NYCB 'Nutcracker' 12/9/2015

WEDNESDAY EVENING, DECEMBER 9, 7:00 PM (Conductor: Capps)

SUGARPLUM: Reichlen Mearns; 
CAVALIER: T. Angle; 
DEWDROP: M. Fairchild; 
HERR DROSSELMEIER: La Fosse+; 
MARZIPAN: Lovette; 
HOT CHOCOLATE: Muller, Applebaum; 
COFFEE: Krohn; TEA: Villarini-Velez; 
CANDY CANE: Ball; 
MOTHER GINGER: Sanz; 
FLOWERS: Mann, Adams; 
DOLLS: Von Enck, MacKinnon; 
SOLDIER: Kayali;
MOUSE KING: Thew; 
FRAU & DR STAHLBAUM: Anderson, Catazaro

We saw New York City Ballet perform 'George Balanchine's The Nutcracker' on the evening of our 49th anniversary.  We've probably seen this production over 70 times and it is always a high point of our holidays.  Of course the Company has been performing it since February, 1954, well before either of us had arrived in New York City. 

At this performance the orchestra, conducted by Stuart Capps, was merely adequate.  This was a small-scaled, conventional reading of Tschaikovsky's famous and familiar score that would not be out of place in any elevator in town. It lacked the grand sweep and subtle nuance that this production requires to be its very best.

Despite these musical reservations, it was a unique performance filled with wonderful dancing and special theatrical felicities.  Marika Anderson and Zachary Catazaro presided over the opening party scene with warmth and grace.  The guests and their children (students from the School of American Ballet) were just at the sweet spot in this 46-performance run where they become comfortable in their roles, but are not yet bored.  Aaron Plous as Fritz was gleefully mischievous, Natalie Glassie wavered between solemn and sweet as Marie (and later as The Little Princess) and F. Henry Berlin as Drosselmeier's nephew (later The Nutcracker and The Little Prince) was suitably handsome, polite and aloof.

Robert LaFosse as Herr Drosselmeier reveals the nutcracker in the Party Scene.
Photo by Andrea Mohin for NYTimes

As Drosselmeier, Robert LaFosse, a guest artist and former principal dancer with the Company, enchanted the party guests with his antics and his mechanical dolls -- Olivia MacKinnon and Claire Von Enck as Harlequin and Columbine, and Ghaleb Kayali as the Soldier.  When Drosselmeier returns to repair the nutcracker which Fritz had broken during the party, LaFosse made him mysterious and quite mad without letting him become too creepy or sinister.

The giant mice arrived to menace Marie, the tree grew, the army of toy soldiers assembled to defend her, and the Nutcracker was awakened to do battle with the multi-headed Mouse King.  Then the Nutcracker was transformed into the Little Prince who crowned Marie his Little Princess and lead her into the Land of Snow.

Snowflakes in the blizzard.  Photo by Andrea Mohin for NYTimes

Balanchine's choreography for the sixteen Snowflakes is pure crystalline perfection -- swirling, multifaceted shapes coalesce and fragment in a blizzard of invention.  The corps -- including four apprentices from the School of American Ballet -- was beautifully prepared, crisp and incisive.

Corps of sixteen Snowflakes.  Photo by Paul Kolnik for NYC Ballet

As the curtain rose on Act II we were in The Land of Sweets -- the domain of Teresa Reichlen's regal and gracious Sugarplum Fairy.  We were greeted by 12 tiny Angels (from SAB, of course) performing one of Balanchine's great dances for children.  The palpable concentration on these tiny faces as they criss-cross the stage is always the sweetest moment in the ballet for me.  They were joined by Ms. Reichlen's Sugarplum.  Bonding with her young subjects is always the first test of an authentic Sugarplum -- Reichlen passed with flying colors -- beckoning each little Angel to cross in front of her and then leading them in a circular tour of the stage before dancing her variation under their adoring gaze.

Teresa Reichlen as the Sugarplum Fairy.   Photo by Paul Kolnik for NYC Ballet

Then we were introduced to the Sugarplum's entire court -- Hot Chocolate, Coffee, Tea, Candy Canes, Marzipan Shepherdesses, Polichinelles, and Dewdrop with her corps of Flowers -- before The Little Prince and Princess arrived in their walnut shell boat.  Prompted by the Sugarplum, F. Henry Berlin as the Little Prince described his triumph over the Mouse King in very precise and expansive mime**.  Delighted by his account of the battle, the Sugarplum escorted the Little Prince and Princess to a place of honor where they watched the divertissements unfold.

