Mills portrait) brought a welcome sense of lyric beauty to his solo. Basso Denis Sedov was equally fine, using his expressive hands to shape the music. In the taxing top soprano line, Rebecca Daviss’ voice gleamed beautifully all evening.

Maestro Botstein was a few minutes into the symphony’s second half when he suddenly stopped; I could not hear his over-the-shoulder remark, but with a tap of the baton he started over. The performance then surged onward, and the audience stayed on at the end to cheer.
- Blair McMillen, piano
- Rebecca Davis, soprano
- Abbie Furmansky, soprano
- Katherine Whyte, soprano
- Fredrika Brillembourg, mezzo-soprano
- Susan Platts, mezzo-soprano
- Clay Hilley, tenor
- Tyler Duncan, baritone
- Denis Sedov, bass
- Brooklyn Youth Chorus
- The Collegiate Chorale
October 26, 2012
Upcoming: Pontus Lidberg for MORPHOSES

Above: MORPHOSES rehearsal director Reid Bartelme and ABT’s Isabella Boylston in rehearsal for Pontus Lidberg’s WITHIN; photo by Jade Young. MORPHOSES will present Pontus’s evening of dance and film entitled WITHIN (Labyrinth Within) at The Joyce from November 7th thru 11th. Information and tickets here.

The performances will open with the newly-staged ballet which has evolved from Pontus’s haunting film LABYRINTH WITHIN. Watch a brief trailer for the film – which features New York City Ballet principal Wendy Whelan, Pontus Lidberg and Giovanni Bucchieri – here. Following the ballet, the film will be shown.

A couple of weeks ago, Jade and I went to a rehearsal of the ballet at the Gibney Dance Center. It happened to be Isabella Boylston’s (above) first rehearsal of the work;, and indeed it fell on a day of firsts since I had earlier watched the New York City Ballet‘s compelling soloist Adrian Danchig-Waing in his first-ever APOLLO rehearsal. Adrian is Isabella’s partner in the Pontus Lidberg work, so I felt like a bit of a stalker following him from one studio to another.

Isabella Boylston and Adrian Danchig-Waring, photo by Jade Young.

Isabella worked with Reid Bartelme, Pontus’s rehearsal director, while Adrian perfected the partnering with Laura Mead, a lovely dancer I’d met earlier this year when she danced for Cherylyn Lavagnino. Laura will alternate with Isabella at The Joyce performances.

Laura Mead, photographed by Kokyat.

I was curious to find that a second couple are also involved in the ballet, since in the film it is definitely a romantic triangle (real or illusory). But Gabrielle Lamb – a favorite dancer of mine – and the handsome Berlin-born danseur Jens Weber were working on another pas de deux, Gabrielle wearing the stiletto pumps that Wendy Whelan wears in the film.

Gabrielle and Jens, photo by Jade Young

Now I’m very curious to see how the two couples will be woven into the story once the ballet takes the stage, and also to find how the staged dance dovetails with the film.

As the appointed studio time seemed about to run out, Pontus let the other dancers go but he stayed behind to work on his solo passages with Reid. Evening was falling outside, and the studio took on a very dreamlike atmosphere.

If you have seen the film, you will recall the striking image of flowers growing thru the floorboards of the mysterious old castle where the film was shot; that’s a Wendy Whelan photo, above.

For today’s rehearsal, Pontus had brought his own flower. His dancing is so poetic, and in these last lingering moments of the rehearsal the outside world seemed to vanish and the beautiful dancer drew us into his dreamworld.

Click on Jade’s images to enlarge.

October 25, 2012
CONTRASTS at Riverside Church: Gallery

A gallery of photographs by Rachel Neville from the recent performances of CONTRASTS at Riverside Church. Read about the programme here. Above: dancers Leonel Linares, Jerome Stigler and Alison Cook Beatty in Tony Morales’ SCENES.

Click on each image to enlarge.

