Monday, February 17

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A review of American Ballet Theatre by Oksana Khadarina for DanceTabs.

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American Ballet Theatre’s brought its evergreen production of Giselle to the Kennedy Center Opera House for a seven-performance run in the second week of February, with seven casts in the leading roles. This staging of the 19th-century classic, created in 1998 by ABT’s artistic director Kevin McKenzie, is traditional and straightforward, with the choreography attributed to Jean Coralli, Jules Perrot and Marius Petipa. The costumes (by Anna Anni) and stage decorations (by Gianni Quaranta) are attractive and effective; yet the production shows its age. Both the décor and the wardrobe are in need of an update.

 

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Dancers of the Vienna State Opera perform the Mistake Waltz.

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In the parody video, ballet dancers fall out of time with each other, forget their moves, stand in the wrong place and passive-aggressively elbow each other.

 

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A review of Milwaukee Ballet by  John Schneider for Shepherd Express.

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In an act of great confidence or remarkable chutzpah, Milwaukee Ballet artistic director Michael Pink challenged three of his company’s dance artists—including two with limited choreographic experience—to “reimagine” modernist works created by legendary Paris-based company Ballets Russes early in the last century. To music by one of that troupe’s house composers, Igor Stravinsky, each choreographer was to create an original one-act ballet with company dancers.

 

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A review of the Royal Ballet by Sara Veale for Fjord Review.

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There are moments when the story loses its clarity, especially for those of us unfamiliar with Du Pré, but I don’t think the reliance on programme notes is a problem here, since it’s in service of bringing a noteworthy—and true—story to life. A slightly murkier issue is the excessively literal libretto, which entails some busy back-and-forth with parents and teachers and record-waving fans. There’s also the uneasy plaiting of Du Pré’s childhood and adult selves, a familiar Marston device. It’s sweet to see our protagonist blossom as a young student but slightly confusing when the young Jacqueline returns at the end.

 

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Interior designer Stephen Sills talks about the influence of Rudolf Nureyev's apartment.

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“Some of the greatest interiors are stage sets, and that room was at a theatrical scale,” Sills says, noting that the dramatic environments that cradled Nureyev onstage and off- followed him to eternity: A billowing kilim made of mosaics by costume-and-set-designer Ezio Frigerio drapes the dancer’s grave site, in a Paris suburb. “My own house is a kind of stage set for me,” Sills continues. Like Nureyev, he adds, “I don’t give a damn about living in it. Clients require comfort, but I don’t; I just care what it looks like.”