All Balanchine

[Helene]

Last night was opening night for Ballet Arizona's "All Balanchine" program: "Serenade," "Monumentum pro Gesualdo," "Movements for Orchestra," and "The Four Temperament."

This is the first year in a decade that I've missed this program . I hope people will go and post about it .

Katrina Becker wrote a wonderful preview about the program for the Downtown Phoenix Journal, and it included parts of an interview with Natalia Magnicaballi, who describes working for Ib Andersen and Suzanne Farrell -- she's a member of Suzanne Farrell Ballet when her schedule permits -- her recovery from an ACL injury in 2011, and her love for "Movements for Orchestra." (She was injured during BA's company premiere of Monumentum/Movements in June 2011.)

I think her most interesting point is this, since Balanchine looked at choreography from both sides:

“It’s very interesting for me,” says Magnicaballi, “because [Farrell and Andersen] both worked for Balanchine [in the 1980s], so I have the female…and the male…so it makes sense how they ask for things.” She pauses thoughtfully. “They’re very different in personality, but I think that they complement each other.”