2014 School of American Ballet Workshop Program -- It's all about the anniversaries

When I first learned of the program Peter Martins had selected for the School of American Ballet's 2014 workshops (on Saturday, May 31st at 2pm and 8pm and gala performance on Tuesday, June 3rd at 7pm) it seemed a bit of a jumble.  But the more I've looked at it the more Peter's choices make sense to me.

First, it's all Balanchine choreography, because he co-founded the School with Lincoln Kirstein in 1934 -- making 2014 the School's 80th anniversary year.

The opening work will be 'Serenade' to Tschaikovsky's 'Serenade for Strings' -- because it was the first work that Balanchine choreographed in America.  He made it in 1934 (also it's 80th anniversary) for SAB students.  According to legend Balanchine incorporated things that actually happened in the School during that first year -- creating each section for the number of students who showed up for class that day; using a student's late arrival for class and finding her place in the opening formation; incorporating a student's stumble and fall to the floor.

The opening moments of Balanchine's 'Serenade' from an earlier SAB Workshop performance, 
photo by Paul Kolnik

But 'Serenade' is far from improvised and remains one of the most cherished works of the Balanchine repertory.  It will be staged by Suki Schorer for the workshop.  Suki has staged this work many times before for SAB performances -- and also for companies around the world as a repetiteur for the Balanchine Trust.  

For anyone who wants to know what dancing in 'Serenade' feels like, I suggest that they get their hands on Jenifer Ringer's new book, 'Dancing Through It', wherein she describes just how dancing in 'Serenade' (at the Washington Ballet School, at SAB and at NYC Ballet) changed her life. 

Jenifer Ringer & Philip Neal in Balanchine's 'Serenade, photo by Paul Kolnik for NYC Ballet

The second work will be selections from the last act of 'Coppelia' which was co-staged by Balanchine and Alexandra Danilova in 1974 (40th anniversary) for New York City Ballet -- based on original choreography by Arthur Saint-Leon in 1870, restaged by Petipa in 1884 (130th anniversary) and by Cechetti in 1894 (120th anniversary).  The Petipa/Cechetti version is the one that Balanchine and Danilova would have known from their student days at the Maryinsky in Saint Petersburg.  Mme. Danilova had a long and distinguished stage career and was a noted interpreter of Swanilda, the heroine, in 'Coppelia'.

Alexandra Danilova coaching Helgi Tomasson & Patricia McBride in 'Coppelia',
photo by Martha Swope

The selections from 'Coppelia' are being staged by SAB several SAB faculty members -- Sheryl Ware, Katrina Killian, Lisa de Ribere, Yvonne Borree, and Jock Soto.

When Mme. Danilova began to teach at SAB in 1964 (50th anniversary), she persuaded Balanchine to present the annual workshops as a way to showcase the students' talent and hard work and give them invaluable on-stage experience. Balanchine resisted calling them 'graduation' performances because it sounded too final and too judgmental, but agreed that a public showcase at the end of the school year for a select audience would be appropriate. The first workshop was performed in 1965, making the workshops in June, 2014 the 50th workshop performances. 

Of course, Peter Martins knows that the inclusion of 24 little girls in this section will add to the demand for workshop tickets, as parents, grandparents, uncles, aunts, and siblings will have to be accommodated.

Balanchine's one-act 'Swan Lake' based on Ivanov's choreography of the lakeside scenes for the Maryinsky was also selected by Martins as a tribute to Mme. Danilova, who was a renowned Odette/Odile.  

Alexandra Danilova as Odile in 'Swan Lake', photo from the Bettman Archive

Balanchine created this 1-act version for Maria Tallchief (his third wife) who has been deemed America's first native-born prima ballerina.  There is a wonderful photo of Mme. Danilova coaching Darci Kistler and Cornell Crabtree for the 1980 SAB workshop. 

Cornell Crabtree and Darci Kistler being coached by Alexandra Danilova for the 1980 SAB Workshop,
photo by Carolyn George

Darci, of course, went on to a distinguished career at New York City Ballet where in 1982 she was the last dancer to be promoted to principal by Balanchine before his death in 1983.  She became a full-time member of the SAB faculty in 1994 (20th anniversary) and retired from NYCB in 2010. Darci is staging the 'Swan Lake' excerpt -- symbolically closing the circle of ballet life -- student-performer-teacher.


It will be interesting to see if they use the ice cave scenery and/or the black costumes for the corps that are the current decor for the New York City Ballet version or hark back to earlier, more traditional decor. 