From Yesid Lopez’s STRINGS

Eric Williams, Lauren Perry and Reed Luplau in Lydia Johnson’s CHANGE OF HEART

Reed Luplau, Chris Bloom and Eric Williams in Lydia Johnson’s CHANGE OF HEART

Temple Kemezis and Max van der Sterre in Henning Rubsam’s HALF-LIFE

Max van der Sterre and Oisin Monaghan in Henning Rubsam’s HALF-LIFE

MarieLorene Fichaux and Nicole Corea in Tony Morales’ SCENES

Alison Cook Beatty in Tony Morales’ SCENES

Nicole Corea and Leonel Linares in Tony Morales’ AMOR BRUTAL

Leonel Linares in Tony Morales’ AMOR BRUTAL

Alison Cook Beatty and Kate Loh in Tony Morales’ PIANO PIECES

MarieLorene Fichaux and Jerome Stigler in Tony Morales’ PIANO PIECES

MarieLorene Fichaux and Jerome Stigler in Tony Morales’ PIANO PIECES

Nicole Corea and Leonel Linares in Tony Morales’ PIANO PIECES

My thanks to Rachel Neville for sharing her images with me.

September 28, 2012
Balanchine/Stravinsky @ NYC Ballet

Thursday September 27, 2012 – The third programme in the New York City Ballet‘s 2012 Stravinsky festival included the first ballet that I ever saw the Company perform: BAISER DE LA FEE. This work of pure enchantment holds a special place in my heart and while the memory of Patricia McBride and Helgi Tomasson dancing the ballet’s principal roles on that first night roles stays strong in the memory, I was particulary keen to see tonight’s pairing of Tiler Peck and Gonzalo Garcia making their BAISER debuts.

But first a zesty appetizer: SCHERZO A LA RUSSE was performed by students from SAB. It’s always fun to see, with it’s unfinished sentence at the end.

BAISER with its intoxicating score (conducted by Jayce Ogren, who at the end of the evening gave us a delicious reading of FIREBIRD) always weaves its dreamy spell. And under that spell, Tiler Peck and Gonzalo Garcia danced superbly: Tiler’s pirouettes so swift, soft and fair, and Gonzalo brushing the floor with his fingertiips in his mysterious solo. Their artistry, individually and in unison, is thoroughly satisfying to experience. As the melody of ‘None but the lonely heart’ pulses in the orchestra, the dream ends – or does it go on? – as the lovers back away from one another, eyes heavenward. Alina Dronova and Faye Arthurs were very agile and lovely in their demi-soliste roles.

DANSES CONCERTANTES with its fussy Eugene Berman costumes, old fashioned ‘flats’ setting and entr’acte curtain, has a music hall flavour. It seems a bit dated, and the score – perfectly pleasant – is unmemorable in the long run. Brilliant dancing from Megan Fairchild, Andrew Veyette and a dozen premiere corps dancers (forming four colour-coded pas de trois) showed the ballet to its best advantage, but tonight it seemed longish and very much of a theatrical era that has vanished.

But FIREBIRD seemed like solid gold tonight, with its glowing score – Stravinsky’s most marvelous, in my view – and its ever-entrancing Chagall designs. For me this is a ballet that never ages. Teresa Reichlen is an elegant vision in her fiery tutu, and with her fluttering gestures, her lovely stretched-out leaps and the gentle hush of her Berceuse, she was perfect. Ask LaCour and Savannah Lowery as the prince and princess were likewise impressive. And to the gorgeous melodies of their ensemble, a dozen fetching ballerinas in their Chagall peasant-gowns wove a particularly enchanting spell: Anderson, Arthurs, Brown, Hankes, King, Laracey, LeCrone, Mann, Pazcoguin, Pollack, Smith and Wellington – a fine corps-watchers opportunity. If the girls take the whole thing a bit tongue-in-cheek, that actually makes it all the more fun. Thank you, my beauties.

SCHERZO À LA RUSSE: Students from the School of American Ballet

DIVERTIMENTO FROM ‘LE BAISER DE LA FÉE’: *T. Peck, *Garcia, Arthurs, Dronova

DANSES CONCERTANTES: M. Fairchild, Veyette

FIREBIRD: Reichlen, la Cour, Lowery, Scordato

September 27, 2012
Nomad Contemporary Ballet

Above: Eun Jung Jung and Eric Vlach in rehearsal for Nomad Contemporary Ballet.