Among the dancers in the divertissements, I was particularly impressed by the stretch and snap Gwyneth Muller's Hot Chocolate; by the crisp swagger of Harrison Ball's Candy Cane; and by the delicacy and clear articulation of Lauren Lovette (newly returned from surgery) as the Marzipan Shepherdess.  The voluptuous sensuality of Rebecca Krohn's Coffee was nearly undone by the intransigent tempo from the pit, but she prevailed.

Rebecca Krohn as Coffee.  Photo by Paul Kolnik for NYC Ballet

Emerging from her garden of fourteen lovely Flowers, Megan Fairchild's Dewdrop was a revelation.  After a year on Broadway in 'On the Town', Megan's dancing seems to have acquired both larger scale, greater attack and hints of Broadway bravura.  She has always been a superb technician, but here technique was coupled with both nuanced musical phrasing and knowing theatricality that soared over and around the four-square music from the pit.  We truly saw the music at its best while hearing it at its most banal. 

Megan Fairchild as Dewdrop in Waltz of the Flowers.  Photo by Paul Kolnik for NYC Ballet

Of course, the SAB students that populate the second act (as in the first act) -- The Little Prince and Princess, the Angels, the Candy Canes, and the Polichinelles -- are all adorable and well-prepared by Children's Ballet Master Dena Abergel and Assistance Children's Ballet Master Arch Higgins.  And for a change, the Polichinelles weren't completely upstaged by the outrageous behavior of Mother Ginger as played by Aaron Sanz.  

Children's Ballet Master Dena Abergel rehearsing the children from the School of American Ballet.
Photo by Agaton Strom for Wall Street Journal

Five SAB apprentices scattered throughout the ensembles added notes of eager spontaneity to Hot Chocolate and Waltz of the Flowers as well.

The grand pas de deux for the Sugarplum and her Cavalier is usually the crest of this enormous swell of dance invention.  Since Ms. Reichlen stepped in to replace Sara Mearns -- who was injured when her shoe split apart on her first entrance as Dewdrop earlier in the season -- I assume that Reichlen and Tyler Angle had limited rehearsal time together.  Both are gifted dancers -- who may even have danced these roles together in previous seasons -- but here they were missing the ultimate polish that makes this piece truly unforgettable. They were fine, but the arc of dance perfection had crested a few moments earlier with Megan Fairchild's exquisite (and show-biz savvy) Dewdrop.

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** One year we attended a seminar at the School of American Ballet where Peter Boal (then a member of SAB's faculty) taught The Little Prince's mime scene to one of the student candidates for the part of The Little Prince.  Peter's explanation of the gestures always comes back to mind whenever we watch this mime scene unfold.

Peter Boal as The Little Prince in 1975.  Photo by Martha Swope

As a young student Peter Boal first danced in Balanchine's Nutcracker as a party guest, before undertaking the role of Drosselmeier's Nephew/The Nutcracker/The Little Prince at age ten in 1975 -- when George Balanchine was still alive and actively involved in staging the ballet.  A few years later Peter was the teen-age boy who crouches under the bed and provides its locomotion.  He went on to dance most of the adult roles in the ballet culminating with The Sugarplum Fairy's Cavalier.  In 2014 he even made one guest appearance with NYC Ballet as Herr Drosselmeier.  

As the Artistic Director of Pacific Northwest Ballet, Peter has just unveiled his own staging of Balanchine's Nutcracker for that company.  He will play the role of Herr Drosselmeier at several PNB performances this season.

The Little Prince has been the launching pad for several distinguished ballet careers in addition to Peter Boal's -- including those of Eliot Feld (who originated the role) and Jacques d'Amboise. 

Jacques d'Amboise as The Little Prince.  Photo by Martha Swope

And don't forget that as a student in St. Petersburg, George Balanchine played The Little Prince himself.  In the early days of this production Balanchine also played Herr Drosselmeier -- including in the first television production of the ballet.

  

    

Thoughts on Some Recent Movies . . .