The last work on the program will be the final movement (Rondo) of 'Western Symphony', the four movement work to traditional American folk music orchestrated by Hershey Kay that Balanchine created in 1954 (60th anniversary). 'Western Symphony' is Balanchine's buoyant tribute to the mythical American West of cowpokes and dance-hall girls. The finale finds the enormous cast all on stage doing fouettes as the curtain descends.  It's a favorite workshop closing ballet because it provides parts for lots of advanced students to perform a high-spirited, yet classical piece to familiar music.  

The original fourth movement cast was led by Tanaquil LeClercq and Jacques d'Amboise.  LeClercq was Balanchine's muse (and his fourth wife) from the late 1940's through the mid-1950's when this work was created.  Known both for her superb classical technique and her sly humor she was ideally cast as the strutting dance hall queen in the extravagant, black hat:  

Tanaquil LeClercq in costume for 'Western Symphony'

You can find a black & white video of the original cast performing the entire work here:
http://www.ina.fr/video/VDD11021500/western-symphony-video.html
The music in this video is extraordinarily fast, but the insouciant personalities of LeClercq and d'Amboise come through clearly in the fourth movement (Rondo).

The excerpt from 'Western Symphony' will be staged by Susan Pilarre who has staged it for several prior SAB workshop performances.

So this workshop program has a lot to do with anniversaries and tributes.  It provides challenging roles for the students, interesting contrasts in mood and style, and ends with a crowd pleasing bang!  

In order to get a jump on all of those little girls' families, go to:
https://www.sab.org/news_events/workshop_performances/tickets.php 
for tickets to the Saturday, May 31st performances, or to:
https://net.sab.org/development-/workshop-benefit-ticket-order-form--for tickets to the Gala Workshop Performance on June 3rd. You'll see the ballet stars of the next generation performing in works by the greatest choreographer of the last century.

  

Faberge Easter Egg Hunt at Rockefeller Center

On Saturday, 4/19, we walked over to Rockefeller Center -- mainly because it was a nice, sunny day and we thought that the Channel Gardens would be decked out for Easter.

What we found was a huge crowd of tourists and New Yorkers taking in the 268 fanciful eggs from 'Faberge Easter Egg Hunt'.  These eggs were created by many artists, designers and even school art classes and were originally 'hidden' all over the city.  We had seen some of them on Columbus Circle in front of Time Warner Center and others on the Trump International Hotel plaza.  They'll be sold now for charity.

It's impossible to show all of the eggs that I took pictures of, but here are a few favorites:

A penny for your thoughts. . .

Cherry blossom time . . .

Let's hear it from the string section . . .

Stars & stripes forever . . .

Quilting bee . . .

Sad, sadder, saddest . . .

Egg a la Delft . . .

Reflections in a silver eye . . .

Babar on parade . . .

 

Butterflies taking flight . . .

Koi pond at sunrise . . . my favorite

Wedding cake frosting roses . . .

The big apple falls far from the tree . . .

Panda sanctuary . . .

Worldly wise . . .

Monet's garden cracked open . . .

Could be a real Faberge . . .

Satelite trajectories with red purse . . .

Man trapped in Legoland . . .

Mouse out for some air . . .

Lucite layers . . .

East Village street scene . . . 

Jelly beans + gummy bears = paisley

Park Avenue Paper Chase

Last Sunday, we walked along Park Avenue from 50th Street up to 57th Street to see the newly installed sculptures collectively called 'Park Avenue Paper Chase'.  They are all by the sculptor Alice Aycock.  Most are composed of strips of white painted aluminum.

The first one we encountered is called 'Maelstrom' -- a long, low piece that from angles looks like a corsage of white roses.  Placed on the median in the center of the block between 52nd and 53rd Streets it stands out in stark contrast to Ludwig Mies van de Rohe's dark Seagram Building to the east and Charles McKim's rusticated stone base on the Racquet and Tennis Club to the west:

'Maelstrom' from 'Park Avenue Paper Chase' by Alice Aycock, painted aluminum, 2014, 
with Seagram Building by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, 1958 in background, photo by McClure

'Maelstrom' from 'Park Avenue Paper Chase'  by Alice Aycock, painted aluminum, 2014,
photo by McClure (looking north along Park Avenue)

It appeared that the The Fund for Park Avenue folks were getting ready to plant flowers (bright red tulips perhaps) around the sculpture.  Some punches of color would enliven the mise-en-scene for these riveting, but stark sculptures.

Moving on to the next block up-town, a piece called 'Hoop-La' is installed near the intersection of 53rd Street.