Sunday September 23, 2012 matinee – Nomad Contemporary Ballet, under the artistic direction of Kristen McGrew, gave their debut performances in New York City this weekend at the Alvin Ailey Studios. I attended the second of two performances; there was a full and attentive house, an unbroken progression of successful and pleasingly contrasted danceworks, a troupe of very accomplished and appealing dancers, a fine array of music, nice costume designs, effective and uncomplicated lighting. In short, it was a very satisfying afternoon of dance.

Ursula Verduzco’s wonderfully animated THE GAME opened the performance with the dancers running in place. They wear colourful flannel tights embellished with constellations and galaxies, reminding me of a kid’s pajamas. To music by Dead Can Dance, the dancers swoop and leap about the space, forming mini-cliques and then going off on other tangents. A very good way to kick off the programme.

It was the duet ADRIFT, choreographed by Ms. McGrew, that introduced me to Nomad when it was performed recently as part of the Latin Choreographers Festival 2012. I loved it then and loved it even more today as it took on a new resonance by virtue of this brief program note: “Two people who love one another but are not lovers, bound together to a single person who they both loved and lost: his wife, her sister.” That single sentence threw a poignant light on the duet and it became a very moving piece to watch today…and just a bit harrowing in my current fragile state of mind. Dancing beautifully to Bach, Erin Ginn and Eric Vlach were so expressive that they left me with a lump in my throat.

Above: dancer Shannon Maynor photographed by Melissa Bartucci.

If ADRIFT was touching, the next work MIDNIGHT ABYSS made me feel suicidal…oh, it was very well-choreographed (by Adrienne Hurd) and danced, but that song – Jacques Brel’s ‘Ne me quitte pas’ – what a stab in the heart that is! Luckily there was no revolver or razor blade to hand. So I made myself focus on the two dancers who opened the piece: Shannon Maynor and J’Michea Walker. Excellent, both of them. The piece develops into a large work with some ritualistic unison phrases; on my playbill I scrawled ‘gorgeous ensemble’. Shannon is a really impressive dancer to watch; her dancing has both strength and beauty. It was a piece that matched my mood and thus took on a particular dark lustre of its own. I’d love to see it again.

Choreographer Janet Atallah turned to music of Philip Glass for her work SYNAPSE; some people think Glass has been over-used for dance but I say: the more Glass the better. I’ve yet to see a work set to his music that I actively disliked. Ms. Atallah’s piece unfolded pleasingly, on pointe and with lots of classic ballet vocabulary woven into fresh sentences and paragraphs. A solo for Shannon Maynor and her duet with J’Michea Waker were among the finest passages, as was an adagio for four women.

In a triple tour de force, Alexei Agoudine (of ABT) not only choreographed his ballet RUSTY ROMANCE but also wrote the music for it and designed the costumes. Witty and wistful, this story of the love of a spark plug for a fuel filter was a real charmer from start to finish. Joel Levy as the mechanic sets things in motion (later his own pirouettes drew a round of applause); there’s a quartet of on-pointe sparkplugs and then there’s the hapless fuel filter, played by Eric Vlach. The winsome and pretty Erin Ginn loses her heart to Eric and they have a love duet after which Erin’s energy has drained away. She pines for him as her sister-sparks make fun of her; but love conquers all and the ballet ends with a triumphant apotheosis.

Above: dancer Erin Ginn, photo by Melissa Bartucci.

Kristen McGrew’s RUA (‘Red’) ended the afternoon in fine fashion, the dancers in red and black moving fluently to music of Antonio Vivaldi. The piece is very astutely structured and the combinations are woven together with a sure hand, giving the dancers ample oppportunity to shine both as individuals and as an ensemble. A particularly lovely adagio for Eun Jung Jung and Eric Vlach gave the ballet its center. Kristen’s musical choices – Bach and Vivaldi in this programme – put her in alignment with me as to setting the creative energy on music that is worthy to be danced, especially when a work is on pointe. Music for dance needn’t be classical, but it does need to be classy.

In addition to the dancers named in the above paragraphs, Nomad Contemporary Ballet also gave us Khiara M Bridges, Alessandra Giambelli, Bethany Lange, Rebecca Ross, and Malik Warlick each of whom I was able to focus on in the course of the afternoon.