'Spotlight':

We saw 'Spotlight' on November 9th at the AMC Lincoln Square.  The film directed by Thomas McCarthy from a script written by McCarthy and Josh Singer tells the story of the investigation by The Boston Globe's 'Spotlight' team of the decades-long cover-up of pedophilia in the Archdiocese of Boston under Cardinal Bernard Law (played in the film by Len Cariou).  The Globe's investigative reporting on the Church's sexual predation scandal won the 2003 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service and led to Cardinal Law's stepping down from leadership of the Boston Archdiocese.

Banner for the movie 'Spotlight'.

The Spotlight team lead by Walter 'Robby' Robinson (played by Michael Keaton) includes Michael Rezendes (Mark Ruffalo), Sacha Pfeiffer (Rachel McAdams) and Brian d'Arcy James (Matt Carroll) and their managing editor, Marty Baron (Liev Schreiber).  The Globe's assistant managing editor, Ben Bradlee, Jr. (John Slattery) comes from a well-known publishing family.  They identify 87 pedophile priests who were shuffled around the Boston archdiocese over several decades.

Despite its well-known story, 'Spotlight' is incredibly suspenseful  The cast -- which also includes Stanley Tucci, Jamey Sheridan, Billy Crudup and several others -- is uniformly wonderful.  In the summary statements at the end of the film it's appalling that Cardinal Law was 'reassigned' to be the archpriest of Santa Maria Maggiore, one of the four major basilicas of Rome.

'Brooklyn':

On November 14th we saw 'Brooklyn' at the AMC Lincoln Square.  It was about 80% sold out -- lots of walkers and canes in the audience.  'Brooklyn', directed by John Crowley from a screenplay by Nick Hornby based on the novel of the same name by Colm Toibin, stars Saorise Ronan as Eilis Lacey, an Irish immigrant arriving in Brooklyn in the early 1950's.

Banner for 'Brooklyn'.

Through an Irish priest (Jim Broadbent) who's a friend of her sister, Rose (Fiona Glascott), arrangements have been made for Eilis to live in a Brooklyn boarding house run by Madge Kehoe (Julie Walters) and to work as a clerk in a Brooklyn department store.  Initially, Eilis is a little too tall, a little too plain, and much too introverted.

At a church dance she meets Tony (Emory Cohen) a second-generation Italian plumber.  Tony is smitten and begins courting Eilis -- showing up to walk her home from night school and inviting her to come to dinner to meet his family.  With Tony's love, Eilis blooms into a lovely and confident woman.  Their idyll is interrupted by news from Ireland that Rose has died unexpectedly.  Eilis returns to Ireland for a short visit to comfort her mother.

Back in her small Irish village, Eilis is caught up in a web of circumstance -- her best friend's wedding delays her return to Brooklyn, Rose's former employer urgently needs Eilis to cover Rose's job, the golf club wants Eilis to present a trophy in Rose's honor, and Jim Farrell (Domnall Gleeson) a member of the local soccer club starts courting her.  But after a nasty confrontation with her former employer, Eilis realizes that she can no longer be happy in the small-minded Irish village and arranges to return to Brooklyn on the next ship.

'Brooklyn' is a slow, thoughtful film.  It is really about the transforming power of love.  Ms. Ronan is wonderful as the naive, confused Eilis transformed by love into a confident, radiant woman.  Mr. Cohen is especially fine as Tony.  My one major complaint is that the conversation at Mrs. Kehoe's boarding house is unintelligible.

'Sicario':

On Halloween we went to see 'Sicario' at the AMC Lincoln Square.  'Sicario' is directed by Denis Villeneuve from a script by Taylor Sheridan and stars Emily Blunt, Benicio del Toro, and Josh Brolin.

Official Banner for 'Sicario'.

Kate Macer (played by Emily Blunt) is an idealistic FBI agent.  After two members of her team are killed in a raid on a drug house in Chandler, AZ, Kate volunteers to join a task force to find the killers.  The task force is lead by Matt Graver (Josh Brolin), an unscrupulous CIA operative, and includes his 'adviser', Alejandro Gillick (Benicio Del Toro) plus additional FBI, CIA, DEA and military special forces personnel.