'Hoop-La' from 'Park Avenue Paper Chase'  by Alice Aycock, painted aluminum, 2014,

photo by McClure (looking northwest)

Approaching along the Avenue from the south 'Hoop-La' appears to be fairly compact, but when viewed from the side you realize that it's much more expansive and complex with an arch of aluminum strips jumping between two anchoring pieces.

'Hoop-La' from 'Park Avenue Paper Chase'  by Alice Aycock, painted aluminum, 2014, with

Lever House by Gordon Bunshaft of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill in background,

photo by McClure (looking west across Park Avenue)

Moving up to 54th Street there's a work called 'Twin Vortexes' installed there -- a piece truly looks like two tornados spinning -- one tall and the other more squat and broad.

'Twin Vortexes' from 'Park Avenue Paper Chase'  by Alice Aycock, painted aluminum and steel, 2014, 

photo by McClure (looking west across Park Avenue)

The tulips are just starting to come up around 'Twin Vortexes' which will add some color soon.  Now the bright yellow taxis whizzing by enliven the scene.  They even appear to set these sculptures spinning.  By 55th Street where 'Spin-the-Spin' is installed these twisters all start to look alike.

'Spin-the-Spin' from 'Park Avenue Paper Chase' by Alice Aycock, painted aluminum and steel, 2014,
photo by McClure (looking west across Park Avenue)

 After all of the kinetic pieces, it is a relief to come to 'Waltzing Matilda' at 56th Street.  It is like a pristine white shell on a beach or an animal skull in a Georgia O'Keefe desert -- gorgeous, sensual, organic -- and very different from all of the others.

'Waltzing Matilda' from 'Park Avenue Paper Chase' by Alice Aycock, reinforced fiberglass, 2014,
photo by McClure (looking west across Park Avenue)

'Waltzing Matilda' from 'Park Avenue Paper Chase' by Alice Aycock, reinforced fiberglass, 2014,
photo by McClure (looking north up Park Avenue)

'Waltzing Matilda' from 'Park Avenue Paper Chase' by Alice Aycock, reinforced fiberglass, 2014,
photo by McClure (looking southeast across Park Avenue)

At 57th Street there's another spinner -- 'Cyclone Twist' -- the tallest of them all.

'Cyclone Twist' from 'Park Avenue Paper Chase' by Alice Aycock, painted aluminum, 2013,
photo by McClure (looking north up Park Avenue)

There's one more piece in Aycock's 'Park Avenue Paper Chase' series -- 'Twister - 12 Feet' -- installed at 66th Street, which we didn't see that Sunday.  They'll be there until the end of June.  On a nice day this spring, if you're looking for an interesting place for a stroll, go check out 'Park Avenue Paper Chase'.  It changes how you see the familiar landmarks on Park Avenue -- even the sidewalk scaffolding.

'Draft Day' with Kevin Costner and a lot of divas

Last Saturday afternoon we went to see 'Draft Day', the new movie starring Kevin Costner as Sonny Weaver, the manager of the Cleveland Browns.  The movie covers the time from when he leaves his home in the morning until he finishes celebrating his picks in the NBA draft.  During the day, he has to deal with one diva after another: the Browns egotistical owner (Frank Langella); the Browns arrogant new coach (Denis Leary); his recently-widowed, demanding mother (Ellen Burstyn); his needy girl-friend (Jennifer Garner) who is also a lawyer in charge of the Browns salary cap (can that be a real job?); an entitled, Heisman-winning quarterback and prospective first round draft pick (Josh Pence); his smoothly over-confident agent (Sean Combs); numerous members of the Browns coaching and management staff; numerous managers of other NFL franchises; several other potential draft picks; several NFL officials and network sports casters playing themselves.  

Original 'Draft Day' Poster with Kevin Costner and various NFL paraphernalia

Much of the movie is told through phone conversations, which use ingenious split-screen effects to relieve the tedium.  There is also a lot footage devoted to NFL product placement footage -- Radio City Music Hall on 'draft day', various NFL venues and stadiums.

Costner is the deft, agile, mostly calm center of this on-going maelstrom of egos, opinions, demands, tantrums and diatribes.  It is a wonderful role, wonderfully played.  He makes you aware of his guile, subterfuge, humor, and befuddlement .

The rest of the cast plays various types of wood -- hard, soft, light, dark, exotic, common -- but all wooden.  It's like watching Kevin Costner walking through a forest desperately trying to make sense of these encounters, but there's no one else there.

Italian Futurism at the Guggenheim -- Way Too Much Stuff

Saturday afternoon we went to the Guggenheim Museum to see 'Italian Futurisum, 1909-1944: Reconstructing the Universe'. 