I’m hoping these calling-card performances will be the start of a prospering time for this Company which can offer performing opportunities for dancers steeped in classical ballet, and the possibility for choreographers to create new works in that genre. I congratulate Kristen and eveyone involved for this new beginning.

Here are some images from the actual performance; the photographer is Melissa Bartucci:

From THE GAME with dancer J’Michea Walker in the foreground

From ADRIFT; the dancers are Erin Ginn and Eric Vlach

The ensemble in MIDNIGHT ABYSS

Shannon Maynor and J’Michea Walker in SYNAPSE

Above: dancer Eun Jung Jung

Click on each of these images to enlarge.

September 23, 2012
CONTRASTS at Riverside Church

Above: Morales Dance rehearsal photo by Matt Murphy. The dancers are Leonel Linares and Nicole Corea.

Saturday September 22, 2012 – Tony Morales of Morales Dance is the driving force behind CONTRASTS, a programme of works by four choreographers presented at The Theater at Riverside Church. Tony’s guest choreographers are Lydia Johnson (Artistic
Director of Lydia Johnson Dance), Yesid Lopez (Director of DeMa Dance
Co) and Henning Rübsam (Artistic Director of SENSEDANCE).

I’d been looking forward to this alignment of dance and dancers for some time, and the evening came off very well indeed, with major kudos to Mike Riggs for his lighting designs that produced some striking images in the varied works.

Morales Dance presented three works on the programme, opening with the Spring-like freshness of SCENES. To music of Benedetto Marcello, the dancers are first seen kneeling in a circle in a pool of light. The opening sequence has a ritualistic feel which envolves into an airy and pleasing series of dances: an allegro duet for Nicole Corea (a guest dancer from Lar Lubovitch Dance Company) and MarieLorene Fichaux, a pas de trois for Alison Cook Beatty, Jerome Stigler and Leonel Linares. Kate Loh makes a lovely impression in her dancing here (and later, in AMOR BRUTAL), A solo for Alison Cook Beatty, danced in silence, forms a bridge to the concluding passages danced to Chopin. As the work moves to its finale, the dancers return to their opening circle of light.

Later in the evening we saw Tony Morales’ AMOR BRUTAL, a narrative work that I’ve watched being developed in the studio over time. In August, Matt Murphy produced some beautiful images at a rehearsal of the piece. Soft billows of smoke waft across the stage as singer Mary Ann Stewart and pianist Sandro Russo (performing live onstage) embark on the Manuel de Falla songs which provide the setting for this domestic drama. Nicole Corea and Leonel Linares have reached the point of no return in their marital conflict and now it’s a question of where the couple’s three daughters will set their allegiance. Nicole, dancing with her ever-radiant personal commitment, naturally assumes that her girls will be in her camp. But it’s the n’er-do-well father, danced with easy charm by Leonel, who has his daughters in the palm of his hand. The work ends with Nicole completely marginalized; the sisters (Kate Loh, Alison Cook Beatty, MarieLorene Fichaux) turn their backs on her and her husband slips out of the picture entirely. Adding a last personal touch to this work, the concluding song Amor Brutal is performed on a recording by Tony Morales’ father, who passed away earlier this year.

Three duets comprise the final Morales work on the programme: PIANO PIECES: the first danced by Kate Loh and Alison Cook Beatty to a waltz tune, the second performed by MarieLorene Fichaux and Jerome Stigler to Scriabin, and the third danced by Nicole Corea and Leonel Linares to Scarlatti.

The opening image of Lydia Johnson’s CHANGE OF HEART, enhanced by Mike Riggs’ lighting, caused me to gasp for breath momentarily: this work- which I have watched being created over the past several months – and these dancers have a special significance to me. Some people close to me know of my unhappy Summer and of the rift between me and my cherished friend who should have been with me tonight watching Lydia’s work. However, sometimes the very things that remind us of past happiness also reassure us as we try to move on. Between the Bach music and the sheer expressive beauty of Lydia’s troupe of dancers, the experience was uplifting.

For musicality and fine structuring, few people currently choreographing in the New York dance scene can compare with Lydia Johnson. There is thought, passion and tenderness in her work, and a depth of musical resonance that is very satisfying to behold. Yet for all that, in the end it’s the dancers whose ‘speaking’ of a choreographer’s unique dialect will make a dancework meaningful or not.

