The Program for 2015 SAB Workshops

The School of American Ballet has just announced the program for the 2015 Workshops which will be on Saturday, May 30th at 2:30pm and 8pm, and Tuesday, June 2nd at 7pm (Workshop Gala evening).  In the style of it's affiliated ballet company (New York City Ballet) the program is titled '19th & 20th Century Masters: Petipa, Bournonville, Balanchine & Robbins' -- which in this case seems more like a catch-all than a catchy marketing tag.

The first section of the program will include:

Divertissement from Act II of  'Harlequinade', choreographed by George Balanchine to music by Riccardo Drigo.

Pas de deux from 'William Tell', choreographed by August Bournonville with music by Giacomo Rossini from his opera of that name.

Wedding pas de deux with variations and coda from 'Sleeping Beauty', choreographed by Peter Martins after Marius Petipa.

'Valse-Fantasie', choreographed by George Balanchine to music of Mikhail Glinka.

'Stars and Stripes', Third (Men's) Regiment, choreographed by George Balanchine to music of John Philip Sousa orchestrated by Hershy Kay.

After the intermission, the program will conclude with 'Fanfare', choreographed by Jerome Robbins to 'A Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra' by Benjamin Britten. 

The first part of the program will provide a survey of various segments of the SAB student population as well as an opportunity for some faculty members to stage works they know from their performing careers.

'Harlequinade'
Programming the children's divertissement from 'Harlequinade' seems like a bit of a cop out, since it was just presented as part of the complete ballet during the final days of New York City Ballet Winter season.  But, when you take a look at the Company's Spring season you realize that the Company's Children's Ballet Masters, Dena Abergel and Arch Higgins, both SAB faculty members, are simultaneously preparing youngsters to dance in Balanchine's 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' during the week beginning June 2nd.  

The 'Harlequinade' divertissement is one of Balanchine's most delightful suites of dances for children -- much of it fondly recalled from his own experiences dancing in Petipa's 'Les Millions d'Arlequin' during his student days at the Mariinsky Theater in St. Petersburg.  It is performed by 32 children costumed as commedia dell'arte characters.  

Children's Divertissement from Act II of Balanchine's 'Harlequinade'.  Photo by Paul Kolnik for NYC Ballet.

Here's a brief youtube clip from NYCB:

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=10155271230885529&fref=nf

'William Tell'
The pas de deux from 'William Tell' was choreographed by August Bournonville, the celebrated ballet master of the Royal Danish Ballet from 1830 to 1848.  During that period he created more than 50 ballets -- perhaps a dozen survive in some form today.  He also created the 'Bournonville' style of dancing which is known for its rapid footwork, lightness and natural epaulement.

Balanchine brought Stanley Williams from the Royal Danish Ballet to teach at The School of American Ballet in 1964.  From then until his death in 1997 Williams was a legendary member of SAB's faculty, training and nurturing generations of dancers.  Williams staged excerpts from Bournonville ballets for several of the early SAB Workshop performances.

In 1977 he assembled a selection of Bournonville excerpts into a work for New York City Ballet known as 'Bournonville Divertissements' -- which will be revived during the Company's 2015 Spring season.  A few years later Williams staged Bournonville's pas de deux from the opera 'William Tell' for the 17-year-old Darci Kistler and Ib Andersen -- who joined the Company in 1980 as a principal after training and dancing with the Royal Danish Ballet.  Here's a youtube clip of Kistler and Andersen dancing the 'William Tell' pas de deux:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tbtWkpTKqKY

Kistler and Andersen make the Bournonville technique look simple, but is notoriously difficult and can be very hard on the body.  

'Sleeping Beauty'
Peter Martins staged 'The Sleeping Beauty' for New York City Ballet in 1987 in honor of Lincoln Kirstein's 80th birthday.  While it is based on the original 1890 choreography by Marius Petipa, Martins made many cuts to streamline the ballet and changed the choreography to better utilize the Company's well-known speed and energy.  The entire second act wedding scene was staged as 'Aurora's Wedding' for the 2003 SAB Workshops with Ana Sophia Scheller and Tyler Angle dancing the wedding pas de deux.  Here's an excerpt from the Company's website of Tyler dancing that pas des deux with Tiler Peck -- watch for the three spectacular one-handed fish-dives:

http://www.nycballet.com/ballets/s/the-sleeping-beauty.aspx

Darci Kistler danced Princess Aurora in the original 1987 staging with Ben Huys as Prince Desire.  Jon Stafford also danced Prince Desire during his years with the Company.

