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Alban Lendorf and Isabella Boylston


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New York Times Online had an article last week on partnership: "How Dance Partners Create Chemistry Onstage". Three couples were portrayed, among them the two principals Alban Lendorf and Isabella Boylston on Amercian Ballet Theatre. It is interesting to read what makes a good partnership. Isabelle Boylston says: “I feel like Alban is a really gifted partner. And when you’re good at something, you get into a positive feedback loop. As your confidence grows, your partnering abilities grow along with it.”
You can read the full article by Marina Harss here: How Dance Partners Create Chemistry Onstage

 

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Thank you for starting this topic, Anne!

 

I'm so used to contemporary work where I don't expect any love or even ease to look present in the partnering.  Yesterday afternoon, when I was watching a pas de deux with very tricky partnering and some devilish lifts, the woman took a much more driving, almost independent approach to the role, especially compared to the other two women who danced it with other partners.  And while the final lift was a struggle -- the geometry was going to make that really hard, no matter that he is quite tall -- I didn't even realize that there was a struggle going on from the get-go.  My friend, who knows his stuff, explained afterwards the various ways in which they weren't on the same page -- when I had no idea (seriously) -- how some partners have/develop the kind of trust that makes making it work possible within the laws of physics, and how that is the difference in seemingly incompatible pairs to work beautifully together.

 

There must be a great deal of trust and goodwill in Pacific Northwest Ballet in general, because I remember before Benjamin Griffiths was promoted and was doing demi-soloist partnering roles, when those switches happened, he'd be with the tallest women in the company, and he partnered them like they were the perfect heights for each other.  Similarly, a wide range of corps men between 5'8-5'10, who make everything look smooth despite the company's tall women.

 

 

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