'Italian Futurism, 1909-1944: Reconstructing the Universe', Guggenheim Museum,
photo by McClure

This exhibition occupies the entire ramp and a few side galleries as well.  It is generally organized chronologically from the Futurist 'manifesto' in 1909 at the bottom of the spiral to it's conclusion at the end of World War II in 1944 at the top.


Rather than climb up the Guggenheim's ramp, which seemed daunting, we chose to take the elevator to the top and walk down the ramp.  Despite going 'downhill', the pitch of the ramp took a very hard toll on our older backs, hips and legs. We wonder if Frank Lloyd Wright considered AARP members in his design.

Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum by Frank Lloyd Wright, viewed by SSW, photo by McClure

The Futurist Manifesto, written in 1909 by the poet, Filippo Tomassa Marinetti, and first published in Bologna in the newspaper 'Gazzetta dell'Emilia': rejected the past; celebrated a future of speed, machines, violence, youth and industry; and advocated the rejuvenation of Italy.  Marinetti believed that Italy should be expanded to include areas of northern Italy that were still part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire prior to World War I. This ultra-nationalism led Marinetti to initially align the Futurists with Mussolini and the Fascists, though he later rejected the monumentalism that characterized Mussolini's political maturity.

Among other things, the manifesto sought to diminish feminism and promoted the belief that a woman's primary role was as a wife, mother and homemaker.  This makes the emergence of Marinetti's wife, Benedetta, as a leading visual artist of the Futurist Movement all the more striking.  

At the very top of the exhibit in an annex gallery are the murals from the post office in Palermo, Sicily, done in 1933-34 by Benedetta (Capa Marinelli):

'Synthesis of Communications' by Benedetta (Capa Marinelli), tempura and encaustic on canvas, 1933-34,
photo by Kris McKay 

These murals make their first appearance outside of Italy in the Guggenheim show.  The five panels depict various means of modern (for the mid-1930's) communication.  They are connected artistically by the blue palette as well as their bold shapes and dynamic compositions.

'Synthesis of Communications' by Benedetta (Capa Marinelli), tempura and encaustic on canvas, 1933-34,
photo from Artopia:  an artsjournal blog

As you descend the spiral there is a cornucopia of materials from the Italian Futurist movement -- not only painting and sculpture, but furniture, ceramics, clothing, posters, pamphlets, architectural drawings, films -- way too much to take in in a single viewing.  And despite the generally chronological organization, the whole show comes across as a sprawl of objects with a few high points.

Near the top is an image related to war and aeronautics which captures many of the Futurist themes -- rejection of the past, speed, machines, nationalism, war.

'Flying Over the Coliseum in a Spiral' by Tato (Gulielmo Sansoni), oil on canvas, 1930, photo by Corrado di Grazia

In the annex on the fourth level there is a small amphitheatre which contains materials related to a 1917 art work by a Futurist artist, Giacomo Balla, which was commissioned by Diaghilev to accompany Stravinsky's 'Fireworks'.  

'Sketch for Fireworks' by Giacomo Balla, 1915

In this amphitheatre I ran into Meredith Robbins and her husband, Eric.  Meredith is the Director of Development for the School of American Ballet (where I do volunteer work). All three of us were confused by what was supposed to occur in that amphitheatre, but it was nice finding them there where the Italian Futurist movement intersected with the ballet world of Diaghilev's Ballet Ruses and Stravinsky's music.

Another work by Benedetta from 1923, really captures the motion and speed characteristic of the Futurist movement:

'Speeding Motorboat' by Benedetta (Capa Marinelli), oil on canvas, 1923-24,
photo from the archives of the Gallery of Modern Art, Rome 

Further down the ramp I encountered another dance reference:

'Dancer in Blue' by Gino Severini, 1912, oil on canvas

And also on the ramp was a wonderful old friend we'd seen the previous weekend at MoMA:

'Unique Forms of Continuity in Space' by Umberto Boccioni, bronze, 1913, cast 1949,
Collection of The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Apparently there are several castings of this sculpture scattered around the world.  It certainly captures the forward thrust into the future that the movement was all about. Boccioni was also a painter.  I was quite taken with this work by Boccioni from the very early days of Futurism near the bottom of the ramp:

'The City  Rises' by Umberto Boccioni, oil on canvas, 1910, Collection of The Museum of Modern Art

But, my overall impression of this exhibition is of clutter, lots of clutter.  Italian Futurism needed to be rescued from its bad associations with Mussolini and Facism, but not by an overwhelming avalanche of knick-knacks and second rate art tumbling down the Guggenheim's ramp.