'Valse-Fantasie'
'Valse-Fantasie' is a work for a principal couple and four corps women using Mikhail Glinka's 'Valse-Fantasie' for piano (1839) which he orchestrated in 1845 and again in 1856.  Balanchine first used this music in 1953 in a ballet for a male dancer and three ballerinas -- Nicholas Magallanes with Diana Adams, Melissa Hayden and Tanaquil Le Clercq.  In 1967 he used the same music as the second movement of a four movement work called 'Glinkiana' which used an assortment of other music by Glinka for other movements.  Mimi Paul and John Clifford led the second movement. 

Part of the cast from the 2010 SAB Workshop performances of Balanchine's 'Valse-Fantasie'.  
Photo by Paul Kolnik

In 1969 Balanchine restaged the second movement of 'Glinkiana' as 'Valse-Fantasie' -- a stand alone work for Suki Schorer and John Prinz.  In 1973 Balanchine supervised the filming of the ballet in Berlin with Sara Leland and John Clifford -- where the four corps women were Merrill Ashley, Susan Hendl, Deborah Flomine and Susan Pillare.  Here's the resulting film as a youtube clip:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q3ZQdqqlRuM

It's light, frothy and entirely delightful.

'Stars and Stripes'
'Stars and Stripes' was created by Balanchine in 1958 and has been a beloved staple of the Balanchine repertory ever since.   The Third Regiment is for a principal man and twelve corps men.  

The men of the Third Regiment behind the two principals in the staging of the complete 'Star and Stripes'
for the 2009 SAB Workshop performances.  Photo by Paul Kolnik for SAB

The music is Hershy Kay's arrangement of John Philip Sousa's 'Thunder and Gladiator March'.  It requires precision and bravura from all thirteen men -- pristine beats, spins, tours, etc.  Here's a clip from the Company's website with Daniel Ulbricht as the principal man:
  
http://www.nycballet.com/ballets/s/stars-and-stripes.aspx

The white-gloved men dance against a dark background which accentuates any imperfection.  With more than two months to prepare for the Workshop, the students will be well drilled -- making this a potential highlight of the performances.  

'Fanfare'
Jerome Robbins' 'Fanfare' has been mounted several times for SAB Workshops -- the last time in 2008 when it was also performed by SAB students at the New York State [aka Koch] Theater as part of that Spring's Robbins Celebration.  

The finale of Jerome Robbins' 'Fanfare' at the 2008 SAB Workshop performances.  Photo by Paul Kolnik for SAB

It is set to Benjamin Britten's 'A Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra' which uses musical themes by Henry Purcell to introduce the listener to each section and instrument of the orchestra.  Using Britten's musical cues, Robbins creates miniature dance caricatures of each instrument.  When Britten reassembles all of the instruments into a masterful fugue Robbins brings back the entire cast for a grand finale.  It is a work that allows the students to cut loose a bit -- especially the three men playing the percussion section.  

Gentlemen of the percussion section in the 2008 SAB Workshop performances of Robbins' 'Fanfare'.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

Programming so many snippets and excerpts makes the Workshop performances seem like a provincial dance recital or an ABT gala program -- lacking the seriousness that they have often had in the past.  Personally, I wish that the School would return to the tradition of staging three substantial pieces -- often including one commissioned work or a long overlooked work -- for the Workshops.  Not too long ago, the SAB Workshops introduced us to Jerome Robbins' 'Two-and-Three-Part Inventions' and Christopher Wheeldon's 'Scenes de Ballet'.  Or reintroduced us to 'lost' ballets like Balanchine's 'Gounod Symphony' and 'Danses Concertantes' that hadn't been danced by the Company in decades.  

There is a decidedly male slant to this 2015 program -- it calls for 16 men and only 7 women (plus 32 children) in the first section and about equal numbers of men and women in 'Fanfare' (I believe 17 of each).  This, despite the fact that there are between 2 and 3 female students for each male student in the intermediate and advanced divisions.

Whatever the Workshop program, it always introduces New York's ballet lovers to outstanding young dancers who often go on to significant careers on the stages of the city, the country and the world.  Right now, I'm looking forward to seeing how the faculty will parcel out this year's excellent students between these diverse pieces.