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Joshua

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  • Connection to/interest in ballet** (Please describe. Examples: fan, teacher, dancer, writer, avid balletgoer)
    balletomane
  • City**
    Seattle, WA
  1. Curses! Patricia is not performing In the middle, somewhat elevated on my regular night. I saw her last night at the dress rehearsal and she was spectacular.
  2. Four casts for Theme and Variations! It looks like I'll be spending more time at McCaw Hall that weekend, than I originally intended.
  3. Judging from conversations I've had this summer, if this was the case, PNB would have no Corps. Peter also spoke at the Conversation last Sunday to the effect that often members of the company have reached a point where they deserve a promotion, but there is no room in the budget. This, unfortunately, is the reality of ballet in American companies. He did, however, leave open the possibility that there would be more promotions later in the season. On another note, I forgot to mention something about the last $5 Friday. Rasta Thomas is back and rehearsing for Fancy Free.
  4. At Friday's $5 Friday Rehearsal Peter said there will be 2 principal dancer promotions made at the Gala Perfromance.
  5. I missed this on my first reading, but the postcard I received advertising the Season Opening Gala said that dancer promotions would be announced during the performance that evening. Full text: Pacific Northwest Ballet is "rolling out the red carpet" on the 2006-2007 Season! Kick off the Season with a preview performance featuring a world premiere by PNB's own Paul Gibson, three PNB premieres, a performance by soprano Jane Eaglen and the return of Swan Lake. Come celebrate with PNB as we "paint the town red" and Peter Boal announces the promotions of new Principal dancers!
  6. Their website has a short list of upcoming performances: RBDG They will also be performing at Jacob's Pillow in August: Jacob's Pillow Festival
  7. It was great. The bulk of the discussion centered on Tharp's technique and anecdotes from various performances. Shelley Washington gave an account of her first introduction to Twyla Tharp at a workshop in DC (around 1973 if I recall). In which Twyla would teach 10 movements a day, each given its own number. As the workshop progressed combinations were built by Twyla calling out the numbers in a sequence to build phrases. She also spoke a bit about retrograding (learning a phrase and then performing it in reverse as if rewinding) and inverting (all movements pefromed in a opposite manner from which they are learned - for a simple example, a movement performed palms up would be performed palms down). There was some discussion of Twyla Tharp's use of video in her creative process - being able to recombine movements through editting of video footage (apparently a process she adopted quite early). Shelley also spoke about of Twyla Tharp's use of musical selections. Something I did not know was that In the Upper Room was not originally choreographed to the Phillip Glass piece that now accompanies it. In a move that would have Balanchine on edge, the music was changed very close to its first performance date. I can't remember the original score, however. It was a pretty full hour, if I remember more I'll post it.
  8. Just wanted to let everyone know, Backstage Pass is hosting a post performance party backstage at McCaw Hall. Tickets are available online: Backstage Bash
  9. It looks fantastic. The festival is such a good idea. I'm also excited to see what Victor Qijmada will do with PNB. Rubberbandance Group is so much fun to watch.
  10. I too attended Saturday's matinee after seeing Thursday's opening night. The casting was the same for both Ancient Airs and Dances and Red Angels. I couldn't agree with you more about Karel Kruz. I was truly taken with his performance and thought the pairing with Patricia Barker was brilliant. I don't think I'll be able to make any of the Lallone/Herd performances for comparison. I am glad to have seen both couples perform Kiss. James Moore and Mara Vinson performed with an urgency that kept me at a distance from the piece. It is interesting about the length of the ropes and weight of the dancers. After seeing Casey Herd and Kari Brunson perform on Saturday I was much more engaged in the piece. The tone was very different and the theme of longing more poignant. I suppose, after reading your comments, this had to do with the timing, mostly the amount of time (although only seconds different) the couples spent apart reaching for one-another. I would like to see Moore & Vinson again to see if my perception has changed. I love Red angels and hope to see more Dove in the future. Saturday was the third time I had seen this casting of the piece. So, I am excited to see what Friday night's casting will bring. The is a lot I can say about Nine Sinatra Songs, however I do need to get back to work. I will say that I too was disconcerted by Nadeau's character in the piece. There was a ragdoll quality to the way she was thrown around. I would say that Kaori Nakamura in that part exhibited a different character - one that dished out as much as she received. This certainly made the part a little more palatable. I am curious, Helene, if you are still concerned about the lack of opportunities for PNB's company after seeing the breadth of what has been offered in this program?
  11. After last night's performance, I think its clear that there will be no lack of opportunities for all of PNB's company to showcase its talents. With 13 principal couples in this rep, there was plenty opportunity to see dancers who I had not seen much of in the past. Here are just a few that come to mind: Karel Kruz - His pairing with Patricia Barker in Ancient Airs and Dances was impressive. He matched her poise and grace step-for-step. Lesley Rausch & Jordan Pacitti - They performed Red Angels at the Season Opening Gala this year, and after a few months hiatus returned to the part with the confidence and athleticism that hit the mark. James Moore - I was taken with his performance in Mopey earlier this season, and the subtleties he teased out in Kiss were beatiful. Chalnessa Eames & Anton Pankevitch - Theses two turned in a fantastic performance for "One for My Baby" with a great mix of humor and sexuality. Josh Spell - Paired with Jodie Thomas, Josh was a pleasure to watch. I can't remeber the last time I've seen two people so happy just to be dancing.
  12. At Friday's $5 Friday Studio Rehearsal, Peter Boal had mentioned these two performances would be during week 2. I would agree that with such a limited run of the reps that this could be seen as pushing out the chance for a member of PNB to showcase their talents. However, I don't think that this is a lost opportunity. Both Thomas and Weese are incredible dancers that members of PNB's company wouldn't usually get to perform with. (I think Taurean Green danced with Thomas during his DTH days.) I also think it is a credit to PNB that they are able to invite guest artists of such callibre. So, I personally am looking forward to catching at least one if not both of the performances.
  13. I came across this article on boston.com yesterday announcing the 2006 lineup for Jacob's Pillow: Jacob's Pillow festival announces 2006 lineup It looks like a fantastic festival this year.
  14. I attended the Sept. 30th and Oct. 1st evening performances. Here are just a few quick impressions: I really enjoyed having In the Night and Duo Concertant in the same rep. These pieces complemented each other quite nicely. I couldn't help watching one without thinking about the other. I would agree with Rhapsody and allegrefan that the choreography of In the Night was in some way "predictable". However, the final Nocturne framed the piece in a way that left me feeling quite satisfied. The point when all 3 couples stop dancing to take a moment to regard one another was extremely effective. In a addition to how the moment worked within the piece itself, it helped to prepare me for the first movement of Duo Concertant where I found myself more enthralled when the dancing stopped. Artifact II was definitely the crowd favorite. I was able to see both Jodie Thomas and Ariana Lallone dance in the principle couple. The differences in intrepretation were apparent. Ariana's épaulement, highlighted by the yellow costuming and harsh lighting, was incredible to watch. And the energy which Jodie brought to the piece was very powerful. I should probably get back to work. So I'll write more about Symphony in Three Movements later.
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