The director chooses to put the audience in the same bewildering position as Kate -- gradually realizing that Matt and Alejandro are not entirely honest about their motives and that she is being used on the task force as more than just an aggressive FBI agent.  

Emily Blunt is excellent at conveying Kate's confusion and bringing the audience with her as she gradually discovers the real purpose of the task force.  Josh Brolin is perfectly macho and enigmatic; Benicio Del Toro is brutally efficient in what turns out to be the title role; and they are surrounded by a uniformly skillful cast on both sides of the border.

'Sicario' is a brilliant -- if brutal and gore-filled -- look at America's drug wars and the lives it destroys.   

   

Autumn Quibbles and Bits . . .

New York Times Article on Diversity in Ballet:

In case you missed it, here's a link to a slideshow and the accompanying article from The New York Times about the push for greater diversity in ballet.  Both the slideshow and the article rely heavily on discussions with students and alumni of the School of American Ballet. 

http://www.nytimes.com/…/the-…/s/01DIVERSITY-slide-JXPV.html

It's wonderful to have such positive recognition for SAB's Diversity Program which is seeking to address the continuing lack of diversity in ballet education and ultimately in professional ballet companies.

Clockwise from upper left:
Sebastian Villarini-Velez (corps) & Sasonah Huttenbach (apprentice) of NYC Ballet
Rachel Hutsell & Christopher Grant (both apprentices) of NYC Ballet
Preston Chamblee (corps) of NYC Ballet
Taylor Stanley (soloist) and Olivia Boisson (corps) of NYC Ballet
Silas Farley (corps) of NYC Ballet
Clara Ruf-Maldonado (apprentice) of NYC Ballet
Photos by Jesse Dittmar for the NY Times

There is lots more work to be done, but it's good to know that SAB and New York City Ballet are at the forefront of these efforts.  The elevation of Misty Copeland to principal dancer at American Ballet Theater last June is a great symbolic step, but now every professional ballet company and school needs to take advantage of that 'Misty' moment to recruit, train and advance youngsters from diverse backgrounds and communities.

And ultimately, we in the audience must accept that swans and their swains come in all colors.

Halloween Open House at SAB:

On Friday, October 30th, I attended the annual Halloween Open House at the School of American Ballet.  Most of the students and some of the faculty wear imaginative costumes -- often coordinating with others -- Peter Pan, Wendy and Captain Hook; 4 unicorns; 3 swimmers; 2 ladybugs; etc.  At the Open House members of the School's Association are free to observe entire classes or wander from one studio to another.  I chose to watch all of Suki Schorer's D level class and then Jock Soto's Advanced Men's class.

In the D class there were several witches (including Suki), a trio of Pink Ladies (from 'Grease'), a beautiful Victorian vampire, and a Rosie the Riveter (sadly no picture available):

Suki Schorer as a witch with SAB's
new pumpkin orange decor.

All photos from SAB Facebook page

The three 'Pink Ladies' of D level.

D level 'Vampire' adjusting her makeup before class.

The Advanced Men's class was quite a bit smaller than usual because several of the students were participating in the fall session of the New York Choreographic Institute.  That gave us an opportunity to focus on fewer students than in the regular Advanced Men's class.  Jock remarked that he enjoyed teaching the smaller group so he could concentrate on working with fewer students.  Among them were The Joker, two Batmans, and a Robin, a penguin, two clowns, and some soccer players.  Most of the costumes proved to be too hot for Jock's strenuous barre and were shed as the class wore on:

The Joker and a Batman (1 of 2).

A Penguin (I think) in front of a Clown.

Susan Pillare as 'the SAB August renovation' (center) with the young ladies of the C-2 class.

The students in the other classes were equally creative, but no one topped Susan Pillare as the 'SAB Renovation' that took place last August while the School was closed.

Katrina Killian (in white kitten mask right of center) with the  C-1 class.

The two gum ball machines in the C-1 class looked like a lot of work, but they were adorable:

It's always fun to see where these students' imaginations can lead them and just how they'll realize their visions within budget.

Putting It Out There:

And finally, how about David Prottas featured this week in the 'Meet the Undateables' column of Time Out NY:

http://www.timeout.com/newyork/blog/meet-the-undateables-david-and-andy-111015

'His show' that David's blind date, Andy, thinks he'll get tickets for was BalletCollective at the Skirball Center at NYU on November 4th & 5th.  They got terrific reviews from Alistair Macaulay (in the NY Times), several other critics -- and hopefully Andy.  

