"Romantics" program

[Alexandra]

Here's a review to start off:

PNB's "Romantics" program reviewed:

'Romantics' pairings at PNB pay tribute to blossoming love

The dance, a dark, abstract ballet set to three pieces of music by Estonian composer Arvo Pärt, was the standout in an enjoyable evening of four repertory works grouped under the theme "The Romantics." Fonte, whose previous work for PNB was "Almost Tango" in 2002, has great imagination and range. "Within/Without" balances beautifully between ballet and modern dance; with soft slippers and flexed feet mingling with perfectly balanced arabesques and quicksilver turns. Costumed in soft greens and lit in bright, stark white, the dance has a desolate, lonely feel to it, even in the ensemble sections.

Lallone and Wevers brought an achingly sad precision to their intricate duet, echoing the dark tones of the music. Fonte even incorporated baritone Erich Parce as an element of the choreography: He brought a new tension with him as he walked slowly downstage, an intruder in black, and extended an arm to the dancers — echoing the ballet's theme pose — before beginning his solo.

[Alexandra]

I'd like very much to hear everyone's response to the new piece, and the program as a whole, but I was struck by the reviewer's ending comment that Paul Taylor's "Roses" was a happy ballet about blossoming love. I've always seen it as a very sad ballet -- it's costumed in black and, at least initially, was dedicated to the poet Edwin Denby and was created soon after Denby's death. (The gymnastic elements in the choreography, I think, are a reference to Denby's early interest in gymnastics and the music is a personal reference as well.) I've seen people sob watching this piece -- but dance can always evoke different responses from different people on different nights. I'm curious as to how you found this work, as well.