Saturday, May 21

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Calvin Royal III says ballet is stuck in the eighteenth century.

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The art form dates back to the Italian Renaissance, and most classical ballet companies are still overwhelmingly white. Royal’s presence paired with his extraordinary talent are helping to expand conceptions of who can stand center stage. He aspires to do more than that, however. He wants to extend the boundaries of ballet so that it speaks to today’s most pressing issues: “We have to break ballet out of the 18th century.”

 

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A local TV news feature on Milwaukee Ballet's "Beauty and the Beast."

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The ballet's artistic director, Michael Pink, came on Arts Avenue to talk about how they brought the classic story to life through ballet.

 

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A review of Houston Ballet by Margaret Downing for Houston Press.

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Principal Dancers Connor Walsh and Karina Gonzalez were highlighted in the ballet which focused as much attention on expressive arm and hand movements as the legs and feet. Wearing black and gold classic ballet outfits, they paired seamlessly with each other, in turn playful and serious. Their trip across what presumably was a slightly slick floor was more fortunate than a few other dancers whose movements were interrupted by a few stumbles and what appeared to be one dancer's unintended slide to the floor.
 

 

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A review of New York City Ballet by Leigh Witchel for dancelog.nyc.

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The main pas de deux was one of Wendy Whelan’s signature parts; Phelan looked as if she’d been coached by her.  At the end of her entry, Phelan finished the pirouette hooked round Amar Ramasar’s head exactly as Whelan did it. Like Whelan, Phelan is also extremely plastic; she plunged into splits as Ramasar dipped her. Her approach to the partnering was close to Whelan’s as well; more human in focus than otherworldly. She looked at Ramasar and danced with him. As normal as that sounds, Darci Kistler seemed to ignore her partners, and in “Agon,” that works.....

 

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Darcey Bussell 's friendship with the Queen is spotlighted in a Platinum Jubilee documentary.

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Her manager Steven Howard added: ‘The documentary is about Darcey visiting various locations that have shaped the Queen’s identity and endeavouring to find out exactly what it is the Queen loves most about Britain and these wonderful locations.’

 

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An obituary for Boston civic leader John Humphrey.

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......as Chairman Emeritus of the Boston Ballet, one of his greatest civic and artistic pursuits. John was Chairman of the Board for 14 years, a trustee for a total of 30, and instrumental in developing the Boston Ballet School into the largest such school in North America. 

 

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 New Haven Ballet performs this month.

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New Haven Ballet presents former New York City Ballet Soloist Tom Gold's whimsical Symphonic Nonsense, featuring music by Woodbury, Connecticut native, Leroy Anderson.