You can read all of their reviews on the 'Press' page at the BalletCollective site here:

http://balletcollective.com/

David Prottas and Taylor Stanley in 'All That We See' by Troy Schumacher for BalletCollective.
Photo by Matthew Murphy

I sure wish we'd planned ahead and gotten to one of their performances last week.

SAB 2015 Student Choreography Workshop

On Saturday, October 10th, we went to The School of American Ballet for the first showing of the 2015 Student Choreography Workshop.  This year 55 students danced in 16 works choreographed by their fellow students.  This is the first time that female choreographers (11) outnumbered male choreographers (5) -- better reflecting the make-up of the School's Advanced Division than in the past.

As in prior years, the ground rules are that the works must be five minutes or less, must use no more than five dancers, and must be created and ready for presentation in a span of less than three weeks.  Choreographers chose their own music --with assistance from Jeff Middleton, SAB's music teacher, if sought.  They select their dancers from among their peers -- dancers can appear in only one work.  I suspect that 'negotiate' may be a more accurate description of this process.  It is up to each choreographer to schedule rehearsal times, book studios, and resolve scheduling conflicts within the 15 hours of studio time they are allotted for rehearsal.

The entire process from application through presentation is overseen by Kay Mazzo, co-chairman of SAB's faculty, and Renee Rossi, the School's artistic coordinator.  

Christina Clark (right) giving pointers to Gianna Reisen and Kennard Henson.

All photos by Rosalie O'Connor for The School of Aamerican Ballet

The workshop was presented three times -- first on Saturday afternoon, October 10th, for faculty, staff, and volunteers of the School, participants' families and fellow students; the following Wednesday, October 14th, as part of 'A Fall Affair', a benefit evening for The School's younger patrons; and then on Thursday evening, October 15th, for SAB's major donors.

Every year the resulting ballets provide astonishing testament to the talents of SAB's students as both choreographers and dancers.  While every person in the audience probably had clear favorites, here are my thoughts on all 16 works.

• Christina Clark chose the first movement (Allegro moderato) of J. S. Bach's 'Violin Concerto in A Minor, BWW 1041' for the dancers Justine Flores, Gianna Reisen, Thomas Davidoff, and Kennard Henson.  She responded to the jaunty rhythms of this music with correspondingly bright, complex movements which showed off her dancers speed and clarity.

  

  Gianna Reisen in Christina Clark's piece.

Justine Flores and Kennard Henson in Christina Clark's work.

• Courtney Nitting worked with the familiar 'Winter' movement (Allegro non molto) from Antonio Vivaldi's 'Concerto for Violin, Strings and Continuo in F Minor' -- aka 'The Four Seasons'.  Courtney's dancers were herself and Marc LaPierre.  She was the only student to choreograph a piece on herself and I kept wondering how much that simplified the rehearsal process.  It was a lovely piece that responded in interesting ways to its score.

Courtney Nitting in her own piece.

Marc LaPierre in Courtney Nitting's piece.

• Paul Hindemith's 'Capriccio in A Major' from his 'Three Pieces for cello and piano' was a challenging choice of music for Taylor Ayotte.  She added to the complexity by selecting the very tall redhead, Lily Cascells, and two shorter men, Adrian Pasten and Noah Strand.  Ms. Ayotte met these challenges with a quirky, capricious work.

Lily Casscells in Taylor Ayotte's Hindemith piece.

• Christopher D'Ariano selected 'Bounce Bounce' and 'Sink' composed and played by the violinist, Hilary Hahn, and the pianist, Hauschka, on a prepared piano.  The pieces are propulsive and repetitive and Christopher's choreography for Christina Clark and Saskia de Muinck Keizer was by turns skittish and assertive.

Saskia de Muinck Keizer with Christina Clark (left) in Christopher D'Ariano piece.

• To 'Paestigium' by Stefano Ianne, Gilbert Bolden III created an intense, virtuosic piece for Larisa Nugent, Darius Black and Roman Mejia.  There was a short break in the music which Gil used for a lovely grouping of the three dancers that seemed like the perfect conclusion -- but, it was a false ending.  The audience applauded, drowning out the resumption of the music and dancing, leaving us feeling sheepish and confused.  Still the piece utilized the talents of three wonderful dancers who danced with poise and elan.