This evening Lydia’s ensemble was led by two of her core dancers: Jessica Sand and Laura DiOrio. Having watched these two young women countless times in the studio or in performance, it is still and always a moving experience to see them rendering Lydia’s choreography with such clarity and grace. Reed Luplau (guest dancer from Lar Lubovitch Dance Company) created a remarkable impression in Lydia’s SUMMER HOUSE earlier this year; he wears Lydia’s style like a second skin. Katie Martin, Natalia Wodnicka and Min Seon Kim have been dancing for Lydia for the past few months and are blending well into the ensemble, each with her own distinctive signature. The newest comers to Lydia’s work – Lauren Perry, Christopher Bloom and Eric Williams – already look more than at home here, and Ms. Perry with her fresh face and feel put me in mind of a favorite dancer from the past: Kate Johnson of the Paul Taylor Dance Company.

Rehearsal image: Laura DiOrio, Eric Williams, Jessica Sand.

And so this particular collective of dancers worked beautifully together to develop the flowing patterns of CHANGE OF HEART: solo moments, duets and ensembles sweep graciously by on the Bach score. A pas de trois for Laura, Reed and Eric, a duet for Jessica and Reed, a men’s trio…these are some of the moments that stood out. But it’s not really a work of highlights but rather a tapestry in which each thread seems richly colourful and alive.

The evening was entitled CONTRASTS, and so something really dark and wild was bound to crop up along the way. Henning Rubsam’s HALF-LIFE is set to a thunderously propulsive score by Laibach. With the ever-vibrant Temple Kemezis and Jacqueline Stewart on pointe, this non-stop dark revel of contemporary ballet style came lke a jolt. Paul Oisin Monaghan, one of Gotham’s most intriguing dancers, always captures the eye. And the astounding power and presence of Max van der Sterre was electrifying. Musically disturbing and on-the-edge in its movement, HALF-LIFE has a life of its own. Mike Riggs’ lighting made a big impression here.

The one choreographer with whose work I was unfamiliar, Yesid Lopez, offered a really appealing work for four girls entitled STRINGS. The costumes – corset-like bodices and gauzy soft-hued pantalooons – were especially lovely and the music (Chopin, Nyman, Dvorak) was matched by the atmospheric glow of Mike Riggs’ lighting. Jessica Black was featured in a solo passage, and the work made me want to see more of Mr. Lopez’s choreography.

September 22, 2012
Rehearsal: John-Mark Owen’s REQUIEM

Dancer Josh Christopher (above) takes a central role in John-Mark Owen’s REQUIEM.

Wednesday August 29, 2012 – Today I went over to the 92nd Street Y where choreographer John-Mark Owen was rehearsing for his upcoming presentation of REQUIEM. The performances are scheduled for September 13th thru 15th at Manhattan Movement and Arts Center. Ticket information here.

Taking on the Mozart REQUIEM from a choreographic standpoint is a major project, and John-Mark has risen to the task in this ensemble work which avoids a literal interpretation of the sacred texts and favours instead a painterly approach. Each ‘frame’ of the ballet becomes part of a living gallery; John-Mark applies a dramatic subtext but he isn’t a slave to it. The sculptural feeling of certain passages, as well as the unison ‘choral’ phrases of walking or marching, respond to the architecture of the music with its sense of ritual.

John-Mark has assembled a strong cast, with particularly vivid performances by Aaron Mattocks (above) as a sinister and even brutal dark angel…

…and the intense lyricism of John Christopher (above). Kerry Shea and Amy Brandt have the principal female roles.

Here are some images from the rehearsal and of the individual dancers involved:

The ensemble

Josh Christopher and John-Mark Owen

Aaron Mattocks, Amy Brandt

Ensemble

Josh Christopher, Aaron Mattocks

Jason Stotz, Nadezhna Vostrikov

JoVonna Parks, Oisin Monaghan

Kelsey Coventry

Alfredo Solivan

Kristen Deiss, Kelsey Coventry

Kerry Shea

Josh Christopher

Nadezhna Vostrikov

Kelsey Coventry, Jason Stotz

Oisin Monaghan, Matt Van

John-Mark Owen

August 29, 2012