A report on the
Dance on Camera Festivalby Susan Reiter for City Arts.
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The film’s opening strikes a jarring note: While proclaiming the Joffrey’s record of innovation and originality, it starts off with scenes of Lar Lubovitch’s Othello in rehearsal. A ponderous ballet already performed by ABT and San Francisco Ballet at the time, this is hardly the type of work that made the Joffrey’s reputation. Too bad the camera didn’t instead capture rehearsals for its recent acclaimed production of Frederick Ashton’s Cinderella; it was far more representative of the smart repertory choices made by Joffrey, whose commitment to Ashton’s works gave them a singular New York showcase for years.
But once the 90-minute film gets going, the performances—and voices—of many talented and personable Joffrey dancers and the company’s never-a-dull-moment history makes for riveting viewing. The fledgling troupe was in Moscow the week that President Kennedy was shot, and a dancer recalls the mute yet eloquent gestures of sympathy they received from Russians on the street.
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