Larissa Nugent in Gilbert Bolden III's work to Stefano Ianne's 'Praistigium'.

Roman Mejia in Gilbert Bolden III's work to Stefano Ianne's 'Praistigium'.

• Isabella Carroll chose the second movement (Allegro molto) from Gabriel Faure's 'Piano Quartet #2 in G Minor' for her dancers, Taylor Ayotte, Emily Helman, Devon Malin and Trevor Dines.  The music features a fractured piano melody over a turbulent, often plucked, string background.  Ms. Carroll offered an energetic, yet nuanced, response for her dancers -- displaying their speed and stamina.

Taylor Ayotte and Trevor Dines in Isabella Carroll's Faure piece.

Taylor Ayotte and Emily Helman jete in Isabella Carroll's work to Faure.

• Adrian Pasten offered some tonal relief from the long series of intensely allegro pieces with his setting of Sergei Rachmaninov's 'Elegie in E flat Minor' for his five dancers -- Jennifer Hackbarth, Erin McAvoy, Lily Wheatley, Dallas Finley and Ethan Fuller.  The music is reflective and relatively slow, giving Adrian's dancers a chance for some lovely adagio partnering, while the skittering undercurrent offered opportunities for quirky passages as well.

Dallas Finlay and Lily Wheatley in Adrian Pasten's work.

Jennifer Hackbarth, Erin McAvoy, and Lily Wheatley in the Pasten piece.

Jennifer Hackbarth and Ethan Fuller (Erin McAvoy behind) in Adrian Pasten's Rachmaninov work.

• Lily Casscells took on the Third Movement (Allegro) from Dmitri Shostakovich's Piano Concerto #2 -- music used by Alexei Ratmansky in 2008 (for both NYC Ballet and ABT) and by Kenneth MacMillan in 1966 (initially for the Berlin Opera Ballet and later for the Royal Ballet) and therefore familiar to many of us in the audience. Although her dancers were sometimes spread too far apart across SAB's Studio #1, Lily's choreography was extremely musical.  Lily's five dancers -- Eliza Blutt, Hailey Dupont, Jonathan Alexander, Jonathan Fahoury, and Xhosa Scott -- responded to the breathless music with style and airborne virtuosity.

Hailey Dupont, Xhosa Scott, and Eliza Blutt in Lily Cascells work.

Jonathan Alexander, Eliza Blutt, Xhosa Scott, Hailey Dupont,
 and Jonathan Fahoury  spread out in the Cascells work.

Jonathan Fahoury in the Cascells work.

• Using the effervescent final movement (Allegro fugato) from Ludwig van Beethoven's Sonata #5 for Cello and Piano in D Major, Katherine Deuitch created a playful romp for Isabella Carroll, Rachel Costin, and Wilson Livingston.  Katherine used the contrast between the two instruments and the passing back and forth of the fugue from piano to cello as the basis for her choreography.

Katherine Deuitch working with Isabella Carroll and Wilson Livingston on her Beethoven piece.

Rachel Costin in the Katherine Deuitch piece.

• Jonathan Alexander set selections from Arthur Honneger's 'Toccata and Variations for Piano' on his dancers: Gabriela Schiefer, Mark Cudihee, and Andres Zuniga.  The music was written when Honneger was still a music student at the Conservatoire de Paris and reflects the influence of J. S. Bach in its structure and of Honneger's teacher, Vincent d'Indy, in its harmonics.  Jonathan effectively mined the contrasting rhythms and moods of the three-section Toccata (and also I believe the rather intense Variation I) for his choreography.  He also integrated the abilities and personalities of his three dancers effectively -- especially Ms. Schiefer's musicality.

Gabriella Schiefer and Mark Cudihee in Jonathan Alexander's work.

Andres Zuniga in Jonathan Alexander's piece to Honegger's 'Toccata'.

• Gianna Reisen choreographed a duet for Emma Von Enck and Christopher D'Ariano to 'Ford's Farm' composed by Mason Bates for the violinist, Hilary Hahn.  The acerbic, folk-flavored music for violin and piano honors Henry Ford who was an amateur violinist as well as a pioneering automaker.  Gianna uses it for a clever pas de deux which Emma and Christopher danced with wit, style and elegance.

Emma Von Enck and Christopher D'Ariano in Gianna Reisen's work.

• Rachel Costin chose a propulsive piece for string quartet -- 'Caixa de Dolcos' by Chiel Meijering -- for her four dancers -- Ana Maria Delmar, Phoebe Klett, Jennifer Pauker, and Michael Garcia.  There's a breathless quality to the music that Rachel captured nicely with her four dancers.

Rachel Costin working with Phoebe Klett and Michael Garcia during rehearsals.

• 'Run' by Ludovico Einaudi begins as a contemplative piece for piano and strings with a burbling undercurrent that then builds in intensity.  Saskia de Muinck Keizer used it for a lovely pas de trois for Emily Ireland, Josephine King, and Gilbert Bolden III. 

Gilbert Bolden III and Emily Ireland rehearsing
 Saskia de Muinck Keizer's piece.

Josephine King and Gil Bolden rehearsing.

• Eliza Blutt used the third movement from Ellen Taaffe Zwilich's 'Quintet for Strings and Piano'.  Her dancers were India Bradley, Nieve Corrigan, and Nathan Compiano. After the rather anguished opening the choreography, like the music, was spikey, angular and energetic. 

India Bradley in Eliza Blutt's piece.

Nieve Corrigan and Nathan Compiano in the Eliza Blutt work.

• Emily Helman used the second movement (Scherzo - allegro) from Johannes Brahms 'Piano Quartet in C Minor' for her piece.  Katerine Deuitch and Ally Helman (Emily's sister) were her dancers.  The scherzo format uses repeating sections -- in this case ABABA (I think) -- that allowed Emily opportunites to recapitulate and expand choreographic motifs.

Emily Helman worked with Ally Helman and Katherine Deuitch.

• Nathan Compiano produced the absolute highlight of the program to the 'Sacrificial Dance' from Igor Stravinsky's 'Rite of Spring'.  Nathan selected five women -- Lily-Frances Cosgrove, Gariella Domini, Kristina Hadjipetkov, Mary Thomas Mackinnon, and Marie Millard.  The work begins with the five women dancing in unison often with pointes stabbing the floor.  Gradually, Ms. Millard is isolated from the other four women, who continue to dance as a coordinated group as the music grows more insistently frenetic.  At the final chord Marie throws herself head first at the audience -- caught by the other four just in the nick of time in a vivid final image of flailing limbs.

Nathan Compiano's cast: Lily-Frances Cosgrove, Mary Thomas Mackinnon, Marie Millard, Kristina Hadjipetkov, and Gabriella Domini

Lily-Frances Cosgrove, Mary Thomas Mackinnon, Gabriella Domini, and Kristina Hadjipetkov rehearsing Nathan Compiano's piece to Stravinsky's 'Sacrificial Dance: The Rite of Spring'.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

The range of music chosen by these student choreographers is amazing -- from Bach and Vivaldi in the early 18th century right up to music composed in the early 21st century -- six of the 16 pieces used music composed in the last decade.  The young choreographers ability to analyze these often complex scores and create equally complex dances for them demonstrates their inherent and acquired musicality.

With 15 of the 16 choreographers also dancing in another choreographer's work there must be lots of logistics issues to resolve -- four of the works used two other choreographers as dancers.  The two-week rehearsal period must have been especially hectic and required diplomatic and logistical skills as well as musical and dance acuity.

I always wonder how much input the student dancers have to their peers' choreography and how much the choreographers simply impose what they want on their dancers -- are the choreographers collaborators or dictators or a bit of both?   Certainly in all of the works on this program the dancers were shown to their advantage -- perhaps they are chosen by their choreographers because they display these qualities each day in class, but probably they are also given opportunities to develop them during the choreographic process.  Oh, to be a fly on the wall in those rehearsal studios where it all came together for this impressive program.

Once again, we are beholden to Nancy Norman Lassalle for endowing these annual workshops and to Cynthia and Leon Polsky for their continuing financial support.  Their generosity gives all 55 of these students rare opportunities to participate in the act of creation as dancers, choreographers, and sometimes both.